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Paint mixing help

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  • Member since
    February 2009
Paint mixing help
Posted by Yimkin on Friday, September 11, 2009 4:14 PM

How on earth do you mix acrylics?

All my previous models have required paint shades 'straight out of the pot', but my current 1:48 Revell Mosquito requires some (quite a lot actually) of the model to be painted with a paint mix.

I'm brush painting (don't have an airbrush). How do I measure out accurate paint ratios, so I can paint some of the interior say, shade 'A', and later on in the build paint some more also shade 'A'? I'm guessing the answer would be to make up a large batch, but ow do I store it, say for 1 month?

This may well be a stupid question, but your help would be greatly appreciated!

Chris
  • Member since
    October 2008
  • From: Fullerton, Calif.
Posted by Don Wheeler on Friday, September 11, 2009 6:22 PM

 Yimkin wrote:

I'm guessing the answer would be to make up a large batch, but ow do I store it, say for 1 month?

Any small air-tight bottle.  I always keep a few empty paint bottles for this purpose.  Being acrylic, plastic should be fine.  Do you know anyone taking prescription pills?  35mm film cans would work if you can still find any.

Don 

https://sites.google.com/site/donsairbrushtips/home

A collection of airbrush tips and reviews

Also an Amazon E-book and paperback of tips.

  • Member since
    June 2008
  • From: Iowa
Posted by Hans von Hammer on Friday, September 11, 2009 6:27 PM

I buy paint storage bottles at Hobby Lobby... If you don't have one nearby, you should still be able to find them at any arts & crafts stores.

As for measuring out exact ratios of paint, I use plastic pipettes and count drops...

  • Member since
    June 2009
Posted by MikeS71 on Friday, September 11, 2009 8:08 PM

For painting small areas I use my own "drip" method...  I take a piece of aluminum foil (homemade pallet), and drip a certain amount of drops of whatever color I need...  for example, I did the cockpit instrument panel in a ratio of 4:1 black:white...  using Tamiya acrylics I mix up the black, dip a toothpick in and then let a drop fall on the foil, dip again and drop again, repeat 4x...  then I do the same with 1 drop of white...  mix em together and waa-laa.

 

This way I can go back and pretty accurately repeat the same color...   it may be convoluded but it has worked for me!

  • Member since
    April 2006
  • From: Navan, Ontario
Posted by Jagdwolf on Friday, September 11, 2009 9:51 PM
If the mixes are given in percentages, use a graduated syringe to fill an empty bottle. The markings can be considered equal to the percentage called for: 45% = 4.5 mL. 10% = 1.0 mL. Pretty easy and straight forward.
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