propellers

[B.T.M.]

3 parts
1. do you paint dark or light first(yellow tips, hubs etc)

2. is paint chipping before or after it goes on the model.

3. is it better to make it fixed rather than free spinning

[Creative Models Australia]

In theory, light should always go first, but I normally lay down the base colour/coat, be it light or dark and spray over.

Chipping can be done several ways, I'm guessing you may be new to chipping? So I would do this last, using a small peice of sponge.

I always glue my props.

[RGeorgeO]

G'Day B.T.M., I have two courses of action:
1 - spray-paint my props first with white, then with yellow, and mask the tips with thin strips of tape. Spray the black, then (if required) brush-paint the hub with Citadel Miniatures Mithrel Silver or Testors Chrome Steel.
2 - spray paint the blades with Citadel Miniatures Chaos Black , then dip the tips into a shallow puddle of their Sunburst Yellow.
I don't weather propellers.
And I like my propellers to spin. So, where ever possible, I mount them on a brass tube that will fit smoothly into a brass tube that I anchor into the engine nacell. They spin smoothly and remove for transportation. Brass is readily available from most model shops, and easy to cut by rolling (small caliber) under a knife blade, or (solid/larger stuff) using a tube cutter (usually available from a model, RC or railway shop).
Good luck & have fun. George, out........................

[harocker]

One small tip for end of props: Paint the yellow, say, for the tip. Cut a long strip of masking tape, to the desired thickness. Then, wrap a strip around the prop tip. This means that both sides are the same thickness, and all prop tips are the same length. One thing to be careful of, of both ends of the strips meet, it's hard to split them, and in splitting them, you might damage the paint tip. So, have them, at the tips, make a Y shape. Then, after you've painted the black, just pull the two end of the Y, the middle bit being wrapped around the tip, and voila, a perfect tip!

[Damo]

Just a quick tip for masking....I get a block of polystyrene, and use toothpicks to anchor the prop with one blade hanging over the edge. This leaves both hands free to position the tape.

[David E]

Good question on paint chipping. Having filed many a nick out of the leading edges of prop blades, my rule of thumb is that only freshly painted props will be free of chipping and erosion. The reverse sides of prop blades usually cop some paint damage over time too, especially in very dusty, abrasive environments. I normally apply (sparingly) a little aluminium enamel to propellors once on the model, especially if the subject has paint worn away from other areas that I want to show.