Painting a chameleon effect: complete tutorial

Chameleon paint is a special paint that is well known because it has been around for around thirty years. It produces a visual effect of changing colors depending on the different viewing angles. It can change between 2, 3, 4 and up to 6 different colors depending on the viewing angles. The chameleon effect is spectacular, and yet painting a Chameleon is a rather easy exercise which does not present great difficulties, even for the novice painter. In this tutorial we present the 4 steps to successfully painting Chameleon.

Scope of application:

These general steps for applying Chameleon paint are valid on any type of support, whether an object or a statue, a bicycle or a vehicle.

Chameleon paints have evolved significantly over time and technological innovations in pigments have made it possible to create more colors, to invent more intense and also more economical colors.

Today, it is possible to paint any object or vehicle with Chameleon paint. Application can be done with a gun, airbrush or aerosol.

Chameleon paints are remarkably versatile, as they show their effect in any type of light. They are also very resistant to high temperatures and have no sensitivity to UV rays and the sun. Tutorial for applying Chameleon paint in 4 steps

Step 1 ► Prepare the support

Substrate preparation is not an optional step as it lays the foundation for a healthy, long-lasting paint job. A Chameleon painting can be painted on any surface, support or material. The important thing is to prepare this surface well. Chameleon paint cannot be applied directly to a raw surface and must only be applied to a black background. If you have to paint a raw material, such as metal, plastic, glass, or other, then it is necessary to use an adhesion primer or primer. Stardust offers black primers in jars or aerosols.

This background must be sanded with a P500 abrasive grain, it must be primed (if necessary), degreased, dusted, dry, before being painted.

Step 2 ► Paint a black background*

Chameleon paint should normally be applied to a black background in order to reveal its colors. Exceptionally, a Chameleon can be applied to a background of another color, to create a variation of this chameleon color.

The black background could be a paint or a primer, it doesn't matter.

When painting a bodywork, fairings or bicycle frame and the painted surface is in good condition, then the simplest thing is to not apply a primer and instead apply a black base paint for paint gun or black spray paint

Covering the black background

Inter-layer adhesion is very important. To guarantee this, there are 2 possibilities for applying Chameleon paint to the black background:

→ apply Chameleon paint directly after the black paint has superficially dried (solvent matt base type). This drying to the touch generally takes place around 30 minutes at a temperature of 20°.

Or

→ let the black base dry completely, then sand with P500 abrasive paper, before painting the Chameleon paint.

Step 3 ► Paint the Chameleon paint

→ In summary, the paint should be applied in a few thin coats until the optimal color and black background coverage is achieved.

The different types

A color change paint is a product that may have a colorless or sometimes colored appearance, but whose liquid appearance does not match the applied, dry appearance. The final color is the result of reflection and light.

There can be different formulas of Chameleon paint:

• water-based formula for bodywork
• water-based airbrush paint
• spray paint
• solvent-based paints for bodywork

♦ The difference between these hydro or solvent formulas is mainly the composition and the drying speed: when painting a water-based paint, you must allow more evaporation time between each coat. Solvent paints are the easiest to apply, because they are very thin and dry very quickly.

♣ Chameleon paints contain microparticles, resembling flat glitter, capable of changing color and measuring between 10 and 100 microns in size. When the sequins are all positioned in the same direction, the color changing effect is optimal. For this reason, it is important to use a painting technique in very thin layers, in order to ideally position all the particles flat and parallel to the support. On the contrary, when thick layers are applied, the disordered positioning of the pigments inside the paint film is encouraged and the color changing properties are reduced.

Mixture

Chameleon paint must be mixed according to the instructions in the technical data sheet. It is very important to stir or shake paints well before use. Some versions are delivered ready to use and other versions are delivered pure and must be diluted sufficiently, in order to facilitate passage through the gun or airbrush, but also to promote application in very thin layers.

Yield and coverage

1 liter of pure Chameleon paint covers approximately 6-7m² 1 Liter of Chameleon paint diluted and ready to use covers approximately 4m² 1 aerosol covers 0.4 m² max

Application and advice

Regarding application, it is not recommended to refer to a quantity of paint per square meter (example: apply 100g/m²), nor to a specific number of coats (example: apply 3 coats).

► The application of Chameleon paint must be done in thin layers until the black background is covered. This is usually 4 layers, but of course it depends on how thin the layers are.

⚠ It is not recommended to apply more products than necessary: when you continue to apply layers of Chameleon after covering the black background, appearance defects may occur, with for example a bleaching effect commonly referred to as the “fish eye” effect.

⚠ Be careful not to exaggerate in the fineness of the paint layers: when the paint is applied in too thin a layer and/or at too great a distance from the support, then a powdering defect may occur (the paint dries between the gun of the surface). This fault is more likely to occur when the ambient temperature is hot.

Drying and covering

A Chameleon water-based paint can dry in 5 to 10 minutes in layers and can be covered with its varnish without sanding for 24 to 48 hours.

A Chameleon solvent paint can dry in 1 or 2 minutes per coat and can be varnished within 30 minutes after application at a temperature of 20°C. Of course, if the temperature is higher, then the recovery time will be shortened.

⚠ If you need time and want to apply the varnish later, it is possible to sand the surface of the Chameleon to create sufficient adhesion conditions: this must only be done with a colored abrasive sponge grey.

Step 4 ► apply clearcoat

Once dry, Chameleon paint takes on a matte appearance. It is necessary to apply a varnish, to protect the painting and also to reveal its visual potential.

It is normally recommended to apply a high gloss clearcoat to a Chameleon. The varnish acts like a magnifying glass and makes the Chameleon particles sparkle.

It is possible to apply any type of varnish, depending on the field of activity and the intended use of the object or vehicle.

It is possible to apply a matte varnish without losing the color changing properties, but this completely annihilates the reflective effect of the Chameleon pearls.

Application

The varnish must be applied in the classic manner in accordance with the technical sheet. Generally speaking, 2 glossy coats should be applied with a time interval of 10 minutes between each coat.

The appearance of Chameleon paint

It is after varnishing with a glossy varnish that we can fully observe the different colors of the Chameleon paint. These color-changing paints can reveal up to 6 shades, depending on the angle from which the observer views them: In general, the 2 main colors are visible opposite, at angles of 30 to 150°. Then the secondary colors are visible on the sides, with flat angles in 0 and 30° or 150-180°.