storing acrylic?

MikeV, I have 17 year old enamels I use... you seen them used in the pics I have posted. Only thing needed to get them in shape to spray was a toothpick.

QUOTE: Originally posted by styrene QUOTE: What about enamels? I have heard that adding thinner to them upsets the balance of the paint and they don't keep very long when stored that way. Anyone else find this to be true? Hi, Mike! I do. I am a predominant user of Testor's Model Master line of enamels, and I find that after storing the thinned product, it begins to degrade (solids separation, pigment clumping, etc.), and also doesn't spray as well on subsequent projects. And I've tried several types of thinner. I also learned that if you want to ruin an entire bottle of paint, just pour your thinned mixture back in the original container with the unthinned stuff---then it's off to the hobby shop... Gip

Interesting - I either haven't had this problem with Testor's Model master line, or I haven't been paying close enough attention!! [:0]

QUOTE: What about enamels? I have heard that adding thinner to them upsets the balance of the paint and they don't keep very long when stored that way. Anyone else find this to be true?

Hi, Mike!
I do. I am a predominant user of Testor's Model Master line of enamels, and I find that after storing the thinned product, it begins to degrade (solids separation, pigment clumping, etc.), and also doesn't spray as well on subsequent projects. And I've tried several types of thinner.
I also learned that if you want to ruin an entire bottle of paint, just pour your thinned mixture back in the original container with the unthinned stuff---then it's off to the hobby shop...

Gip

Thanks guys, you guys are great!!.

might try to thin more paint than i used to now.

I was thinking that the thinner might cure the paint to a degree..

but i guess it is not a big problem.

I notice that all of these comments are about acrylics.
What about enamels? I have heard that adding thinner to them upsets the balance of the paint and they don't keep very long when stored that way.
Anyone else find this to be true?
I have never stored any paints thinned as I see no reason to personally.

Mike

Like Onyan I keep a selection of standard AC colours, for me that means all the RLM coded colours, pre-mixed and ready for painting.

The pigment and thinner do separate, but I find a gentle stirring soon sorts this out. So far I have stored a variety of Gunze, Tamiya, Lifecolour & MM for a year without any problems.

Karl

I've got a few bottles of pre-thinned and pre-mixed acrylics which I've kept in airtight bottles for almost a year now and they're still fresh. I had to check and stir them once in a while though to prevent the acrylic medium from settling as a tough goo. Like tho9900 I also rethin if needed. I keep these pre-thinned batches (usually the common aircraft colors) so that I can just pour them straight into the airbrush -- no more messing with mixing ratios and such.

Cheers,
onyan

i have problems storing gunze and tamiya, always had paint seperate from thinner. I fixed that by storing the paint upside down.

I've stored some bottles still on my paint shelf for about 8 months now or so... some thicken a little but I just re-thin them... haven;t had any not work so far.. I use Tamiya and Model Master...

As long as the bottle is airtight, you can store it for a long while. I don't know exactly how long, but it's no different from any other paint in a bottle. I usually mix up enough to do an entire model, and it will sit around for a month or two with no problems at all.