I traded for a new Harbor Freight Deluxe Airbrush Kit and it arrived Friday so I spent most of Saturday reading and watching airbrush videos.

Today I gave it a try. I found a graphic I liked, downloaded it and converted from jpg format to a dxf file using Img2cad. From there I imported it in to SU and did some major cleaning up. I then applied the Phlatscript and output my G-code file. Next I cut my stencil on my Phlatprinter MKI and proceeded to fill in the stencil with my airbrush. I tried to spray a light fog just around the outer edge to show the shape but before I knew it I had it too dark. The moon in the background is the edge of my Copenhagen can. For my first time it came out OK.

The only bit I have for my Phlatprinter is 1/8" so that is what the G-code is worked up for. It definitely needs redone for 1/16" bit if anyone whats to use it at this size.

I used Apple Barrel acrylic paint thinned with water 50/50.

Since I already have it done I figured I may as well share.

If you guys have any good templates post them please. Attached files Skull-9.pht.cnc (83.3 KB)Â Skull-9.skp (716.2 KB)Â

 

That is really cool!!! I can't use an airbrush worth a darned, and have been thinking of making templates with the phlatprinter.... Glad to see it turned out so well. I was thinking of making multi-layered templates so to speak for multi-color graphics.... I think I'll stick with single colors first though.

 

That sounds great Jeff. Can't wait to see some.

rcav8r, I am no painter either. That is what is cool about using the templates, just fill them in. It would have much better had I had a 1/16" bit but I only had 1/8 and alot of fine detail got left out.

I have cut templates from cardboard befoe on my Phlatty but I believe the thinner poster-board would be best. I cut this one from 1/4" FFF which was OK you just have to remember to keep your brush pointed straight on, perpendicular to your template.

 

I cut the poster board with a 1/32" bit. The detail is awesome then. The letters on my Lil' Ripper scheme were done that way. After it was cut I tried something a little different this time and sprayed 3m contact spray on the back of the poster board, let it dry and put it on the plane. It worked pretty good but if your not careful certain areas could lift. Best done with multiple light mists.

 

As crazy evil as that thing looks it looks cool! Great job Buk
It looks like you could do a couple stencils for different colors too. Looks like you already have the layout for instance to make the skull white and perhaps the mouth red? Like a layered stencil
Nice job
Mark and Trish

 

Shaun, did you have to ad masking tape to the poster board to prevent skewing in you Phlatty?

 

Nope

 

I remember reading somewhere ( here or RCG) about using magnets to hold the templates to foam to keep it from moving.

On poster-board vs FFF; I was thinking at times the thicker stuff could produce neat results on larger templates in that the edge would be fuzzy as opposed to sharp. Could prove to be a neat effect. Or with my skills, prove to be a sloppy mess

 

Yep Mark, that's a good idea. I just tried this first one to try and get the airbrush adjusted and figure out the paint mixture. I will practice more.

Shaun when cutting the poster board do you remember what speed you were your PP at?

rcav8r, you are right, the thicker FFF does leave fuzzy edges here and there do to thickness variations, waves, etc. which does work well for something like a light, sun or moon, anything that needs a glowing effect.

 

Let me add this to the mix. Cool Yin/Yang skull template I made to fit a foamy wing. I've cut it but haven't tried it out.

Attached files skullTemplate.skp (1.6 MB)Â

 

Hey Buk,
I was cutting the poster board at 100ipm with the 1/32" bit. Worked well.

Hey Toast, Cool template!

 

I just read a while back about a mixture I plan to try.
50% paint, 30%water, 20% Future floor polish. It was stated that the future is an acrylic base. Right now I use Creatix airbrush paints and I just shoot some windex in the paint when its in the airbrush. Works pretty good that way but sometimes the paint doesn't come out as good as I want it to.

 

To add to what Dennis says, a shot of clear before the paint does a good job too. I've found this method works the best with masking tapes that have bleed problems.

 

FWIW, I thin my paint with windshield washer fluid. It flows VERY well. Even though it has a blue tint, I have yet to have it show, even with white. Weird, but true.... Test a sample just to be sure. I sprayed some latex, so it may be different with the stuff from the craft store, but others have claimed no blue tint even with the cheap craft store paint.

Another tip so to speak. When I was building my 8' C123, I wanted to match the colors of the original. I took some pictures, printed them out, and went to the local hardware store, and got sample cans made up with computer matched colors. I think they were only a couple bucks a can for about 4 ounces. Even though it was latex, it really didn't add much weight at all. I thinned 50/50 with windshield washer fluid, and even the light cream had no blue tint. I understand the variations of a printed pictures and the real thing, but I couldn't exactly bring the full scale C123 into the hardware store So if your looking for a near perfect color match to say Ultracote, or something like that, this is an option.

Another thought I had was to use wet newspaper as a a template. This was another one of those I read somewhere things. I plan on doing this on a new plane here shortly. I plan on tearing the edge so it has a ragged appearance. And now that I see how well the phlat templates work, I'll incorporate some sort of template in the design.

 

I tried a 60/20/20 mix similar to what Shaun mentioned about the Future Finish with Createx paint with a HF brush. Best decision ever when it comes to flow. I've used the window washer method and it too worked good, but the Future Finish was by far the smoothest clog free experience. The only caveat seems to be that the evaporation rate on the finish seems to accelerate a bit faster compared to wiper fluid. This means you might add a bit to the mix if you have a long painting session to keep the flow up. Brush clean up was also easier since the paint had minimal congealing effects inside the brush.

I know some guys in a model shop that swear by the Future Finish as a sealer on their miniatures and architectural models. I just never thought about it as a thinner until I saw a great Youtube video on it.

Don't thin the Createx with alcohol as the pigment seems to clump easily with this.

 

Very good info and cool stencils!

 

I can't remember if I posted this or not, but no harm in adding it here as well
Mark and Trish


Demo video




Attached files Stencil Book.skp (891.7 KB)Â StencilBook.cnc (21.6 KB)Â

 

Hay John; that is one slick paint job.

 

Very cool John! Nice work.