Dave G.

Some of my nicest but now 50 yo paint jobs were rattle can enamel from Pactra ( long gone brand now). Get in a little closer and slow down your final passes in particular. Also let each coat flash off. This flash off concerns lacquers and acrylics both. With enamel I keep shooting till done. Acrylic needs the flashed off base coats so the next will stick. Lacquer needs them to build on. There is a difference: the acrylic will basically slide if you don't have the flashed base coats. Lacquer deepens the color. You basically have to work at making lacquer run though but with metallics if your coat is too wet to the point of heavy you can get the metallic particles or fleck running within the coat before the coat can begin flashing, causing a mottled look . All of this is acquired skill, at least in terms of repeatability. With a rattle can your limiting factor is one spray pattern one volume of paint. In all painting you need to work with distance of passes and speed of passes but with rattle cans those are the only variable, besides heating the product. I won't get into the added flexibility of airbrushing and how to of all that since you didn't ask except there is that capability on the very first coat to get a very light thin smooth layer to build upon.. You need to find your happy medium with rattle cans. I think you will find that Tamiya lacquer and Duplicolor lacquer are two entirely different lacquers with different solvents and thinners, retarders etc. Thus one technique won't work for both. And that's just the way it is.

Could depend on the acrylic used. But I agree, certainly lacquers goes over the water based acrylics at least. I've never tried hot clears over Tamiya acrylic but it goes over artist acrylics, craft paints and Vallejo easy enough. I'm moving from clear lacquers on models, going more and more with Createx 4050 or 4053 and very pleased with the results. I still use lacquer over my wife's acrylic paintings though, in fact I'm clear coating one today.

I like testing though, it's a hobby in itself for me. But lacquer over enamel for me there is no need to test. I had too many fails doing that back around 1977ish. Sometimes it takes me a bit to learn my lesson but once I get it it's gotten in to stay. Anyone can say whatever they want about lacquer over enamel and they had success and that's great. I had a few wins myself but sure enough it came around to bite me in the butt eventually.

Steve that was meant more tongue in cheek than statement, don't assume too much. I also have no dog in the hunt, my own behavior would still be a thanks. I would answer to my own actions.

I haven't figured out my nearest HL 40% off sale pattern lately. It used to be every Friday but it seems random now. When I pop in there they either have the sale and no 37/38 Ford pickup or the pickup and no sale. I have one of those trucks which I want to build as the 37 but would like to build a 38 for a Christmas theme with tree in the back. I'm building the AMT 53 Coca Cola pickup now ( all stock). I caught that on the 40% off.

He's alive, must be a quiet sort of guy. No further posts.

No, last I knew if looking at his profile he was last seen posting his question in this thread. I haven't looked today.

In order to match the real truck you need a few parts to not fit right ! By the way, I remember when AMT kits cost $1.25. In fact lurking in my memory banks trying to surface is something like $1.00 plus tax. But the $1.25 is real clear. I got a paper route before advances on my allowance of $.35 blew the roof of the house. Then I could afford the kits I wanted and the quantity.

Pete, within one of my first posts I said if to use 2x from the can to heat the can in hot water and I've seen it take two minutes of shaking to free the rattler, then shake for 4 minutes. This it seems to me indicates that I've shot it straight from the can ( I mentioned a 40 Ford hood in fact). But that was successful, the finish was indeed very nice. Now this was early on in the thread, I have no idea if he ever saw it before leaving the thread. You have no need to go back to my early posts but if you want to see my more exact words, I've changed nothing within them as I recall. But I also stated the best results are decanting and airbrushing, adding a little LT.. Krylon I mentioned being very hard to find in my area. And I believe others said the same about their areas. I agree that the thread has followed the nature of man, starting civil to wax worse and worse ! My comment on the OP seems to have gone was an observation that I posted is all. I mean he just doesn't seem to be here for whatever reason, and I too looked at his profile before posting that message.

I like to think there was at least observation to the thread by the OP but if not we all kind of wasted our time here it seems. Though someone else might stumble on the thread and gain something from it.

The OP seems to be through with the thread.

I've gone 110 with my food dehydrator on some acrylic paints and enamel with no issues. I've heard of some guys going to 120 for enamel for short blasts. I've done test paint jobs on scrap plastic at 115. 105-107 is my standard though. I don't have a Foodie but an air fryer with dehydrator mode, been using that for 4-5 years or so now. Dry paint by day bake pizza by night lol !

Well the application of 1/1 hot lacquer surely is different from hobby lacquers. Indeed it's worth a few passes on something besides your prized model to get a feel for any new paint or paint system. I'm hoping OP gets back with some good news personally !

Maybe do some test passes on a scrap part before laying it down on your project body. An old hood or side of an old body etc. Get pressure, speed of passes and distance worked out for yourself.

You definitely can even up the metallic pattern so it's not streaking by backing away. However my way of doing that is to up pressure a bit and use a slower thinner in 1/1 paints. The problem with MCW is it's already thinned with fast thinner. Steve's idea may be be the one, as he said, put more distance between the brush and model but open things up, that meaning more pressure and more paint flow both. I mentioned yesterday getting in closer but that may not work with metallic.

You can easily scuff that finish and add a couple more color coats before clearing. That's how I would handle your situation with that paint. But don't apply the new coats the same way, get them on there wetter. It's about impossible to run this stuff unless you just stall out on a pass and keep blasting. And now you have a base to lay it on to.

James they use a fast thinner in the acrylic lacquer car colors, for what reason I have 0 clue. But you gotta stay in pretty close and try to shoot it wet, yet in thin multiple coats because it's hot. FWIW I'm not a fan of MCW lacquer either for several reasons I've mentioned in other threads and about hot lacquers in general actually, I'm sure would offend the fans of it to run through it yet again.. There is a lot to be said on this topic actually but I'll stop here.

Ya, you just use water, less is more.

The Krylon Platinum gray used to be a great model primer I thought. It has or had a thinner film than some of the other colors. But that was 30 years ago, who know about todays formulation. I can't even find Krylon around this area where I live these days. And at Micheals where short cuts are supposed to be stocked most of the slots are empty.

Same here ! I really shouldn't post anything till after my second mug of coffee.

It is good primer. If you get into it though, I suggest right up front to get yourself some sort of power mixer if you don't have one ( I use the Badger hand held mixer, they're about $12 these days). Here's why, especially for colors you don't use often. In due time the solids settle and no amount of shaking or stick stirring puts it back together again, least no amount I have patience for . The power mixer does it in about 2 minutes. But worse than that you can't always see the sediment through the bottle sides, it can look fine and not be. There is nothing wrong with the primer and I think several bottles of the stuff has been tossed out by people not understanding that it does settle and not exactly easy to get back together without the mixer. I salvaged a bottle of black I was ready to toss, still using it, almost gone now. Once it's remixed it seems to stay suspended better too. Just passing on my experience with it and it's my primary primer now for about 7 years or so. I use that or Mr Primer Surfacer. Notice I didn't say Mr Surfacer but Mr Primer Surfacer. According to their website there is a difference in these products.

Too much !!!😁

🙂 That's a thought.

It's not an argument just a thought. I don't come here to argue.

Ya, I only have one left here myself and that's nearly 20 miles from me. I do order online especially if to find the right deal with Amazon prime with primes free shipping. Craft paints and much of what I've mentioned can be a Hobby Lobby/Micheals thing and shop sales and coupons. Stynylrez is an online item for me, nobody has that locally. Same for Mr Primer Surfacer. Those are the only two lines of primers I use.