Goldwing,

Two months ago I built a Master Chief MKII and painted using Minwax oil-based polyurethane. It came out very nice and drew a lot of attention in the field.

If the wood used for your box is good (i.e. ply or birch wood), you may try the following:

-1- Minwax pre-paint conditioner (1 coating)
-2- Minwax oil-based paint ( 2 coatings, depending how much
color you want) I used the Natural color. Beautiful!

-3- Minwax Glossy Polyurethane ( 3 coatings; let each coating
dry overnight and sanding between each coating using
#320 or #400 sandpaper).

The glossy polyurethane is fuel-proofing up to 15% nitro. This is what I was told. I believe this finish will serve you for years of
flying.

All these materials are available at Home Depot. Bring a piece of wood and trial painting using different selections of color and how see they come out. Same color paint will look different on different wood.

Any questions, drop me an email. Good luck!

Richard