Do all clear coats yellow?

[br67]

hi, have never been one to clear coat anything but was considering giving it a try. My concern is that on a white body will it ultimately yellow with age? Thx

[DON-T2]

Enamel yes, lacquer no

[angelo7]

Do NOT use Testors High Gloss clear (enamel) on white.  I messed up a beautiful Peterbilt that I did in black and white and it yellowed the white instantly.  It's getting worse with time.  Other lacquer clears do better on white.

[StevenGuthmiller]

Stay away from enamel, especially on light colors.

I have yet to see any of my builds done with clear lacquer turn yellow.

 

Steve

[Nitro Neil]

The simple answer is all clears, enamels and lacquers, turn yellow eventually. Unfortunately there is nothing you can do to stop it.

The question really is which ones stay clear longer and how yellow they get. 

It's the UV rays in sunlight that turn the clear coat yellow, but they will turn yellow even if you don't keep the item in the sun.

I have had good luck with Rustoleum's Crystal Clear enamel (not the gloss clear, but the Crystal Clear).  

I would think that two-part finishes would also be very stable, but I have never used them so I don't know for sure.

 

[Dave Van]

Future as clear since 1983.....no yellow yet....but could happen....someday.....

[Cato]

Testors Wet Look Clear, a mild lacquer. Make a test spoon or sheet with white primer under your white color.

[espo]

I have tried several different clear coats thru the years. I have had no problems with yellowing in over 20 years. I have used Model Master Ultra Gloss Clearcoat  and my personal favorite is Tamiya Clear TS-13. The models displayed are always away from direct sunlight and that may be the reason for not yellowing.   

[StevenGuthmiller]

I've recently started using Duplicolor "Paint Shop" clear.

It's a lacquer so I'm not really worried about yellowing, but hey.......you never know.

I've really grown to like the stuff though, & a quart can will last me until the second coming!

 

Steve

[Harry P.]

Future as clear since 1983.....no yellow yet....but could happen....someday.....

Correct. Future is clear acrylic and will not yellow. At least not as long as I've used it.

[Drake69]

Future as clear since 1983.....no yellow yet....but could happen....someday.....

Correct. Future is clear acrylic and will not yellow. At least not as long as I've used it.

X 3. Future all the way for me.

[Ace-Garageguy]

For what it's worth, back in the days when we used to paint real cars with lacquer, clear-coat yellowing was a significant problem. Clear shot over a silver base could look like light gold after a few years of UV exposure. 

I went to 2-component urethane clears on 1:1 work pretty much as soon as they hit the market, and apparently the addition of chemical "UV inhibitors" seemed to have solved the problem.

[Snake45]

Correct. Future is clear acrylic and will not yellow. At least not as long as I've used it.

It might not yellow, but it has other problems that preclude its use for a car final finish for me.

[Snake45]

For what it's worth, back in the days when we used to paint real cars with lacquer, clear-coat yellowing was a significant problem. Clear shot over a silver base could look like light gold after a few years of UV exposure. 

 

If you've ever seen The Spirit of St. Louis in the National Air & Space museum, you might think the nose section is made of gold-anodized aluminum or gold-plated something. It's not. It's engine-turned aluminum that was coated with clear lacquer in 1927, or maybe sometime thereafter (at any rate, many decades ago).

[Pete J.]

All paints change with age and clear is no exception.  The real secret to minimizing yellowing is to think of is like a candy coat.  The less you put on, the lighter the color change.  A very thin coat of clear will not show as much yellow and a thick coat.