Enamel, Arylics, Clear Coat

[VintageEagle]

Hi

 

After a break of several years I would like to start building models again. But a lot has happened since I finished my last model 10 years ago. I mainly used Enamels at that time but read that Acrylic paints can also be used and may even be advantageous. My main questions are:

 

What layers of paints and what kind of paints are common: e.g. base coat (enamel), camouflage (enamel), clear glossy coat (enamel), decals, fixing coat (enamel), weathering, final clear coat.

 

What type of paint go well together and which not? What clear coat as base for decals and as final coat do you recommend? Perhaps there is even a starter guide available online?

 

Thank you!

 

Roger

[Bails]

Welcome back.

To answer part of your question, the general rule is this......lacquer, topped by enamel, topped by acrylic....never put lacquer or enamel on top of acrylic. Some modelers "pull the tiger's tail" and don't follow this rule, however many have tried and failed, including me. No doubt you will get other input on this topic.

Bails-In-Minnesota

[VintageEagle]

Hi Bails,

 

Thanks for the info! Are there any special brands that are usually preferred?

 

Regards

Roger

[kopterdoctor]

Hi Roger

 

 

I use Testors Model Master Enamels and Acrylic.

They have a great variety of Mil. Spec. Colors.

 

I also have used Krylon rattle can. Works great for large areas.

There Flat white is the best one I have found so far.

 

For clear coat I use testors gloss and dull coat in a spray can.

 

HTH

Steve

[Jeff Herne]

Ahhh....the opportunity for a dissertation on paint...

 

As others have said, don't put enamels or lacquers over acrylics. Acrylics have less surface adhesion than enamels or lacquers because they don't "bite" into the plastic. Enamels and lacquers use petroleum-based carriers which chemically react with the plastic.

 

Enamels and lacquers also seem to have a greater shrink and settle rate than acrylics. This means that when you put an enamel or lacquer over an acrylic, they literally grip the acrylic and crumple the paint underneath.

 

Acrylics don't have many of the problems of lacquers and enamels - drying time is reduced considerably and can be accelerated with a hair dryer, you don't run the risk of blowing your house up if you happen to ignite a spark in a room full of paint fumes (or use an electric fan to ventilate!), and clean up is usually nothing more than water & rubbing alcohol.

 

There are some disadvantages - acrylics are finicky. Although they can all be thinned with water (technically), some simply don't work well unless you use proprietary thinners. The finish isn't usually as smooth and silky as enamels or lacquers, and it you'll have to "re-learn" your old-school habits if you're migrating to acrylics.

 

Here's some breakdowns on acrylics...

 

Testor's Acryl - sprays well, brushes ok, works better with Acryl thinner. Surface adhesion is good. Good color range with country-specific colors.

 

Tamiya - sprays great, brushes terribly. Can be thinned with just about anything. Surface adhesion is ok, better on the older bottles than on the newer, smaller bottles. Generic colors with some commonality to specific shades.

 

Gunze - The best airbrushing acrylic in my opinion. Needs Gunze thinner for optimum performance. Brushes ok if thinned and done in multiple coats. Harder to find in local hobby shops. Country-specific colors and generic shades.

 

Vallejo - great brushing paint - excellent coverage, settles and flows really well, even without brush marks. Can be thinned to airbrush, but they make a pre-thinned airbrush line of paints as well (Model Color). Can't vouch for Model Color, but Vallejo paints have little or no surface adhesion. They scratch and dent easily. Vallejo brush colors are pretty much generic, but the Model Color line is country-specific.

 

Polly-Scale - Brushes well, airbrushes well, but has a limited shelf life. Tends to clump over time and can really make a mess of an airbrush. Polly Scale thinner works best with them, but water & rubbing alcohol also works well. The key to Polly-Scale is keeping the lids of the jars super-clean and the paint rotated on a regular basis. I flip my bottles once a month to keep them from settling solid. Country-specific colors.

 

Clear coats - For acrylics, I use Future Floor polish mixed with Tamiya X-21 Flat base. Don't use flat base straight from the bottle - it's a flattening agent, not an actual color. Future is also acrylic so it doesn't react with the underlying paints. By mixing with X-21, you can create your own range of gloss-to-flat clears depending on the particular model.

 

I still have 20-30 bottles of non-acrylic paint. Most are natural metal colors and Floquil Engine Black, the flattest black paint I have ever seen!! But the overwhelming majority of the paint bottles that I have (about 450 or so) are acrylics.

 

Once you learn to work with them, they're not bad at all, and are certainly easier on the lungs. I think the key to acrylics is the primer coat. If you've got a good coat of primer underneath, the model will look considerably better and the paint adhesion will be better, too.

 

Jeff

[R Hunt]

for airbrushing I only use acrylics and mostly tamiya, acrylics are just way too easy to clean up after and as said you wont blow your house up, tamiya paint seems to last or have a shelve life as the rest mostly turn to stone or goo after a year or so.

Bob.

[VintageEagle]

Hi Jeff and Bob,

 

Thank you for your very detailled summary about different types of paints. This is very helpful. I think I'll try Tamiya paints first as they are relatively easy to get here in Switzerland.

 

Is there a special type of paint for priming the model? Or can I just use any grey acrylic paint?

 

So, for a flat coat (finish coat) you recommend: Future Floor polish mixed with Tamiya X-21 Flat base. What about a glossy coat before the decals are applied? Is it 100% Future Floor polish?

 

I am sorry for my very basic questions.

 

Kind regards

Roger

[KOTR]

You might want to give Revell's line of acrylics a try. They are IMO pretty nice to use with a brush. For use with an airbrush, I have some difficulties with the glossy colours, but the matt colours work really nice for me.

[VintageEagle]

Hello KOTR,

 

Thanks for the advice. I'll have a try.

 

What is the best paint for priming the model if I use Acrylics afterwards?

 

Thanks,

Roger

[R Hunt]

I use a sandable automotive primer in a spray can and try to pick what ever color was used on the A/C as you can get in differant shades of grey, red oxide and a couple differnet greens.

Bob.