RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

Disclaimer:
Make sure you (and your child, if applicable) are in a well-ventilated area before beginning. Paints require eye, respritory and skin protection, please take precautions and wear proper safety glasses, masks and gloves. Be aware that attempting this tutorial on your RC can permanently modify it and any surfaces you are working on.

Spend any amount of time online and on social media and you’re bound to run into one. Once you see it, you can’t help to want one too. We’re talking about wonderfully and realistically weathered RC vehicles. We’re sure you’ve seen them before, some even in the pages of RCCA. Just how do they get polycarbonate and styrene plastic to look like rusted metal?
Painted up to look like a well-worn and used vehicle, these artfully crafted paintjobs look like they can only be pulled off by and expert painter. In many cases, this is true, but the basis of the patina look is not as complicated as it seems. One popular RC painter that is known for the weathered look is RC Patina Guy himself, Erik Padilla.

Luckily for us, Padilla has put together a easy to follow step by step guide that he says is easy enough for you can your kid to handle as a fun and quick project. Let’s follow along and see just how patina is added to an RC vehicle. Here are the steps to adding a weathered patina look to your scale RC. This entire process is pretty quick and should take only 30 minutes or less.

Disclaimer:
Make sure you (and your child, if applicable) are in a well-ventilated area before beginning. Paints require eye, respritory and skin protection, please take precautions and wear proper safety glasses, masks and gloves. Be aware that attempting this tutorial on your RC can permanently modify it and any surfaces you are working on.

RC Car Action - RC Cars & Trucks | RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

Required Supplies:

Polycarbonate Spray Paint (Tamiya Color is used here)
4 sponge brushes
1 bottle of ProtoShine Lexan Cleaner
A rag or small towel
Paint palette tray (an old ice tray works too.)
Acrylic brown paint
Acrylic white paint

Step 1

Remove the body from your RC chassis. If your body requires you to remove any hardware or bodyclips, set those aside in a safe place so you don’t lose track of them. Clean the body with a clean, lint-free rag and polycarbonate cleaner. I use ProtoShine Lexan Cleaner.

RC Car Action - RC Cars & Trucks | RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

Step 2

Carefully “decant,” or spray a little Silver spray paint on your paint palette tray/ice tray (referred to hereinafter as “tray”.) A little goes a long way so be careful not to spray too much.

RC Car Action - RC Cars & Trucks | RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

Step 3

Grab your sponge brush and dab a little silver paint on the tip of the brush, then lightly dab the brush along the trim around the lower part of the car to create a metallic look. Don’t put too much paint on the brush, you want it to be semi-dry and not dripping wet. You don’t have to add too much paint to the surface, just enough to make it look like metal. (Expert tip: I usually do the edges, wheel wells and the top and back of the hood.)

RC Car Action - RC Cars & Trucks | RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

Step 4

Spray Copper onto your paint tray. Follow the second step above, dab the copper paint using your sponge brush on top of the silver paint you placed already. (Expert tip: Don’t cover all of the silver, just add a little copper color to simulate rust. You can also add a little yellow, if you desire, for a more worn “barn-find” look.)

RC Car Action - RC Cars & Trucks | RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

Step 5

Spray Gun Metal Gray onto your paint tray. Use your sponge brush to lightly brush the gray paint around the edges of the body to simulate dirt and soot. You can add it to the back and front of the body. Have it come up from the front to the top. You can also place some paint around the wheel wells. (Expert tip: Add marks around the wheel well to simulate soot thrown off the tire from driving.)

RC Car Action - RC Cars & Trucks | RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

Step 6

If your vehicle has any other surfaces such as a roll bar or roof rack, be sure to sponge some paint on to it as well. Again, a little goes a long way so carefully dab on the paint. You can always add more if you need it.

RC Car Action - RC Cars & Trucks | RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

Step 7

Use acrylic brown paint on the tires to simulate mud. Using a sponge brush, lightly dab some acrylic brown paint onto the tread and sidewalls of your tires for a well used look.

RC Car Action - RC Cars & Trucks | RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

Step 8

Add some white paint to any of the black areas on the top of your Lexan body to simulate sun damage. Use the sponge brush and dab, so as not to leave any brush strokes. Once it starts to dry, grab a towel, or use your finger, and rub the white paint off to create a more natural look.

RC Car Action - RC Cars & Trucks | RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

Step 9

After the paint is dry, use the Flat Clear to coat the acrylic paint on the entire body. This will also create a matte (dull) finish, which adds a realistic worn look. You can wash your palette and brush while you are waiting for the matte clear to dry.

RC Car Action - RC Cars & Trucks | RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

You’re Done!

That’s it! Now you and your budding RC enthusiast have the knowhow to enjoy creating your own patina look on your RC’s. The more practice you get, the better your resutls will be. Of course, like most other things, hands on experience helps and trial and error to perfect your technique is to be expected. Keep practicing and you’ll become an expert in no time.

RC Car Action - RC Cars & Trucks | RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

RC Car Action - RC Cars & Trucks | RC Patina Guy Shows Us A Quick And Easy  Step-By-Step (Kid-Friendly) Method To Add Patina To Your RC.

For more tips and pictures of his weathered RC creations, follow Erik through his Instagram account at
@rcpatinaguy.

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Updated: January 11, 2022 — 11:56 PM
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