Painting How-to: ACU Digi-Camo A-5

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1 Painting How-to: ACU Digi-Camo A-5 Here is a brief guide to painting your marker. Some of the step by step photos used here are from TacticalCamo since I did not photograph each step. Next time I will, and will update this document. I wanted to share some of my findings with all of you, and in addition to the painting itself, there are some other helpful tips that I have found along the way of working on my markers. These are not directly related to painting, but will help you set up a nice workplace, as well as assist in the maintenance of your marker. Paint 1. Color. The first thing you need to decide is what color you want to paint your marker. I chose ACU for team colors. From what I see in the more recent custom painted markers, it seems as though more and more are turning up in cool camo colors, but they are done in a solid color, and leaving safety, assembly pins, and leaving other small parts black for a small but very cool looking effect. 2. Pattern. Camo and Digi-Camo. These paintjobs are more expensive simply due to the cost of the vinyl camouflage templates. I will say that if you want a very professional look, and you put a price on your free time at home, these prefabricated vinyl templates are the difference between an amateur looking paint job and a professional job. Regarding camouflage, look for colors that are common to where we play. I actually went out to the woods and found the most common colors to Pennsylvania woods, and so it is possibly to blend a camo patterns that will very closely match our terrain. a. Those that want to create their own templates can use this tool:

2 b. The templates themselves are expensive (as in 69.95): ategory= Type of paint. I chose Duracoat. Duracoat is resistant to the elements, as well as most solvents. It is extremely expensive, and I personally am not sure that it is worth the money. Initial results from random work and Splatbrothers tells me that it scratches like any other paint, and will come off if you go rolling around in the woods. I believe that normal Krylon paint would be just as effective, as long as it does not wash off easily. Time will tell. Preparation 1. Preparation is the key to a finished product that you will be proud of. Pull the marker apart and remove internals. I found it easy to remove the cyclone and all parts, such as the dogleg stock, in order to make sure I painted all of the nooks and crannies of the marker. 2. I personally stripped the A-5 down to bare metal. If you have access to a sandblaster, this is a very good way to prepare all parts that you are planning on painting. 3. For a very soft metal like aluminum or magnesium, you can blast with aluminum oxide, or glass beads. Aluminum oxide is recommended since it provides a more abrasive surface for the paint to adhere to. 4. I stripped the A-5 with Jasco paint remover. It was a very tough process as the paint of the A-5 is on the marker and VERY tough to remove. 5. After stripping, clean the entire marker with mineral spirits in order to remove all oils and post paint remover residue. You want to remove all of the oil prior to sandblasting. If you do not remove all oils prior to painting, or in between coats of paint, you run the risk of poor adhesion, or fish-eyes, which will form small circles on your paintwork.

3 6. Plastic Parts. I found that plastic parts needed more than sandblasting. I hand sanded all small plastic parts (trigger, macro line, etc.) I wound up sanding the hopper with a porter-cable finishing sander with 220 grit sandpaper prior to painting. Again, you have to really remove all oils on these plastic parts in order for paint to adhere. Remove the oils prior to sanding. Several good washings with mineral spirits should work fine. 7. After removing all paint, blow off and wash any residue from the sandblaster. This is especially important as it will find it s way into the cyclone and other small areas of the marker, and the blasting medium is so fine, it will run through the air-pathway and could potentially affect the marker performance in a negative way. Blow off all parts with some compressed air and wash all parts that are marked for painting. 8. Mask off any area that you think paint can enter the internal receiver area. You should make sure that paint does not find it easy to stick to internal areas. Preparation Shortcuts: Sandblasting is not a requirement. Do I think that you can just scuff up the black finish and paint it? Yes. However, if you are attempting a digi paintjob, the templates may not adhere so well to the existing finish since the texture has a slight crinkle feel to it. This could lift the templates and cause some bleeding of the paint under the template. Painting Safety 1. Regardless of what you are painting, what type of paint you are using (Krylon, Duracoat, etc.), you need to ensure you are using medium in a properly vented area (garage, outside, etc.) Duracoat uses hardener, and you do not want to be painting this close to home air-intakes, in basements, or any area in which it can travel throughout the house. This stuff is capable of killing small pets and is a very hazardous and flammable material. Painting (First Coat):

4 1. If you are using spray cans of paint, use some distance between your marker and your paint can for the first 2 coats. I like to call it dust-coating and it really helps adhesion. 2. If you are using compressed air, I recommend a cheap HVLP paint gun and spray at about 10lbs of compressed air. If you are using compressed air, make sure that you have no moisture in the compressor, or else it will impact your finished product. You can test this by spraying air-only from your paint gun into a small mirror to see if there is moisture. You may need an air filter if there is moisture. Personally, I always have an in-line air-filter for all painting. 3. First Coat: The first coat is sprayed on the marker entirely. There is no need for any vinyl templates on the first coat since this is the base for the digi pattern. 4. After applying several coats of paint on the entire marker, allow all marker parts to dry for 24 hours. Make sure the drying area is free of excess humidity. Humidity will slow the drying time considerably. 5. Some specifics if you are using Duracoat: a. You mix Duracoat with 12 parts paint to 1 part hardener. The paint has a work time of a few hours, so you need to spray it quickly, and it does not have a shelf-life after you mix it with the hardener. I found that a small mixing cup that is found on Nyquil or cough medicine work great for measuring. b. If you are using Duracoat, mix all paint in a metal can, as this stuff will melt through a plastic or Styrofoam cup in about 10 seconds. c. The normal paint package sold online is very stingy with the paint. As I stated, Duracoat is expensive, and so they give you 4oz of Dark Green, 2oz. of Light Green, and 2oz. of Tan. That is 8oz. of paint for the marker, the hopper, and my dogleg stock. I had NO paint left over. Use your paint efficiently. 6. I used 4oz. of Dark Green for the first coat. Painting (Second Coat): 1. After letting the first coat dry for 24 hours, you can apply the vinyl templates. 2. The vinyl templates are sorted by female and female. You should concentrate on the male templates as they will cover the first coat. 3. When you are putting your vinyl templates on the marker, try to envision straight lines running horizontally down the marker, and align your templates down the marker. 4. I used 2oz. of light green for this coat.

5 5. After allowing the first coats to dry for 24 hours. You do NOT remove the first set of templates. They stay on the marker until you are finished. 6. Here is a picture of the second coat completed with next set of stencils applied. Painting (Third Coat): 1. Apply your second set of vinyl templates. Use mostly male templates, but you can certainly use a few female templates if you want. The primary reason that the female template is used is to fill in areas that too much of one color. Adding a male template and painting within the area of the template helps mix up the pattern even more. 2. I used 2oz. of Tan for the third coat. 3. Allow coat to dry for 24 hours. 4. Leave all templates on the marker. Painting (Fourth Coat): 1. The fourth coat involves all of the female vinyl templates. Look at the marker and determine what areas look like they have too much of a single color in one area. 2. Place a female template in all areas that you wish to add color. 3. Mix up a single color (ex. Dark Gray) and spray paint on all areas that you have the template on. Be VERY careful not to spray beyond the template. If you do, you will create overspray, and this is not desirable.

6 4. After this color dries (I waiting 24 hours between every single coat), I carefully remove the female templates and place them in other areas of the marker. 5. You will now repeat steps 2,3 and 4 for the additional two colors (Light Gray and Tan), placing templates in areas you wish to add color. 6. After the last coat of color is dry, carefully remove all templates (male and female) from the marker. You now have a digi-finish. Your marker is technically completed, but if you want to add a clear coat (optional), you can. Painting (Clear Coat): 1. I chose to add a matte clear coat. When you paint coats of digi, there is buildup and you can feel it after you remove all of the templates. A clear coat helps smooth the finish out. Marker Assembly: 1. As you get ready to re-assemble the marker, this is a good time to really inspect your marker and replace suspect O-rings, polish internals, and oil up. 2. I have polished internals with both steel wool and wet sanding paper, and wet sanding produces a much smoother finish. I sand with 600 in the sink, and it comes out very smooth.

7 3. Clean out internals with WD40 and a paper towel after sanding. There is a lot of grit that you cannot easily see. 4. O-rings. If you want to upgrade your air-sealing ability of your O-rings, upgrade from normal oil and move to silicone. If you talk to the Tippmann folks, they will tell you it is better, and it is. It stays on the O-ring, and does not move. Quite simply, silicone is a better lubricant for the O-rings. I use SmartParts Sleek. 5. Re-assemble marker and test-fire to ensure that all is well. Some other Tips:

8 1. The nice foam that comes with out Tippman accessories (like commando stocks), makes a perfect pad to place your marker while working on it. The cone shape is also great for keeping screws and pins close-by without having them roll all over. 2. I also use a rubber draw-liner below that. It is good for keeping tool, marker parts, etc. I would select another color other than black. Good Luck Let me know if anyone needs help or has any questions. Boss