"Terrain making 911! Spray paint won't cure!" Topic

Hey fellow terrain makers, I have a bit of a nasty situation. I've scrath built a 15mm model of the Dunker Church. The roof is made from polymer clay (the clay you bake in the oven to make it harden). I spray painted the roof, and the paint refuses to cure, even after 18+ hours. I am guessing there is a reaction between the paint and the clay… Any ideas?

What sort of paint did you use?

I used Rustoleum "Painter's Touch" spray paint…

Maybe a fan in front of it to increase air flow?
Not sure if you want to use a hair drier.

Since this is made of clay, can you stick it back in the oven at a low temp? It may get smelly in the house though…

The paint is reacting with the polymer clay, particularly if its not a water-based paint. It does not matter if its thoroughly baked or not. Unfortunately, I don't think there is anything you can do about it.

That's the problem. In general, you can't use enamel or lacquer paints (like Painter's Touch) directly on polymer clays like Sculpey or Fimo. In most cases, they'll always remain tacky. As you suspected, there's an adverse reaction between the paint and the clay.

Always use acrylic or water-based paints on polymer clays. I've also used artists' oil (tube) paints on polymer clays, but you have to paint in thin coats, almost a stain. If the color you want only comes in an enamel or lacquer spray, you *might* be able to spray several very light coats.

As for this current project, the paint *might* dry on its own in a few days. fingers crossed . . .

Baking it again as RD suggests *might* work, but it also might create a bubbly mess, and the heat might cause the rest of the church to sag or warp. Then there are the fumes . . .

If I were you, and the paint isn't dry by next week, I'd remove the roof and sculpt a new one.

You can use a primer or easier still, apply PVA glue to the entire structure (it will dry clear) and then apply your paint.

mjc

Don't bake it, it could cause some off-gassing or spark an explosion if in a natural gas stove. Use a heat gun or similar to heat the surface if you are trying to get it to cure and see if that works. Use care not to get it too hot. Heat guns go to 500+ F. and can really cause problems if not used carefully.

Rustoleum is NOT a choice of paint to go with in hobby applications – it seems to react with virtually every type of plastic I've encountered in the hobby with few and far between in the successful application of this paint. They have some special additives to make it adhere to metal and to chemically bond with rust/iron which is not friendly with plastics, FIMO, or other products. I've stopped using it and go with other paints for primers on terrain, usually latex or acrylic based paints.

I would suggest cotton swabs and acetone to remove the paint and see if you can remove as much as possible and then scrape the rest off to the best of your ability. Then use some other sealant to seal the structure before painting.

Heck, before you scrap the roof, try hitting it with flour to stick to the still not dry areas, brushing off any loose flour. Then hit it with a different brand of paint. Its just crazy enough to work….;)

Yea… Jovian1 is more on the ball than me.

DON'T BAKE IT…

I ended up misting it lightly with a primer which seems to have caused the underlying paint to dry/ harden…

I've used this brand of paint before on a very limited basis (for painting palm tree fronds) and haven't had a problem, but I don't work with plastic all that much so thanks for the advice. I definitely won't be using it on polymer clay pieces again!

I'll post a picture of the finished church in a day or two. Thanks everyone for the advice!

Rick

Looking forward to the pics. Good luck!

if time isn't the essence let it sit a few days before going further, I should think it will harden, some day

If you don't post a link to pictures in a day or so, we will assume it got tacky again, you baked it in the oven and exploded! Glad you got it fixed without too much hassle!

Just finished painting the Church… I think it turned out OK for my first attempt. I'll post pics tomorrow.

Here are a few pictures of the finished church. Thanks again for everyone's advice.

picture

picture

I had the same problem using Rustoleum on a plastic model. I waited a few days until the tackiness was to the point I won't leave finger prints in the paint and then tried clear coating it. That worked.

Nice looking church, glad everything worked out.