Humbrol Acrylics

First thing this morning I took a look at my test figure. The paint dried dead flat in typical Humbrol fashion. Perhaps a tad bit rough or grainy, but certainly one of the best one coat no brush marks finishes that I’ve gotten from an acrylic paint. This evening, giving the paint a good 24 hours or so to dry and cure, I checked on adhesion/scratch resistance using my fingernail. Pretty good adhesion and scratch resistance. This paint reminds me of some of the older acrylics that were on the market years ago for figure painting. So far I’m really liking these paints.

Hey Stick - how do they airbrush?  Very interested.  I do love the dead flat finish of acrylics but I have struggled with them when airbrushing - I suppose like most.

Keav, I have not yet had the chance to try them in my airbrush. Perhaps this weekend I can do that. All I can say at this point is that for brush painting is that they are the best acrylics that I have yet used. At least this one color. LOL! We shall see how the problem colors like flesh and yellows go. I’m pretty much every brand, enamel or acrylic, those colors rarely give one coat proper coverage. 

So here is the results of the first test. The figure is from the Tamiya Leopard 1A4. (ignore the flesh color, that is a Badger paint that I picked up at a local Railroad Hobby Shop to try out) Anyways, as you can see, the paint dried dead flat. 

I allowed it to dry overnite and then tried a scratch test (fingernail and light to moderate pressure) about 10 hours later. At that time, it scratched off, like most every other acrylic that I have ever used. Roughly 14 hours after that and 24 hours after first application I tried the same scratch test again and this time, it was highly scratch resistant. This evening, roughly 48 hours after application, I tried an adhesion test with burnished down masking tapes. First Tamiya tape, and no lifting, then I tried 3M Blue tape and got two tiny spots to lift one time in two attempts. 

The scratch off area is on the right upper portion of the boot and the lift from the 3M Blue masking tape on the left. This is on a 1/35 figure, so the lifting is minimal.

I’ll update more once I try these paints in an airbrush.

So today was the first attempt at airbrushing these paints. Among other things I wanted to check out, was compatibility with other thinners besides Humbrol’s own acrylic thinner. That would be a no brainer.  :headslap:  

So my first attempt was made using Testors Universal Acrylic Thinner. Why that one? Because is at widely available at Hobby Lobby, and any other store/shop that carries the Testors and/or Model Master lines. 

So I used a stainless steel cup to try mixing Humbrol acrylic and Testors Universal Acrylic Thinner. I mixed at a 50/50 ratio of paint to thinner and the two mixed flawlessly. No obvious incompatibility.

I cleaned up my mixing cup and then went to the paint cup and again mixed up another batch at the same 50/50 ratio for airbrushing. For this test I used my Badger Anthem 155 at about 18 psi air pressure. I am using Satin White, as white is one of the most difficult colors to airbrush. I did no prep work on the plastic such as a wipe down, and I used no primer. Due to the high Thinner to paint ratio the paint went on very translucent, and also it behave like older acrylics such as Gunze Aqueous and Polly S. Also due to the high thinner ratio I experienced some pooling an low areas. But that is typical of white as well. It is a tough color to airbrush on (in my experience) with no surface prep or primer. On the plus side, I experienced no tip dry problems what so ever, and clean up was a breeze with Windex. I am also noticing that these paints do not dry as quickly  surface as say Tamiya. Perhaps with a different thinner, or thinner to paint ratio that will change.

I’ll check on adhesion and scratch resistance tomorrow after the paint has time to dry and cure.

I have never seen Humbrol acrylics. I have heir enamels which are very good quality. Good review so far stik.

I picked up some MMP paints and thinner to try them out sometime this week.

Thanks PJ. I think that you will like the Mission Models paints. They are good paints in my experience.

So nearly 24 hours after I airbrushed the Satin White on my “test mule”, I tried some adhesion tests with 3-M Blue masking tape and Tamiya masking tape. In both cases, perfect adhesion for the paint over an unprimed and unpreped surface. I then tried a scratch test using my fingernail. With light to moderate pressure, a very scratch resistant surface. Almost like enamels in scratch resistance. With increased pressure, I was able to scratch thru the paint down to the bare plastic. Close, but no cigar. But then again, I have yet to encounter ANY acrylic paint brand that is 100% scratch resistant inside of 24 hours.

I did take a couple of photos, but this is after I had sanded the scratched areas a bit to feather the edges and get those areas ready for another coat of paint to be applied by airbrush.

More updates soon...

It probably gets tougher within a few days curing time. Acryl and Vallejo will scratch easily, at least this one you had to get aggressive with to make a dent.

Great research going on.

Thanks for sharing your results of these ongoing tests. Interesting stuff...

PJ, I would agree there on more toughness with longer curing time. But this was a “Satin” finish color, so less grain or grit to snag on my nail as I dragged it across the surface. 

Greg, you’re quite welcome and thank you for looking in and commenting. It’s kind of fun to do these experiments. I just wish that I had more time in one spot to get them in.

Stik, many thanks for posting this thread! Humbrol were my absolute favorite 'back in the day' for their glass-like smoothness and ease of use...as well as their color range. When I returned to the hobby after a spell away about a dozen years ago, I switched to acrylics and went with Tamiya...with which I have been generally quite happy. But I will excitedly give anything by Humbrol a try...particularly as your 'lab work' is so encouraging!

Thank you Greg. I’m really liking these paints so far. With all the talk of enamels going away one of these days, you gotta keep your eyes and options open. 

Now if these become widely available at more than one shop locally, I’ll be a very happy camper.

I second your comments with how well Humbrol Acrylics brush paint.  I messed around with them for a while and found for me painting wet (with water) worked best - the coverage excellent, no brush marks, and excellent leveling.  My experience airbrushing them was hit and miss though with their own thinner.  For airbrushing Tamiya’s X-20a worked best ironically. I am glad to hear others like them.

VA Spartan

I second your comments with how well Humbrol Acrylics brush paint.  I messed around with them for a while and found for me painting wet (with water) worked best - the coverage excellent, no brush marks, and excellent leveling.  My experience airbrushing them was hit and miss though with their own thinner.  For airbrushing Tamiya’s X-20a worked best ironically. I am glad to hear others like them.

 

I know it’s a year later, but it’s my thread so I can revive with an update. I did an airbrushing session wit Humbrol acrylics, flat Brown 186 to be exact, thinned with Tamiya X-20A Acrylic Thinner. It worked ok, but came out very grainy, and I had lots of tip dry. Paint and thinner were mixed at 3:2 ratio originally, but that did not work too well, so I went to a 1:1 ratio. That worked better, but the end result was very grainy and recurring tip dry. 

I think my next experiments will be with lacquer thinner, and perhaps some Gunze self leveling thinner.

stikpusher

 

 

VA Spartan

I second your comments with how well Humbrol Acrylics brush paint.  I messed around with them for a while and found for me painting wet (with water) worked best - the coverage excellent, no brush marks, and excellent leveling.  My experience airbrushing them was hit and miss though with their own thinner.  For airbrushing Tamiya’s X-20a worked best ironically. I am glad to hear others like them.

 

 

 

 

I know it’s a year later, but it’s my thread so I can revive with an update. I did an airbrushing session wit Humbrol acrylics, flat Brown 186 to be exact, thinned with Tamiya X-20A Acrylic Thinner. It worked ok, but came out very grainy, and I had lots of tip dry. Paint and thinner were mixed at 3:2 ratio originally, but that did not work too well, so I went to a 1:1 ratio. That worked better, but the end result was very grainy and recurring tip dry. 

I think my next experiments will be with lacquer thinner, and perhaps some Gunze self leveling thinner.

 

 

Stik, not all acrylics get along with lacquer thinner or alcohol. I'll be a bit surprised where the X20 didn't work if a solvent thinner does. But test on, you never know !!!

I love to test too, I think more than build really ! And I've done a fair amount of acrylic testing with common brands and craft paints as well. Have not gotten my hands on Humbrol. I'm watching. Nobody local sells Humbrol, I'd have to order it in so for now at least till I can test for myself I appreciate your efforts here in the thread. Thanks for passing along your findings !

Good info Stik. Anyone have an online source for Humbrol acrylic? 

cbaltrin

Good info Stik. Anyone have an online source for Humbrol acrylic? 

 

Squadron is carrying the line now. Also a local shop, where I buy mine, Brookhurst Hobbies, and they do online orders.

oldermodelguy

Stik, not all acrylics get along with lacquer thinner or alcohol. I'll be a bit surprised where the X20 didn't work if a solvent thinner does. But test on, you never know !!!

I love to test too, I think more than build really ! And I've done a fair amount of acrylic testing with common brands and craft paints as well. Have not gotten my hands on Humbrol. I'm watching. Nobody local sells Humbrol, I'd have to order it in so for now at least till I can test for myself I appreciate your efforts here in the thread. Thanks for passing along your findings !

 

OMG, I know exactly what you mean about acrylics getting along with lacquer Thinner or Alcohol. There is no “universal” acrylic thinner. Thank goodness that I have those little metal cups to experiment in before the airbrush tests. I can easily clean up the experiments that end up badly from the cup. Far more so than in the guts of my airbrush. 

Anyways, I’ll get around to the lacquer Thinner experiment most likely next, as I already have that onhand. When I get ahold of some Gunze self leveling thinner is anybody’s guess. I’m in no hurry there.

Stik,

Have you tried Humbrol's own acrylic thinner? Shouldn't that be the control to judge the other thinners?

Carl

cvsusn

Stik,

Have you tried Humbrol's own acrylic thinner? Shouldn't that be the control to judge the other thinners?

Carl

 

Ill probably give that a shot eventually. One thing that I despise about acrylics is having to use brand specific thinners with pretty much each line of paint. So my goal here is to try other thinners to see if there is some compatability or not. Obviously the brand specific thinner will work with their own paint. But in the long run, I really would prefer to have fewer brand specific thinners on my workbench. 
For enamels I only use one thinner. I just wish that it was so with all acrylics as well. 

Well today was a new experiment for thinner. I tried Gunze Mr Color Leveling thinner. The two together would not thin. It did not turn into a gummy mess, but instead turned into something like a thick mud. 

Next!

Two more experiments: Lacquer Thinner, and Tamiya X-20A

Lacquer Thinner will thin Humbrol, but it left larger gritty looking residue. Not ideal at all.

Tamiya X-20A looks promising! It thinned the paint well, no obvious clumping or grittiness noted. I will try shooting it thru my airbrush here later on.

stikpusher

Two more experiments: Lacquer Thinner, and Tamiya X-20A

Lacquer Thinner will thin Humbrol, but it left larger gritty looking residue. Not ideal at all.

Tamiya X-20A looks promising! It thinned the paint well, no obvious clumping or grittiness noted. I will try shooting it thru my airbrush here later on.

 

If you have them you might want to try Aztek thinner or Vallejo thinner as well. These are non solvent thinners.

If X20A works ( sprays well) then my home brew formula probably will too, that I've mentioned before. 

Nope, no Aztek or Vallejo thinner in my possession. The only other acrylic thinner that I have is Mission Models. And seeing how all the rubbing alcohol on earth is currently more valuable and harder to obtain than whiskey during prohibition, I won’t be experimenting with that anytime soon. Just working with what I have onhand. I’ll be happy when this virus thing is done and I can restock my supplies from the local shops.

Hi, Stikpusher, on my return to the hobby I decided to try the new (to me) acrylic paints and, as I was familiar with Humbrol enamels, that's the brand I bought, in the screw-top plastic tubs.  Like you, I found it marvellous when used with a brush, but tricky to thin for airbrushing and, like you, settled on Tamiya X20A, although results were often unsatisfactory.  I gave up & switched to Vallejo, which work just fine, if lacking durability. 

However, I recently found a thread on a UK forum which stated that Humbrol had moved production from China back to the UK, and that these paints now sprayed beautifully when thinned with plain tap water.  The UK-produced paints come in a plastic flip-top tub (country of origin is shown on the side).  I bought a couple for use on an Airfix 1/48 P51 & thinned them with de-ionised water (since I already had some), and was well-pleased with the results.  I still have a stock of Vallejo to work with & my experience with the new Humbrol paints is limited, but you might want to try thinning with de-ionised water (or even tap water) - it's a lot cheaper than X20A.  See what you think.  Oh, by the way, I haven't tried their gloss acrylics yet, just the matt finish stuff.

Thank you Hutch. My home has a water softener and reverse osmosis system for purification, so that should purify the tap water enough for thinning and airbrushing...

I tried bottled water for an airbrush thinner with Humbrol Acrylics today. It sprayed well, but was a bit slow on drying time. Otherwise, it's definitely a fine thinner for the paint while air brushing. 

Stik, Try a hair dryer to push the flash times.  Usually works great with most acrylics.