Just got myself an airbrush so I'm a newbie! One plane painted and it turned out great!

The next plane is going to be a night flyer. I want to try out UV LEDs with fluorescent paint. It is a small 3D foamie, so I won't be flying it too far away.

I've already got the UV LEDs, and I got some Createx fluorescent paint. Got some of the LEDs wired up on a bread board and painted a few things with some of the orange paint. It's pretty freaking bright and I think it is going to work far better than I imagined!

I wanted to try out the fluorescent blue, but Hobby Lobby didn't have any, so I was going to order some online. While I was looking, I ran across this page on Createx's website which says:

Neon colors which emit a glow. Work best over a white base color such Opaque White. Fluorescent colors are NOT lightfast. The color’s fluorescence is due to the pigment being in a rapid state of decay. Fluorescent colors are not intended for permanent finishes.

Well, this foamie won't be around for 10 years or anything, but I certainly don't want to paint it over and over again. Are they saying that the paint will "dull" within a few months? Or is it only if you leave it out in the sun all the time? Or are we talking about it taking years before you would notice anything?

Is this something that is common with all fluorescent paints? If not, can anyone recommend a different brand? (needs to be acrylic so my foam won't get eaten!)

From what they are saying, I would guess that they are using pigments that are not colorfast. I would surmise that the colors will fade (not dull) over time.

Storing your model in the dark will diminish the degradation.

Thanks for the info. I guess what I care about most is what their definition of "not for permanent use" is. Does that mean it is supposed to be used for temporary tattoos or something that only last a day? Or does that mean you will notice degradation after 10 years.

If this is something you need to touch up once a year, then I won't be painting anything complicated so I can easily touch up if needed.

I put an email in to their tech support to see what they say.

Are there other brands of acrylic airbrush paint in fluorescent colors? If there are, I'm having trouble finding them.

Who knew someone out there still has good customer service? I emailed Createx and got a VERY nice, well thought out reply. Awesome! Here it is:

Thank you for contacting Createx Colors. Please find attached our
application guides. Great question. The answer is “it depends” although it
is more closer to a 10 year process; definitely not anything noticeable in a
few months unless it was a plane flow at high altitude during the day.
We’ve a large artwork hanging ion our office lobby which receives some sun
light. It was made with fluorescents over 10 years ago and has not faded,
at least nothing noticeable. Your plane should be fine.

One great technique which will maximize your plane’s fluorescent finish is
to color-key the base with a similar color so any color loss will not be
notice. For example, instead of using a white base (for a base, we highly
recommend Auto Air 4000 Series Sealer even when applying Createx Airbrush
Colors over them,
http://autoaircolors.com/products/pa...00_frames.html)
for Fluorescent Purple, apply a tinted base made by either mixing Opaque or
Transparent Purple with the Sealer White to create a pastel-like purple base
which will hide any color loss yet still provide a bright value in the
top-coated Fluorescent Purple or make a mid-coat over the Sealer White base
with Opaque Purple or Transparent Purple. The technique of making a
mid-coat of a purple and applying the Fluorescent Purple over that will do a
better job hiding any loss of Fluorescent Purple over the years but will
make a darker value of the fluorescent hue compared to the tinted base
technique.

Rapid state of decay - a fluorescent pigment is decaying, this is what
causes it to fluoresce as opposed to a lightfast pigment which is stable.
We added the description "rapid" to help people understand fading is an
inevitable consequence of painting with a fluorescent. If we may be of any
further service, please let us know.

Hope this helps someone out.

I'm not worried about it anymore and am going to just PAINT IT!

KTMRacr,
You are right on time with this info!
I'm in the exact same position as you.
I have found for my purposes that fluorescents(orange) are the way to go for visibility (in daylight).
Been using a lot of Fluor. Orange duct tape but decided it was time to try airbrushing. (the duct tape does work great btw)
Bought all the equipment and just got my opaque white for the basecoat.

I also read the info on degradation of the fluorescent paints and was very concerned. But not any more. I think I'm still going with the white basecoat so it can be a colorcoat on unpainted(noncolored) areas. I'm curious how much better that will look than bare foam areas.

I only fly foamies(no 3d) and my first airbrushing project is ready to start.
Sanded and cleaned. Ready for alcohol wipedown and gloves.
I read that you should wear gloves to keep fingerprint oils off the foam to prevent fisheye. And wearing gloves will help if holding a part and painting it.
This is the plane:
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...dProduct=19336

Planning to airbrush Polycrylic as my topcoat. Hoping that helps with the degrading some.
(FOR your night time UV benefit do NOT use a topcoat.)

Totally happy with the service from TCPGlobal.com.
Got my paint order in 2 days Priority from SC.
http://www.tcpglobal.com/createx/cre...sh-colors.aspx

My large concern going forward is the masking.
Pulling off paint with the tape.

Again I want to thank you for the info. I was contemplating posting the same question.
Totally excited and ready to get at it.

Not sure about this specific brand, but many of the rattle can fluorescents looks much brighter when sprayed over a metallic silver (AKA "Chrome") base coat instead of white. Once topcoated with a clear, the colors "pop".

FC

I saw some rattle cans that specified a silver base. I can't remember exactly what it was.
Seems like it was a bright candy apple or similar.
If (when) I get some silverish color, I may have to check it out.

I too am sitting here with my brand new airbrush set with "all" the flouresent colors. One thing I was told about Createx flours. is that the "Wicked" line has UV protection already in the paint to help it last longer. From what I understand, UV will fade colors quite quickly, especially red in general.

If kept out of direct sunlight, I suspect the colors will last alot longer than most planes

FWIW, I have fluorescent orange on my sailplane and have to spray the top tips of my sailplane wing every year. By the end of the summer the color is GONE... To me that is rapid The plane is about 5 years old now, and the same paint on the bottom is still there, but no where near as bright as the new coat I put on every spring.

Originally Posted by rcav8r2

FWIW, I have fluorescent orange on my sailplane and have to spray the top tips of my sailplane wing every year. By the end of the summer the color is GONE... To me that is rapid The plane is about 5 years old now, and the same paint on the bottom is still there, but no where near as bright as the new coat I put on every spring.

That is 'cause you're flying closer to the sun in the tops of those thermals

Ken

Yeeeeaaaaa. Wouldn't that be nice