Getting ready to get back into painting after a 40+ yr hiatus and looking for info. I have some bottles of Polly S, Floquil (unopened but aged). Used Scalecoat I &II in past. Private road uses D&H colors. The question is, should I stick with a solvent based paint Scalecoat, Tru-color, or go with Modelflex acylic. None of the corporate sites have much information about thinning, spray from bottle etc. Flouquil as I recall used to put out abooklet that describe how to use their paint. I will be painting plastic models as well as some plastic structure kits as well as some vintage hobbytown of Boston kits. I know Floquil reqquire Barrrier for plastic use, ScaleCoat II. What about Tru-color on plastics, it contains acetone so does it cause damage?
Hi Thomas.
I have always primed with a plastic safe primer before applying Tru-Color and it has worked quite well. The primer also give the paint some tooth. I've used it on plastic and old Cary metal locomotive shells. The best advise to make sure that you clean the surface well before applying primer and then letting the primer dry completely. The Tru-Color paints dry very quickly because of the Acetone base and cover very nicely.
I have found varying opinions on thining the paint and I have used the Tru-Color thinner with 1 part thinner to 10 parts paint. Everyone's airbrush setup and evironment are different so a little testing will let you know what works.
Cleanup is quite simple with 100% accetone.
Scott Sonntag
I was painting in the 90's and I don't remember Barrier at all, but then I can't usually find my car keys.
Your old paints still might be good. Howard Zane has an impressive inventory of Floquil and PollyS. I alway use primer rattlecan rustoleum and I have used Tru color without problem.
Some paints these days are "airbursh formulations" and don't require much if any thinking for airbrushing. Standard paints I'd suggest trying 50% thinner, and experiment, before you paint something precious.
I'd prefer acrylic paint to eliminate any exposure to solvents, but sometimes the color I want is readily available in one of the solvent paints and not acrylic. Now that I don't live close to any hobby stores, I suppose I can be selective in mail order.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
THOMAS MCHUGH I know Floquil reqquire Barrrier for plastic use
Wow, you have been out of painting for a while. Floquil changed their formula when I was in high school (almost 40 years ago) so that barrier was not needed any longer. I think this was about the same time when they went from square bottles to round bottles in the one ounce size.
THOMAS MCHUGH I have some bottles of Floquil (unopened but aged).
These should still be good. Floquil holds up well on the shelf. I use Testors Universal Thinner in my floquil paints and it seems to work perfectly.
THOMAS MCHUGHThe question is, should I stick with a solvent based paint Scalecoat
Stick with what works for you. I use Scalecoat II for 95% of my painting because I always get good results. I do not get good results with water soluable paints in the airbrush, so I do not use them.
THOMAS MCHUGHNone of the corporate sites have much information about thinning, spray from bottle etc.
I thin Scalecoat II 2 parts paint to 1 part thinner. I only use Scalecoat II thinner with this paint. I spray Scalecoat II at 14 PSI through a Paasche single action model H airbrush with the #3 tip.
I tend to paint in batches.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
Hi there. Acrylic paints have improved significantly over the last 20 years. The quality ones (Badger, Protopaint, Vallejo) are just as good as solvent paints, in my opinion. You can use a primer, auto primer or primer made by Vallejo for acrylics. Do you use an airbrush? The trick is to fill a second bottle with distilled water and to clean your nozzle between coats. Using a fan will accelerate the drying time. Many craft paints can be used with an airbrush as well.
Simon
Water-based paints have been tricky for me when I've tried to spray them. There are ways. But the biggest dig against PollyS now is that it's OLD stuff. If the bottle was ever opened, good luck. A full, unopened bottle may be OK, luck of the draw there sometimes.
Fact of the matter is, spray cans have also grown significantly better and that's pretty much my go-to paint solution now unless I need a specific RR color or something. My Floquil supply is pretty good, so it can come out as needed.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
I use rattlecan Krylon or Rustoleum for much of my painting. I have a stash of Floquil but that won't last forever. I have heard of "Barrier" but never used it. These solvent paints go on plastic models without any trouble. Warm water and Dawn dishwash is my surface prep for plastic. For metal models, I rely on the stick-to-metal of the auto primers. Get a good coat of auto primer on a metal model and then you can use anything for the finish coat. For metal models surface prep is crucial. Degrease with hot water and Dawn Dishwash. If the oil and grease is really bad, use a solvent, alcohol or acetone or what ever you have. Then etch the metal by immersing in supermarket vinegar for15 minutes or so. Rinse thoroughly.
David Starr www.newsnorthwoods.blogspot.com
Plastic and most metal items will generally benefit from being washed with a decent dish detergent, and a thorough rinse with water, followed by air drying.
If you're airbrushing solvent-based paints like Floquil, Scalecoat, or Accupaint, no need to worry about Barrier or any ill effects on plastic - I've never had a problem with them.Likewise for applying those paints over items already painted with good-quality water-based acrylics, shouldn't have any adverse effects, either, as long as the first-applied paints have thoroughly cured.
I've never been a fan of rattle cans, as most seem to apply too much paint, too quickly. For example, a rattle can of Testors' Dullcote will cover "X" number of boxcars, while an airbrushed bottle of properly-thinned Dullcote, using ordinary lacquer thinner will do 5X or maybe 10X similar boxcars.
If you're worried about coverage, either due to the colour or material you're painting, use a primer. For airbrushing, Floquil's Grey Primer was very good, but with it now long-gone, I've found Tamiya's rattle can grey primer to be the best of that genre, but like Alclad II's lacquer-based Grey Primer & Microfiller, ready-to-use in your airbrush, even better. It works well on plastic or metal, and probably on wood, too, and I wouldn't be surprised if you could easily apply it to your tongue, too, with good results (keep your eyes closed for that last one, though).
Wayne
doctorwayneI've found Tamiya's rattle can grey primer to be the best of that genre...
Yep, rattle can nozzles can be flaky. Some still are. Krylon is the bext among the big brands IMO. Rustoleum is not particularly good, but can be manipulated to go on right. The key is short bursts as you pass the model. It's highly recommended that you practice on some items of no particular value before you paint something you treasure with rattle cans.
Rattle cans are somewhat less economical in the use of paint. The convenience of not cleaning an air brush for sporadic use is the big reason I like them.