Just painted my Phantom 4

[iDark0de]

Hey guys, I recently purchased this used Phantom 4 from a friend, I have flown the bird on a few occasions and have yet to fly this outside (with the new paint coating) to see how it fares.

I did read a thread here that said painting the landing gear can cause GPS Malfunction/Loss of signal but I will have to test that out myself.

I painted the drone with Plasti-Kote in Matte Black, purchased the spray paint from Amazon.

I did not disassemble the drone to spray paint, I simply covered each and every hole with 3M Scotch masking tape, I covered all the sensors, in this case these were the front facing obstacle avoidance and the lower half of the gimbal ones.

Before painting I made sure that the gimbal was properly secured and that there was no room for any paint to enter in any of the ventilation areas.


Just joined the forum today so I thought it was ideal to post what I did.


I did own a Drone before this (Xiaomi Mi Drone 4K) before I crashed it into a tree whilst making footage - I have yet to fix it, since the gimbal along with the camera disconnected from the drone itself.


But yeah!


The props were also from Amazon, they looked quite fitting for the drone imo.

 

[WV. Rootman]

Dyeing is much safer than painting. Painting can weaken the plastic. I guess the paint you used will work. I know dye will stay and not come off.

 

[iDark0de]

Dyeing is much safer than painting. Painting can weaken the plastic. I guess the paint you used will work. I know dye will stay and not come off.

Oh nice! I never actually knew that. I think for now though, this is good, until I get my next drone which will probably be the P5 when it is released. I was somewhat bored of the generic white colour, so thought a change would be nice.

 

[WV. Rootman]

There are people that have done some really nice dye jobs. They use tape and tape off parts and dye. They get very creative. I dyed my props and that's it. With dye there is no added weight like paint and it doesn't chip.
They also have wraps that can be custom made. You can even have them use a picture. Cost is about $24 to $30 US for a wrap.

 

[AeroMirage]

Hmmm... looks like you handle a spray can pretty well!!
Props spinning in first picture? Looks like it.
I don't think the added weight will effect anything. What could it amount to? An ounce maybe?
Need any spare props? I have a brand new set of DJI Obsidian props that I don't need.
I have them listed on eBay for $16 plus shipping.
DJI Phantom 4 Pro Part #93 9450S Propellers ~ Obsidian ~ 2 Sets (4 Props) 190021282544 | eBay
If you want them, I'll let them go for $15 including shipping. (Within the 48 states)

 

[Deleted member 62848]

Um sitting here looking at mine,looks good with decal but can someone tell or point me to what dye to use,I did think about painting while back but got decal instead,@iDark0de it still looks cool black,agree on the white,might be good for why ever they choose this colour (something to do with heat I think or its the cheapest pigment colour they can get there hands on) or (all those recycled milk bottles) anyway back to the dye , is it clothing dye or different,,thanks and how is this dye applied, dipped or sprayed--------------------------------------ok thanks I go find some

 

[WV. Rootman]

Um sitting here looking at mine,looks good with decal but can someone tell or point me to what dye to use,I did think about painting while back but got decal instead,@iDark0de it still looks cool black,agree on the white,might be good for why ever they choose this colour (something to do with heat I think or its the cheapest pigment colour they can get there hands on) or (all those recycled milk bottles) anyway back to the dye , is it clothing dye or different,,thanks and how is this dye applied, dipped or sprayed--------------------------------------ok thanks I go find some

Clothing dye. In the US. Rit is a good brand.

 

[Deleted member 62848]

Clothing dye. In the US. Rit is a good brand.

Choice thanks,I did search but not really find right way
I have another dumb question on this please,I pusume I can't just dunk me drone in a bucket of colour so still curious how this is applied, do I strip down to a shell or put it in air brush and spray it or just wipe it on,I'm a panel beater and spray painter but this bit new, I could spray it with paint easy as but the dye sounds really good,same method involved,

 

[WV. Rootman]

Choice thanks,I did search but not really find right way
I have another dumb question on this please,I pusume I can't just dunk me drone in a bucket of colour so still curious how this is applied, do I strip down to a shell or put it in air brush and spray it or just wipe it on,I'm a panel beater and spray painter but this bit new, I could spray it with paint easy as but the dye sounds really good,same method involved,

They had posts on it. I’m not sure. For clothes, you put them in hot water. The dye is very strong. Don’t spill it on anything. So with that said, it should work in almost any fashion. The longer it sets, the deeper the color.
At one time in my younger years, I was a master certified, auto body and paint.

 

[iDark0de]

Hmmm... looks like you handle a spray can pretty well!!
Props spinning in first picture? Looks like it.
I don't think the added weight will effect anything. What could it amount to? An ounce maybe?
Need any spare props? I have a brand new set of DJI Obsidian props that I don't need.
I have them listed on eBay for $16 plus shipping.
DJI Phantom 4 Pro Part #93 9450S Propellers ~ Obsidian ~ 2 Sets (4 Props) 190021282544 | eBay
If you want them, I'll let them go for $15 including shipping. (Within the 48 states)

Haha thank you, it's my first time spray painting something, I usually stick to traditional methods of painting things with brush and paint bucket!

I did fly it today and have yet to check the timings and how much they differ, it flew very well though.

I may be interested in your Obsidian Pro Props, they look quite the bargain, but I'm overseas in the UK

 

[Cheesehead_Droner]

Wow, that turned out very nice!

 

[iDark0de]

Wow, that turned out very nice!

Thank you, it took an hour or so to get the masking tape on, turned out well for what I did!

 

[NineFive]

Dyeing is much safer than painting. Painting can weaken the plastic. I guess the paint you used will work. I know dye will stay and not come off.

Painting does not weaken plastic where did you ever come up with this idea

 

[MtManDavey]

I considered adding color to my P4P, primarily to make it easier to stay in visual contact once I arrive at maximum legal AGL. I may still do it. I do love how many have added color and decorations to their aircraft bodies... just like tattoos, some great art work out there, even if I would not have a tattoo on myself.

 

[WV. Rootman]

Painting does not weaken plastic where did you ever come up with this idea

I was an Automobile Service Excellence, ASC / GMC Master body and paint.
Paint has solvents:

• Mineral spirits (US) / White spirit (UK)
• Acetone.
• Turpentine.
• Naphtha.
• Toluene.
• Methyl ethyl ketone (MEK)
• Dimethylformamide (DMF)
• 2-Butoxyethanol, or any of the other glycol ethers.

Some solvents eat into / break down plastic.
There are three ways that painting can affect the mechanical strength of plastics. ... In fact, it is often desirable for the paint solvents to attack (etch) the plastic to a certain extent, since this improves adhesion. However, solvents can also cause surface crazing, or even environmental "stress cracking."
Understanding the Effects of Paint On Plastics : Plastics Technology

 

[yrless]

The danger in painting also comes from automotive or high gloss paints that have heavy metallic content....this can impact RF performance to a surprising degree...just pick your paint carefully and understand how they achieve those shiny results!

 

[Shakemaker]

sexy

 

[MtManDavey]

Anyone know of issues for using permanent ink markers in various colors to add decor and visibility to the aircraft? I use it for marking my FAA registration and aircraft identification on my P4P, but I am sure the little I've used so far has virtually no performance concerns whatsoever.

Dave

 

[offroadpyro]

You can wipe off the permanent marker with isopropyl alcohol. So if you get board with your colors just wipe off and change it.I have painted all my phantoms by just taping them off including front of Obsidian.I have owned 8 phantoms but down to two now.lol.I have flown p3 standard and Obsidian farther than I care to say.No problems with any of them do to paint.Hey try rust -oleum glow in the dark on your phantoms.

 

[iDark0de]

View attachment 103298 View attachment 103299 You can wipe off the permanent marker with isopropyl alcohol. So if you get board with your colors just wipe off and change it.I have painted all my phantoms by just taping them off including front of Obsidian.I have owned 8 phantoms but down to two now.lol.I have flown p3 standard and Obsidian farther than I care to say.No problems with any of them do to paint.Hey try rust -oleum glow in the dark on your phantoms.

Wow that looks awesome, and I'm glad you've painted your drone too, it turned out amazing with that colour scheme you chose! I've flown mine quite a bit and have had no problems whatsoever since the time of spray painting.