What Are Your Best Practices to Ensure Clean Dust Free Surface During Paint Phase

[69NovaYenko]

After watching several of the car restoration TV shows I noticed that when the body goes to paint it was wiped down with a "'anti-static" solution or wipe to ensure the body is free of all contaminates and dust before shooting any paint.

Are there any auto-body 'anti-static" products that could be employed in  the 1:25 world to ensure the body is free of contaminates and dust before shooting any primer or color coats.

What are your best practices to ensure a clean dust free surface before priming or laying down a color coat.

 

[youpey]

I typically wash the body with dish soap and water and wrap in paper towel until it dries. 

That helps a lot but I still have to check it from my work bench to the hallway where I paint. I typically dont have 100% dust free paint jobs but I can usually get it with just a spot or two of dust. I also put the model in a covered box when its drying to help from anything landing on it.

[restoman]

Right before I spray, I wipe it down with an alcohol swab, followed by some careful passes with a tack cloth.

There is no possible way to ensure the body is free of dust before shooting, unless you can figure out how to paint in a vacuum. The best you can do is try to keep dust to a minimum.

[Bainford]

I used to paint in the laundry room (mega lint), and now I paint in the basement entrance-way where the cat's litter box is. Polishing is my friend.

[Ace-Garageguy]

On occasion, I've worked as a professional high-end car (and aircraft) painter. Odd as it may sound, for models I don't like using tack-cloths or even a booth. I personally find they add more dust than they eliminate.

For final prep (on real vehicles as well as models) I've found that nothing beats a semi-final wipe with 70% isopropyl alcohol, using as close to lint-free paper towels as you can get. Isopropyl will remove anything that could possibly cause fisheyes, in my experience.

For shooting anything, it's essential to blow yourself off with compressed air prior to spraying paint, and blow the thing to be painted as well.

For models, I prefer to paint outdoors on windless days, with low humidity, between 60 and 80F.

Again, though it may seem bizarre, the last wipe I'll give a model is with my naked painting hand, after it's been washed in alcohol to remove surface contaminants. Then I'll blow the surface off with my breath immediately prior to shooting paint.

I get very good results. The green hood is exactly as it looked after painting. No sanding or polishing. The orange Chevelle needed almost no after-paint work either.

 

[JollySipper]

Using fast drying paints helps to lessen the window where the paint is tacky, so if you get dust on the surface it is easy to remove before the next coat.........

[restoman]

4 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

On occasion, I've worked as a professional high-end car (and aircraft) painter. Odd as it may sound, for models I don't like using tack-cloths or even a booth. I personally find they add more dust than they eliminate.

For final prep (on real vehicles as well as models) I've found that nothing beats a semi-final wipe with 70% isopropyl alcohol, using as close to lint-free paper towels as you can get. Isopropyl will remove anything that could possibly cause fisheyes, in my experience.

For shooting anything, it's essential to blow yourself off with compressed air prior to spraying paint, and blow the thing to be painted as well.

For models, I prefer to paint outdoors on windless days, with low humidity, between 60 and 80F.

Again, though it may seem bizarre, the last wipe I'll give a model is with my naked painting hand, after it's been washed in alcohol to remove surface contaminants. Then I'll blow the surface off with my breath immediately prior to shooting paint.

I get very good results. The green hood is exactly as it looked after painting. No sanding or polishing. The orange Chevelle needed almost no after-paint work either.

 

You're not the first guy I've heard of that doesn't use a tack rag. Years ago, one of my best friends in the biz told me he never uses a tack rag unless the boss is watching. He did the same as you: blow it off and lightly wipe it with his hand while blowing at reduced pressure. He's one of the best painters I know, so it works for him, obviously. His jobs are simply flawless, more often than not. I'm not smart enough to learn from him... I use a crumpled up tack rag with barely any sticky left on it. Works for me.

 

On a side note: I hired a painter years ago when I had my shop. A real Pro, or so he and everyone else he gave as a reference said. He put his first job in the booth, blew it off, loaded the paint in MY gun, tacked the car off, and THEN turned the exhaust fan on. Dirtiest paint work I've ever seen.  No orange peel or dry areas but it was hard to look at. All I could think of was how much this was going to cost me to re-do... That was his first and last paint job in my shop.

 

I don't spray in a booth either. My favourite model-painting spot is just inside the door of my shed, with the door open. Dirt floor, cobwebs and all... it's all about what NOT to do when it comes to painting. In just about every paint class I've been a part of, the instructors will tell you that 99% of dust and dirt comes from the painter, either because of what he did, or because of what he didn't do. I sort of cringe inwardly when I see guys showing off their paint booths. Talk about creating a path for dirt to travel in...

[69NovaYenko]

Thanks for all the input and the sharing of your best practices everyone.

[DiscoRover007]

After the body is prepped I wash it with cold water and blow it off with compressed air with a can or airbrush.  Then I use Tamiya's anti static brush and wipe every crevice. This brush is used to remove dust off finished models and  but it is great for paint prep also and has been a huge factor for me. I also spray my booth down with water to trap particles and I also spray the air and the floor where I'm working to trap more potential particles. I also spray my arms with water and even a couple light sprays to my own hair to keep it from falling.  Basically spray down anything you could imagine that would cause dust.

 

This has worked pretty well for me and usually eliminates 90% percent of dust.

 

 

[BigTallDad]

Used dryer sheets will knock down static; don't use fresh ones, though, as they may leave a residue on the model.

[Brutalform]

I clean the body thoroughly with Dawn and dry. I wipe with a tack cloth. I paint without a shirt on ( bare back). This alone has stopped tiny fibers from getting in the paint. I paint in thin layers, and after every coat, I inspect the paint with my magnifying visor. If there is any thing in the light thin layers, it can easily be removed before the next light coat. This goes for every clear coat also. If you miss a piece or junk or hair or dust, and paint or clear over it... it’s in there. Inspecting and removal as soon as the light coat dries is key. 

This is all rattle can as I don’t own a air brush. 

Edited July 16, 2019 by Brutalform

[Plowboy]

After cleaning, I take a loop of 1 1/2 blue painters tape (sticky side out), wrap it around my index and middle finger and lightly blot the body with it. You have to be careful if you have your interior masked. Learned that lesson the first time. Haven't had any debris in my paint since.