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lifecolor paints

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  • Member since
    July 2003
  • From: Bicester, England
Posted by KJ200 on Wednesday, December 31, 2003 7:19 AM
Since I got back into military modelling I have used mainly Lifecolour.

They are easy to mix for airbrushing, no need for fancy alcohol mixes, just plain water, I don't even bother using distilled water. I usually thin it 3 parts paint to 2 parts water.

Finish is generally very good, in spite of my efforts, though having recently tried Gunze, this does produce a finer, though less matt finish.

Hope this helps.

Karl

Currently on the bench: AZ Models 1/72 Mig 17PF

  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, December 23, 2003 10:16 AM
Lifecor paints are quite strange, before they dry out they look like grease and not properly covered, however once dried they do have a nice toned down matt surface with thin layer that shows all detail like rivets etc.
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, November 30, 2003 2:54 PM
I like them about as well as Testors which means they are okay. Polly Scale in my opinion is the best acrylic paint and they are owned by Testors. Oh why did Testors not use that formulation for their new line of Marine and Fantasy colors?

The people I've talked to like Lifecolours much better than me at the local hobby shop. Here's a brief description of the paint. They have a very good line of colors that are not available in Polly Scale or Acryl. The paint might be a bit thick in the bottle so you might need to thin it with distilled water. The paint seems to have good storage life. I have thinned them in the bottle and they have not gone bad. They brush very well. I use my stock for dry brushing in detailing cockpit details and for weathering. Tamiya and Gunze acrylics are hard to brush paint. They then to have a rubbery feel, a little softer when dried, have much better adnesion than Acryl. Acryl seems to need a priming coat or else it will peel off when masking. The price is good. Now the bad. I have the most troulbe with Lifecolour clogging my airbrush of all the many different brands of paint that I use. I thin with distilled water, sometimes I think with alchohol but I find distlled water is just as good. Since the paint is viscous in the bottle you need to thin it down, but you can't thin it down too much or else it won't have any coverage power. So you have to just get that thinning amount right. I think Tamiya, Gunze airbrush better than Lifecolour but Lifecolour brush paints better. Tamiya has a poor range of color selection for their bottled paint.

Hope this is enough information. As for myself, I'm trying to use up my stock of Lifecolour and try to reduce the different amount of paints I have. Yeah, I'm trying to get rid of my Acryl and Gunze and Tamiya stock too. Going to stick to Polly Scale except for colors they don't have.
  • Member since
    February 2003
  • From: Tochigi, Japan
Posted by J-Hulk on Thursday, November 27, 2003 11:50 AM
Hmmm, never heard of them.
Then again, I rarely see Testors here in Japan!
It's all Tamiya and Gunze here.

Hopefully somebody who has used Lifecolor can give you the lowdown!
~Brian
  • Member since
    November 2003
  • From: savannah ga.
Posted by GA.modelmaker on Thursday, November 27, 2003 10:50 AM
opps , military hobbies
  • Member since
    November 2003
  • From: savannah ga.
Posted by GA.modelmaker on Thursday, November 27, 2003 10:49 AM
i seen them on the militrary modeles usa web site. just was wondering if thier was any type of problems with them or should i just stick with testors
  • Member since
    February 2003
  • From: Tochigi, Japan
Posted by J-Hulk on Thursday, November 27, 2003 10:34 AM
Never heard of 'em, Ga. Modler. Where'd ya see 'em?
~Brian
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, November 27, 2003 8:33 AM
Yes. :-P
  • Member since
    November 2003
  • From: savannah ga.
lifecolor paints
Posted by GA.modelmaker on Wednesday, November 26, 2003 7:11 PM
has anoyone used this brand of paint?
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