crystals

#1
For this demonstration I'm going to use one of the plastic stretched half tanks that are available here at Airbrushtech. The tanks are great for experimenting with paints and make for killer displays. To achieve good adhesion, remove the gloss finish on the tank with a red scuff pad. Clean the surface with a wax/grease remover to remove any oils. Start by applying a good epoxy primer/sealer.

#2
The surface of the plastic tank gives us the opportunity to apply a special effect paint that requires a curved surface to achieve a dramatic result. One of my favorites is the color shifting "Ocean Teal" made by Xotic Colours. The Ocean Teal is a pearl mixed in a clear base (see above photo) and must be applied over black for the best results.

#3
Once the primer/sealer has reached it's recommended drying time, apply a solid black basecoat. Give the black sufficient flash (drying) time. The Ocean Teal will cover in one to two medium wet coats. In this picture you can already see the blue-to-green color-shift in one coat of paint.

#4
Give the Ocean Teal ample time to dry. I let the paint dry over night because it's going to be subjected to some very abrasive procedures. Here (above photo), I layed out a simple design by using 3M 1/16" Fine-Line tape. Follow that by masking off the areas that will not be exposed to the Crystals. Be very cautiouslaid when masking up for the Crystals so it will not go under the tape.

#5
The original version of the "Crystals" was a very long and difficult procedure. Xotic Colours has redeveloped it and simplified the procedure. Crystals can be purchased by the quart or pint. Make sure to buy Xotics "Decontamination Solution" with the Crystals.

#6
Crystals is limited only to the painters imagination to what striking effects can be created with it. Keep in mind, that you want the color of the Crystals (cracks) to be the first color applied. Let the first color completely dry before proceeding. Prior to applying the Crystals wipe the surface down with the Decontamination Solution.

#7
The Crystals can be applied by either spraying it through a gun or using a squirt bottle. I like the squirt bottle best because the air from a spray gun will push it around the surface it's being applied to. Rule-of-Thumb with the Crystals is "The thicker, the better.". You want to saturate the surface with it and make sure you have full coverage with no dry spots. This is extremely tricky on a curved surface.

#8
Here is where it gets tricky. For the most dramatic effects and to make the Crystals work right, there can be absolutely no air movement. Even walking by it will create enough air movement to effect how it works. To help cut down any air movement I put a cardboard box over the tank while the Crystals dried. The longer it takes to dry, the bigger and more dramatic the cracks will be. Also, humidity helps in producing a more striking Crystal effect.

#9
In the photo above, you can see the Crystals starting to form. If the desired effect or pattern is not achieved, do not apply more Crystals. The Crystals can easily be removed by just washing off with soap and water.

#10
Once the Crystals is thoroughly dry spray the second color. This will be the background color behind the Crystal effect. Apply a single thin coat of paint over the Crystals. Do not apply heavy wet coats, that will lock the Crystals down and be almost impossible to remove. Note: this process works best by using urethane basecoat paints.

#11.
Give the second color its required drying time. Remove the Crystals by scrubbing the surface with a gray scuff pad and water. If the second color was applied correctly the Crystals will wash off easily without having to apply too much pressure. Continue lightly scrubbing the surface until all the Crystals are removed.

#12
All kinds of exotic effects can be created using the Crystals. To get an even more custom look, try appling a Candy color over the Crystals at this point.

In this photo you can see another version were I applied a black over a purple. In most cases, if done correctly the Crystals are easily removed just by wiping with a wet sponge.

#13
Now that the Crystal demonstartion is done, I'm going to mask the tank back up with the exception of the center graphic.

Here is a photo from a different project where you can see the Crystals drying. Crystals is like a pre-mask. The dry Crystals that is raised above the surface is what will be removed.

#14
Ground Aluminum Faux Finish. This is an easy to create effect and keeps the customers wondering how it was accomplished. Lay a 2" grinding disk on top of a red scuff pad. Cut the scuff pad to the size of the grinding wheel.

#15
Apply glue to the scuff pad. If you use a type of "Super Glue" make sure it is completely dry before using and do not saturate the pad with glue. If the glue is not dry, it will be spun out when the grinder reaches a high rpm and land all over the paint. Which will ruin the painted surface beyond repair. Sounds like I learned that from experience, doesn't it?

#16
Contact Cement works best for this application. Apply the glue to both the grinding disk and the scuff pad. Hold them togther until the glue dries.

Xotic Colours was the first to produce the "Crystals" chemical for custom painters. The original version was very hard to work with and unpredictable. It was also a lenghthy process, so most custom painters back away from it. Xotic Colours has reformulated "Crystals" to be more user friendly and a simple to do special effect.

#17
Spray the area that this effect will be done with a very course metallic silver. For this demonstration I used Xotic Colours Sparklee Silver. Enough paint material needs to be applied so the grinding disk cannot penetrate to the surface below the silver. Three wet coats should be sufficient. The Silver must be completely dry before using the grinding disk/pad. Keep the RPM's of the grinder to a minimum and gently press the scuff pad as its spinning against the silver. This will score the paint. Be creative and randomly overlap the swirls.

#18
Before going any further, I want to protect what has been done to this point. I applied four heavy coats of a high solids Clear-Coat. I do this for several reasons. One, to protect what has been done so far and Two, to level the graphics before adding a pinstripepinstripee. When you want to produce a clean show finish with depth, you don't want to pinstripe over the ridge left by the different layers of each graphic. I shot this with a 2 hour clear and leveled the surface by block sanding with wet 400 grit paper.

#19
I figured since I've used Xotic Colours exclusively on this demo so far, why stop now. Xotic Colours recently released an entire line of Pinstriping paints. Xotic has more colors available than any of their competitors to date. I mixed Ultra Marine Blue and White together to make a light blue for one stripe and used Gold for another stripe. I wasn't able to use the paint straight out of the bottle and get it flow enough to make a long straight line. The paint needed a few drops of slow reducer. I also added a few drops of the same hardener I use for the clear to get the paint to dry to the touch fast.

#20
In the photo above, you can see how much easier and nicer the pinstripe looks when done over a level surface. For smaller projects I like to use a 00 Liner Brush to maintain a consistent 1/16" line.

#21
This is the single most exciting pinstripe paint in Xotic's line. Pinstriping Clear. This opens up a whole new world in creativity for custom painting. I've added different paint toners to it and made my own unique pinstripe colors.

#22
I'm going to use the Pinstriping Clear and add some of Xotic's "Maple Illusion" dry pearl to it.

#23
Mix the Pinstripe Clear and Maple Illusion together. Stir together thoroughly then add a few drops of slow reducer.

#24
With the Clear/Maple mixture, go back over the Gold pinstripe. It's fairly easy to retrace the colored pinstripe with the clear without making mistakes.

#25
Be creative. Change to a different pearl and repeat the process over the remaining pinstripes.

#24
In this photo you can see an exploded view of the pinstripe with the Clear/Maple on top of it. This really twinkles in sunlight.

#25
Once the pinstriping has dried to the touch, wipe the entire surface down with wax/grease remover. Apply four heavy coats of Clear-Coat. Color-Sand and buff to produce a high gloss, show winning finish.

Steven Craig is the owner and head painter of SKC CUSTOMZ in Lake Havasu City, AZ. In the past Steven has won the House of Kolor Prestigeous Painter Award and was a 1st Place winner of Dupont's Hot Hues Awards. He most recently was awarded the Matrix System's FX Grand Prize Award. Steve paints a wide range
of jobs from guitars to large off shore boats. Visit his web site at

Airbrush : Iwata HP-BH, Custom Micron B
Spray Guns: Iwata LPH400 and Iwata LPH300
Paint Media: PPG, Xotic Colours and Matrix Systems
Surface Media: Everything I can get paint to stick to.
Masking : R-Tape and 3M Masking Tapes
Projector: Artograph
Lighting : Natural and Florescent. Spray-Line and Spray King Paint Booths