Hand brushing Tamiya paints?

[Ian]

Is there some secret to hand brushing with Tamiya paints?

Working on the 1/48 figure for my Bulldozer build and I'm having a hell of a time. Glued and primed the guy with Vallejo Grey Primer, then started to use a well stirred (with my new little Badger gadget) XF-57 (Buff) and for every brush stroke on, there seems to be an equal that takes the paint off! Does it need to be thinned? Is it drying too quickly? It's a real pain in the ass!

I also attempted to do the XF-15 (Flat Flesh) this way but ended up spraying due to the same issue as mentioned above.

Look at that gloopy mess in photo #3!

 

[hooterville75]

Ian!!!!! He appears to have a very "Tacky Ass" !!!! Just sayen!!!!! LOL

 

[JohnSimmons]

Yup Tamiya Paints can be a pain to brush, your correct in saying that they dry quick. If your able to pick up any Vallejo paints then that's the way to go, I've never had any paints that brush as well as Vallejo Model Colour paints (well maybe citedal but I prefer Vallejo still). If you still want to use Tamiya and not go out and buy a whole new set for hand painting then you could pick some retarder which slows the drying time a little:
http://www.tamiya.com/english/products/87114paint_retarder/index.htm
But I'd still go for Vallejo. Tamiya for airbrushing Vallejo for hand brushing, that's what I do. Hope that helps!

 

[spud]

Vallejo also have a retarder which i mix with my tamiya and works perfectly its number is 597.

 

[huntr]

let it dry a little bit longer before you paint over areas that you have hit already..

im no expert but I have good results with brushing tamiya in multiple quick thin coats.. laaayeers maaaaaann..

gl

 

[Ian]

Terrific, thanks guys.

 

[hooterville75]

Good Lord, I dont need to be adding any retarder to the paint, Im already retarded enough when it comes to airbrushing paint ha ha ha. I am getting a bit better though I will master this thinning and airbrushing paint before it all comes to an end . I am saying Im starting to like the rattle cans a bit. I actually just painted my problem nascar kits body and its turning out excellent. I do want to try these Vallejo paints though.

 

[McKeever]

Tamiya paints are notoriously bad for hand brushing. You can get away with it for small touch up areas. I am incredulos about tales of people who say they can pull it off.
For handbrushing I use vallejos--those are really the only acrylic paints those don't create an eyesore after handbrusing.

 

[Swanningabout]

I do all my work with a hand brush. I use Tamiya, Acryl, and used to use enamels like Modelmaster and Humbrol.
I used to use also Xtracolor, Gunze Sangyo, and Pollyscale. I think I can say that there is not actually so much difference between brands as between specific colours. I find Acryl's medium green is excellent, for example, but other Acryl colours not necessarily up to that standard.

I wish there were a support group for handbrush only modellers!

 

[Ian]

I'm curious, is your modeling specific to hand brushing? Or do you not like airbrushing?

 

[Dusky]

Good luck trying to hand brush Tamiya acrylics. You can brush the first coat fairly easily, but even when the first coat is cured the solvents tend to reactivate the coat below.

 

[Ian]

I think that's what I'm experiencing.

 

[Dusky]

You can alternate between a coat of Tamiya and a coat of a true water based acrylic like Vallejo, Lifecolor, etc. and another coat of Tamiya, but it begs the question of why not use the other acrylic in the first place and not bother with Tamiya.

 

[hooterville75]

Ian, how is this coming along for you ? Would like to see the completed project sometime when you get a chance. Thanks buddy!!!!!

 

[Ian]

I'm waiting on some retarder and a Vallejo paint set, and when that arrives tomorrow I'll be able to wrap up that figure painting.

Here's the finished bulldozer:

 

[hooterville75]

Nice man!!!!!

 

[Ian]

So are Vallejo Model Paints meant to be so viscus and thick? They're almost like glue. Am I supposed to thin and then apply, or am I not shaking then enough (which is difficult to do given their consistency).

 

[Elm City Hobbies]

Hey there Ian,

If you have the Model color paints, yes they are too thick out of the bottle to paint and need some thinning.

I generally give it a good shake, and go with a ratio of 2 drops of paint to 1 drop of water/thinner.

Most of the time I just dispense some paint and add a brush full of water, and adjust the mixture accordingly, but a good ratio is 2 to 1 paint to water.

 

[Ian]

Perfect, just the advice I needed.

 

[Dusky]

I've had bad luck thinning them with water. They never tend to dry right, even if I use retarder. However, no issues using their own thinner.

Vallejo says to roll the bottles between your hands to mix them, but I'm not sure it works.