Paint Testing

[Shikkakku]

Out of curiosity, I did some paint testing. I wanted to compare:

1. The TLJ-Praetorian Standard of Rustoleum Safety Red Enamel. This is a pain for me to get here in Canada as it is only available in the US, so I have to cross the border or have it brought over.
2. Tremclad Safety Red Enamel. I believe this is the Canadian version of the Rustoleum paint and is widely available here, but I wanted to make sure the colour was a good match to the standard.
3. Dupli-color Cardinal Red automotive paint. This has been floated around as a potential paint colour for the Mando-PG so I wanted to try it out.

Parameters:

• Test piece: 3d print PETG at 0.2. Light sanding prior to filler.
• Primer: 2 coats of rustoleum filler primer, with sanding @ 220 grit in between. Final sand of 400 grit -> 600 grit prior to colour coat.
• 2 coats of each paint was applied per product instructions.
• Lighting: overhead LED lights and an LED spot lamp at 800 lumens, 3000K.

Result

• There was no significant diference between the rustoleum and tremclad safety red. In fact, I think the tremclad had better levelling and dried much smoother than the rustoleum. There were no application issues with both and if push comes to shove a clear coat may not be needed as they are quite glossy out of the can (though it is still highly recommended).
  
• I ran into issues with the cardinal red as compared to the safety reds. Either due to bad reaction to the primer, poor technique and skill on my part or poor conditions (or a combination thereof) the cardinal red didn't dry consistently- in pictures 2 or 3 you can see some parts that dried matte and some that dried glossy. Colour wise however I don't see a major difference between the cardinal red and safety red. I think a clear coat will be required if choosing to go through cardinal red route.
  
  

Conclusion:
All 3 paints work for our purposes, IMHO. Unless we get a hold of a screen used costume somehow and do a direct comparison and see a difference. A lot of it will depend on what's available in the costumer's local area...for example TLJ-PGs should be familiar with the safety red so they can apply that experience to building an M-PG pretty easily.

[ugcspawn]

Interesting. Without even talking about the color, I never though to use tremclad on plastic. I really like their Profesionnal serie for everyday jobs. And the fact that you use the tremclad over rustoleum is impressive. I'm usually having a lot of issue with it, especially the their 2X. It will wrinkle everything. I think I never seen the Profesionnal rustoleum here in Montreal as well.

[OrarKad]

so, are we just assuming for now the colors are the same as tht TLJ-PG for now until proven wrong? My main concern is more of consistency, I wouldn't want to show up to an event and have two M-PG kits of different shades of red

[andyman97]

so, are we just assuming for now the colors are the same as tht TLJ-PG for now until proven wrong? My main concern is more of consistency, I wouldn't want to show up to an event and have two M-PG kits of different shades of red

My opinion is that's going to be an inevitability. There are going to be some variations from costume to costume. Several CRLs have a construction note that states colors are approximate. Only specific shades are used by the detachment for grading level 2 or higher.

A good example comes from the TLJ Praetorian with the text that only says "crimson red matching entire costume." It doesn't say "Rustoleum Safety Red." If a costumer chooses to use a similar but slightly different shade of red, should they be required to repaint it using safety red because it's absolutely the most accurate shade? As Paolo said, what if they can't get that brand or that color in their country?

Another thing to consider is lighting and cameras. These costumes aren't being evaluated in person, rather indoors with cell phone cameras which can heavily alter the shade making it even harder to get a good read of the color. GMLs are just not going to have the eye to pinpoint the color to that level of accuracy.