Lately, I have been painting with Humbrol, but even if I thin out the paint I have been getting a very slight sandpapery finish. In times past, even their flat paints seemed to have a slight gloss mixed in and the pigment was ground finely enough that once the paint was applied it was extremely smooth and did not require any buffing out by wet sanding. Will mixing in a bit of gloss help at all or some other technique? I have liked Humbrol in that it dries to a hard shell finish that stands up well to corrections or weathering with mineral spirits. Many thanks!
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I had the same problem when I used matt humbrol although I did use the hairy stick so I put a coat of semi gloss clear over it and it solved my problem
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Selrach (better to add your Christian name) I would email Humbrol with the problem.
Tell them that others have the same problem. Found with their Airfix section you get a good and reasonable prompt answer.
I use Vallejo and have found this is the first port of call for problems as they meet them every day.
LaurieComment
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PS best to give full details. background hand or airbrush, thinning, temperature, preparation of the back ground etc. Needle/nozzle on airbrush size and the pressure on the compressor.
LaurieComment
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And what sort of paint you are using. That effect can be caused by completely different factors in 'enamel' and 'acrylic' paints.Originally posted by \
Cheers
SteveComment
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Thanks Steve forgot that one. Assumed it was enamel. The curse of assumptions even Hitler made that mistake !
Also forgot what type of undercoat. Also how did you prepare the primer before the top coat ie was it wet and dried to a smooth finish.
LaurieComment
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I use only enamels by Humbrol, and it does look slightly "rough" with matt.
I have found that I sand it with 6000 wet micromesh and then put 3 coats of future. Sand that wit 8000 MM ready for decals.
Look at my Hawker Typhoon build to see the final result.
TheunsComment
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If it's enamel then it may not be thinned enough for spraying.
As far as lack of thinning goes, this causes the paint to be blasted out of the airbrush not properly mixed with the air. You effectively blast large droplets, rather like scale pebble dashing, at the model. I've had this happen to me when doing a quick touch up and not paying proper attention to the paint consistency.
Cheers
SteveComment
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...........and don't forget 'back to basics' with enamel. Matt enamel requires a lot of stirring to ensure the pigment is in consistent suspension and additional mixing throughout the application.
I think all the challenges I have had over the years with matt enamel could be put down to not enough stirring before applying. I know it sounds obvious but it is always worth considering the simplest issues first.Comment
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Couldn't agree more ^^^^^^^^
SteveComment
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Yep, stir stir and stir again until you can no longer stir any longer. Give it a really good shake too. I use Humbrol enamels and have had no issues to the point that it looks like sandpaper, but matt paint by it's nature is rough anyway. Most rough surfaces and blemishes disappear under a gloss varnish prior to decal application.Comment
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I have found some Humbrol matt enamels to have what seems like an excessively rough surface, even when stirred and shaken to within an inch of their life. But like Joe I've found that once I've coated with gloss varnish and then matt varnish, it's not a probelm any more. A recent kit I made had airbrushed acrylics pretty well overall, with matt enamels for the small parts like the propellor spinner. It all looked pretty consistent in the end.Comment
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Thanks all, Alan, Laurie, Steve, Theuns, Richard, Joe and Doug for your advice. I have also noticed one also needs the right thinner lest the wrong one curdles the paint. On advice I have used lacquer thinner as a type of universal solvent. It seems no one has tried adding some gloss. I will have to try this myself. I have never actually tried coating the model with gloss coats. Does this hide completely the roughness without obscuring surface details? How many coats, etc? I am feeling a bit leery about trying this after all the work already done on a project.Comment
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Forgive me if this information is somewhere up-thread and I've not noticed it, but I'm not sure if you're using a brush or an airbrush. I didn't do a gloss coat until I started to use an airbrush. This was because I was nervous about the whole paint job becoming too thick and obscuring detail, though I've always put on a thin coat of matt right at the very end. Now I airbrush a very thin coat of gloss varnish - just enough to give it a shine - before the transfers, then a very thin coat of matt after the transfers. I can understand your nervousness about it - those last coats are always a bit nerve-wracking when you've put so much work in. If you're not sure, try painting up a bit of plastic rubbish and varnishing it - that should give you some confidence for the real thing.I have never actually tried coating the model with gloss coats. Does this hide completely the roughness without obscuring surface details? How many coats, etc? I am feeling a bit leery about trying this after all the work already done on a project.
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The wrong thinner can lead to the good old 'airbrush full of custard' syndrome. You are quite right that it's one to be avoided at all costOriginally posted by \
A coat or two of gloss varnish shouldn't obscure surface detail. A coat of any vanish may alter how the colours of the underlying paint appear, typically darkening them very slightly. The idea is to achieve a nice smooth surface on which to apply decals.
This decal has been applied over matt paint and a couple of coats of gloss varnish. You can see by the way it is sucked down into the surface detail that said detail has not been obscured.
Matt paint is by definition microscopically rough and that's enough to cause decal film to 'silver' sometimes. A final coat of matt (or the desired finish) seals and protects all your hard work.
Cheers
SteveComment
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