I'm also a big fan of color schemes that are highly visible and help you quickly orient the attitude of the craft. You've done a great demonstration on how to do a quick, simple, and inexpensive paint scheme that makes an immediate improvement to the pilot's ability to see and orient the plane. This is the type of info that is a huge benefit to the beginner flyer in particular. Happy Holidays, CJ
Good scheme, especially the orientation colours of all black on one wing with striped on the other. Only things I would add: - Keep your distance with the spray or use an airbrush. The propellants in the spray will often attack foam. - If using a spray, hit multiple times leaving enough time for the first very light coat to dry. This will help reduce foam damage as the first, now dry layer will shield the underlying foam from propellant damage. - Use masking tape (US: painter's tape) as this won't pull bits of foam off on removal, especially after it's been left overnight. - Light colours, especially fluro-colours are easy to see on the ground but hard to see in the air!
7 ปีที่แล้ว +3
For those of us who use huge amounts of hot glue: do not wash your plane with huge amounts of alcohol or let it get in direct contact to glue since it will release from most harder surfaces, thankfully got glue on foam usually still holds just fine.
Depends on the type of foam. Polystyrene foam is sensitive and mild but polyethylene foam (elapor) is insensitive to solvents so the color does not hold well. Such a foam "bombed" with the ions (UV light), or flame surface or flush with toluene. Then the color is permanently held.
Now that its winter here in Northern Mi,I can only fly my brightly colored planes. Whites,greys,blacks are out. It is so easy to lose a plane when the sky is as white as foam,or blue,white,black and grey. Only reds seemed to show up best. I ended up painting my pusher florescent red.
Andrew Newton It was 20 degrees yesterday,no problem,just shovel snow and you stay warm.lol. No flying for a while. It really kills batterys being this cold.
I notice you're somewhat fixed wing purist- I used to be also. Would look at quad specs go on for 2 pages and think NO THANKS. Then my son got a small brushed quad I picked it up and was hooked. I love building them as much as flying. So I take my planes and quads out and switch it up same session. Anyway- have you flown quads what's your take?
I have built and flown a few RCExplorer tricopters, and I have a micro quad. Might grab me one day but I don't have enough time or brain space to deal with fixed wing and multi rotors.
Andrew is that water or solvent based paint can you use this on all types of foam. I have not tried painting a foam plane as yet because experience with other foam products the paint melts the foam.
What is best way to paint Dollar Tree foamboard? Help to use primer first? Do you need to keep paper on to paint on or can one paint directly into ready foam boars without ot melting & deformity
Excellent video Andrew :) I usually use wing-tape, but paint will do the same thing :) Ohw by the way: I allso offten use metalic tape ment for helicopter-blades (from HobbyKing).. helps very well in visability..
I fly in the winter months. Most of the time,the sky and ground match as far as color, a grey color or bright white,no blue skys to see much. I lost sight of my little pusher soon after launching and had to land it as soon as I regained visual. I found that red seems to be the best visual color so I use red stripes on the bottom and red solids on the top wing. The tail gets a solid red color. No blues at all. A mixed cloudy / sunny day in the middle of the winter just causes the plane to blend easier. here in Northern Michigan,its not unusual to go three months without sunshine. Its called lake effect clouds. It is created when cold air passes over warmer lake Michigan waters. We can get twice as much snow from lake effect than a regular system storm. Until the Great lakes freeze over completely( late January,or Febuary) We can get buried in snow.
RC Hobbyist Extreme // Although red is a good color, I find yellow or high visibility green to be much better. Red tends to darken out and becomes black from far away on overcast days.
mazpr2025 We get white cloudy days mostly,not dark grey,its can be nerve wracking. Some people have to use special sunlight lamps so they dont get depressed.
Is that a Multiplex EasyStar? When the wing was wet, the texture was clearly visible and it looks like the Elapor foam they use, similar to Epo I guess? What's your experience with Depron foam board and spray paint. I have tried dozens of normal cans and they always burn the foam when you try to get a good coverage in 1 go. Misting from 10 or so inches away seems to work but the results are never that great. The special foam sprays are less aggressive but are 3 times as expensive for a can half the size. 😕
I have the EasyStar and Bixler 3, the decals are starting to come lose, so I might strip the plane completely and give your paint scheme a go. Visibility looks a lot better then the default schemes. Thanks for the tips! 👍
Hi Andrew. You mention this is suitable for some foams but not all. I’m considering this for my volantex Phoenix. Is the foam ok to do this on the Phoenix. Thanks in advance.
OK Andrew, I noticed you taped over the wing servos, how about the pushrods and connectors in the wing ? Do you "block out " those components ? I would imagine spray paint is not a servo's friend . How much "block out" is enough ? Thanks.
I tried to paint a Z84 but the foam is very slipy - paint didnts stick just slid offf like a powder. Will the spirit allow it to stick or do I need to sand it finely down? Wasent sure if it was the foam type or what.
Need a perfectly smooth and clean surface for gloss spray otherwise it looks bad. Matt goes on easily and opaque, the clear overspray is mainly for pre painted purchased models for extra protection, and I would use satin rather than gloss.
A very nice demonstration. How do you know which paints are foam safe? Does the paint can state it is foam safe? Thanks for the video and Happy Flying!
EC White Yes,all the way around,pink stands out way better than green. Especially if there are any pine tree stands in the area. I have a big pine tree stand and lost my pusher in them. the snow trapped in the branches made my lost wings blend in with the snow. After finally locating the wings,I painted them red. They were originally white with blue stripes. A very bad winter flying color I found out. As soon as my plane took off,I lost it in the cloud colors. Even dark colors like black didnt help. I now paint my winter planes florescent colors,they reflect light even on grey overcast days better than regular colors.
Andrew just used a barely damp cloth on the broad wing surfaces, he did not pour it on the wing. His reasoning is sound. Just relax and remember you never apply the liquid directly to the surface, using just a damp rag gets the surface ready to accept whatever finish you are applying without unintended results of overapplication. Good to go.
I'm also a big fan of color schemes that are highly visible and help you quickly orient the attitude of the craft. You've done a great demonstration on how to do a quick, simple, and inexpensive paint scheme that makes an immediate improvement to the pilot's ability to see and orient the plane. This is the type of info that is a huge benefit to the beginner flyer in particular.
Happy Holidays, CJ
Thanks CJ. Stay safe, better times ahead
One of the things i like about your videos is there are lots of useful tips
Good scheme, especially the orientation colours of all black on one wing with striped on the other. Only things I would add:
- Keep your distance with the spray or use an airbrush. The propellants in the spray will often attack foam.
- If using a spray, hit multiple times leaving enough time for the first very light coat to dry. This will help reduce foam damage as the first, now dry layer will shield the underlying foam from propellant damage.
- Use masking tape (US: painter's tape) as this won't pull bits of foam off on removal, especially after it's been left overnight.
- Light colours, especially fluro-colours are easy to see on the ground but hard to see in the air!
For those of us who use huge amounts of hot glue: do not wash your plane with huge amounts of alcohol or let it get in direct contact to glue since it will release from most harder surfaces, thankfully got glue on foam usually still holds just fine.
Excellent Andrew. Very fast method and neat.
ha love that andrew quick and easy ,keep up these great vids cheers bud
Thanks 👍
Good info. I have been painting my planes similar and have found that painting the stripe side wing yellow and black gives me better visibility.
great video. really helped me today!
Depends on the type of foam. Polystyrene foam is sensitive and mild but polyethylene foam (elapor) is insensitive to solvents so the color does not hold well. Such a foam "bombed" with the ions (UV light), or flame surface or flush with toluene. Then the color is permanently held.
Thanks, great info
You wellcome. Please see this video: th-cam.com/video/GTiCWp0unjs/w-d-xo.html wow : is late night in EU, good night :)
Very helpful, practical and valuable help. Its can be hard to seem em sometimes!
So true!
Thanks for sharing that Quiktrip
Great video, thanks for posting.
Glad you enjoyed it
Hi Andrew I'm building an rc ultralight plane. I need help so please make a video on ultralights thanks
Is spray painting planes a pretty regular thing? I always assumed spray paint was fairly heavy compared to iron-on stuff.
You're not gonna use much so that shouldn't be an issue. In gfk and cfk molding wings are also painted even in dlg where every Gramm counts
Great tip, and I reckon it looks awesome too! (Mental note: get fluro hot pink paint from Bunnings in the morning)
Accent Neon Pink from Mitre 10 (Bunnings probably have the same)
Thanks for the tip, was a bit cheaper than Bunnings had to offer. In person the fluoro pink looks even better.
Now that its winter here in Northern Mi,I can only fly my brightly colored planes. Whites,greys,blacks are out. It is so easy to lose a plane when the sky is as white as foam,or blue,white,black and grey. Only reds seemed to show up best. I ended up painting my pusher florescent red.
Brrr, I wouldn't survive
Andrew Newton It was 20 degrees yesterday,no problem,just shovel snow and you stay warm.lol. No flying for a while. It really kills batterys being this cold.
After flying fpv so long it's fun to look up and try to spot the plane- this will help many times I give up and back to goggles
My most dangerous time is trying to spot the plane after lifting th goggles.
Ya that's what I meant- white plane on overcast can be impossible to spot
I notice you're somewhat fixed wing purist- I used to be also. Would look at quad specs go on for 2 pages and think NO THANKS.
Then my son got a small brushed quad I picked it up and was hooked. I love building them as much as flying. So I take my planes and quads out and switch it up same session.
Anyway- have you flown quads what's your take?
I have built and flown a few RCExplorer tricopters, and I have a micro quad. Might grab me one day but I don't have enough time or brain space to deal with fixed wing and multi rotors.
I'm gone over to using leds in green for the underside of the wings. Cheap from China and very visible
Andrew is that water or solvent based paint can you use this on all types of foam.
I have not tried painting a foam plane as yet because experience with other foam products the paint melts the foam.
Solvent based. This EPO foam is OK, but XPS foam would dissolve. Have to test it first
What is best way to paint Dollar Tree foamboard?
Help to use primer first?
Do you need to keep paper on to paint on or can one paint directly into ready foam boars without ot melting & deformity
We don't have $tree here but it probably needs a primer if you remove the paper. Check on Flight Test forums
Very useful for beginners like us.
Pro trick: watch series on flixzone. Me and my gf have been using it for watching loads of movies recently.
@Ashton Alex definitely, been watching on Flixzone} for since november myself :D
Excellent video Andrew :) I usually use wing-tape, but paint will do the same thing :)
Ohw by the way: I allso offten use metalic tape ment for helicopter-blades (from HobbyKing).. helps very well in visability..
Metalic tape, I'm going to look that up. Thanks mate
The stuff is a bit hard to find, so here you go :)
hobbyking.com/en_us/ultra-thin-prismatic-sticker-sheet-1mtr.html?___store=en_us
Basic effective cheap practical thank you 😉
I want to dye my cork plane without it decomposing. What is the material that was applied before dyeing?!
Denatured Alcohol for cleaning, then packing tape for masking
I fly in the winter months. Most of the time,the sky and ground match as far as color, a grey color or bright white,no blue skys to see much. I lost sight of my little pusher soon after launching and had to land it as soon as I regained visual. I found that red seems to be the best visual color so I use red stripes on the bottom and red solids on the top wing. The tail gets a solid red color. No blues at all. A mixed cloudy / sunny day in the middle of the winter just causes the plane to blend easier. here in Northern Michigan,its not unusual to go three months without sunshine. Its called lake effect clouds. It is created when cold air passes over warmer lake Michigan waters. We can get twice as much snow from lake effect than a regular system storm. Until the Great lakes freeze over completely( late January,or Febuary) We can get buried in snow.
RC Hobbyist Extreme // Although red is a good color, I find yellow or high visibility green to be much better. Red tends to darken out and becomes black from far away on overcast days.
mazpr2025 We get white cloudy days mostly,not dark grey,its can be nerve wracking. Some people have to use special sunlight lamps so they dont get depressed.
That sounds depressing
Is that a Multiplex EasyStar? When the wing was wet, the texture was clearly visible and it looks like the Elapor foam they use, similar to Epo I guess? What's your experience with Depron foam board and spray paint. I have tried dozens of normal cans and they always burn the foam when you try to get a good coverage in 1 go. Misting from 10 or so inches away seems to work but the results are never that great. The special foam sprays are less aggressive but are 3 times as expensive for a can half the size. 😕
Bixler 1. I dont spray XPS or Depron usually. Very light coats might be OK
I have the EasyStar and Bixler 3, the decals are starting to come lose, so I might strip the plane completely and give your paint scheme a go. Visibility looks a lot better then the default schemes. Thanks for the tips! 👍
Hi Andrew. You mention this is suitable for some foams but not all. I’m considering this for my volantex Phoenix. Is the foam ok to do this on the Phoenix. Thanks in advance.
Yes Phoenix foam can take spray enamel paint
Sir which materials used for making body
How do you find foam safe paint? Does it say on the label?
Might be on the label but I just use the cheapest I can find and use light spray
Yep, I guess people are right when they say, if you can't see the plane, you can't paint it. It's great how these old adages so often ring true.
.
Wise words again sir
Thank ee koindly zurr.
OK Andrew, I noticed you taped over the wing servos, how about the pushrods and connectors in the wing ? Do you "block out " those components ? I would imagine spray paint is not a servo's friend . How much "block out" is enough ? Thanks.
Push rods and connectors are fine with a spray of paint. I just tape over the servos to hold them in better really
Andrew, I get it. LIGHT coats of spray paint are fine with push rods and connectors. I guess I would just "work them" between coats just for a check.
Exactly, go to it
I tried to paint a Z84 but the foam is very slipy - paint didnts stick just slid offf like a powder.
Will the spirit allow it to stick or do I need to sand it finely down?
Wasent sure if it was the foam type or what.
The spirit should be enough (can also use kerosene, de-greaser, soap and water but test that it doesn't damage the foam)
Nice quick demo! Is there any reason you use flat and then gloss overspray, and not just gloss directly?
Need a perfectly smooth and clean surface for gloss spray otherwise it looks bad. Matt goes on easily and opaque, the clear overspray is mainly for pre painted purchased models for extra protection, and I would use satin rather than gloss.
Mark Harrison There are no gloss florescent paints available,thats why.
wanting do wing tips hiviz on me volantex raptor v2 wich paing be safe not melt/worp it
In the description
Hi Andrew hows it going,just checking if this paint is safe for all foam,i need to spray my Durafly T-28 Trojan V2 its original paints peeling off :(
Dont know sorry, it's fine with the Bixler foam but you would need to test it first on the Trojan
No trouble painting right over the servos and electronics?
I wouldn't drown them in paint, just a light spray is OK
Is available Accent Spray Enamel Neon Pink only in Australia and not in Europe?
Probably only Australia. it is just the cheapest spray enamel
Andrew, first of all receive a warm greeting! at the same time, I thank you for your kind attention to my question and for your prompt response,
Is the first step (with denatured alcohol) necessary for brand new plane?
Yes, particularly for new planes. May still have some residue from the mould on the foam that will prevent the paint adhering.
Andrew Newton ok thank you a lot for your fast response and your great videos, greetings from Belgium 🇧🇪 !!!
A very nice demonstration. How do you know which paints are foam safe? Does the paint can state it is foam safe? Thanks for the video and Happy Flying!
Have to test spray first. This EPO foam can handle just about anything, but XPS foam would dissolve
Foam is not mentioned on the can
Andrew, thanks for the info.
You can now buy water based spray paint, which is even styrofoam safe, from Montana and other spray manufacturers (Liquitex). Just FYI.
Is fluorescent pink more visible than fluorescent lime/green at distance ? I've never tried the pink.
Yes pink it the brightest I think
And it's easier to spot a lost plane on the ground or in front of trees, than green, too!(I use a Fluoro Red)
EC White Yes,all the way around,pink stands out way better than green. Especially if there are any pine tree stands in the area. I have a big pine tree stand and lost my pusher in them. the snow trapped in the branches made my lost wings blend in with the snow. After finally locating the wings,I painted them red. They were originally white with blue stripes. A very bad winter flying color I found out. As soon as my plane took off,I lost it in the cloud colors. Even dark colors like black didnt help. I now paint my winter planes florescent colors,they reflect light even on grey overcast days better than regular colors.
Are you using foam safe paint. I have seen some spray paints eat the foam.
No, this foam is OK with the cheap spray enamel.
The paint doesnt eat into the foam?
Light spray first then build up slowly. Also depends on the foam
This foam is like Elapor is CA proof?
Have to use foam-safe CA
can it be laminated after it is painted?
Yes
Nice
Not good u can see it eating the EPO and it’s bringing the texture up. Great Scheme though.
doesn't spray paint burn the foam though?
Some foam yes. Need to test it first, and just use light spray coats
ok thank you!
Pink is camouflage in the sky thats why they painted Spitfires pink in WW2
Maybe a different shade of pink
Blacks out of stock,i need black and yellow.
I won't do grey EDFS any more ;)
I wouldn't have a hope with grey!
Denatured alcohol will debond hot glue!
Use too much and the servos will fall out!!
Andrew just used a barely damp cloth on the broad wing surfaces, he did not pour it on the wing. His reasoning is sound. Just relax and remember you never apply the liquid directly to the surface, using just a damp rag gets the surface ready to accept whatever finish you are applying without unintended results of overapplication. Good to go.
Z
Sir which material is used for making body
Sir which material is used for making body
This plane is EPO foam