Great Lakes Garrison & Base

Okay so I plan on working on my shinguards this Saturday as well as the coming week. They are made out of fiberglass and it was suggested that I use a sandable primer in layers to get a nice shinny look and then black Krylon paint. So what kind of sandable primer should I use? Is there any specific brand or something?

I'm partial to Rustoleum. Primer dries fast. Like in 20 min per coat.

1.Put it on light. Just enough to cover so it looks wet. Let it dry. About 3 coats should do it. You only need to sand in between primer coats if it looks like you have particles or small imperfections that will show up on the final gloss coat. Use 800 grit to sand if necessary.

2. After all the primer is dry, take a damp cloth and wipe off any dust in prep for gloss coat.

3. Gloss coat. Again, I like Rustoleum High gloss. Depending on how shiny you want it. Again, thin coats. Let dry for at least an hour in between coats.

4. Wet sand between coats. 800 grit. Wipe it dry and repaint. About 4 coats should do it, but on the last and final coat, use 1000 grit. Dont repaint.

5. Gloss Clear coat. Same set up but use 1000 grit the whole time. On you last coat, again, don't repaint. It will be cloudy and look unshiny. Thats normal.

6.Now, a mistake I made with Yoda's Vader. WAIT ONE WEEK BEFORE WAXING This is crucial. You need time to let the clear coat cure.

7. When you've waited the week, wax away. Hyper directed me to a turtle wax called "Ice" Works great. This will take away the dull stuff and make all nice and shiny!!

Now, this is not the "only way" to do this. Just works well for me. Meijer carries the Ice, any automotive store carries the sandpaper and Lowes carries the paint. Or Aco does as well. Hope that helps.

Thanks for the great info Wags! I was able to find the primer, black glossy, both grits of sandpaper and the wax at Walmart tonight. Hoping I'll get a chance to work on these Saturday and the following week, although that will be hard to do since I would only be able to spray them outside and it is cold now. Unless do you think if I spray them outside and them bring them inside to dry between coats, would that work? Also should I paint the whole inside? And if I do should I paint the top part and then the back or the other way around?

Yes, you can spray them outside and then bring them in. Just watch for falling leaves..

I would paint the inside. Just for a finished look. But you should only need to primer them. Unless your feeling crazy....

As for which side first, I would do the inside then the finished side. If you do it the other way, you risk scratching your surface of the finished side.

Glad this helped

Awesome, I might just be able to finish these bad boys this coming week then.

I'll show you some painting tricks if you make it over to Jolly's tomorrow. There are some tricks to painting with a rattlecan to make it look like it came out of a body shop.

Jaster wrote:I'll show you some painting tricks if you make it over to Jolly's tomorrow. There are some tricks to painting with a rattlecan to make it look like it came out of a body shop.

I should be there around 12:00 or 12:30.

Jaster wrote:I'll show you some painting tricks if you make it over to Jolly's tomorrow. There are some tricks to painting with a rattlecan to make it look like it came out of a body shop.

Could you post something about these tricks? Would love to learn them! I would have loved to have made it out yesterday to meet everyone, but the wife decreed yesterday "date night", and I sat out in the cold watching my boys lose to those dirty badgers.

If JasterMaster doesn't post anything, I will be updating my WIP thread with the details.

Its easier to show. I wish I would have taken a quick video to post. It's mainly a matter of a steady spray and warming the can in warm water.

When did I get Master added to my name?

Jaster wrote:Its easier to show. I wish I would have taken a quick video to post. It's mainly a matter of a steady spray and warming the can in warm water.

When did I get Master added to my name?

I think Jolly started it...?

I had heard of warming the can before, but never using water.. Sounds interesting, and from the WIP pics on the other thread, the results look pretty nice.