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Tuesday, August 11, 2015

MissK ~ Camo Time!!

I caught the crafty bug over the weekend.
Figured I should do something about it.
So I went to get me some camo paint...
And went to work :-)


Now, keep in mind, I've never done this before.
Victim #1 : an empty kitty litter bucket.
I thought it would be an easy target for my first ever camo job.
Turned out pretty good. Well, I thought so ;-)


My original intent was to awesome-camo the shit out of my carving case. So after a fairly successful first attempt, I was itching to do it again. I made sure to pick up some interesting leaves, branches and twigs on that evening's nature walk with Lucky. The live ones went in the empty moonshine jar filled with water so they would still be nice and perky the following day ;-)

~ Another closeup ~


And here's a few shots of my carving case.






I did learn a few things along the way, like I said, this was my first attempt...

Obvious rule #1: Wear a glove on the hand holding the nature bits & pieces :P
Obvious rule #2: Even it the paint can says "Bonds to plastic"...prep the surface to make sure your work does not get scratched off easily. My bad. It does seem to have stuck way better on my case, thank God, then the litter bucket, which is a more slippery plastic.

So I have a question, that I could look up online, but I would rather ask you guys...
Sanding, etching, primmer? Any tips?

12 comments:

  1. I did some camo painting once. I did such a good job, I never could find it after that!

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  2. Thank you Swanson :-)

    That's the plan, Proof ;-)

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  3. Wash & dry, then prime. Humans see light colors best. Dark colors worst, and can't pick out any pattern smaller than one M.O.A. Black is a contrast/ shadow in classic cammo patterns that doesn't exist in nature. Small patterns look pretty but are invisible to humans and animals at anything over a few tens of feet.(it varies with the individual) The goal is to get your project to "fade" into the background. Hard edges stand out like bright colors. Soft and fuzzy is not as pretty but fools the human eye better. Study your background carefully, then color match your pallet. Earth tones-earth tones -earth tones. Test your cammo on the backgrounds-don't be afraid to make changes. The best spray paints on the market to day are sold by Brownells gun parts(among others). I think the brand name is spelled "Avro". For metal and plastic its the best stuff I've used since I left the Army. ---Ray

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  4. Those look pretty good,missk. About surface prep,it must be very clean,and sanding lightly usually helps give the paint something to bite.A very light first coat also helps prime the surface.
    But some plastics just won't hold paint,they are too non-porous for any paint to stick.That's why they invented vinyl wraps.

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  5. Thanks for the tips guys :-)

    I think this piece was more meant to look "pretty" as it's my carving case. But I would like to do more authentic camo in the future. Ray, I'll keep your words in mind as I work on those projects. But for some reason, the "Artist" in me is pulling me more towards visual intrigue. Although, the fact that I could make something disappear into the surrounding background is a concept I could totally get into ;-)

    Found your Aervoe, Ray (had to look it up). It's going on my Wish List for future use. I used Rust-Oleum. Good coverage, and a very decent price here. They cost 3 times as much in Canada :/ I might get a few more cans before I leave. So I can play around some more...

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  6. Looks neat to me. Where were you when they had me painting all those 109's and 548 ammo carriers years ago. Could have used a good camo painter :)

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  7. Thanks PP.... I'd need a bigger can... ;-)

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  8. I told you I can't s[pell.....Can't type nether.. And Yeh after I wrote that I kind'a figgered you meant to be "artsy"---Ray

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  9. That is really Awesome! You've got some real talent there!
    Ya might think about actually doing some of that on different products to sell. VERY Cool!!!

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  10. thank you Swamp Fox, I am toying with the idea ;-)

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