Mr. Color lacquer paint problem

[Tim Marlow]

Just had a thought Jakko. It’s not Mr Color aqueous inadvertently filled into a lacquer bottle is it? I’d be amazed if it was, but can’t think of anything else…..

[Guest]

Strange but with so many different paints available there is no point at all in persisting with one that doesn't work for you.

That’s my thought exactly. I’ll match or mix other paints to the other two Mr. Color paints needed for this tank’s camouflage, so I can use ones I do get along with.

On reading many good reviews I bought a brand of acrylic airbrush thinner. It just didn't work for me so £9.99 literally went down the drain.

I’ve got much the same feeling about this bottle. Though I think I’ll try it with other paints as well, since many people have commented that it’s very good for other acrylics too.

I really have not seen that or heard of it before. Given the good reputation the Mr Color that is a surprise.

Same, and I think the problem is what I’ve mentioned before: I’m not used to this paint, so I get strange results with it by doing things that do work with the paints I am used to.

Why not try MRP lacquers? No thinning at all needed even for fine lines.

I have used a bottle of that, and it worked fine for me, yes. However, another reason I don’t feel like using more Mr. Color lacquers is the smell of the paint and the thinner needed for the paint and/or cleaning the airbrush. Acrylics I can thin and rinse out with alcohol or water don’t have that problem at all.

use there thinner at 50/50

That sounds like about the ratio I ended up using for this. Water- or alcohol-based acrylics need far less thinner, in my experience, so that’s where I went wrong at first today: not adding enough. The paint sprayed much better when I added more thinner; maybe I could have cranked the pressure back down, but I didn’t want to try because my mentality is usually to not mess with things that work

I have just had another look and it is not just that strange spider web but the way the paint looks somewhat rough.

I suspect that is mostly because you’re looking at the previous coat of paint, from my initial attempt at airbrushing this model. The one where I ended up scrubbing the webs away with a brush.

Perhaps the spider web was caused by that type of effect.

It’s a good theory, but they also appeared on the faces of some of the wheels, which I sprayed on the sprue, and which got hit by the full pressure of the airflow.

Lacquers tend to be best at a very low psi

Exactly the opposite of what I did, then

Try a mist spray of MLT over the model, make sure it hits the model slightly wet but not flooding it, I would do this at 10psi or less. Let it dry for 10 minutes and see if the finish has improved.

The finish has already improved with the well-thinned paint I sprayed on the model at higher pressure: it’s smoother than the first attempt was, so I think your suggestion would have worked.

That is just weird. Have no idea of what happened. could it be a duff paint batch?

It’s probably just my lack of skill with this kind of paint.

I will though say if you think that is crazy, try decanted hair spray in an air brush. What the actual!
Turned my tank and my first try with the hair spray technic into a very nice hallowen decoration. Instant cobwebs.... EVERYWHERE! LOL.

I’ve never tried it, and reading that, I don’t think I will either

Just had a thought Jakko. It’s not Mr Color aqueous inadvertently filled into a lacquer bottle is it? I’d be amazed if it was, but can’t think of anything else…..

It’s definitely lacquer paints: I stirred it with a stick that already had paint on it, and that dissolved, which I’ve only ever seen lacquer paints do. Aside from that, it also smells like lacquer and not like Mr. Color aqueous.