Painting

[doug57]

I just want to know is the acrylic paint in the tubes OK to paint engine bodys and rolling stock?

[G Paine]

I believe it would go on thick and cover a lot of detail. I use some shades of tube paint, dry brushed for weathering.

[tbdanny]

I used it back when I was first starting.  My first airbrushing experience was interesting, to say the least.

If you're going to be using it, thin it out with a bit of water and test it on some spare material to ensure it spreads smoothly without obscuring detail.

I eventually ended up switching to Tamiya paints, as they're airbrush ready, and just use the tube acrylics for scenery work.

[hon30critter]

Hi doug57:

Are you brush painting or do you have an airbrush?

If you are brush painting, as George suggested, getting a smooth surface will be a bit of a challenge, even with the paint thinned out. That's not to say that good results can't be achieved with a brush, but there is a fair amount of skill and experience required.

If you don't have an airbrush you might want to consider investing in one. You don't have to spend a fortune, and if you are like me, you will get much better results. I really suck with a brush!

Here are a couple of examples of what Harbour Freight offers. I have no personal experience with their tools. I just wanted to give you an idea cost wise:

http://www.harborfreight.com/air-tools/paint.html?p=1

You won't be changing tires on your Mack truck with this compressor, but it will be great for airbrushing:

http://www.harborfreight.com/air-tools/air-compressors/3-gal-13-hp-100-psi-oilless-pancake-air-compressor-60637.html

Good luck!

Dave

[Anonymous]

Acrylic paint in tubes are meant to substitute oil paints and are by no means modeling paints. You can try to thin them down to a watery consistency, which will take quite some time and a lot of stirring.

I tried and finally gave up - looking at the cost of ready to use paint, it´s not worth the trouble.

[E-L man tom]

I have no personal experience with either the tube acrylics or an airbrush, but I have nothing againts either. I use acrylics, almost exclusively for painting structures. I don't use the tube acrylics for that application, I use instead, the craft paints. So far, for the modeling jobs I have done on rolling equipment, any spray painting has been done with rattle can paint. I do think, however, that the tube acrylic paints are excellent for scenery coloring, esecially on backdrops (although I've used  craft paints for that too), and weatherng of structures and rolling equipment.

[ricktrains4824]

Never used tube style acrylic's for model work.

Craft paint acrylic's work very well when properly thinned however.

And, this harborfreight airbrush is the one I use, and, you can not beat it for the price!

[RR_Mel]

I have used craft acrylics for painting most everything but cast potmetal, I haven’t figured how it keep it from flaking off my older steam locomotives.  I use either Testors rattle cans or Tru-Color paint in my airbrush for those.

 

I have found out over the years that Acrylic thinner works better for thinning Acrylic Crafters paints for my airbrush.  Water works but I can get a finer spray using thinner and it covers better too.  The Acrylic thinner is pricy so I only use it for fine detail work.

 

Tru-Color paints come ready to spray and I’ve never had any kind of a problem with them airbrushing or using a brush.

 

 

I too use a Harbor Freight Airbrush, you can’t go wrong for $10 for their single action and $20 for the dual action.

 

 

 

Mel

 

Modeling the early to mid 1950s SP in HO scale since 1951

 

My Model Railroad   

http://melvineperry.blogspot.com/

 

Bakersfield, California

 

I'm beginning to realize that aging is not for wimps.

[joe323]

OK I need a lesson in aibrush 101

I have found out over the years that Acrylic thinner works better for thinning Acrylic Crafters paints

You mean that cheap stuff you buy in Walmart?  Apple Barrel

I too use a Harbor Freight Airbrush, you can’t go wrong for $10 for their single action and $20 for the dual action.

 

 

Whats the different between single and dual?

 

 

[RR_Mel]

I use Tamiya X-20A Thinner for my Acrylic airbrushing. 

 

DUAL ACTION refers to airbrushes on which the trigger controls both air and material flow (press down on the trigger for air, pull back on the trigger for material flow adjustment). This style airbrush allows the user to adjust line width while spraying.

 

 

 

Mel

 

Modeling the early to mid 1950s SP in HO scale since 1951

 

My Model Railroad   

http://melvineperry.blogspot.com/

 

Bakersfield, California

 

I'm beginning to realize that aging is not for wimps.

[ricktrains4824]

joe323

I have found out over the years that Acrylic thinner works better for thinning Acrylic Crafters paints

You mean that cheap stuff you buy in Walmart?  Apple Barrel

Yes, Apple Barrel, Americana, etc... 

Americana Soft Black is very good substitute for Weathered Black IMHO BTW... And, I custom mix a dark brown/black using craft paint for wheelsets and trucks. (I had been brush painting both, now I airbrush trucks, still brush paint wheelsets though.) Without giving away the entire formula, (as I do it by eye, no written formula, therefore making it impossible to give away, and making each batch slightly different, making wheelsets and trucks slightly different depending on when done, very prototypical), it is soft black, traditional burnt umber, stormy gray, traditional burnt sienna, and a drop or two of heritage brick, amounts in that order.

First little secret:

60/40 Paint/thinner sprays very well. 

I use distilled water, and, add a drop or two of Liquitex Flow Aid. It works, much better with Flow aid than without it. Never tried the acrylic thinner, as no one sells it near me. (Michaels, a c Moore, and hobby lobby, none have the acrylic airbrush thinner, unless it is under another name.)

Single Action airbrushes you control the air only, press the trigger and air flows, picking up paint, different tips will allow thin or wide sprays. Some are external mix, meaning the air and paint mix outside airbrush itself, making cleanup very easy. 

Dual action airbrushes you press the trigger for air, pull back to control how much (or how little) paint is added to the air. These are almost universally internal mix, so the paint and air mix inside the airbrush body, cleanup is more involved, but these also allow better {read finer} control.

Second little secret: Always strain the paint, and never shake, always stir. (007 references can now be inserted here, as deemed fit... ) Airbrushing is much more pleasant that way.

And, another little secret: For cleanup, I go into my garage, (concrete floor, you will see why shortly.) clean color cup and airbrush by spraying soapy water (as I use only acrylic's) through it into my clean pot, an airbrush accessory that I highly recommend, several color cups worth, and then, pull off the color cup, swish in a old 1 Gallon ice cream pail of soapy water, then put the spray end of the airbrush, (DO NOT INSERT UP TO THE AIR HOSE!) and have the paint siphon tube just under the surface, into the old ice cream bucket of soapy water, half full, and spray again, at a low pressure, of 15-18PSI. (Half full bucket only, to contain the bubbling water from the airbrush spraying under water.) Then, flush in a second half full bucket of plan water, then air dry needle by spraying again just air. Wipe down outside of airbrush body with a clean cloth, and you are good to go. (Only in the garage, as some water splash will still occur, worse if you have more water in said ice cream bucket.) Never have I had to disassemble to remove gunked-up paint from inside the airbrush. (I have disassembled once every six months to lubricate using Badger's Needle juice, a specially designed lubricant for airbrushes, but have never found even a trace of paint inside.)

Hope this answers some questions, and gives some inspiration to get you going.

[RR_Mel]

Ricky

 

I was warned about using Apple Barrel thinner for airbrushing years ago, so I’ve never used it.  I prefer Liquitex Airbrush but none of the stores in Bakersfield stock it, Michaels used to stock Flow Aid but I haven’t seen it here in years.  One of the RC hobby shops stocks the Tamiya thinner.

 

I went to a Windex look a like for cleaning my airbrush when I use Acrylics.  Since I started using Tru-Color Paints I haven’t done much Acrylic painting with my airbrush.  I clean my brushes and thin the Crafters Acrylics for brush painting with distilled water.  I use Acetone for thinning and cleaning the TC paints.

 

Acetone is hard on the airbrush nozzel O rings, they disintegrate after about 20 to 30 cleanings but it's a 30 second cleanup using Acetone.

 

 

Mel

 

Modeling the early to mid 1950s SP in HO scale since 1951

 

My Model Railroad   

http://melvineperry.blogspot.com/

 

Bakersfield, California

 

I'm beginning to realize that aging is not for wimps.

[ricktrains4824]

Mel,

I had read about using Liquitex Airbrush Medium/Thinner, in MRH, but never knew anyone else made it. 

My bottle of Flow aid is about 5 years old now, it came from either Micheals or ACMoore, unsure which, because of a tip from either MRR or RMC from around that time period.

I might just have to see if the local RC shop has anything Tamiya air related.... Thanks.

[doug57]

I will be using an airbrush.

[doug57]

hon30critter

Hi doug57:

Are you brush painting or do you have an airbrush?

If you are brush painting, as George suggested, getting a smooth surface will be a bit of a challenge, even with the paint thinned out. That's not to say that good results can't be achieved with a brush, but there is a fair amount of skill and experience required.

If you don't have an airbrush you might want to consider investing in one. You don't have to spend a fortune, and if you are like me, you will get much better results. I really suck with a brush!

Here are a couple of examples of what Harbour Freight offers. I have no personal experience with their tools. I just wanted to give you an idea cost wise:

http://www.harborfreight.com/air-tools/paint.html?p=1

You won't be changing tires on your Mack truck with this compressor, but it will be great for airbrushing:

http://www.harborfreight.com/air-tools/air-compressors/3-gal-13-hp-100-psi-oilless-pancake-air-compressor-60637.html

Good luck!

Dave

 

hon30critter

Hi doug57:

Are you brush painting or do you have an airbrush?

If you are brush painting, as George suggested, getting a smooth surface will be a bit of a challenge, even with the paint thinned out. That's not to say that good results can't be achieved with a brush, but there is a fair amount of skill and experience required.

If you don't have an airbrush you might want to consider investing in one. You don't have to spend a fortune, and if you are like me, you will get much better results. I really suck with a brush!

Here are a couple of examples of what Harbour Freight offers. I have no personal experience with their tools. I just wanted to give you an idea cost wise:

http://www.harborfreight.com/air-tools/paint.html?p=1

You won't be changing tires on your Mack truck with this compressor, but it will be great for airbrushing:

http://www.harborfreight.com/air-tools/air-compressors/3-gal-13-hp-100-psi-oilless-pancake-air-compressor-60637.html

Good luck!

Dave

 I will be using a harborfreight airbrush.

Doug