I just heard a rumor from a custom painter that Testors is about to stop producing Dullcote & Glosscote. Does anyone know anything about this?
Roger Huber
Deer Creek Locomotive Works
Haven't heard that one -- recently. I know there was a big row over Dullcote being reformulated a few years ago. I noticed it being different, but never had any issues with it. Maybe this is a retread of that one? I really doubt they would discontinue such a widely used product.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
I found some threads using Google where earlier in 2014 there was a concern about DullCote being discontinued -- but the source of that particular rumor (if that is what it was) was due to Testor's changing the label considerably so guys were not able to find it.
Dave Nelson
I remember back in the late 80's it being unavailable for a short time in California. Then they exempted small containers of whatever chemical they were banning.
dknelsonthe source of that particular rumor (if that is what it was) was due to Testor's changing the label considerably so guys were not able to find it.
Yeah, that happened when it was reformulated about 5 years ago IIRC. So if this was recently, he's had the old can he imagined he was looking for a long time.
I think rumors such as this one have surfaced from time to time. Generally they lead to replacement products. So, what are some?
NP 2626 "Northern Pacific, really terrific"
Northern Pacific Railway Historical Association: http://www.nprha.org/
I do not use either product because there are better (IMHO) products to use.I use Krylon and or Rust-oleum myself.you get a lot more product for less money and it works just as well if not better.
Catt:
A while ago, on advice picked up from the MR forums- I believe- I bought Krylon Matte Finish (product # 1131) and Rustoleum American Accents Ultra Cover Matte Clear (product # 269440). Are these the specific Dullcote alternatives you mentioned?
Cedarwoodron
Vallejo, also makes a form of Dullcote, but it's 100% Acrylic resin, unlike Tester's Dullcote Lacquer, better for use with water based paints. It's called Satin Varnish, but no toxic chemicals involved, #29018 clear Satin. Can be brushed or air brushed, thinned with water. They also have a gloss, have not used that one yet.
Take Care!
Frank
Catt,
Krylon and Rustoleum are certainly giant economy sized and do what's called for. I haven't tried the Krylon, which in general has a better spray in terms of control, but the Rustoleum I use only in situations that require a high volume of spray. That's not many. I did recently pickup a can of Tree House Studio Clear Acrylic Matte Finish at Hobby Lobby. Haven't tried it yet, either, but others have recommended it. I suspect it may fail the gentle spray test. Will advise when I get the chance to use it. I may have to try the Krylon, though, as I've been very happy with their other products.
That said, I tend to gravitate back to DullCote. Yes, it is more expensive, but I usually restock with the HL 40% off weekly coupon, cutting the cost some. I find DullCote to be very reliable, sprays with good control, and dries fast.
Once I've invested lots of time in a project, I don't want to risk fudging that final step before it goes on the layout. This generally applies to motive power and other rolling stock, plus some smaller structures. I use the fat boy spray bombs for larger structures.
I liked the old Dullcoat. It was grainier and I think it gave a flatter finish. I have switched to Krylon for both flat and satin overcoat sprays.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
I also notice the bigger spray bombs lay down the clear finish to heavy IMHO. The spray pattern from the genuine Dullcote/Glosscote was always a lighter and more fine of a spray pattern. Brass models I tried the other stuff on, just didnt turn out as well. I also stick with the Testors product, using the same discount coupons for HL, comes out much cheaper than anything else localy. Mikie
Silly NT's, I have Asperger's Syndrome
Cedarwoodron,
Those are two that I use.I find that warming the can in a bowl of hot water allows a smoother finish.Warm the can till the top is as warm as the bottom ,spray then re warm the can when it starts to feel cold again.
I never liked the lack of spray control with the DC/GC cans. It just sprays too fast and furious to risk a good paint job with spatter and runs. I always use the stuff in bottles and spray it with my airbrushes. Being lacquer it works well with my choice of paint. The larger cans of Krylon flat work good for structures I build.
My friend said he just now heard the rumor but maybe it is recycled. Who knows? I checked the Testors site and they still list them in jars. No info as to price or availability though.
As to saying they are both very popular so they probably wouldn't stop making them........remember..........these are the folks that killed Floquil and I doubt if there has ever been a more popular model train paint.
Does the newest version of Dullcote (Testors) ever cloud? I remember some threads in the past about some cans clouding the coating due (presumably) to the talc content.
I paint using only acrylics so would be glad to hear of more experiences and details regarding the acrylic/water based matt/clear coatings.
Jim
Raised on the Erie Lackawanna Mainline- Supt. of the Black River Transfer & Terminal R.R.
Like many here, I have used DullCote for at least 40 years...even back when I was "underage" and could go to the store and buy it without being carded.
That said, for years my go-to for a nice smooth finish was Floquil's Flat Finish. I absolutely loved that stuff and bought all I could a few years ago. Now that I am out, I do use more DullCote but am not entirely thrilled with it. Sometimes, it tends to put the occasional piece of trash on the model. I have had better luck and a better finish by mixing half DC and half GC thinned with lacquer thinner. It seems to put out a smoother finish, but is not flat by any means.
For structure painting, I still use the spray can of DullCote. It works well for that.
I cannot find a water-based flat that is worth anything. I have used Model Master and Badger Model Flex. I have had zero luck with both of those. I haven't tried Vallejo but I think I will. Thanks for the tip, Frank!
Chuck - Modeling in HO scale and anything narrow gauge
Well call me elitist if you like, but in 45 years of building model trains the only thing I have ever painted with a spray can was Athearn blue box weights and plaster terrain as an undercoat for scenery work.
I bought my first air brush at age 14, I'm only on my third one now.
Structures, rolling stock, all painted with an air brush and floquil years ago, now ScaleCoat.
ScaleCoat makes great clear flat and clear gloss, in both their lines, that can be mixed to provide any sheen you desire.
I paint locos and passenger cars with a 50/50 mix for a "satin" look - we run a well maintained railroad here.
Traditionally, model paints have finer pigments, and even the spray cans of Testors or Floquil also have/had finer spray nozzles for the finer nature of the paint and the work.
Additionally, in violation of everything preached in the model press, I have painted directly over existing paint schemes without removing them, using ScaleCoat, with great results.
It goes on thin but covers well in most colors and its gloss finish is the perfect base for decals, saving a step and coat of paint.
I can't even imagine using a Krylon or Rustoleum spray bomb on a model train.
But, to each their own.
Sheldon
Go to http://www.testors.com/product-catalog/testors-brands/testors/ , type in "dullcoat" in the search box, and you get "No results found." Not good.
Sheldon,
I do break out the airbrush every once in a blue moon, but since I've had fair to middlin' results with the cans, I found it works for me. Yeah, you can mess things up, but experience has settled that down for me.
Omit all the scenery, as it's acrylics, the 375 that I bought painted and nicely weathered, and the First Gear or whoever's fancy modern dozer that is partly cut off on the far left car and everything in this scene was painted with spray cans.
A brass WP&Y flat car (yes, I do paint brass this way, too), a plastic Eastern Car Works bashed to HOn3, a Rio Grande Models dozer, and the stone mill in the right background with its overhead crane.
Pics are struggling for me tonight, so it may take awhile to appear. I'll admit to being lazy, but only because I hate cleaning airbrushes. Whatever I do with one has to be worth that hassle to get me interested. For instance, I used the airbrush to paint my San Juan set with Floquil (RIP). Otherwise, getting good results with a spray can is my goal.
Bozo Texino Go to http://www.testors.com/product-catalog/testors-brands/testors/ , type in "dullcoat" in the search box, and you get "No results found." Not good.
That's because it's spelled "Dullcote."
http://www.testors.com/search-results/?searchStr=dullcote
--Steven Otte, Model Railroader senior associate editorsotte@kalmbach.com
After watching videos on Youtube, I got a can of Krylon clear flat to try out. I used it on a 1:72 model airplane, and was not super pleased with the results. It seemed to go on too thick and blotchy for my taste, much more so than Testors Dullcote. I'll have to try it again using Catt's can warming method with the hot water and see if it works better.
For gloss coats, I've had decent luck using Future floor polish, as advocated here:
http://www.swannysmodels.com/TheCompleteFuture.html
In the article linked above, they mention mixing Future with Tamiya flat base to get a "dullcote" equivalent, but I haven't tried that yet.
Dan Stokes
My other car is a tunnel motor
stokesda After watching videos on Youtube, I got a can of Krylon clear flat to try out. I used it on a 1:72 model airplane, and was not super pleased with the results. It seemed to go on too thick and blotchy for my taste, much more so than Testors Dullcote. I'll have to try it again using Catt's can warming method with the hot water and see if it works better. For gloss coats, I've had decent luck using Future floor polish, as advocated here: http://www.swannysmodels.com/TheCompleteFuture.html In the article linked above, they mention mixing Future with Tamiya flat base to get a "dullcote" equivalent, but I haven't tried that yet.
I was wondering if someone was going to mention this. My son used to do a bit of armour modeling and the good people over at FineScale Modeler are always raving about Future, even using it to set decals. It is now known as Pledge Floor Care Multi-Surface Finish.
I was at my LHS yesterday, and they're still getting orders of Dullcote and Glosscote. The numbers are 1260 for Dullcote and 1261 for Glosscote.
Marlon
See pictures of the Clinton-Golden Valley RR
I like the cans for bigger projects. The air brush is too much of a pain to set up & then clean. I will use it if it's something small & detailed, like a steam engine, but if I'm paining a huge station or something, the cans work great once you learn how to use them. I have had air brushed Testor's gloss coat fog up on me tho. Not sure what happened but a 3rd coat fixed the problem.
I'm not a fan of the canned dullcote and glosscoat, or any of the paints that come in a spray can. I remain unconvinced that it is possible to get a fine enough spray out of the can. They might work for large projects, like Bilco doors, but I'm not about to risk using one on a model that I spent any time on.
I much prefer to use the bottled stuff and mix with thinner.
The other problem with the canned Testors product is that the white cans look like all the other white cans that have paint in them. We had an incident where one of the newbee clubmembers wanted to do some decaling on his refurbished NP green boxcar. I told him to get some dullcote, so he went to the hobby shop and pulled the can out of the Testors display from the slot that said dullcote. Sprayed it on the car and ended up with a white end. Can was in the wrong slot. Fortunately he was able to get some matching green and perform a correction.
We all had a good chuckle out of that because such things don't happen to the rest of us. And then yesterday another member grabbed a can, being in a hurry, and instead of dullcote he sprayed black on his model. Might not be a recovery this time, but more cause of laughter.
railroadedThat's just bizarre. People can't read the cans? What kind of quality of work do they do? One more reason to add for me not to join a club.
I actually prefer the Testor's Model Master Flat Finish to Dullcote; it seems to give a better finish, smoother and flatter. It costs slightly more as well. I wonder what the difference is? I've compared several cans of each, and it's not my imagination.
Disclaimer: This post may contain humor, sarcasm, and/or flatulence.
Michael Mornard
Bringing the North Woods to South Dakota!
Since I like to brush everything on, I am interested in the results people have had brushing flat coats on their projects.
How much should the Vallejo matte varnish be thinned to use with an airbrush? Will one coat seal my pastel chalk powders, or will I need multiple coats?