Does Anyone Stash Paint?

[slusher]

l have been stashing a few cans of paint here and there and have about 70 cans. It just keeps going up. lf l use it all l won't feel so bad about it...

[Mike Kucaba]

You bet! Got Gallons stashed.

[martinfan5]

Doesnt paint have a shelf life?

[Mike Kucaba]

I don't know. I bought some Lacquer made by Sherwin-Williams in the mid 90's.This stuff was OLD then(there is no zip code in the address on the labels) I thinned it with some PPG thinner and shot some models and it worked fine. I think enamels are more susceptible to aging problems

[slusher]

l keep my model paint in the house to control temperature. l have had paint last for years. after you spray it in rattle cans it does not last long at least Testors won't. Being on disability anytime you ca save is a plus. Testors sprays went up about 60 cents 3 months ago...

[Dr. Cranky]

I have have my acrylics and HOK and some other paint lines all still in good shape. And some of the HOK colors I've bought in quarts and they are still in excellent shape.

[niteowl7710]

I don't know if you'd call it a paint "stash", but I have a bad habit of always finding a need for those little cans of DupliColor when they go on sale at Ollies (they are again right now as it happens). For 59 cents you can't go wrong. Bet I have over 100 cans at this point, but that's still a few hundred shy of matching a can of paint to every kit I own...

[Junkman]

Doesnt paint have a shelf life?

If it does, it must be very long. I recently used a spray can my grandfather had bought for his 1968 Simca.

[fury3]

I've been stashing paint for years...since 2004 to be exact. About 95% of the paint I spray my kits with is from "Model Car World" (AKA "MCW"). When i purchase a kit (resin or styrene) I always pick out the color scheme for the kit and order the paint at that time. Since I have well over 500 kits, it stands to reason that I have that amount of exterior paint on hand PLUS the MCW Semi Gloss interior colors. The first "MCW" air brush paint I purchased was for a 1961 Plymouth Fury, factory paint code SS1 (MCW code 6150) and it's still as fresh as it was in 2004. A lot of that has to do with the excellent jars/lids MCW uses. I've also purchased many of his aerosol cans and they seem to hold up just as well. I must use model paint (Testors Model Masters/Tamiya brush ) for detail painting and such. It's a shame that I can't say the same about those paints longevity. In fact, I've never gotten more that 6 months life out of Model Masters "Stop Lamp Red" or "Turn Signal Amber"...no matter how I try to insure the jars are properly sealed. BTW...all of these paints are stored in a controlled temp home environment of 67 degrees to 73 degrees. Fury3

[slusher]

"Stop Lamp Red" or "Turn Signal Amber never lasts if used one time...

[timc]

I too have the bug when it comes to stashing paint.After 16 years it still works ....wellsome of it does.I've been using the same bottle of stop light red for over 14 years now. but I only use it once in a blue moon though.The same goes for the turn signal amber.

Edited September 3, 2012 by timc

[tabsscale1]

"Stop Lamp Red" or "Turn Signal Amber never lasts if used one time...

That is weird as I have some that I have had over 10 years and is still good.

[tabsscale1]

I have over 100 bottles of the HOK paint from Black Gold and maybe about 100 different kinds of spray paint from Duplicolorand Testors. Have 20 or so bottles of Plastic kote Touchup paints and probably over 200 bottles of different kinds of Modelmaster and testors paints.

[Danno]

I have so many partially-used spray cans, the local gangs are jealous!

Most of it lasts quite a long time, even here in the dry heat. Some doesn't stay viable for more than a few years, but that's mostly the expensive stuff. The cheap stuff from Whale*Mart lasts forever!

The craft store acrylic carp doesn't last much more a few consecutive 110+ degree days.

Edited September 3, 2012 by Danno

[martinfan5]

So if paint will last a long time, does it not matter where its stored at?, or does that still come in to play and help it last a long time ?

[Jordan White]

I too am a member of the "paint stash" gang. At current count, I have 33 10oz cans and 4 8oz cans, plus I think about 10 Testors cans. My problem is I get a can for one build, and don't use it for any others, so it just sits there. But hey, at least it means I have a good selection now!

[niteowl7710]

So if paint will last a long time, does it not matter where its stored at?, or does that still come in to play and help it last a long time ?

While I am by no means a paint expert, I will say that paint I've had for the 15 year "layoff" from the hobby that I kept with a small portion of my collection I that was in a temperature controlled situation fared far better than all the rest of the cans/bottles that spent 7 years in a non-climate controlled storage locker subject to freezing and summer heat.

All of my paint now is kept in my basement which even in the summer never seems to get above 70 degrees (being below grade probably has something to do with that -- it's built into the hillside rather than just being a hole dug in the ground), plus I keep a dehumidifier running at least part of the time in to keep the humidity of this summer out as well.

[AzTom]

I was just ready to post about old paint. I have spay paints and bottle paints that are at least 12 years old and are just fine, some even being stored in uncontrolled climate.

Now, here's the issue I ran into a few weeks ago.

I bought a bunch of the Model Masters Lacquer about 5 years ago and it have been in a spare bedroom since new. I'm talking about 60 spray cans, all in two cartons with the three pack sleeve still on them.

The cans are leaking! I counted about 15 cans that are like that.

Has anyone else had this issue with Testors paint?

AzTom