AK Real Colors Paint

I love the AK Real Colors line. Have airbrushed/performed beautifully every time I've used them over the last couple of years. I've always thinned with their thinner, but clean up with generic lacquer thinner. 

I thought it was the Real Colors thinner that was "High Compatibility", didn't know that was applied to the paint. I started using this paint (and thinner) about a year and a half ago and I think it's pretty good paint. I do agree that not all of the colors are quite right but as far as working with it goes, I like it a lot. And I can make adjustments if needed.  I've used Mr Color, Tamiya lacquer thinner and generic lacquer thinner out of curiosity and they all worked fine but, I bought 2 large bottles of AK thinner at the beginning so that's what I use. I haven't tried the AK thinner in anything other than Tamiya and Testors and that worked fine.

When supplies started running low in the US this past spring I started ordering from AK directly and have been very impressed with them. Every shipment was handled by DHL and every shipment made it from Spain to Virginia in 3 days. They always responded to any questions I had and out all the stuff I ordered I had two bottles of a weathering set leak a little and they immediately replaced it at no charge and wanted to know if anything else was damaged. On top of all that, buying directly was much cheaper than buying from anyone that I could find stateside, you earn discounts with them quickly and the shipping was right in line with what I would have been charged by even the least expensive here. And, it got here quicker.

So, my experience with them has been good. But I understand it doesn't always work that way. I'll never buy any MIG products again. 

He grew up in Michigan, meself in Cali. Obtainment of familial history rests with him, God rest his soul.

GMorrison

"Don't lick the flagpole in freezing weather because your friends told you to".

 

I don't understand why you would thin it. I am trying AK for the first time. I use it straight out of the dropper and it works well for me. I do have problems with the colors, I don't think they are that close to standards for ANA colors I have chips for. Too bright, too blue, just lacking that subtle but telling match when you (or at least me) know it's a good match.

These discussions remind me of a life lesson my father taught me when I was a lad.

"Don't lick the flagpole in freezing weather because your friends told you to".

Robotism

Vallejo airbrush thinner is my standard but I also use Tamiya. When they first came out AK advertised them on their compaitability with most paint ranges which is what got people interested.

The video shows it thinning with Vallejo airbrush thinner at 28 minutes. Works perfectly in that but mine turned to snot. The official compaitability video shows them using acryllic thinner at the 5:30 mark.  Under that same video a commentator asked if it could use X-20A thinner with it and gets told you can. The Flory video has him mixing X-20A at the 25 minute mark where it mixes like a dream. I have official statements and a non-official video both saying it's possible and then my results clash with that. But what annoyed me most is customer service just ignoring a polite email asking what they could be thinned with since I had found it didn't work when I tried something they recommended.

 

 

Actually......... If you watch the whole video he recaps them ; and at 29:27 he show the X-20A cup separated and gritty. 

stikpusher

 

 

plasticjunkie

My method works every time. I use the specific paint maker’s thinner to avoid any possible conflicts. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That method is just very expensive. Especially with all the stinking acrylic brands out there.... enamels, one thinner fits all....

 

By not using the proprietary thinners you risk not getting the best performance out of the products. Some thinners have additives to improve application, something you don't get from staright alcohol or lacquer thinner. The price may seem high when first purchased but they do last a VERY long time. This way I know I will get it right with no unforseen surprises.

With that said, we are free to choose and experiment to see what works with what. IMHO, I rather stick with what I know works as it should.

stikpusher

 

 

plasticjunkie

My method works every time. I use the specific paint maker’s thinner to avoid any possible conflicts. 

 

 

 

 

That method is just very expensive. Especially with all the stinking acrylic brands out there.... enamels, one thinner fits all....

 

plasticjunkie

My method works every time. I use the specific paint maker’s thinner to avoid any possible conflicts. 

 

That method is just very expensive. Especially with all the stinking acrylic brands out there.... enamels, one thinner fits all....

My method works every time. I use the specific paint maker’s thinner to avoid any possible conflicts. 

stikpusher

That is my plan for my next project, to try my generic hardware store brand lacquer thinner with the AK Real Color paint. It just won’t be happening anytime soon

I had tried generic and had no issues. I could see where the leveling thinner would work great too. Perhaps slowing the dry time just enough to improve leveling. I will try that.

Bakster

I maintain that for best results lacquer should be used. Try what you will but expect mixed results.

 

That is my plan for my next project, to try my generic hardware store brand lacquer thinner with the AK Real Color paint. It just won’t be happening anytime soon. 

I have also heard on another forum where I am active how several members there get great results using Gunze Mr Levelling Thinner. So that will be for another project down the road. 

Long story short, no matter what the marketing, acrylic paints get their best airbrush results with their proprietary brand of thinners, flow enhancers, retarders, etc. Anything else is a case of trial and error. 

Robotism

I understand what you chaps are saying and I don't disagree with any of it. I mostly posted because I wanted to warn others that some of the info out there isn't holding up in my testing. I know lacquer is recommended but a lot of the marketing was about it's ability to slot into your standard paint range. I've seen it recommended as one of those paint lines you can pick up no matter what you're using to supplement what you already had. I'd rather mention it in a post than have others waste their money on something not suitable to them like I did.

I don't know if it's a regional thing, that's possible. I'm in the UK so if any one else is maybe worth a test to see if it is a recipe swap in different regions.

 

Understood, all of that makes it confusing. I watched the link you posted and you are correct in that they are showing AKs acrylic thinner. What I don't know is what their formula is made out of. The other 3 thinners in that video are MR Color, Tamiya, and GAIA, all three are lacquer. Why show 3 lacquer thinners and throw in an acrylic thinner? Or is their thinner lacquer based as well? Not sure.

I don't have all the answers, but I think the paint is good when used with lacquer.

Thanks for the head up.

I understand what you chaps are saying and I don't disagree with any of it. I mostly posted because I wanted to warn others that some of the info out there isn't holding up in my testing. I know lacquer is recommended but a lot of the marketing was about it's ability to slot into your standard paint range. I've seen it recommended as one of those paint lines you can pick up no matter what you're using to supplement what you already had. I'd rather mention it in a post than have others waste their money on something not suitable to them like I did.

I don't know if it's a regional thing, that's possible. I'm in the UK so if any one else is maybe worth a test to see if it is a recipe swap in different regions.

I maintain that for best results lacquer should be used. Try what you will but expect mixed results.

I used Tamiya X-20A to thin AK Real Color Olivgelb last year on my Leopard 1A4  build with no mixing problems. I did notice that the finish was on the “gritty” side. But it mixed with the thinner just fine, and sprayed thru my Badger airbrush with no problems. And it cleaned up just fine as well.

But as MM66 said above, there are no Universal paint thinners. Especially with acrylics due to all the varying formulas of that paint type by the different paint brands. What works with one brand makes a gloppy mess with another. In this respect enamels have an advantage. Every enamel brand that I’ve used in the past 35 years that I’ve been airbrushing will thin with good old fashioned enamel paint thinner. 

Robotism

I just tried it again with X-20A and it split just like before.

If you used X-20A, there is your problem. You can't use acrylic thinners on this paint, you must cut it with a lacquer thinner. I use Tamiyas lacquer thinner and it works fine. Btw-- in my initial testing and just for grins, I tried mixing a batch using Tamiya acrylic thinner (X-20A) and it did not cut the paint. This paint is a lacquer based acrylic and it must be cut with lacquer.

Try using lacquer and report back. 

Then I guess that you should use Tamiya products and just walk away from the AK paints since it is not working for you. It really is not worth it. I'm sure that the paint has been changed but I doubt AK will explain or acknowledge it. Maybe it is made by a different manufacturer or was changed to accomodate chemical laws here or in europe. I would assume that using AK thinner is the best alternative but it looks from your posts that that is not what you want to do. There is no universal paint thinnable by all solvents, or a thinner that thins all paints well. That's just not reality here.

I don't know how you mix paint wrong. Shake pot, shake thinner, put both in plastic shot glass and stir with whatever stick you're using. I just tried it again with X-20A and it split just like before. Two different colours have done that to me now.

I've seen a few other forums discussing having problems with it and AK ignoring customer emails. That's where the rumours of a change of recipe comes from because nothing else makes sense.

If other people do it and they are just regular Joes, then it is certainly possible to mix it as they are without issue. Must be you that is doing it wrong! AK didn't solicit the videos that show it working fine, That's just independant modelers and it is working great for them. I think that you somehow did something wrong, not AK. Really never heard a bad thing about this stuff, just gor some last week.

Vallejo airbrush thinner is my standard but I also use Tamiya. When they first came out AK advertised them on their compaitability with most paint ranges which is what got people interested.

The video shows it thinning with Vallejo airbrush thinner at 28 minutes. Works perfectly in that but mine turned to snot. The official compaitability video shows them using acryllic thinner at the 5:30 mark.  Under that same video a commentator asked if it could use X-20A thinner with it and gets told you can. The Flory video has him mixing X-20A at the 25 minute mark where it mixes like a dream. I have official statements and a non-official video both saying it's possible and then my results clash with that. But what annoyed me most is customer service just ignoring a polite email asking what they could be thinned with since I had found it didn't work when I tried something they recommended.

Robotism

I found this stuff was falsely marketed. I picked some up after seeing a guy on youtube thin it with everything but the kitchen sink. I tried my usual thinners and it all just turned to gunk. The only thing I had handy it could really be thinned with was rubbing alcohol. I don't know if the recipe changed or something but what the guys promoing had and what came in my bottles was clearly behaving differently.

I e-mailed AK to ask about it and didn't get a reply. Really put me off from buying from them in the future. If I can't trust review videos to be accurate I won't buy blind from them.

 

I would ask three questions of you: 

1, what are your usual thinners?

2, are any of your thinners the same as you saw in the YouTube video?

3, was the video put out by AK directly?

If the answer to 2 and/or 3 is no, you really have no room to complain about false marketing. You were conducting experiments on your own, and learned what did and did not work with that particular paint line. 

I found this stuff was falsely marketed. I picked some up after seeing a guy on youtube thin it with everything but the kitchen sink. I tried my usual thinners and it all just turned to gunk. The only thing I had handy it could really be thinned with was rubbing alcohol. I don't know if the recipe changed or something but what the guys promoing had and what came in my bottles was clearly behaving differently.

I e-mailed AK to ask about it and didn't get a reply. Really put me off from buying from them in the future. If I can't trust review videos to be accurate I won't buy blind from them.

Bakster

 

 

plasticjunkie

So Baxter, they spray like Tamiya paints then?

 

 

PJ: In my experience just as good, if not better. It was really easy to work with. I am most impressed with how smooth the finish is and it's durability. I have not had such a good finish on an eggshell/flat, even with using Tamiya.

I can recommend a place to buy through if you want. PM me if you want. Or, if you guys think it's ok, I can post the name here. They seemed to stock it well and they shipped it pretty quickly. They ship from Michigan.

 

Let me guess: www.michtoy.com.   $3.99 a bottle. Why keep it a secret?

I’ve ordered from them a few times myself.

Scalehobbyist has them for $2.99 a bottle. I think it depends where you buy them. Most online hobby stores carry them nowadays. You just got to compare prices and check for sales.

Thanks for the additional info.

You might want to hook that squirrel cage up to a generator, get some use from all that expended energy....

Bakster

the place I found is Michigan Toy Soldier. If you are ever in their area Greg--you might want to stop in there. It looks like a cool store.

Well, if I ever find myself driving to Toronto again, the store isn't too far off route......

Well Gregster-- I would recommend using what Plasticjunkie found, Scale Hobbyist. They seem to stock them well too and they are $1 less per bottle than where I bought from. If in a pinch--the place I found is Michigan Toy Soldier. If you are ever in their area Greg--you might want to stop in there. It looks like a cool store.

https://www.michtoy.com/

Boy I am tired today. My squirrel cage really has me spent. 

Bakster

I can recommend a place to buy through if you want. ....... Or, if you guys think it's ok, I can post the name here.

Please do....

Rambo

they are acrylic suspended in laquer. Here is where I get mine from.

https://shop.lastcavalry.com/

 

I suggest looking at Scale Hobbyist, way cheaper there.