Model Master Acrylic airbrushing

[mike_lawyer]

Well, I ran out of my last bottle of Floquil Engine Black, so I am shifting over to Model Master acrylic engine black.  However, I am having problems with thinning it.  I used distilled water at about 40 percent ratio, and that was far too runny.  Then I tried using it without thinning, and it was too thick and clogged up my airbrush.  Does anyone have a preferred thinner for acrylics?

Even though they smell, I find enamels much easier to use with an airbrush, and they dry quicker.

[u18b]

I don't know what's in it.... but I use the Acryl thinner.

I love this paint.

[mike_lawyer]

I don't know what's in it.... but I use the Acryl thinner.

I love this paint.

Is it the Model Master Acrylic thinner?  What thinning ratio do you use?

[jpwisc]

For Model Master acrylics, I mix two parts paint to one part 70% isopropyl alcohol. I spray it at 35psi and it has been working great for me.

[u18b]

I most often use the little cup for the airbrush, not a big bottle.
I then place several drops into the cup and mix it a bit.

Sorry, I don't have a set ratio.

[thomasjmdavis]

I suspect mix ratios have a lot to do with the particular airbrush you are using, cap size, etc.  I have a Paasche VL internal mix double action airbrush, usually with a #3 tip.  As Ron said above, I just use a few drops of thinner (I use the Testors/Aztek/Model Master "universal acrylic thinner"- not really universal, but does seem to work well with all the Testors branded Acryl products)- occasionally more if the paint has thickened in storage. And also note his point about the paint cup vs. a bottle hanging off the bottom of the airbrush- I've also had much better results with the paint cup. Some blues and other dye based (ie- already very thin paints) I spray without thinning.  I spray at 25-28 psi.  That measured with the air flowing (on small systems, the pressure will drop several psi when the air is flowing).  Also, dry air makes a HUGE difference with acrylics (or so I've found), so a filter close to the airbrush can improve results- or that has been my experience.

[mike_lawyer]

Unfortunately, I have a bottle feed from the bottom...I can see how a gravity feed might work better for acrylics.  I never had a problem with enamels and a bottom-feed airbrush.

[SkipGear]

Don't get too used to using MM Acrylics as they have been discontinued. Everything MM from Testors is now history.

I when you run out, I will suggest trying Vallejo or Mission Models paints. Unfortunately, neither have RR specific colors.

[daniel_leavitt2000]

I like Tamiya thinner on most of my Acrylic paints. It works well with Model Master and Poly Scale paints. Modelflex is more of a mixed bag but usually work.

[mike_lawyer]

How are the Badger Model-Flex acrylic paints?  They look to have a good number of railroad colors.  Tru Color looks interesting for enamel paints, anyone have experience with them?

[SkipGear]

The true color paint is very nice but also very strong smelling. Use in a spray booth or outside.

[mplsjct]

How are the Badger Model-Flex acrylic paints?  They look to have a good number of railroad colors.  Tru Color looks interesting for enamel paints, anyone have experience with them?

I haven’t tried Tru Color, if it’s stinky that’s a non starter for me. Model Flex works fine for me, as mentioned, railroad colors are available in most popular roads. Not impressed with their version of NP light green, and I have had a bottle of GN sky blue that wasn’t even close, but for the most part their paint works fine for me. Since I have switched to acrylics, I have always thinned with regular tap water, this is probably not going to work for everyone, as tap water varies greatly from place to place.

[wazzou]

Yeah, their GN Big Sky Blue is more akin to Conrail Blue.

[Angus Shops]

I’m a new convert to Tru-color! Yes it’s stinky, but application and colours are excellent. They have a couple of their basics in rattle cans which makes things easy - weathered black (which looks pretty black black to me), freight car brown, oxide red, white…

Model Master was great but it’s  discontinued; their ‘steel’ was excellent, and I used a lot of their rattle cans.

I think I’ve settled on the following pattern: Tru-Color for locomotives and rolling stack, Vallejo for everything else.

[C855B]

I’m a new convert to Tru-color! ...

Since you're new to it, be mindful that Tru-Color has a short shelf life. The plastic bottles are poor barriers to the acetone base solvent, and it evaporates surprisingly fast just sitting there in storage. My hard-learned advice is to only buy what you need for an immediate project and do not stock-up "just in case" or for future projects with uncertain timelines.

Corollary to that advice is to buy directly from Tru-Color. You don't/can't know how long that paint has been sitting on a retailer's shelf. I know of at least one major hobby shop that has dropped the line because too many customers were getting bottles of low-demand colors that had evaporated away.

Adding insult is I have encountered color inconsistencies between batches. That means you can't buy fresh every time and expect it to match previous work.

Also, bear in mind that it is a lacquer and not an enamel. It cannot be brushed over itself, the new paint will dissolve what's underneath. (This advice for the "normal" line. I don't have experience with their supposedly brushable 800-series paints.)

I love the way Tru-Color goes down and the durability of the finish (unlike acrylics!), but it comes at a pretty high cost, both literally and figuratively.   

These days I've been using a lot of Vallejo, mostly for scenery and other non-critical projects, but as mentioned they have no railroad-keyed colors.