Dax415 Posted September 29, 2003 Posted September 29, 2003 ok, i finally got a hold of an airbrush till I can upgrade to an Iwata eclipse. I am practicing using the Apple Barrel Acrylic paints I use on some of my miniatures. Hopefully if my ebay sales come through I will have enough for better paints and the airbrush. So what Tamiya acrylic paints do I buy and what thinner do I use for the airbrush? I intend to start building my hasegawa YF-19, VF Battroid, and Strike Valkyrie. Also, where is the best place to buy it from? Dixieart.com seems to be pretty good but is there anywhere else cheaper? Thanks! Quote
wm cheng Posted September 30, 2003 Posted September 30, 2003 Hey, I'm glad that I'll soon see some new modellers around here - can't wait to see your pictures. Wy don't you try your local hobby shop - Tamiya acrylic paints are pretty easy to come by around here. As to the colours, that depends on the models that you would be building first. However, I find a few colours indespensible, such as flat white, gloss white, flat black, metallic grey, gunmetal, sky grey, neutral grey, and dark grey to start off. I would also highly recommend the Tamiya thinner - it comes in a larger bottle. Its a bit expensive, but it has some addititves or flow agents that help with airbrushing. If you only use it to thin, it can last for years, mine usually last around 5 years or so. You can use the regular blue windex to clean your airbrush and accessories. Good luck. Quote
bsu legato Posted September 30, 2003 Posted September 30, 2003 You really buy that Tamiya thinner, wm cheng? I just pick up a bottle of isopropyl alcohol and get the same results. It's cheaper and lasts forever! Quote
VF-19 Posted September 30, 2003 Posted September 30, 2003 I too just use regular rubbing alcohol with excellent results for my thinning needs. I also have a bottle of tamiya thinner too, and when I tried it out, I didn't notice any difference between it and the cheap stuff... Oh well. Whatever works! Quote
Dax415 Posted October 4, 2003 Author Posted October 4, 2003 Thanks everybody for the tips! Personally I would rather support a local hobby shop by buying my paints there, but there is no hobby shop carrying Tamiya acrylic paints in my area. Just a minimal of supplies and they are not willing to order a small quantity for me. It seems Testors and a couple of other brands I am not familiar with are only available. So anyone spot some good places on line to buy them? Any further suggestions on paint colors? I do intend to build all of the models so I am going to order all of them at once. Thanks! Quote
Deadzone Posted October 4, 2003 Posted October 4, 2003 I thought the thinner smelled just like rubbing alcohol. Damn, and I just paid $8.50 for a 250ml bottle of Tamiya thinner. That's why I come here, to learn about the cheap alternatives. Funny thing about Tamiya paints is that every paint color within the line seems to be different. I think I have used different thinning ratios every time. I find the gloss white really hard to use. It either comess out too watery or too thick and does not cover well at all. The flat white is great except it paints kind of rough in terms of the finished surface. However, I accidentally mixed future with my flat white once. The result was a SMOOTH flat white finish ready to be glossed with a coat of future for a great shine. Hope this helps. Quote
wm cheng Posted October 5, 2003 Posted October 5, 2003 I am aware that rubbing alcohol works as well, but there were concerns that when thinning glossy Tamiya paints, the just alcohol method didn't produce the same glass like finish the Tamiya specific thinner would yield. Since one of these bottles last me for years, I wasn't so concerned about save a few dollars over the course of a few years if it might put any of my models in jeapardy - its just not worth it for the piece of mind. I've had experience in my youth with cheap alternatives, only to find out something yellowed over time or cracked or something like that years after the fact. For the amount of time and effort I put into these things - a few bucks is nothing next to my hourly rates I say cheap out on the cleaners or solvents and rags (the backstage stuff) but put the best quality up front on the model where it will be seen (IMHO). I mean, how much would it cost or would you save to make the little extra frustrations worth it? Quote
GunsightOne Posted October 8, 2003 Posted October 8, 2003 - I'm going to have to jump on the Tamiya thinner bandwagon with WM Cheng. I have tried using plain rubbing alcohol many moons ago and now have noticed some yellowing/off color on some of my models after a couple of years. You won't notice a difference immediately (well I haven't anyways) but over time you will. It's worth the extra few bucks. - As for paint choices...I use both Tamiya & Testors Model Master Acrylics. The big difference I noticed between the two is the finish. It depends what kind of finish you are trying to achieve. I generally use Tamiya paints for figures and for Anime/Cartoon like finishes. I use Model Master paints for more realistic finishes. Most of my Macross/Sci-Fi projects are painted with Tamiya acrylics while I use Model Master acrylics for 1/35 military armor stuff. I also tend to thin out model master paints more than I would do with Tamiya paints. Quote
Dax415 Posted October 19, 2003 Author Posted October 19, 2003 Ok I found a spot on the net that sells the smaller bottles of Tamiya Paint for $1.50 a piece is this a good price? Anyone want the url let me and I will post it. Thanks Quote
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