How do I paint, seal, or finish my finished part?
The right finish depends on whether the part is silicone or resin, they take paint very differently.
- Painting silicone: use a silicone-based paint system (Psycho Paint base + silicone pigments) so the paint moves with the part. To color the whole piece instead, pigment the silicone before casting.
- Sealing / clear-coating silicone: a thin silicone top coat (such as a Psycho Paint clear) adds sheen. Delamination of a second silicone layer almost always means the first layer was contaminated or fully cured and slick, apply the next coat while the base is still slightly tacky.
- Painting rigid resin: resin takes paint readily. Lightly scuff and clean the surface, then use our water-based Maker Pro Paint, or most hobby acrylic/enamel paints over a primer coat.
- Painting flexible non-silicone parts (flexible foam, flexible urethane): use Maker Pro Paint with the additives below so the finish bends with the part instead of cracking.
Using Maker Pro Paint: Maker Pro Paint is a water-based acrylic for resins, foams, and flexible urethanes. It is not for silicone, which still needs a silicone-based paint (above). Basic steps:
- lightly scuff, then clean and degrease the surface
- on slick or non-porous surfaces such as cured urethane, sealed resin, or plastics, apply Maker Pro Adhesion Promoter first per the TDS
- on anything that flexes, stir in Maker Pro Flexibilizer per the TDS, so the dried paint bends with the part instead of cracking
- apply in thin coats by brush, sponge, or airbrush, letting each application cure completely