We've all had problems when painting bodies, but following a few simple tips will go a long way in making sure your latest work of art turns out fine. Here are a few things I do to make sure my body not only looks good, but stays looking good.


Your best bet is to first cut out and mount the body on the car. Not only don't you scratch the paint cutting it out, but it's a lot easier to make the holes for your body posts now.
Mask the windows with high quality masking tape. Cheap dime-store masking tape just won't cut the mustard, spend a few extra bucks and get the good stuff.
Using very fine steel wool, give the inside of the body a going over. This will slightly rough up the surface, without making big scratches, letting the paint bond better.
Completely wash the body in soap and water, then dry as good as possible. Let it set a couple hours to make sure the body (and tape) is completely dry.
Mask off the outside of the body. Don't forget to put small pieces of tape over the body mounting holes. This makes sure you don't get overspray on the out side of the body.
Now spray using you favorite color.
That's it! Just these few extra steps will give you a good looking body with a paint job that will last.

End of article. Your comments are welcome.

I am a complete newbie at RC, and frankly, I am building one on the ultra-cheap. I'll tell you my story first if you like, or just skip to the end for my question...

I am a hearse (funeral car) owner and driver. I also collect funeral cars in all scales and most price ranges. A few days ago, I found out about HPI Racing's 1959 Pontiac Hearse body in 1/8 scale. I says to myself "I MUST HAVE ONE! Or maybe two or three..." :woohoo: But I can't afford a $300+ Remote control car. But I CAN afford a 1/10 General Lee R/C car on clearance at Wal Mart. So I went out and spent $11.00 on a $60 car, brought it home and proceeded to remove the body. I found a local hobby shop that had HPI body kits in stock and laid down $36+ tax for it. After getting home and spending two days getting my adapter blocks JUST RIGHT and then 3 hours cutting the flashing off the body, I found the "painting tips" printed on the backside of the advertising poster that came in the kit :freak: They suggested I do everything in just the opposite order that I have done them so far, but I think I did okay for myself. My big stumbling block is that they suggested "Lexan-Safe Paint". Oh crap... I can't afford to screw this body up, so I found this forum and need to know:

Is Lexan-Safe paint a special formula, or can I use a readily-available paint to finish my body?

it would be smart to use lexan safe paint, pactra ect. if you have an airbrush or axcess to 1 you can use the createx paint from the local art store. if you need any help feel free to email me ill do what i can to help...

jeff@vinyltrix.com