How To Paint A Nerf Gun

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Painting a Nerf gun can give the toy a fresh new await and make it worthy of your friends' jealousy. Or, yous may want to paint it in order to use the toy as a prop weapon in a video or film. Spray painting is the quickest and easiest way to give your Nerf gun a new color design, but you practise need to accept some basic precautions and use the correct products and techniques.

1
Purchase the correct kind of paint. Not all types of paint will expect as skilful or last as long on your Nerf gun. One brand that historically works great is Krylon Fusion (for plastic), as the paint bonds to the plastic on the Nerf gun and makes the pigment chore terminal longer.^[1]
- Some enthusiasts prefer other spray paint brands, or vinyl dye sprays, which are available at auto parts stores.
two

Select a proficient work surface area. Sanding and spray painting a Nerf gun — or anything else, for that matter — is not they blazon of project that yous should try to tackle on your dining room table. Plan ahead both for rubber and to contain the mess you'll make. Work in a well-ventilated area, simply in low-current of air conditions. Put downward an ample corporeality of paper, cardboard, or other protective material on your workspace. Follow the preparation and application instructions on the spray paint can.^[2]

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3

Make clean the plastic surface. Spray paint adheres better and lasts longer on a clean surface. Some mild lather and a thorough rinse (and dry out) will do the trick. Even so, the best way to prepare plastic for painting will depend on whether information technology'south old or new: an ammonia-based cleaner (such as a window spray) will better prepare worn plastics for painting, while paint thinner works best for brand new plastic items.^[3]
4
Disassemble the toy. Accept apart your Nerf gun using a screwdriver. Yous merely need to take off the panels that you lot experience demand painting. Be cautious, because many Nerf guns accept pieces nether tension, and often springs, and these can escape at high speed once you open the gun.^[four]
- Accept a photo of the internal layout of the gun earlier removing whatever pieces, so you'll have a guide for reassembly afterwards.
- Yous tin spray pigment without disassembling if desired, but it'southward easier to get consummate coverage if y'all accept the toy apart.
five
Sand the panels. A good sanding chore will allow the paint task to last longer, so take your time on this step. Sanding will create more surface surface area for the paint to bond to. Sand each panel until it feels slightly rough. Utilise any general purpose sandpaper for the job.^[5]
- Wipe away grit and debris with a tack material before proceeding. Or, wash the toy once again with a mild soap and h2o, and rinse and dry out it thoroughly.
- Whether or not yous sand, be sure to wash every slice you lot intend to paint in order to remove mold-release chemicals that can interfere with paint adhesion.
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i
Record any panels or parts that you want to remain partially unpainted. It would be a adept thought to cover the orange tip, so it will be articulate information technology is a toy. Employ painter'due south tape (masking and duct record will piece of work also, just they usually leave a sticky residuum) so that the spray pigment doesn't cover these sections. For masking fine details, you can trim out shapes from the tape with a sharp hobby knife.^[6]
- You can also tape over the black base coat you'll apply next, after it has stale thoroughly, if you want certain sections to remain blackness. If you notice that your finish paint color is leaking under your painter'due south record, applying some other layer of your base coat over the tape before applying your accent colour tin can help.
- Look online for examples of loftier-quality Nerf gun paint jobs. You may exist inspired!^[vii]
2
Apply the base coats of paint. Apply two or more calorie-free coats of black spray paint. This process is called "priming." Priming makes the other finishing colors stick out more they would if applied just by themselves. This is especially helpful if your Nerf gun has bold contrasting colors, like blue and orange or red and yellow.^[viii]
- Start and cease your spray pointed away from your target to avoid splatters.
iii
Let the black pigment dry. Await at least 10 minutes. It'southward of import that the starting time layer of paint is dry so that new colors don't blend with the black. It's best not to permit the pigment dry in directly sunlight.^[nine]
- Refer to the information on your paint'southward can for re-glaze times.
iv
Add your finishing color(due south). Have the colour(s) of spray paint you want and spray several light coats over the black base of operations coat (and any taped areas). Let the paint dry for 10 minutes or more between coats. Remove any painter's tape after applying the final coat, either before or after the paint has fully stale.^[10]
- If you mix types/brands of paint, test their compatibility on some scrap plastic or a part of the gun that won't bear witness once assembled.
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1
Add bear on-upwards detailing if desired. If yous desire to add any fine details or touch upwardly some hard-to-reach spots, use acrylic paints and fine-tipped acrylic brushes. Permit the paint to dry out thoroughly between coats.^[11]
- Be actress cautious painting parts that see a lot of motility, like triggers and slides. Some of them move in places with very little room to maneuver, and fifty-fifty the increased thickness added by coats of pigment tin can affect performance.
2
Apply a clear coat spray. This will requite your new paint job a longer life, specially on areas prone to wear like handles and triggers. The awarding process will exist very like to applying the spray paint, just follow the instructions on the can.^[12]
- Let the clear glaze dry out thoroughly before reassembling the toy.
3
Reassemble your Nerf gun. After all the painted parts are completely dry out, screw them back together and adore your work. Your Nerf gun paint job is now complete!
- Refer to the photos yous should take taken during disassembly if you need a refresher.
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Add New Question

Question

What if my primer is articulate? Does it matter?

A black base coat works best, considering it gives yous a consequent base of colour to cover with your finish paints.
Question

Practise you have to sand?

It is worth the attempt to sand, because the paint will adhere better and last longer.
Question

Do you demand to use a layer of base coat?

Applying the base coat makes it much easier to get a consistent final color, and will likely actually save you lot time in the long run.

See more answers

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An easy style to hang any painted piece with a trigger guard: skid it over a broom handle or dowel rod. This is especially handy when painting many guns at one time.
For painting only a pocket-sized part of a gun, yous tin can sometimes use a plastic grocery purse every bit your mask, only taping the edges of it effectually your target area.
Be patient and employ many light coats of paint rather than a few heavy ones. Heavy coats tin can result in drips.

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Get-go timers should not endeavour to paint the inner workings of their Nerf guns.
In some places painting the butt of a toy gun and making it look like a real gun is illegal, so check if it is ok where yous alive.
Don't try to utilize spray paint in very hot, very humid, or cold weather. Your results will suffer.
Krylon Fusion and vinyl dyes work as intended only on blank plastic. If the plastic has ever been painted, the 'dye' effect will non piece of work and information technology volition perform at all-time only as well as conventional spray paint.

Things You'll Need

Spray paints (colors of your choice)
Sandpaper
Screwdriver
Painter'south tape
Small-scale acrylic paintbrush (optional)
Acrylic paint (optional)

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Commodity Summary 10

To spray paint a Nerf gun, clean the plastic with soap and water, then advisedly disassemble the toy with a screwdriver. Identify the pieces of plastic on a workbench lined with paper or cardboard, and then sand the panels until each 1 feels slightly rough, and so wipe away whatever grit with a tack cloth. Wrap tape around whatever parts of the toy you don't want to paint, so employ two or more light coats of black paint to prime number it. Let the primer dry for at least ten minutes, then spray on several calorie-free coats of your final color, letting the pigment dry for at least ten minutes between coats. For tips on coating your Nerf gun with articulate glaze, keep reading!

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