Apple Barrel Acrylic Craft Paint Test

[hooterville75]

Hey all I know the different craft paints that are said to not work have been discussed various times over the past year with a lot of negative results from a lot of users on the forum. Tonight I did a test between Primer coats on the 68 Corvette I'm building that was giving me fits for some reason in the primer stages. I took the good ole trusty Plastic Spoon and did a test with the Apple Barrel Acrylic Craft Paint I bought at Walmart the other evening for $.97 cents per bottle. Tonight I used Gloss Orange. I'm going to play with Black and Gloss Yellow tomorrow evening.

I primed the spoon with Tamiya White Surface primer from the rattle can. I thinned the Apple barrel paint with 91% Isopropyl Alcohol. I cant give the exact ratio because I just did it by eye. I gave a squeeze of the paint then a squeeze of the thinner. Stirred it up and realized it was way too runny so I put some more paint in till I felt it was the consistency of milk. Stirred it up, shot it on the spoon and I must say contrary to what other people have said on here about the craft paints, I don't think Id hesitate to well I'm actually going to attempt to use these Apple Barrel Acrylic paints on my next kit I build after the Corvette.

Here is two photos of the spoon. The photos do the test no justice because Im actually very happy with the results. I gave the spoon two mist coats and then two wet coats with one coat of Future. Used the blow dryer between every coat of paint and after the future to dry the spoon. The photos make the spoon look like a flat orange but its actually very shiny to the eye. Let me know your thoughts, suggestions or concerns about this test and results. Thanks and keep building.

 

[Carsenault]

Your cat doesnt look impressed... But that looks pretty cool. I would have never thought Apple Barrel products would work through an airbrush.

 

[hooterville75]

The cleaning of the airbrush wasnt any the easiest but hey it worked and I have nothing but time on my hands so why not ha ha. What Im going to do is stock up on all the major colors of the AB paints and when I am short on cash and need paint Ill have the AB paints to use until I can afford to buy the new paints i need.

 

[Nitrobeast]

I too have recently bought and used them. Ill try and get some pictures of what i did soon.
Personally i like them and at that price you cant beat it.

 

[kolja]

I've used them for basic stuff like yellow ejection seat handles, red flap/slat interiors, etc., on airplane models, but always with a brush. Never thought of airbrushing them, but I'll have to give it a try. Would definitely come in handy for the red inside surfaces of flaps and slats...

 

[Carsenault]

I just remembered about a member of our local club airbrushing a McLaren MP-4/13 with craft paint, I cant remember if it was Apple Barrel or Ceramcoat. It was the pre-season competition orange scheme, once he got it all buffed out and glossed up, you'd never know the difference.

 

[Glorfindel]

I think "Classic Plastic" uses these on his YouTube channel if I'm not mistaken. He's mentioned craft paints before because their cheaper and you get much more volume for your buck.

 

[Cave_Dweller]

I've used them for building wargaming scenery and dioramas and have gotten some very good results. They're not at all bad paints. And yeah, for the $ to oz ratio they're pretty good.