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Acrylic - Waterbased right ? Well,what's with using Lacquer Thinner and Alcohol in it ?

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  • Member since
    November 2018
Posted by oldermodelguy on Sunday, August 4, 2019 3:05 PM

Robotism

I have more acryllic paint ranges than I care to remember. I tend to stick to Vallejo as it thins well with water and has good coverage overall. Huge range of colours and you can always find what you want between their ranges. I like the lack of bad smells and I feel safer if I get a whiff of them than I do more toxic paints. I'm a mini painter so being good for hand brushing is my biggest priority with everything else coming second to it. If I was recommending someone a paint range Vallejo would be my recommendation. It's very hard to ruin a kit with them and you can use tap water to thin them keeping costs dirt cheap. They come in every colour of the rainbow, aren't terribly difficult to air brush, are great value for money and they don't react with anything you want to put over the top of them.

While I have my preference I realize every tool has it's place and you shouldn't get into internet slap fights over your preference. There's effects only enamels can do, only oils can do and only acrylics can do. The right tool for the job is the tool that gets the job done in a way you like while not harming the kit. There's no reason you can't mix and match different types of paints and it's only handicapping yourself to do so. If your wallet can take the hit (and who doesn't like buying some new paint?) then I'd highly recommend exploring multiple paint ranges and paint types. Enamel washes from MIG and AK have revived enamels from the stuff no one uses as it's outdated and hard to work with into a common as muck weathering technique (I'm talking in my area of modeling, not saying some older folks don't like enamels and haven't stuck with them as other paint technology improved). Oils are now beginning to get mainstream attention in arenas outside of military modeling. Even though my main focus is science fiction and fantasy I realize each branch of the modeling tree does things slightly differently and you always have more to learn and explore. All to often we end up rumour mongering or drawing battle lines which really aren't needed, it's human nature but as someone who used to swear off enamels as being unhealthy to use I've realized I was being a bit of a plonker and added them into my tool box.

 

That's a good word Robo ! Well I think so anyway.

  • Member since
    April 2019
  • From: Earth, Milky Way Galaxy
Posted by John 3:16 KJV on Sunday, August 4, 2019 4:27 PM

Thank you for the info, stik and oldermodelguy!

     “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

     For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”  - John 3:16-17

 

 

  • Member since
    November 2009
  • From: Twin Cities of Minnesota
Posted by Don Stauffer on Monday, August 5, 2019 9:17 AM

I think maybe an article for FSM would be nice that describes the makeup of paints and what thinners to use when.  I'm not an expert on paints, so I wouldn't attempt it.  But for someone who is an expert on paints, I think there is an opportunity.

Used to be there were lacquers, enamels, varnishes and shellac.  Everyone know which was which.  So many new types of paints it has become confusing.  There are water-based acrylics, enamel acrylics, and lacquer acrylics :-(

For the most part it used to be the solvent or how the body polymerized that defined it.  Now the types of body and the types of pigment seem to enter the identification of type.

Don Stauffer in Minnesota

  • Member since
    August 2019
  • From: Northern Nevada
Posted by HighDesertmodeler on Thursday, August 15, 2019 11:26 PM
I learned to use the manufacturer’s paint thinners in most part. Tamiya works great with its X-20A thinner - this thinner is more than just isopropyl alcohol, Tamiya X-20A contains a retarder and other proprietary “secret” ingredients. I thin MMP with their thinner and poly. Vallejo, I thin with Vallejo Airbrush flow improver (I don’t use their airbrush thinner any longer since it contributes to tip dry). AK Real Colors, I use AK’s high compatibility thinner (actually, Tamiya X-20A is a good substitute). Gunze aqueous acrylics, I use Tamiya X-20A since for the heck of me I cannot find in the States their aqueous line thinner
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