Mist coats? thinning? huh?

Welcome back to the hobby, IceDragon. I think maybe you are thinning your paint down too much. Here are some tips to use when airbrushing:

• Use a primer! As a general rule, I always prime. It gives your paint better surface adhesion. I use a rattle can I picked up at Meijer for like $3. Sandable auto primer, dries quickly and covers nicely.
• When thinning paint, I usually try to get the consistency of 2% milk. That usually sprays the best for me.

• Light coats are your friend! Don't try to cover the area in one pass. Instead, lay amist coat down. What's a mist coat, you ask? Well, it looks like your model went through a cloud of paint. Very light coat withlittle coverage. From there, you can build on until the paint fully covers your primer.

Hoepfully these tips have helped. It seems like you're on the right track! Good luck!

Ever watch those TV shows like American Hot Rod, Orange County Choppers or the automotive educational shows. Ever notice how they paint stuff. Painting models is done much the same way. When doing gloss colors, the more the layers the deeper the color. Just don't get too carried away and hide all of the subtle details such as panel lines.

Troweling on the paint in thick coats does nothing to enhance the look, more isn't better. There is nothing worse that slapping on a thick coat only to discover you have a major goober on the surface. A light mist coat will help you see any imperfections before you get coverage so you can fix it before you get too far. 

so what you guys are saying, is to spray the coats on gently and lightly. build up the layers until you get the tone that you desire?

If so, how long should i wait for each mist coat? my acrylics seem to dry quickly once applied. Also I read somewhere that MM Acryl requires Zero thinning and can be shot right out of the bottle? never heard about this, can anyone confirm if it is possible but a better question might be is it worth it? going to do a test tomorrow and try to see if these methods work for me.

Thx Radmax8 and Gerald for your help. Ill try them out

-Brian

That depends on the paint, temperature and humidity. Some paints are real slow at setting. Anywhere from a couple of minutes to a half hour...again experiment on a test mule and gain experience. In time it'll be second nature.