Mixing different paint brands?

Tamiya flat base mixes OK with Future, but I'm not sure about other paint brands.  Best to test it first on a scrap piece.

Regards,  Rick

ben1227 wrote:

Squadron was all out of Tamiya flat light blue, so I got Gunze gloss light blue and Tamiya X-21 Flat Base. Some acrylic paint brands can't be mixed or they'll craze. Is it ok to mix those two or is the flat base just for Tamiya paints?

I've heard they are compatible. I haven't tried it, only heard it. The flat base should work. 

ben1227 wrote:

Does the flat base have to be mixed with another color, or can you just airbrush it on by itself?

Yeah, it has to be mixed.

Absolutely has to be mixed with some other medium, unless you want hoarfrost on your model.

I, too have heard that Gunze and Tamiya are essentially compatible, but your caution is well advised. Also, just because it works with two specific paints, does not mean it will work with others. Test each color.

Tamiya flat base is essentially a suspension of microsilica. I suspect that the carrier is a nonpolar alcohol, which would make it compatible with most paint that uses a similar solvent. Using it with a polar solvent system (water, for example) may cause the paint to flocculate.

If I am right, Gunze produces Tamiya paints so stricto sensu Tamiya paints are Gunze with other colours. Not odd in the global village ( MPM produce for Special Hobby, Czech Models, Classic Airframes, Pacific Coast Models, Azur, etc... Microscale produces a lot for others you can recognize because the paper bag is the same, it is reasonable to think that Airfix and Heller paints were from Humbrol )

On the other hand, one thing I don't understand is that if MPM produces both Pacific Coast Models and Classic Airframes planes, why their 1/48 Macchi 200 are so different ?

José, it's not that simple. I don't know what the business relationship, if any, between the brands Tamiya and Gunze Sanyo is; for that matter, it may change at any time. However, just because a company owns two different brands does not mean that the brands are the same product. For example, Ford owns the passenger vehicle brand Volvo. But Volvo's original automotive division still builds the Volvo car—but their paychecks come from Ford. Fords are not Volvos, and Volvo's are not Fords.

Similarly, Testors is owned by RPM. RPM is a holding company with its fingers in many, disparate pies, only a few of which involve paint. Testors themselves is a semiautonomous company that manufactures several different brands of paint. Some of these different brands are compatible, but many are not.

In paints, particularly, most manufacturers have several different lines of paint. These lines differ not only in application, but often in price and quality. 

Apply this to your model question and you will see the answer.

Don't know, although it is likely. Here's how to test it:

In the smallest glass bottle you can find with a tight lid, add isopropyl 90% to about one third to half full.  If this is a typical 1/4 oz. paint bottle, add about 12 drops of the retarder. You want an excess for the test. It is important to add the retarder to the thinner before you add paint.

Now add  an amount of paint roughly equal to the thinner. Stir thoroughly and observe. If it doesn't do something odd immediately, it will probably be okay for immediate airbrush use.

Allow tightly closed bottle to stand for 24 hours, then open and examine. If everything looks okay, they are almost certainly compatible for  immediate use. Spray a test shot on scrap. If it behaves normally with good adhesion, they are compatible for short term use.

ben1227 wrote:

Off topic question, but it doesn't deserve another thread so I'm posting here...I got some Gunze Mr. Retarder (acrylic paint retarder) and I need to know if it's mixable with all/most of the other brands. I got horrible tip dry and clogging with Model Master acrylics so I switched to Tamiya. I'm gonna try a drop of retarder with the MM, but before I do, is it compatible with all acryl paint brands?

I haven't tried Gunze's retarder, but if you're talking about this one (Mr Retarder Mild)

I believe it's meant for use with their "Mr Color" range, which are lacquer based, so I don't know about it's compatibility with water based acrylics.