"I like my Pullman Standards & Budds in Stainless Steel flavors, thank you!"
QUOTE: Originally posted by AntonioFP45 Hey ACL fan, Have you ever had the masking tape peel paint like empirevalley mentioned? Is there perhaps a longer "curing" time required before masking for other colors? Thanks.
QUOTE: Originally posted by empirevalley I have used the ModelFlex paint to paint the CSX YN3 colors on two Athearn units. The paint did come off in some areas when I removed the masking tape. There was no odor and as far as psi----I used 20-30psi. I think they recommend 20. I'm also a Floquil fan, but at the time these colors weren't available.
Does anybody know the colors for the SFRTA Tri-Rail paint scheme? The blue seems to be a close match to B&M blue. I'm not so much concerned about the green and orange since the decals put out by Microscale have the stripes and pilot striping. I'm a Floquil/Polly-S user and will try the ModelFlex.
Accuflex was an acrylic paint that Badger tried out at first. There was a problem with the original formula and Badger then came out with Modelflex paint. Other than being 'acrylic', they are not the same paint.
The nice thing about Modelflex is that it is 'airbrush' ready for the most part. 15-25 lbs of air pressure is all that is needed to spray it. I still use Polly Scale, buit really like Modelflex better for spraying.
Jim
Modeling BNSF and Milwaukee Road in SW Wisconsin
When it was first released it was fantastic, then a few bad batches appeared (turned out to be a manufacturing machine contamination problem), they fixed the problem but the bad batches left a sour taste in the market and they have never been able to get back their momentum in the market place.
ctucker1I've used it since it appeared on the market. I also use many other brands of acrylic paints. They are, mostly, interchangeable and intermixable. You are not restricted to using just one brand.
Ditto. I use blue painters tape, (with a new clean edge). As far as paint lifting, it's happened to from time to time with all the acrylic paints, It's usually because I didn't wait a good hour or two or because the adges of the masking tape were too loaded (shoot straight at the tape edges). It also helps if you prime the model.
For Airbrushing, thin the paint to a consistency od 2% milk to whole milk) with a medium tip (#3), Thinner I use for better paint flow is 80% water/20% Iso alcohol. Air pressure between 15 and 25 psi. Always strain the paint to remove any lumps and undesolvable/dry particles (from the cap). Paint should go on wetter than you're used to with solvent paints, but just short of running.
Rinse airbrush asap with water after finishing each color. I do not recommend using any solvents for cleaning unless you're done for the day and are breaking down the airbrush. Any solvent contact with acrylics can cause the works to gum up. Water or my thinner mix is usually sufficient. Once a month (I paint a lot) I break everything down and soak in some laquer thinner, give everything a good scrub, let everything air dry completely before reassembling.
One quirk of painting with acrylics, is paint build-up at the tip of the brush, I keep a wire brush handy to give the tip a few swipes every now and then while painting, others use a cotton swab and some alcohol.
Do practice some before you paint your first model, the technique is a bit different from painting with solvent paints.
Feel free to come with more questions.
Accuflex was an independent company, when they couldn't recover from the contamination (in the machinery cleaning process) issue, (there was never any change in the formula), even though they fixed it, they sold out to Badger (Testors) and it was rebranded as Modelflex. While Testors still owns and manufactures the brand, they no longer distribute it. Modelflex is now distributed by: http://www.modelflexpaint.com/Paint.html
Jay
C-415 Build: https://imageshack.com/a/tShC/1
Other builds: https://imageshack.com/my/albums
Tomrousseau,
Welcome to the forum
I have to say, though.................WOW! I posted this thread 7 years ago around the time I first joined this forum. Glad you to see that you helped to give it a "shot in the arm".
I still use Modelflex from time to time and am still pleased with how smoothly it lays on a surface. You've received some very good tips here. The only tip I can add (which I always emphasize) is that just before you spray your model, do a practice test on a junker shell or piece of plastic (like discarded Compact Disc case) so that you can fine tune your technique. To me there's nothing more annoying in an airbrush job than a rough or runny finish!
I was using it. I liked there light tuscan oxide red for painting WM freight cars. Seems like in the latest batch they either labeled there dark tuscan oxide or maroon tuscan oxide as light tuscan. So needless to say I am now in search for a new WM freight car color as who knows when they will get back to there original formula. I thought it was a single mishap and called them. They sent me a new bottle but it was the same. Offered to send them my last bottle of the correct color back but they were not interested. Their excuse was a simple color shift from one run to the next. Well going from brick red to mud brown is a heck of a color shift. Sort of like going from Rock Island Bankruptcy blue to Santa Fe blue and stating that it was a small color shift from run to run. Oh well, their loss.
Greg McCartney