HELP! & Hello

[sTu]

Hello, i am new to MCM, name is stu & mostly build 1/24 tamiya sports cars, mostly jgtc, super gt, le mans & dtm & have been modeling for a while now, but i have a bit of a problem.

HELP!

my currnet project is Tamiya's Repsol Porsche 962c. i must admit not a great kit, lacks detail & windows are molded in (not cool) but a challenge still,

everything was going good until wet coat time, spraying with iwata hp series, 18psi, paint was of milk consistansy

layed down a wet coat & it all turned too poo, airbrush spat half way through, had 4 runs, bits of dust,

not used to using airbrush on the bodies, up until now used spray can, with good results

now the color is metallic & its enamel, ive heard that you dont polish metallic cause they get lighter, wich i found out the hard way, is there a way i can fix this, i cant strip back the body cause i dont have any spare masks to do windows again.

can i rub it back with 1200 on main area's & potentialy give it another go?

[Draggon]

1200 would be OK to knock off the really bad spots, but I would finish with as high a grit as you can find, maybe 4000. You didnt say what brand of enamel, but make sure it has cured thoroughly. If it still smells, its not cured. I airbrush enamel at between 20-25 lbs, thinned 1 part paint to 2 parts lacquer thinner. Good luck!

[sTu]

hi,

thanks for reply.

unfortunately i dont have anything as high as 4000 polishing pads, ive only got 2000 w&d max at the moment, the enamel im using is Tamiya, do enamels need a higher psi?? why you use lacquer thinner & not enamel thinner? does it help drying time at all?

ive stripped the model back to bare plastic with brake fluid, and will use masking goo for windows this time, tamiya window decals arnt very accurate.

initialy when started to paint airbrush sounded like it was chocking,( airbrush was cleaned prior to painting) so will try higher psi next time (test first anyhow).

[Chillyb1]

I agree that you should use lacquer thinner with enamels because it does indeed help with drying time. I think a little more thinner and a little more pressure with solve the problem for you. Too bad you had the problem in the first place. Those molded in windows are annoying. In fact, I'll never get near that kit again. Stick with the 956 kits, which are outstanding.

That kit is a disappointment but it can turn out to look pretty good:

[sTu]

Hi,

Thanks for reply,

nice build btw, noticed you removed rear spoiler mounts, did you pin rear spoiler? (if so how?) what paint did you use for rims?

i currently have airbrushed mine tamiya chrome silver with gloss coat, originaly i removed entire rear stays & spolier to make painting easier but changed mind & glued back, yes i wont be going near this kit again, getting the windows right took long enough, i will try a 956 kit, would love a rothmans build in my collection

[ScaleDale]

Mixing paint for airbrushing is difficult at best for me and I try to stick to premixed airbrush paint when I can. There's a process called decanting that involves draining paint from a spray can for use in an airbrush. It's scary but works. Look it up on-line but don't try it unless you have access to a garage. The paint drained from a can is more like ink than anything else and sprays at 10 psi.

There's a trick from Dr. Cranky and others in which you test your paint mix and spray pressure by painting the back of a plastic spoon. Until you get used to your airbrush, stick to the spoon test and it will save your stress level for the important things in life.

Dale

[Draggon]

As Curtis pointed out, lacquer hastens drying time. I have only used Testor's enamels so far, but they respond well to the lacquer thinner and a higher pressure than acrylics. I have also found they gloss out very well using this method. The choking sound you describe could be the paint is still too thick or the pressure too low, or a combo of both. Practice on spoons or an old body, and dont be concerned about over thinning the paint. It will be obvious when you've gone too far.