From the Refuge. Very good topic.
http://www.refugeforums.com/refuge/showthread.php?s=&thr eadid=261939
Posted by TMDECOYTGUN
The painting of Plastic Decoys….
I would like to add this post to the all ready start post that Willy McDonald has started, which it might be a good idea if the topic was stuck or added to the area of good informational threads to review prior to posting other questions about Plastic Decoys.
Preface about this post . There are obviously many, many posts about the various plastiods out there on the market. There are also some very top secret materials that are used for each company. We all know which ones lose paint frequently or do not adhere well. This thread should not be a product bashing thread, but an informational thread for HOW TO and EXPERIMENTATION RESULTS. So, even if you do not like a certain product, do not own them and or don’t like the decoy’s pose, coloration, look or what ever, lets just keep the discussion to the various products that are used to clean prep and paint them.
With that said, I am at the point of almost writing a book on this subject, but due to product and material secrecy, that information will not be added.
Why repaint a Plastic Decoy? Why would one want to take the time to do this when there are other decoys all ready available on the market? SAVE MONEY and REUSING the decoys you have. I have been changing my plastic decoys for years, especially when using large numbers of decoys, (Greater then 10 Dozen) so, repainting and touch up are essential. But, the time and effort you put into repainting your decoys has tom come into consideration. To have the correct products is essential. But let’s get one thing straight though, PAINT IS NOT FOREVER!!Some finishes are just not meant to or can they last forever. Let’s face it, the elements that decoys are transported under from home to field is very important. Taking care of corkers and hollow wood decoys are good evidence that how you handle your decoys during this period is very important. Probably the MOST IMPORTANT of all. So if you can minimize the time it takes to repaint and take care of the decoyes will be a large factor in the equation of how often you will need to retouch the bird in the future. Common sense really. But it is important to know what product to use to make that happen. I hope to enlighten.
PLASTIC DECOY MATERIALS The Various decoy companies use a variety of raw materials. Not to get into the chemical composition of them and bore you with the scientific facts. For the fact of simplicity, lets say that there are some that use raw materials of virgin poly and then some that are not so pure, they might buy a mixture of composites of poly. These ingots that are used in the blow molding machines that make the decoy come in many grades. The grade of material varies between company and helps dictate the final costs. Prior to the decoy being made a material is added to the interior portion of the mold so that the plastic will not stick to it and then the blow molding process takes place.Once the decoy comes out there is a micron film of the decoy that needs to be removed, This I that mold release. This mold release film does not increase the adhesion of ANY PAINT to the which ever substrate is selected. If the paint and material the decoy is made from is not compatible, I do not care what OUTER COATING you place over the decoy to help maintain the decoy. IT DOES NOT HELP. NO WAY NO HOW. When painting ANY DECOY you have to have a good base adhesion. This is the most important rule. I have also been testing this product on E ALLEN DECOYS and it has been showing very promising results.
PLASTIC DECOY BASE COAT In order for ANY PAINT to stick to the decoy they have to be cleaned properly then wiped down with a solvent that will CUT THROUGH the mold release and remove it. To correctly do this you will have to use an Automotive Brand Plastic Cleaner. There are many on the market from 3M or SEM. You can also use a product available for wood that is called WILBOND, a liquid adhesion enhancer. I have used all three of these products with good results. I have also found good success with using a flash heat on the bird as well, which extreme safety is required.
PLASTIC DECOY SEALER/PRIMER Now, with the new paint system that Jansen Art has come out with, they have made a Great Multi Surface sealer. This sealer is intended to be used on Glass, Wood, Steel, Tin, Plastics and Cork. AND IT WORKS GREAT!! Once you have cleaned the bird as listed above, just apply this STRAIGHT uncut. DO NOT WATER this process down. Then once this is dry, about 2 hours then start to paint right over this multi surface sealer. The paint will bond to this sealer well. DO NOT use JO SONJA OR GOLDENS PAINT over this, as the internal binder works with the JANSEN ART PAINT. It is not recommended that you mix products, as this binder will meld with the paint applied in later steps.
By the way, there is a very good picture of some GHG Teal that were painted into TEAL that I though was done very well.
Another product I have used for a comparison and is a new product on the market is called FUSION Spray paint by Krylon. It is supposed to be a new and improved spray paint that adheres to plastics better than any other paint. I have been using the MATTE IVORY, LIGHT BROWN and a LIGHT GREY to coat a few decoys as a primer and it looks promising. Once the birds has dried, I then coat it with another Krylon product that is the camo colors that is ultra flat and then start painting the brads after that. Flat white and black work well for the divers, as they only have a small amount of color and really, how much detail do you need for them in a 100+ layout rig? Many of the divers and seaducks will come into painted bleach bottles. So, consider the time and effort on what is really require for your area and how many birds you are using.
PROBLEM AREAS - One of the main reason plastic decoys have paint issues if because of the way they are handled during traveling to and from the blind. It might be a coffin blind, Barnegat of a Jon boat. NO matter how you transport, this is the largest contributing factor to paint damage. Now, if you notice flaking, that is just bad adhesion and there is another issue. But, NO PAINT LASTS FOREVER. Some wear better than others, and thicker paint usually has a better wear factor over a thinner sprayed product but all in all, taking care of you decoys is the only way I know to minimize any damage to a decoy. Also, because plastics decoys flex, and usually stored outside in extreme temperatures which helps promote damage to the surface finish. Adding the spray coats over the paint helps a small amount but it is NOT THE CURE ALL.
I will be taking a few photos of the birds I have completed and been testing. Some have been in varied temperatures, stored in water and have actually been in the water for over 3 months. Funny thing is the only thing I am testing in the water is if the paint will re-emulsify. Couple of the birds have been in the back of my boat but the big test is to see how the birds hold up over the season. Rubbing birds in sand or mud is like using wet sand paper on them, so consider what you do with your decoys. A small amount of preventative protection will go along way to maintaining their surface finish no matter what the selection of paint is. If you have any questions please feel free to post, I will be more than happy to answer emails and PM concerning this process…
TGUN
Additional Notes:
To shed some more light on the repainting of the plastics a few other considerations to ponder...
When the birds come out of the injection mold they are hot and have seen them shrink at times. So, becuase the surface is slippery and super smooth there is no TOOTH for the paint to stick and adhere to. WHat needs to be done is provide the surface paint to stick to something. If the birds are Flambeau for example, I go through the process of cleaning with plastic cleaner and then during the soap and water phase or Wilbond Phase, I use a green scotch brite pad to clean with, This scores the surface microsopically and will allow the base coat sealer/primer to adhere to the surface better. Once you get the surface cleaned and ready for the multisurface sealer, you can just go to town painting. IT'S ALL IN THE SURFACE PREPARATION!!
Now, the mold release is on birds like E ALLENS or your own 2 part explanding birds that you popp out of molds. There has to be a waxy type of mold release on teh surface and it HAS TO BE REMOVED before the surface will allow anything to stick to it. E ALLEN decoys are now fogged with a grey flat primer now and there is a lesser chance of the mold release to be on the bird but i is just a safety precaution so that down the road you don't get any bubbling paint of flakes and chips comeing off your bird. In my finding, if there is any mold release on a bird, it does not matter what type of paint you use, they both chip off...
The above procedure works very well. But you have to realize one thing when working with plastic decoys. They flex. When the subsurface of the decoy flexes, your paint has to flex as well, and when there are sharp edges and such on various areas of the decoy and they flex those areas create a crack, as minute as it might seem, this is where the first trouble will start. ( Same goes for corkers too by the way...) Once any amount of condensation or water gets under the skin of the paitn film you are doomed. Your paint stands a great chance of coming off in many forms. Water and cold temperatures form ice and your paint lifts off. Water under the paint allows the water to migrate and create havoc. Just does and you as a carver need to understand how to take care of and handle your decoys with the proper care once hey have been customized. Treat them no different than when you bought your first SBE or over and under and took it afield? What makes your decoys any different? Another exampleof that would be spend over 400 hours on a hand made wooden sneak box and drag it over a rocky sand bar and beat up the bottom you just glassed? Is that ok? Netiher of these waterfowling tools should be abuse unless your in a tough life threatening situation.
Proper handling helps promote the life of a paint job.
Hope this helps...
TGUN
More:
Since the long winded post I had an opportunity to take a ew shots of some base coated birds that I painted up with Jansen Art paints.
This is what the decoys looked like in the beginning. Granted the bids were stored outside in HIGH UV area and the poor quality paint that G&H uses turned pink. Not to mention the blending on the head and the grey they used was off color from the mallards I see.
Here are 6 Birds that I base coated. One thing that you will notice on these birds is that all the colors are custom blended. Nothing on these birds with the exception of the black and white were straight from the tube.
More:
At this point, I will let this base coat dry and then tweek them in by bringing them to the local duck pond and take notes.
Here is a comparison of the birds PRE- PAINT and POST PAINT.
You can see the pink color on the back. Again, these birds are base coated and will require some minor touch up.
As is, I think the birds would be OK to hunt and would work much better than the other older birds that look pink. I also do not like the grey which I alter and then the yellow bill that G&H uses. Just don't look real at all....
https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v294/tmatus/73bc05ab.jpghttps://img.photobucket.com/albums/v294/tmatus/24196aa3.jpghttps://img.photobucket.com/albums/v294/tmatus/3643d065.jpghttps://img.photobucket.com/albums/v294/tmatus/46c18612.jpghttps://img.photobucket.com/albums/v294/tmatus/365f534e.jpg
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