What color primer do you use for the inside?

[Dark Star]

I've seen white, gray, black and even foil, but what color (or method) do you feel is best to keep that light from bleeding through or make it shine through those windows better?

Also, if you do paint the inside, what method do you use to keep those gluing surfaces clear of paint...tape where possible, simply clean it off with thinner or is there something better I am missing.


Just wanted to have a little fun and get your ideas here. Thanx!

[Ziz]

Any combination of the above. It depends on the kit design, how much lighting you're putting in and what type.

The ideal combination is silver, black, white - silver because it has the metal component in it that actually blocks light better than black, especially on white or lighter colored plastic. Then black to help kill heat build up (more of an issue if you're using incandescents.) Then white to provide light reflection if you have a few bulbs in a large open area, as opposed to LEDs pointed at specific spots.

Clearing gluing surfaces - again, depends on the kit design. A good solution is one that's also used for liquid masking on the outside - Elmer's Glue. Paint it on where you want to protect and scrape it off after doing your color painting. It's strong enough to stick for the sake of painting but weak enough to pull off without a fight later.

[PetarB]

Like Ziz says, go with a metal spraycan colour - silver even, block light a lot better than non-metallic colours due to the metal content in the paint. You will be surprised at how good it is a blocking light.