ScaleCoat Paint Opinions

[karle]

What is your opinion of ScaleCoat brand paint? Whats good, whats bad? What can it be thinned with? Paint thinner? How about Diosol? Is shelf life good? Coverage good, too thin, too thick etc? I

t seems to me Floquil is getting harder to come by and too expensive. Yes I know about Poly Scale and use it, but am not impressed with shelf life. Thanks!

[nbrodar]

In my experiance, Scale Coat is even harder to find then Floquil. It's a good paint, covers well, ScaleCoat II dries to a gloss finish. Needs to be thinned for airbruahing, with it own thinner.

I'm not a fan of solvent based paint. If Polly S doesn't work for you try, Badger Modelflex.

Nick

[Janafam]

I use Modelflex for now but the shelf life after opening is poor. Polly S is popular and easily available in hobby shops around me. Scale Coat is limited in availability and it needs thinner for airbrush use. I prefer the water based paints.

[Anonymous]

Scalecoat is an excellent paint! I hardly ever use anything else. Best part about it, is it dries to a glossy finish, ready for decals. Coverage is good with all the colors except yellow and red, which will need a primer coat. Their gloss and flat clear coats are also good.

It's best to use the thinner that is recommended for it, i.e SC I or SC II.

I date all the paint I buy, and I have some jars from the early 90's that are still good, and I've not had much trouble finding it in the better stocked shops. You can also order it from on-line places, too.

I'm not at all impressed with Modelflex, as once you open the jar, the shelf life is about nil. Pollyscale is better, but I really don't care for water-based paints, and only use them if I can't get a close enough paint match by mixing my own.

[colvinbackshop]

The older (haven't used anything newer that about 8 years old, which says a lot for shelf life) ScaleCoat stuff is great....but solvent based! If that is a problem, use the Modelflex. It is a great paint and I have had good results with it through my airbrush, but as stated, once it is opened...it's best to use it ASAP!

[karle]

Thanks to all who answered. I agree with the comments on Modelflex, sprays great but shelf life terrible. For those who comment that Scalecoat is hard to find, you can order it direct from Scalecoat, which is my plan. Re water based paints, I too like the fact it is zero solvent, but solvent is better for wood based models (doesn't warp like water based) and better for metal (my opinoin), about same performance on plastic vs water based. I find solvent clean-up is easier... doesn't dry so fast like water based that if you delay cleaning the air brush for a few minutes you end up with a probem. One caveat: I use a spray booth and a respirator w/solvent based.

[Bob Hayes]

When I painted my 1.6" scale SW1500, I used Scalecoat. The paint dried hard and has held up very well in an outdoor environment. After 10 years, the paint still looks as good as new.

Bob Hayes

[Anonymous]

I too am a fan of Floquil but have had to resort to Scale coat from time to time, I use automotive reducer to thin my solvent based paints it seems to work real well. I get mine at NAPA they offer Slow, Medium,and Fast referring to the drying time. As far as the shelf life the only complaint I have is that Scalecoat gets a film on the top if you let it set for more than a week. The only solution I have is to take the paint out and give a couple of shakes every few days, this will keep the film from forming.