This is how I achieve my vintage finish and resin-fill/lume my dials...organized in 3 sections. I use spray cans, so no spray/paint gun or other expensive equipment. There is variability in the results, so practice and having to redo your paint job will happen. Sometimes I have had to repaint a dial 8-12 times to be satisfied with the result. Dials sprayed from 12-16 inch distance in motion where you spray past the dial (adjusting distance closer will create bigger paint blotches). This tutorial will show painting of two dials, one vintage brown (A) and other more vintage reddish-brown (B) dial.
Items need:
-Tamiya spray paints: Light Sand (TS-46); Red Brown (TS-1); Maroon (TS-11); and Flat Clear (TS-80)
-Laquer Thinner (Tamiya Lacquer Thinner)
-Dials
-White Crayon
-Toothpicks
-Compressed Gas Duster
-Lume (WatchLume Gmax and Vintage Lumes)
-Testor's Glosscote Lacquer
-Paper Towels
-1200 Grit Sandpaper
1. PAINTING
Starting with Items Needed for painting of Dials:
Starting with the unfinished/raw dial (Sjever's TO dials):
A. Vintage Brown Dial
Paint even/layer of Light Sand (TS-46):
Immediately, while first layer is still wet, paint very light layer of Red Brown (TS-1):
Blow some air lightly on dial to encourage slight mixing of paint layers with your mouth:
Quickly, while paint still wet, spray a final, thin and even layer of Red Brown (TS-1) and the finished dial:
Blow some more air to lightly encourage more slight mixing of paint layers, with your mouth.
Reddish-Brown Dial:
Process repeated again with second dial, this time an additional paint layer with Maroon (TS-11) is used
Paint even/layer of Light Sand (TS-46):
Immediately, while paint still wet, spray even light layer of Maroon (TS-11)
Wait a couple seconds, then while paint still wet, spray very thin layer of Red Brown (TS-1):
Blow some air lightly on dial to encourage slight mixing of layers (with your mouth)
Immediately, while paint wet, spray final thin layer of Red Brown (TS-1):
Blow some air lightly on dial to encourage slight mixing of layers (with your mouth)
Finished dial after last coat of paint:
The dials after paint has dried:
Use 1200 Grit Sandpaper to improve finish... Just run very lightly across surface of dial to remove some of top layer of paint and expose lower layer... blow off/clean any debris off of dial. Apply no pressure onto dial or you will take too much paint off!!!
If you screw up, do some touch up of dial. Spray some paint on scrap paper and use small brush to touch up/paint over defect:
2. WAX FILLING OF ENGRAVINGS
Wax-fill using crayon. Go over engravings in circular motion while pressing wax/crayon gently into engravings:
Once wax filled engraving, carefully wipe off excess wax with a paper towel. If take off too much wax, reapply more crayon.
Completed Wax Filled Dials:
Spray dial with two coats of Flat Clear (TS-80) to seal paint and wax fill - discourages chipping of paint:
3. LUMING/RESIN-FILLING
Items you will need:
I use the Gmax and Vintage Lume in different proportions to adjust color of lume/resin fill. Mix lume with Testor's Glosscote Lacquer in 1:3 proportion in disposable contact containers. With dial upside down and using toothpick, push lume mix across dial, it will fall into numbers into indices....in a window wiper-like motion...DO NOT PUST MIX INTO INDICES AND NUMBERS...you will overfill!!!
Completed lumed/resin filled dials (reddish dial has more yellowish lume mix):
Place in little stand made out of crossed toothpicks. Let dry 5-10 minutes, faced up... then use Compressed Gas Duster or Air Gun to push the lume slightly to give that recessed/sandwich dial look....Be very careful or you will blow lume out of dial!!!:
The resulting dial with the slightly recessed lume mix in indices/numbers:
Let dry, covered, so dust does not get into lume/resin mix. Drying face up will use gravity to reinforce recessed lume mix. Pictured with refinished Southy RP dial I did yesterday...now dry:
The drying finished dials!!!!:
And the lume shots:
Thanks for reading...
Items need:
-Tamiya spray paints: Light Sand (TS-46); Red Brown (TS-1); Maroon (TS-11); and Flat Clear (TS-80)
-Laquer Thinner (Tamiya Lacquer Thinner)
-Dials
-White Crayon
-Toothpicks
-Compressed Gas Duster
-Lume (WatchLume Gmax and Vintage Lumes)
-Testor's Glosscote Lacquer
-Paper Towels
-1200 Grit Sandpaper
1. PAINTING
Starting with Items Needed for painting of Dials:
Starting with the unfinished/raw dial (Sjever's TO dials):
A. Vintage Brown Dial
Paint even/layer of Light Sand (TS-46):
Immediately, while first layer is still wet, paint very light layer of Red Brown (TS-1):
Blow some air lightly on dial to encourage slight mixing of paint layers with your mouth:
Quickly, while paint still wet, spray a final, thin and even layer of Red Brown (TS-1) and the finished dial:
Blow some more air to lightly encourage more slight mixing of paint layers, with your mouth.
Reddish-Brown Dial:
Process repeated again with second dial, this time an additional paint layer with Maroon (TS-11) is used
Paint even/layer of Light Sand (TS-46):
Immediately, while paint still wet, spray even light layer of Maroon (TS-11)
Wait a couple seconds, then while paint still wet, spray very thin layer of Red Brown (TS-1):
Blow some air lightly on dial to encourage slight mixing of layers (with your mouth)
Immediately, while paint wet, spray final thin layer of Red Brown (TS-1):
Blow some air lightly on dial to encourage slight mixing of layers (with your mouth)
Finished dial after last coat of paint:
The dials after paint has dried:
Use 1200 Grit Sandpaper to improve finish... Just run very lightly across surface of dial to remove some of top layer of paint and expose lower layer... blow off/clean any debris off of dial. Apply no pressure onto dial or you will take too much paint off!!!
If you screw up, do some touch up of dial. Spray some paint on scrap paper and use small brush to touch up/paint over defect:
2. WAX FILLING OF ENGRAVINGS
Wax-fill using crayon. Go over engravings in circular motion while pressing wax/crayon gently into engravings:
Once wax filled engraving, carefully wipe off excess wax with a paper towel. If take off too much wax, reapply more crayon.
Completed Wax Filled Dials:
Spray dial with two coats of Flat Clear (TS-80) to seal paint and wax fill - discourages chipping of paint:
3. LUMING/RESIN-FILLING
Items you will need:
I use the Gmax and Vintage Lume in different proportions to adjust color of lume/resin fill. Mix lume with Testor's Glosscote Lacquer in 1:3 proportion in disposable contact containers. With dial upside down and using toothpick, push lume mix across dial, it will fall into numbers into indices....in a window wiper-like motion...DO NOT PUST MIX INTO INDICES AND NUMBERS...you will overfill!!!
Completed lumed/resin filled dials (reddish dial has more yellowish lume mix):
Place in little stand made out of crossed toothpicks. Let dry 5-10 minutes, faced up... then use Compressed Gas Duster or Air Gun to push the lume slightly to give that recessed/sandwich dial look....Be very careful or you will blow lume out of dial!!!:
The resulting dial with the slightly recessed lume mix in indices/numbers:
Let dry, covered, so dust does not get into lume/resin mix. Drying face up will use gravity to reinforce recessed lume mix. Pictured with refinished Southy RP dial I did yesterday...now dry:
The drying finished dials!!!!:
And the lume shots:
Thanks for reading...
