Finest-flake silver metallic paint??

[Ace-Garageguy]

I have a few projects coming up that represent early '50s German racing cars that would have been painted silver.

I need the absolute finest-grained silver paint as a base.

I know Steve Guthmiller has sourced some metallics for his outstanding builds of '50s US cars where the flakes are so small as to be almost invisible to the naked eye...as they would be if scale-correct.

Anybody have any recommendations? Rattlecan or airbrush...I just need really fine flake, preferably as a lacquer.

Thanks. 

[peteski]

Tamiya Silver Leaf  (spray can TS-30) has no perceivable flake texture.  Tru-Color paints like Aluminum TCP-013 and Dark Aluminum TCP-355 also have very little (if any) flake.

[Ace-Garageguy]

2 minutes ago, peteski said:

Tamiya Silver Leaf  (spray can TS-30) has no perceivable flake texture.  Tru-Color paints like Aluminum TCP-013 and Dark Aluminum TCP-355 also have very little (if any) flake.

Thank you, sir. I will get those and start experimenting.

[DPNM]

The next time you are heading to an auto parts store that carries it,  you may want to peruse  the DupliColor paint aisle. They have a variety of silver shades. There may be one (or more) that could work for you.

[Matt Bacon]

Personally, I’d say Silver Leaf was too “bright” for Porsche or Mercedes racing Silver, but YMMV. I don’t know if Scalefinishes does the same service, but I’ve had Hiroboy make up some Zero Paints using pearl instead of metallic flake: I just had to ask when I ordered them. 1960s Aston Martin Silver Birch for example, has no flake visible in real life. Also, what you’re after is very much what the RAF called High Speed Silver in the 1950s: if you Google for “best match for RAF High Speed Silver”  you’ll find various recommendations on aircraft modelling forums.

best,

M.

[935k3]

I like Tamiya TS-17 Gloss Aluminium

 

[peteski]

2 hours ago, Matt Bacon said:

Personally, I’d say Silver Leaf was too “bright” for Porsche or Mercedes racing Silver, but YMMV.

M.

You do have a point.  It is a very bright silver.

How about using one of the many Alclad II's shades of aluminum. All those basically have no grain.  Then just clear coat them for a nice glossy car finish.

[Snake45]

Best car silver paint job I've ever done (on a Porsche 911) was Model Master NON-Buffing Aluminum, topped with their Metalizer Sealer (polished out, of course). It's amazing.

[DiscoRover007]

33 minutes ago, Snake45 said:

Best car silver paint job I've ever done (on a Porsche 911) was Model Master NON-Buffing Aluminum, topped with their Metalizer Sealer (polished out, of course). It's amazing.

IF you want the absolute finest and most realistic in terms of scale of flake then this is your answer OP. Alcad probably has a similar product these days also.

But to make metalizer it work you must have a totally smooth surface. It is a ton of sanding and correction. I would even use Zero Primer for that and make sure you use a very durable clear coat. 2k would probably be best. I did a few paint jobs with MM Non buffing aluminum and while it looked great it was prone to chipping. It's not really meant to be a body color across large surfaces.

Tamiya Gloss Aluminum is also doable but that requires very patient color sanding( if you really want it to look right and in scale across the entire body).  Tamiya Silver leaf is too bright for the colors you want.

Tamiya Mica Silver actually comes out to a very fine finish if you prep the primer well and use a few stages of color sanding also. Using this method and the ease of use of this paint in general, it has become my preferred silver.

You can also try Zero Paints Porsche Pearl Silver, it is a very fine silver(about the same as MM Aluminum Metalizer). Zero Paints also make an old school silver called silbergrau db180 that is extremely fine also.

Edited July 18, 2019 by DiscoRover007

[espo]

Another consideration might be Tamiya's AS-12 Bare Metal Silver. This color is just a little less bright than their TS-30 Silver Leaf. Their Aircraft and Military colors offer some interesting colors and shades that have many uses and the amount of gloss desired can be controlled with what ever gloss top coat you prefer, or use none at all.  

[Dave G.]

 Model Master Aluminum Plate Matalizer . Has to be sealed with their Matalizer seal coat though or other clear. Similar choice to Snakes but it's a buffing metalizer, just don't buff it buff the clear.. It goes down silky smooth, the only trick is swirl your airbrush ( I airbrush it) to keep the metallic suspended.

Edited July 18, 2019 by Dave G.

[Ace-Garageguy]

Thanks again to everyone who's responded.

Many of the recommended silvers are colors I've never used, so you all have saved me considerable time and money by giving me some specifics. 

[my80malibu]

Quote

 

Bill I would Consider Scale Finishes. Jameston, has all the Colors Imaginable in a fine grain pigment, very easy to use, and available for Airbrushing. If you want to step over to the wild side. You could consider using Wicked Colors, or Mission paints. They are Acrylic based paints. The Mission paints are especially good at Coverage without washing out ,or Hiding details.

[Mike Chernecki]

Zero paint makes an Extra Fine Silver for candy groundcoat

https://www.zero-paints.com/Extra_Fine_Metallic_SILVER_Groundcoat_for_Candy_Paints_60ml--product--348.html

 

[Matt Bacon]

It looks like Zero actually has the exact thing Bill is after:

https://www.hiroboy.com/Aluminium_MercedesBenz_W125_Paint_60ml_--product--11787.html

best,

M.

[Ace-Garageguy]

8 hours ago, Matt Bacon said:

It looks like Zero actually has the exact thing Bill is after:

https://www.hiroboy.com/Aluminium_MercedesBenz_W125_Paint_60ml_--product--11787.html

Thank you sir !! That does indeed look like it's probably exactly what I want. Now to find a US distributor.

Thanks again. 

EDIT: Got heem.  

Edited July 19, 2019 by Ace-Garageguy

[Mike Chernecki]

14 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

Thank you sir !! That does indeed look like it's probably exactly what I want. Now to find a US distributor.

Thanks again. 

EDIT: Got heem.  

Here is a US distributor.

http://www.hobbyworld-usa.com/Store/index.php?id_product=6755&controller=product&search_query=1478&results=1

 

[Ace-Garageguy]

20 minutes ago, Mike Chernecki said:

Here is a US distributor.

http://www.hobbyworld-usa.com/Store/index.php?id_product=6755&controller=product&search_query=1478&results=1

Thank you, sir. I found that site last night, and boy do they have some great stuff.

[Mike Chernecki]

9 minutes ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

Thank you, sir. I found that site last night, and boy do they have some great stuff.

I have ordered from them several times, awesome service. If there is a color Zero has, but not listed, just let them know and they will have it on their next order.

[Matt Bacon]

1 hour ago, Mike Chernecki said:

I have ordered from them several times, awesome service. If there is a color Zero has, but not listed, just let them know and they will have it on their next order.

Do they do the Zero mix-to-order stuff? If you can supply an OEM paint code that’s in the Lechler database (instructions for logging in to it can be found in the Zero section on Hiroboy’s web site), Steve will make it up to order. A lot of the colours you can see on the web site will have been first made up for a customer order, but now Steve has the “recipe”, he can offer it without any research time. For most of the big manufacturers, like Mercedes, he lists some specials like Merc-McLaren SLR colours or SLS AMG, but on the main Zero Mercedes listing it just says “I have a Mercedes Paint Code I will supply.” I think for those you just need a definitive name and era (and paint code if you have it), but cross matching between say PPG and Lechler paint codes is easy for him...

best,

M.

[StevenGuthmiller]

From my experience, one of the finest metallic silvers that I have ever used are plain old Testors metallic silver.

But it is an enamel, and it's not particularly durable.

You might want to consider one of the many shades of Alclad.

You will not find a finer metallic particle anywhere.

It will look great clear coated and polished.

 

 

Steve

 

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