Week 5: How to : Painting Thermoplastics (THE LAST PART)
Last week, I talked about having thermoplastics into a simple prop such as a mask, and I put a little detail on how to paint the details on the thermoplastics, and I want to talk more details about painting over thermoplastics.
Most of the thermoplastics have a rough sand-paper like texture when manufactured. Therefore, priming is a great first step to making a smooth and well-detailed prop. Before new ways of priming thermoplastics were introduced, they were primed with a canvas primer called “Gesso (pronounced GEH-sso)” and sanded with either a 220 grit sandpaper or a dremel (also known as rotary tool). Nowadays, there are other ways of smoothing out such as wood glue, resin, and even spackle. I also talked about using automotive spray as a primer, and it works just like a gesso primer, it needs to be sanded in order to have smooth edges. The only downside of having a spray primer is the risk of having unwanted air bubbles, which can ruin the sides while sanding.
After priming, you can either paint the surfaces with spray lacquer or simple acrylics. It would be boring to have a monotoned prop. Hence, darker or lighter paints are used to add intricate details such as gradience and weathering for adding either shadows or highlights. This helps to get a more three-dimensional look. If there are other details needed such as blood or rust marks, the details can be painted over to add the realistic look to the prop as well, but that is optional, of course.
To show you an example, I put the images below from another of my experimentation with painting my props. As you can see from the images below, the top two images show a significant difference on how smooth the bracers are. The bracers were primed with 6 layers of wood glue and spray painted gold. To add the details on them, I used acrylic paint, and to add gradient, I used oil paint, which is very effective for smudging the props without damaging the paint job.
After adding details, paint sealer or clear spray paint is used to seal the design and make the prop scratch proof. If desired, using a matte paint sealer can be used to add the weathered detail without the glossiness of clear top coats.
And you’re good to go! Painting is complete!
This was my last part of the thermoplastics section of my Medium post, but I hope you enjoyed reading about my love for making props with them.
