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                        Don't use BB's to mix your paint

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                        stinger
                        • Member since
                          January 2003
                        • From: Everywhere
                        Don't use BB's to mix your paint
                        Posted by stinger on Monday, November 1, 2004 5:54 PM
                        I remember reading a while back about how some people put BB's in their paint bottles to mix the paint (by shaking, obviously). I guess this may work for solvent based paints, but now I'm not so sure about acrylics, or water based paints, and here is why:

                        I put three shiny BB's in my little jar of Tamiya X-21 flat base and it turned blue!! So now I'm wondering what it may be doing to the other acrylics I've done this with. Obviously this was because they tarnished, and it just never occurred to me.

                        Has anyone had this happen to them? I know the answer would be to use stainless steel bearings, but I don't know where to find them (cheaply).

                        BTW - (now this was really stupid) I also put them in the eyedropper bottles of my Color of Eagles (Vallejo)paints, and naturally they seal the tip when you try to dispense the paintBanged Head [banghead]

                        Just another lesson learned I guess,

                        stinger

                        May an Angel be your wingman, and the Sun be always at your six

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                        rjkplasticmod
                        • Member since
                          February 2003
                        • From: A Spartan in the Wolverine State
                        Posted by rjkplasticmod on Monday, November 1, 2004 6:30 PM
                        I always stir my paints before decanting so have no need for BB's or Ball Bearings. I find stirring gives better results than any amount of shaking.

                        Regards, Rick
                        RICK At My Age, I've Seen It All, Done It All, But I Don't Remember It All...
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                        stinger
                        • Member since
                          January 2003
                        • From: Everywhere
                        Posted by stinger on Monday, November 1, 2004 7:04 PM
                        Good advice Rick. I'm just too lazy to sit there and stir, but I guess I should change my ways. It was Reggie's post about stir sticks that reminded me of the BB problem in the first place.

                        I've found that toothpicks are a bit too short, but a good alternative might be those BBQ Shish-Kabob sticks that you can get at the grocer. Even cut in half they would be longer and stronger than a T/P. Just a thought.

                        thanks for the advice,

                        stinger

                        May an Angel be your wingman, and the Sun be always at your six

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                        MikeV
                        • Member since
                          April 2003
                        • From: Hayward, CA
                        Posted by MikeV on Monday, November 1, 2004 8:09 PM
                        Stinger,

                        Buy one of these and forget the BB's. Wink [;)]


                        Mike

                        “Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom. " Charles Spurgeon
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                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Monday, November 1, 2004 9:32 PM
                        Where can I find one of those anyways? They won't go so fast as to throw the paint out of the mixing jar would it?

                        I personally used bb's before, but I thin my acrylics with windex. Still get awesome results at a fraction of the cost...
                        Report Abuse
                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Monday, November 1, 2004 10:09 PM
                        If I had to guess, I'd say that your BB's had a high copper content, which I think most do, and when copper acts with other catalysts, like water even, the result is blue. Although I'm no chemist and don't know why when it oxydizes (like the statue of liberty), it turns to a lovely green patina. As a kid, we used to drop solid blue chunks of copper sulfate into water with pennies and it would scour the pennies shiny overnight.
                        Next time, use glass beads instead of BBs. That's what's in your spray cans, BTW. A big glass bead or two.
                        Tom
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                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Monday, November 1, 2004 10:54 PM
                        Agree with MikeV get one of those paint stirrers, they are great.
                        They are made by a few companies now by the looks of it.
                        Report Abuse
                        Foster7155
                        • Member since
                          July 2003
                        • From: Pensacola, FL
                        Posted by Foster7155 on Tuesday, November 2, 2004 4:27 AM
                        I'll stick to my BB's...they're cheap. I use MM enamels exclusively and don't have any problems.

                        Robert Foster

                        Pensacola Modeleers

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                        stinger
                        • Member since
                          January 2003
                        • From: Everywhere
                        Posted by stinger on Tuesday, November 2, 2004 9:19 AM
                        Thanks guys - I guess I'll try one of those stirrers that Mike and MM suggest. I think I would just hate having to clean the darn thing up everytime. Then again, I don't have a problem cleaning my A/B.

                        Sharkskin - I always wondered what it was that cleaned pennies. Thanks Smile [:)]

                        stinger

                        May an Angel be your wingman, and the Sun be always at your six

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                        overkillphil
                        • Member since
                          October 2004
                        • From: Northern Indiana
                        Posted by overkillphil on Tuesday, November 2, 2004 10:03 AM
                        I'm just starting my airbrush experience, but I recently picked up some supplies at my employer (an auto parts store). I bought some graduated mixing/touch-up jars that I thought would be good for mixing in. They all contain glass marbles. Glass is pretty much non-reactive, which is good because automotive grade paint (what these jars are designed for) is particularly finicky about contamination.
                        my favorite headache/current project: 1/48 Panda F-35 "I love the fact that dumb people don't know who they are. I hope I'm not one of them" -Scott Adams
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                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, November 2, 2004 2:24 PM
                        QUOTE: Originally posted by stinger

                        Thanks guys - I guess I'll try one of those stirrers that Mike and MM suggest. I think I would just hate having to clean the darn thing up everytime. Then again, I don't have a problem cleaning my A/B.


                        No problem cleaning it.
                        After mixing the paint, insert it into a bit of thinner switch it on for a few sec take out and wipe it clean.
                        Way easier and quicker than cleaning an AB. Big Smile [:D]


                        QUOTE:
                        Sharkskin - I always wondered what it was that cleaned pennies. Thanks Smile [:)]


                        Cola works well, atleat it did when we were young. Drop a coin in it over night and see the diff, now you also know why I don't drink that stuff anymore. Wink [;)]
                        Report Abuse
                        gburdon
                        • Member since
                          January 2003
                        • From: Burlington, Ontario Canada
                        Posted by gburdon on Friday, November 5, 2004 2:45 AM
                        Stinger;

                        If you are still looking for a paint stirrer and can't find it at the LHS check the kitchen section of the Wal Mart or similar store. I bought the exact same stirring unit for $2.00 at my local Wal Mart and it's for whipping the foam on Latte's. From the box side description " It comes in a Sporty Chrome Finish with Black Accents.....blah blah blah"

                        For $2.00 it stirs paint great and could be hot pink with whale bone handles for all I care.

                        Best of all it came with two seperate paddle stirring stems and a wire stirring wheel. The wire is great for Tamiya acrylics.

                        As someone here mentioned just keep some type of cleaner on hand when mixing colours and dunk the stir stick in and run for a few seconds. The just wipe clean and on to the next colour.

                        Cheers;

                        Gregory
                        VETERAN - (Noun) - Definition - One who signed a blank cheque as: “Payable to The People of Canada, Up To and Including My Life."
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                        stinger
                        • Member since
                          January 2003
                        • From: Everywhere
                        Posted by stinger on Friday, November 5, 2004 9:48 PM
                        Thanks again guys - I'll definitely get a stirrer now.

                        MM - I'll have to try the cola thing, even though I do still drink it occasionally (albeit with a bit of an additive Tongue [:P] Wink [;)]).

                        Greg - Thanks for the Walmart tip. I wonder what my Latte will taste like with a touch of paint/thinner added?

                        hiccup!! Dead [xx(]

                        stinger

                        May an Angel be your wingman, and the Sun be always at your six

                        Report Abuse
                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, November 7, 2004 6:05 PM
                        Y'know, stirring paint is something I just do out of habit. There are too many other things to worry about for me when building, given my fat fingers or whatever their problem is. I save long straight pieces of sprue and immediately poke it into the bottle as soon as I wrestle that accused lid off (especially acrylics, which are always on my work bench with alcohol around the rim to loosen them up). The sprue will tell me if there's anything nonliquid settled into the bottom, like pigment, and if so, I stir until it is liquid, thin if necessary, and then shake the hell out of it for good measure. I never get globs of unmixed pigment in my paint, no matter what kind I use. No special techniques either.
                        Report Abuse
                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Monday, November 8, 2004 5:10 PM
                        Stirring is best prior to use. That said, I find it handy to give my paint bottles an occasional shake to keep them at least somewhat blended during extended storage. For this, I keep them all in a box with a tight fitting foam top that allow them to all be shaken simultaneously. Instead of BB's to help the shaking, I use stainless steel nuts, bolts, or washers, all found easily in my miscellaneous collection, or at your local hardware store for a few pennies each.

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                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Monday, November 8, 2004 8:23 PM
                        i used to shake my pait to stir it, but i would get air bubbles in the paint (brushing it on) i didnt really like using tootpicks coz i feared that a splinter would fall off or something like that. ive picked up a paint stirrer (exactly like mikes) and they r the bomb. once u get one u wont go back. cleanup is a sinch, just turn it on in thinner.
                        and yeah, like some one else said, check out the utensil section at ur supermarkt for a milk frother or something similar. the ones i saw had this spring thing on the end, and think u would have to get rid of it, coz u dont want frothy paint! a few days after i bought my one for 15 bucks, i saw em a woolworths for 5.....

                        oh, and ur paint bottle thread wont clog up so much, coz ur not shaking it and getting paint on the lid, which inturn gets on the threads....
                        Report Abuse
                        stinger
                        • Member since
                          January 2003
                        • From: Everywhere
                        Posted by stinger on Monday, November 8, 2004 8:40 PM
                        Good advice guys, thanks. I'm sold on the stirrer. Will order one when I get back home.

                        Just as a sidenote, didn't someone post about making their own paint jar shaker, or did I read that in FSM? Doesn't sound very practical for all the time it would take to make one, and tominator has a good point about the paint getting on the threads. I wish all the makers would go to the eyedropper bottles that C of E uses.

                        stinger

                        May an Angel be your wingman, and the Sun be always at your six

                        Report Abuse
                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, November 9, 2004 5:50 AM
                        yeah i saw vallejo paints in a mag and they have an eyedroppert thing on the top...what a brilliant idea...im very tempted to start buying them....
                        Report Abuse
                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, November 9, 2004 5:58 AM
                        QUOTE: Originally posted by stinger

                        Good advice guys, thanks. I'm sold on the stirrer. Will order one when I get back home.


                        Let us know how you like it.
                        Report Abuse
                        gobears01
                        • Member since
                          April 2003
                        • From: SF
                        Posted by gobears01 on Thursday, November 11, 2004 8:28 PM
                        Ya know, I just use a bent up paper clip to mix paints and a shot of thinner for those dry ones.

                        gobears01

                        Offagain-Onagain

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                        stinger
                        • Member since
                          January 2003
                        • From: Everywhere
                        Posted by stinger on Thursday, November 11, 2004 9:38 PM
                        Good advice again gobears.

                        Simpler is sometimes the best way, that's why I started out with the BB's.

                        Your suggestion gives me an idea.......
                        What about the paper clip spun in a Dremel tool?

                        Uuhhh, maybe not though.......I can see the walls of my room (and me)covered with RLM 70/71/04!

                        But I soooo love new toys, I just gotta try that mixer!

                        Will let you all know how it turns out, if I ever get home to try it! (Still on the road).

                        Keep the suggestions coming Fellow Modelers!

                        Thanks again,

                        stinger

                        May an Angel be your wingman, and the Sun be always at your six

                        Report Abuse
                        Jeff Herne
                        • Member since
                          January 2003
                        Posted by Jeff Herne on Thursday, November 11, 2004 11:38 PM
                        I use Vallejos for painting figures, great paint, kinda heavy though. You have to thin them with water (distilled) before using them. If you puddle the paint slightly, it settles and tightens down nicely, so no brush marks...I always wondered how the really good figure painters did that, and now I know...

                        If you need a paint shaker, get yourself a cheap Black and Decker battery operated orbital sander...I got one in Home depot for $19.00...VersaPak I think they're called.

                        At any rate, I epoxied a strip of velcro to a mounting plate. Lay the bottle onto the plate, secure it with the velcro, and turn on the sander...instant shakes...no BBs or foriegn objects needed in the jars.

                        Jeff
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                        gobears01
                        • Member since
                          April 2003
                        • From: SF
                        Posted by gobears01 on Friday, November 12, 2004 10:54 PM
                        Yo Stinger, I think I might try that this week end. See you back here.


                        gobears01

                        Offagain-Onagain

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                        stinger
                        • Member since
                          January 2003
                        • From: Everywhere
                        Posted by stinger on Friday, November 12, 2004 11:58 PM
                        gobears - Personally I wouldn't try it. It was just a silly idea.

                        But if you do, just be careful buddy, and make sure to start off with a very low speed!!


                        stinger

                        May an Angel be your wingman, and the Sun be always at your six

                        Report Abuse
                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, November 13, 2004 6:30 PM
                        Personally, uhmm... not to be rude but, if you can "flick your wrist" fast enough, why would you need BB's to begin with? "Wipe on, Wax Off!!!"
                        *snickers*
                        Report Abuse
                        LoneWolf1Seven
                        • Member since
                          March 2003
                        • From: Colorado
                        Posted by LoneWolf1Seven on Friday, November 19, 2004 6:52 PM
                        I use a sander, not the orbital kind but the ones that vibrate. Strap the jar in using duct tape, turn it on for a minute or two and you got paint store freshly mixed paint.
                        "When you're gambling always put your money heads down, never let money look you in the face!" "If I die before I wake, hit the snooze button for me!!!"
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                        stinger
                        • Member since
                          January 2003
                        • From: Everywhere
                        Posted by stinger on Friday, November 19, 2004 7:04 PM
                        Lonewolf - That's another good suggestion. I imagine that one could make something that would hold a paint jar, and you would simply have to clamp it into the sander. Do you mean the kind that just vibrates back and forth in one direction? Those can be found for pretty cheap these days.

                        BTW - Where in CO do you live?

                        stinger

                        May an Angel be your wingman, and the Sun be always at your six

                        Report Abuse
                        LoneWolf1Seven
                        • Member since
                          March 2003
                        • From: Colorado
                        Posted by LoneWolf1Seven on Friday, November 19, 2004 7:27 PM
                        I live in Lafayette, CO...by the way im your nephew. Yes its me Craig, how have you been? Traveling alot I see......I do miss working with you and seeing all of the sites.
                        "When you're gambling always put your money heads down, never let money look you in the face!" "If I die before I wake, hit the snooze button for me!!!"
                        Report Abuse
                        stinger
                        • Member since
                          January 2003
                        • From: Everywhere
                        Posted by stinger on Friday, November 19, 2004 11:06 PM
                        Hey Craig! How's it going? Welcome to the forum.

                        Send me your email address so we don't have to bore the others Wink [;)]. Click on the email icon at the bottom of my post.

                        stinger

                        May an Angel be your wingman, and the Sun be always at your six

                        Report Abuse
                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, November 23, 2004 9:47 AM
                        I have found the milk frothers/stirrers at a couple of dollar stores, so I stocked up (8 or 9). Some I actually use to froth hot drinks, while the rest go live in the paint & scenery shop. They have the wire & coil heads, which are a bit large for some of my paint bottles, etc., so I clip the shaft and epoxy a spare road wheel to the end. Works fine, and since I have lots of rechargable AA batteries (to feed my digital cameras, mostly) it's very cost effective.
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