For those looking to make their prints a bit more colorful, enamel paints are an excellent medium for both PLA and ABS plastic. However, the enamel paint takes away some of the flexibility of the plastic. An alternative paint for PLA would be acrylic paint.
Above is a picture of a 3D printed lightsaber in ABS plastic with the details painted using enamel paints. In this particular project, the acetone treatment to finish off the print wasn’t used. The process was as follows:
- Applied a two layer base coat of white enamel paint
- Applied two coats of each color to the lightsaber, with exception to the black which needed three coats of paint
The base coat required a thicker coats because it was filling the imperfections (small gaps and holes) in the print. The black required three coats due to the thinner nature of paint.
Enamel paints can be found at your local hobby store, Michaels, JoAnn Fabrics, Amazon, etc.
