Can tool handles be painted and still be re-used by klickies?

[Timotheos]

Acrylic paint, even with sealant, peels off if you paint the tool then put the tool in the klickie's hand.

Is there a paint that works better?

I have a bunch of blue farm tools that I wanted to paint, but I don't want to permanently assign to a particular klickie. 

I also tried an ink stain, but because the plastic isn't porous, the ink also flakes off.

I'm guessing that if you paint a tool, you can no longer re-use it like an unpainted original.

[Tim_w]

To the best of my knowledge the answer to this question is that the handles of tools cant be painted without the paint coming off. Its all down to the type of flexible 'waxy' plastic Playmobil use for some of its tool's and the way that the klickies hand grips them tightly. This also applies to tools which are made of stronger plastic, the firm grip of klickie hands still fetches paint off.
In most cases when i have tried to paint handles or klicky hands the paint has inevitably flaked off when used.

I hope this helps you in your quest. I am all most certain someone will come out of the woodwork and say otherwise now i have answered this question, so like i said above this is based on my own experiences.

Tim

[Timotheos]

Thanks Tim,

What you said makes sense.

[playmofire]

I agree with Tim, although there is a spray paint called Krylon (I think) which is claimed to bond with the plastic.  If this is true, then it might solve the problem.  However, it would introduce a new one - the handles would be slightly oversize and so possible would not fit the klickies' hands.

[Martin Milner]

The fireman's axe has a yellow handle and silver blade, and there's the 2-colour modern rifle, so Playmobil have the means to produce more realistic wooden-handled tools and weapons, they just haven't set up for it yet for other items.

At present a lot of tools are produced in groups on sprues of one colour, but I suspect that in the next few years we'll see more realistic tools appearing, which will look especially good for long wooden handled tools and weapons like shovels, spears, halberds and 2-handed axes, as long as the cost isn't considered prohibitive.

[playmofire]

Geobra are world leaders in plastic injection and can produce 3 and even 4 colour pieces at "one go".  In addition to the axe Martin mentions the new spade is in two colours, again, yellow and silver.

[tanotrooper]

you can always sand down the handle, and then paint, letting the clicky enough space to grab.

TT

[Little Jo]

... or just make a mould/cast from the item in the wanted color.

[tanotrooper]

soon... soon... when I have coughed up 100€ for that... 

Thank god for the holiday season 

TT