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Posted (edited)

What are the pros and cons of each. Most importantly, can you get just as glossy of a finish from Acrylic as the other two? If so, I am gonna use Acrylic on my 1/12 Testarossa. I want the finish to be like a mirror. Can the testor's acrylic do that for me?

Acrylic must have some cons, because is is sooooo much easier to clean up and dries much, much faster. There has to be some drawbacks (i.e. not as glossy of a finish) or no one in their right mind would use lacquer or enamel since those as so much messier and take forever to dry and cure, especially enamels.

TIA

Edited by CStewTAMU
Posted

Either you are pulling our collective cricket bats or you know nothing about hobby paints or paints in general.

I can't speak for the Testors Acryl line, but I have used Tamiya Acrylics. These do dry quicker than most paints, are relatively low in odors, but I find that they need to be clear coated to get a good shine out of them. It is also a softer paint and you have to be super careful if you polish it out.

Enamels (which I no longer use) dry a lot slower, stay tacky longer so that can pick up dust. Once it is dry, it can be cleared or polished out. It is still not a hard finish and you have to be careful polishing.

The Tamiya acrylic lacquer sprays are probably your best bet. They dry fast, the finish is harder than enamel but softer than lacquer, so they polish out well. You can clear over them too.

Lacquers are what I use most of the time. Either Duplicolor, HOK or 1:1 car paint is what I prefer. For this you need a good automotive grade primer, that's the only trick to lacquers. Avoid laying on "too much too soon" and you should be fine with it. It dries hard and fast, over night usually works for me. I'll sand the crud out between coats if needed. Since it flashes over quickly, the dust never gets a chance to settle into it. You can color sand it (same as polishing) or clear coat it.

Posted

Bob.

You just proved that it never gets too old to learn. All these years in the hobby, and I never realized the actual difference between the three paints. I knew they were different, and not to mix them, and used all three in my builds, but basically just out of curiosity and color selection.

I just painted a 40 Ford coupe with DupliColor metallic red, and realized that the lacquer does cover better, and dried real fast, and I did do a light wet sand between every 3 coats. I then cleared the car with about 6 coats of clear enamel and the results were unbelievable. I rub and polish out all of my models, but this one almost doesn't need it.

Of all the paints, I prefer lacquers now because they cover better, smoother, and are more forgiving. I still like enamels and use Tamiya acrylics for interiors, chasses, engines and parts. I'm getting there, and will post a finished car real soon.

Bob, again, thanks you put it in very understandable fashion.

Ken "FloridaBoy" Willaman

Posted

I use acrylic enamels/lacquer for body painting.................but for interiors I'll use the water based acrylics for the most part. Sometimes though it boils down to what is available in a particular color.

I like the lacquers as Bob mentioned as they do dry much faster, better selection of colors, and durability. The problem with the water based acrylics are that they aren't as durable in the long run to the rigors of polishing and handling. Since I at times do a lot of extensive bodywork with opening panels, I need a paint that'll withstand the handling of opening doors, trunks. etc.

It boils down to what works best for your situation..............some guys can't use the more fumey lacquers in the home because there are small children around or the wife/girlfriend complains about the odor. They may also lack a paint booth to get rid of the fumes right away. So water based acrylics are a bit safer to use..................but I just don't think they're durable enough in the long run for bodies.

BTW, Cstew................I know you're a newbie.................but it'll be a real good idea to go to your profile settings and put in your full name as part of your signature. Lest you get into trouble with the admin! :DB)

Posted

Ken, thanks for the compliments, just relaying what works for me. I'm fairly new to using acrylics and use them mainly for brush painting small details.

I know that some people think that lacquer is like black magic, but the reality is that it is far easier to work with than anything, at least for me. I keep it real simple too and even though I have 4 airbrushes, I still go back to the spray bombs quite often.

I find that the Testors cans spray horribly, the nozzles clog up at the least opportune times. So there must be something in the paint that is NOT paint. The HOK and Duplicolor cans have a fan spray type of nozzle and spray great. The Tamiya cans use a different nozzle but I have never had a problem with them, even down to the bottom of the can.

Posted
I use acrylic enamels/lacquer for body painting.................but for interiors I'll use the water based acrylics for the most part. Sometimes though it boils down to what is available in a particular color.

I like the lacquers as Bob mentioned as they do dry much faster, better selection of colors, and durability. The problem with the water based acrylics are that they aren't as durable in the long run to the rigors of polishing and handling. Since I at times do a lot of extensive bodywork with opening panels, I need a paint that'll withstand the handling of opening doors, trunks. etc.

It boils down to what works best for your situation..............some guys can't use the more fumey lacquers in the home because there are small children around or the wife/girlfriend complains about the odor. They may also lack a paint booth to get rid of the fumes right away. So water based acrylics are a bit safer to use..................but I just don't think they're durable enough in the long run for bodies.

Good point on the durability issue Bill. I do a lot of stock car builds using bodies that are non-native to the stock car chassis. I'll have a body on and off at least 100 times. I generally do the chassis first and the paint last, same as 1:1 cars for me. So that chassis will see some abuse. I like to use Krylon paints for those jobs. Even the Tamiya sprays will succumb to handling and need to be touched up at the end.

My bro Will turned me onto the Tamiya acrylics. He has animals in the house (bird and dog) and paints in a spray booth and needed something easier on the noses.

Bob

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