ALTERNATIVE TAMIYA THINNERS

did you gloss coat the figure before washing?

I use alcohol for thinning Tamiya and ModelMaster acrylics, however it will cause Tamiya acrylics to dry flat and not glossy. It also tends to make acrylics dry more quickly than they already do. For PolyScale acrylics I use water as indicated on the bottle.

Maybe add a tiny drop of washing up liquid to break the surface tension of the water.Also a gloss coat helps to smooth the surface and help the wash scoot along the lines.

When mixing my washes using Tamiya acrylics I mix one part (measured drops, spoon fulls, eyedropper, etc..) Tamiya paint to five parts water with 2 parts dish-washing liquid added. This method basically describs how a sludge wash is made. The slightly viscous wash is easy to apply, and when dry, remove excess with Q-tips and/or- a moistened tissue or paper towel( wiping in the direction of airflow for aircraft, or in the natural direction of gravity " down" for most other subjects).

Thanks to all for help.
lots of ideas for me too try.
this site is great.
cheers