At a point on my EM pinball now to start airbrush playfield touch ups but unsure which paint to purchase. I'm leaning towards Createx but do I buy Opaque, Transparent, pearl??? I see people using opaque but they all seem to be newer non EM.
I also noticed a Badger brand. Has anyone ever used these on the EM? Are they decent?
I'm going to be waxing with paste wax so I'm not 100% certain opaque will look glossy when waxed or stay dull.
Any suggestions?
You definitely want opaque. Transparent is, well, transparent. You will also want to heat set the paint with a hair dryer and protect the painted area with something stronger than just paste wax. Cover with clear or a patch of Mylar. Acrylic paint is not very durable at all.
I have used all kinds of paints in my airbrush. If it is acrylic it will need to be covered somehow. I have used the craft paints that are so pooh poohed. I had really good results and many times you can find an exact match.
I have also used createx. They work well also.
Always choose opaque.
The only touch ups that I did not clear coat were small touch ups I did using spray paint sprayed into a cup and brushed on to small areas.
I did this on my Big Brave 10 years ago and it stood up fine. I just sold it last December.
Again, with spray bombs often you can find a perfect match without mixing.
If you are going to mask or use frisket with an airbrush use acrylic. You can also spot clear with Varethane ( also out of favor now) or auto clear. With Varethane you can choose satin or semi gloss and match the surrounding sheen.
Ok so I'm seeing the paste wax will no provide enough protection against the new paint....was really hoping to avoid the clear coat and keep with the EM waxing.
Will the clear coats offered up by createx (mixed into the paint) and hobby shops for airbrushing suffice?
Something like: https://createxcolors.com/airbrush-colors/reducers-clears/5604.html
If you are using Createx a rock hard coating over it is needed. This only comes from a 2-part clear coating.
That is unless it will simply be a show piece, played intermittently.
If there is a full playfield protector available for this particular EM, then that is a good option to cover the paint in lieu of a clearcoat. https://www.playfield-protectors.com/22/Playfield-Protectors
I went that route with a FH that I used Createx (opaque) to touch up a few areas with. Has the benefit of smoothing out any dished inserts you might have on an older EM, and makes the playfield really pop like a clearcoat, makes it look like glass...
Highly doubt there is a protector for this one (Stern Disco). Only 812 of them ever made so parts are rare let alone aftermarket add-on's.
I'll have to research the 2-part clear coating I guess. I have a few friends that work in the auto body industry so hopefully they will be able to spray it for me.
I'm replacing all the inserts anyhow so now the decision is to paint the entire field or just the spots that are worn.
Another question would be primers. There were a few area's that had to be filled/bondo spot putty'd and are now sanded flat and ready for paint. Do you apply any primers to these area's before airbrushing with createx paints?
You can make your own protector. Fairly cheap and not difficult at all. I did one for my BM 66 and supplies are right on Amazon. Perfect solution with only downside is the finish is high gloss like a clear coat and you may not want that on an EM
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/batman-66-official-club-thread/page/7#post-3527141
Quoted from Chrimeg:Do you apply any primers to these area's before airbrushing with createx paints?
I just use opaque white as a primer.
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/the-bally-atlantis-that-i-discovered/page/2#post-4344374
I’ve been following Seven’s Pinballorama’s Black Knight retheme on youtube. He did a separate bit on touching up pf’s and he uses an enamel product called 1 Shot. From what i recalled for touchups this paint cured hard and wouldnt need clear on it after, since its as hard as the original paint they laid down. Don’t quote me on that - i’m not an art expert and i’ve never used it but might be worth checking out. Its not cheap paint though apparently.
Completist is on to it. I once touched up with Testers Enamel, at that time it was a real oil-based paint (not sure now) and then waxed. It worked fine. Create is wonderful airbrush (and brush) paint but its soft.
If you can match it correctly, find an oil-based enamel that dries hard.
Bought createx primary opague set...see what happens i guess.
I also noticed people on the forums clear coating without playfield inserts in place. Wouldn't it be better to have the inserts in place, leveled and painted before clear coating?
Quoted from Chrimeg:also noticed people on the forums clear coating without playfield inserts in place.
Um, that is perplexing. Can you retrace where you saw that, and share those threads. I'd be curious to see what the thought process was. I've only read to clear coat w/ inserts in place... but certainly not read every post on here regarding restoration & clear coat...
Trying to locate. It wasn't linked on these forums but were on dailymotion and youtube. I thought it was pretty odd as it wouldn't make sense to level and refill the insert area's. I remember comments related to surface tension of the clear coat as it dries. Something to do with it curing against the plastics differently than the playfield surface causing indentations and cracking later on.
One thing I can add- using transparent allows for blends in the repair area that are easier to achieve than with opaque... but then require whits everywhere you will need to cover to full depth. I argue with myself and have a mix of transparent and clear because Createx does not make overlapping colors in opaque and transparent. You can blend them together and likely will have to to get a color match. I do think the transparent work really well in mixing with an opaque to tint the color perfectly. May be a bit more forgiving- sometimes requires a lot to change color and that’s a good thing.
I have also used the craft store paints. I buy into the idea that the pigments in Createx are probably higher quality- however I am not sure I will live long enough to tell. Someone should spray close colors next to each other and set in the sun. I wonder which brand fades faster.
Quoted from rufessor:I have also used the craft store paints
Some colors can be nearly impossible for me to match.
When I cannot match a color by mixing I go to the craft store.
I'm going to decal the lettering where needed. I've been reading to clear coat (2K) before applying decals. Can I lay down a light coat of clear then apply the decals? Or do I have to lay down a couple of layers first? Also, has anyone used the 2K cans instead of using compressor and spray gun.
I do have a friend in the autobody industry who can lay the final coats for me. I don't want to have to move the playfield multiple times for the sake of a spray in between decals. I'm hoping to paint, clear with 2k can (for decals), light sand, apply decals and then do full on clear coat.
Do the paint touch-ups then use playfield protector... I like that idea better than clearing but how is the gameplay?
Doesn't the ball slip and spin instead of roll on it? (I'm thinking of this with an EM playfield) Also how does it hold up against the ball? Does the protector become marked up or do you wax it?
With regard to durability (fade) of craft paints I would offer 2 thoughts.
1) who would subject their restored machine to sunlight anyway?
2) if you use water slide decals, I would think they are gonna fade way before the craft paints.
I cut a heavy box down to size and set the playfield in it. This was after much prep. I could easily handle it to a trunk, work on it in the box and transport it to the auto clearcoater.
Its fun if you have the 60 dollar-for 2-3 coat fee every time you take it. Twice for this one,should have done 3.
IMG_1458 (resized).JPGIMG_1460 (resized).JPG
It doesn't have to be complicated, but it does take time. Remove top components and lay them out on a flat surface.
Remove and stabilize bottom of playfield components (I used a simple cloth bag stapled to the sides, many twist ties and blue 3M painters tape to seal.
Choose a heavy sidewall box. I moved this puppy a lot of times and it was great being a compact unit.
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