Best home brew thinner for tamiya and gunze acrylics

[CY343491]

Hi,
I mostly use Tamiya "XF-" and Gunze "aquoeuous" acrylic paints and i'm bored of using Tamiya "X-20A" and Gunze "T111" thinners because of costs. What is your best home brew thinner for these, i think both of these thinners are interchangeable.

 

[BlackSheepTwoOneFour]

I don’t make m6nown thinner brew. Most (except certain paint brands) of my paints work well with hardware store lacquer thinner.

 

[plastickjunkie]

We each have our own way of doing things. To me it’s not worth the time, effort and results when compared to the thinners made specifically for each brand that have their own formulas. Yes they cost more but they do last a long time and the results in the paint flow and quality are far superior than using generic brands.

 

[CY343491]

I don’t make m6nown thinner brew. Most (except certain paint brands) of my paints work well with hardware store lacquer thinner.

Do you use hardware store lacquer with tamiya paint?

 

[BlackSheepTwoOneFour]

Do you use hardware store lacquer with tamiya paint?

Hardware store lacquer thinner. Mostly at Walmart.

 

[CY343491]

Hardware store lacquer thinner. Mostly at Walmart.

Any troubles about airbrush after spraying? How do you clean airbrush after? And have you ever tried acetone or %99 IPA?

 

[CY343491]

Hardware store lacquer thinner. Mostly at Walmart.

I'll try hardware store LT, i also wonder if you add flow improver or retarder? I have both Vallejo and Winsor & Newton Flow improvers do you think that they will work?

 

[michaelsatin]

For Tamiya I use Heat, an American automotive fuel additive, mixed with water 2/3 to 1/3. Works great and a lot cheaper.

Mike

 

[urumomo]

" Heet " ?
Mostly isopropyl alcohol isn't it ?

 

[urumomo]

I was thinking it might be methanol
and yeah
https://24-7stores.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Heet-Gasline-Antifreeze.pdf

 

[the Baron]

I've used generic lacquer thinner (got it at AutoZone) to thin Tamiya's acrylics for airbrushing, and had no problems, either with the paint during and after airbrushing it, or with cleaning my brush afterwards. I just ran a little lacquer thinner through the brush, till it came out clear, one or two passes, then some water to rinse out the thinner.

But I usually do just use Tamiya's proprietary acrylic thinner, to thin their acrylics, for airbrushing and for brushing by hand. I tried the lacquer thinner on a tip that it would enhance the matte finish of the flat colors. I couldn't really see a difference between the results with lacquer thinner and Tamiya's thinner.

 

[CY343491]

I was thinking it might be methanol
and yeah
https://24-7stores.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Heet-Gasline-Antifreeze.pdf

Ever tried methanol instead of IPA?

 

[urumomo]

Yes , denatured alcohol is usually half methanol and half ethanol .
Methanol is toxic .

 

[CY343491]

In many forums i saw that X-20A contains toluene and xylene, can we guess proportions, and are those hazardous chemicals to work with, what are the risks?

 

[urumomo]

LOL
Nope - it does not contain either .

 

[CFster]

You can use straight isopropyl or a 50/50 mix with water with a couple drops of glycerin thrown in. X-20A is basically alcohol with a retarder anyway.

Mr. Color Leveling Thinner is the best choice for either of these lines. It’s a lacquer but it’s a slower drying lacquer which gives the paint time to level. Unicorn Tears.

Watch it with the hardware store lacquer thinner. Good for cleaning and spraying but if you lay it on thick you can reactivate a lacquer layer underneath or melt decals if you’re spraying a clear. Light coats at first. But It’s like three times cheaper than MLT.

 

[CY343491]

You can use straight isopropyl or a 50/50 mix with water with a couple drops of glycerin thrown in. X-20A is basically alcohol with a retarder anyway.

Mr. Color Leveling Thinner is the best choice for either of these lines. It’s a lacquer but it’s a slower drying lacquer which gives the paint time to level. Unicorn Tears.

Watch it with the hardware store lacquer thinner. Good for cleaning and spraying but if you lay it on thick you can reactivate a lacquer layer underneath or melt decals if you’re spraying a clear. Light coats at first. But It’s like three times cheaper than MLT.

I don't like to thin my tamiya paints in small quantities, i usually pour x-20A to the top of the brand new bottle. Do you think this ratio will also work for Hardware store LT.

By the way what's the meaning of the term called "unicorn tears" ? I see that in many places can't understand what's that.

 

[CFster]

I don't like to thin my tamiya paints in small quantities, i usually pour x-20A to the top of the brand new bottle. Do you think this ratio will also work for Hardware store LT.

By the way what's the meaning of the term called "unicorn tears" ? I see that in many places can't understand what's that.

That’s not enough thinner. It should be thinned 1:1 and there isn’t enough empty space at the top of a new bottle to get to that ratio. It should be thinned 1:1 with lacquer thinner as well, even more for low pressure fine detail airbrush work.

People like to call Mr. Color Leveling Thinner “unicorn tears” because it’s the best thinner period. Nothing else comes close, including hardware store lacquer thinner.

 

[CY343491]

That’s not enough thinner. It should be thinned 1:1 and there isn’t enough empty space at the top of a new bottle to get to that ratio. It should be thinned 1:1 with lacquer thinner as well, even more for low pressure fine detail airbrush work.

People like to call Mr. Color Leveling Thinner “unicorn tears” because it’s the best thinner period. Nothing else comes close, including hardware store lacquer thinner.

Thanks, by the way i've heard that hardware LT flattens the tone so much and puts uneven surafce because of fast drying time, is it true?

 

[ohbejuan]

I have made a homebrew thinner for Vallejo acrylics, but I have not tried for Tamiya or Aqueous yet. I am planning to paint a model using both of these in the future, so this conversation has been very helpful. I have the X-20A Thinner and I was going to use that.

PS my home brew for Vallejo is 70% Thinner, 25% flow improver, and 5% retarder medium (all Vallejo products). Though I have been experimenting with just using model air at higher PSI and just using a little flow improver.