testors metalizers

Hi tominator,

In reference to your first question, I've airbrushed Metalizers (in my case, Burnt Iron for the exhausts) and found that it wasn't necessary to thin them. Like you, I noticed that they are quite thin straight out of the bottle. I'd recommend trying to use them without thinning first, then if you have problems use some of the Metalizer thinner and work up to the consistency you like.

Mark

I use Testors buffing metalizers quite a bit, but I use the rattle-can versions. They are somewhat sensitive, however a coat of Future takes care of it just fine. I haven't used the airbrush versions (I have some, just haven't used them) so they might be different.

The non-buffing ones act much more like what we expect from paint. My nephew and I used non-buffing aluminum and brass on parts of one of his Gundam models. It doesn't rub off like the buffing aluminum did. Those metalizer parts still look as perfect as they did when we first painted them.

I just don't like the buffing ones because of how easy they are to rub off along with the fingerprint problem. I do have a few parts done with buffing metalizers such as exhaust and burnt metal parts which I did not buff. Instead, I just coated over them with Testors lacquer clear (flat). That worked out fine.

The only advantage to the buffing ones is that they will shine up more reflective than the non-buffing ones, but that advantage is almost always defeated by the fact that they're too easy to rub all the way through.

cheers mate.... so even if i leave it to dry for, say, a week, i still shouldnt handle to part?

oh, and do u know what the difference is between the buffing and non buffing types?

thanks again...

You're right, they are lacquers, but are designed to be sprayed directly on bare plastic without prior thinning. Be careful, though:
1. You can't handle/touch the part you sprayed without leaving a fingerprint (or worse).
2. Spraying a clear overcoat to protect against #1 above tends to reduce the effect you tried so hard to produce.
3. The underlying plastic has to be completely free of any flaws (scratches, etc.) or the Metalizer will enhance the mistakes.

Other than that, Metalizer is a pretty good product (IMO). I personally like using it on the smaller "accessory" metallic parts (like jet exhausts). If you are going for a complete natural metal finish (like an aircraft), you might want to consider the more durable alternatives like Alclad or SNJ.

Hope this helps some.
Gip Winecoff