Airbrushing Duplicolor - How Long Between Coats AND Clogging/Texture Problems?

[bigbluesd]

I know that you wait about 10 minutes when spray bombing it, but how long do you guys normally wait between coats when airbrushing Duplicolor? It seems to dry really fast...

Which leads into my next question --- why would I be having a problem with Duplicolor clogging my Paasch VL after every coat? Is it because the paint is drying so quickly inside the airbrush? What can I do to stop this? And in top of that, I'm getting a really tough texture on the body after spraying it. I'm shooting decanted Duplicolor at about 18 psi, I dropped it to 15 psi and it didn't seem to help.

Edited June 4, 2014 by bigbluesd

[Mike Kucaba]

Thin the paint, It must be too thick and /or your too far from the model.

[bigbluesd]

I tried thinning with lacquer thinner about 1 part thinner to 2 parts paint as well, not much change... I would think that adding thinner would make it dry quicker, an I wrong?

[Cato]

Do you get the same texture in the finish when you shoot right from the can?

[Michael in Illinois]

I have decanted duplicolor many times. I always reduce the paint with lacquer thinner to a consistency of skim milk. I always shoot clean thinner through my brush between coats. I allow about 20 min or so between color coats. Hope this helps.

[Mike Kucaba]

I usually do 1 part PAINT to 2-3 parts thinner. A thinner that is meant to dry slower will help also .

[bigbluesd]

Do you get the same texture in the finish when you shoot right from the can?

No, I've always had good results shooting Duplicolor through the can. I'd do the same with this one but it's a custom color mix.

I usually do 1 part PAINT to 2-3 parts thinner. A thinner that is meant to dry slower will help also .

What kind of thinner would dry slower? What about mineral spirits, would that help?

[JunkPile]

Welcome to the learning curves of airbrush. Enjoy

[High octane]

When using Dupli-Color, I prefer the "shake & spray" method, and I get good results as well. NO thinning, no mixing, no cleaning, just painting.

[LoneWolf15]

If you're getting a rough texture , you're shooting too far away from the body . Move in closer with your airbrush , increase your pressure and thin the paint a bit more . The paint is drying out before it hits the body .

[Mike Kucaba]

"What kind of thinner would dry slower? What about mineral spirits, would that help?"

Go to an auto paint and body shop supply store and get some thinner there. Get thinner designed for high outside temperatures.

I don't think mineral spirits would work.

[jwrass]

Brandon, Don't use mineral spirits!!!!! you will have a mess!!!!! Mike makes some great points!!! Ratio of paint/reducer more reducer less paint . As rattle can paint is already reduced you are going to have to experiment. Duplicolor to me smells kind of like lacquer but not a true lacquer, who knows what they put in it. Your needle and nozzle should be sized to the material you are applying, if you are trying to push a high metallic through a small hole it's going to be tough.

As Mike stated you could use a high temp reducer or you could use a retarder, However with either of these flash times will be longer as the paint will dry slower. try not to trap the thinners as this can lead to many problems.

A good rule of thumb for non reduced lacquer is 1 part paint to 11/2 to 2 parts reducer.

I hope this helps, jwrass

[bigbluesd]

Brandon, Don't use mineral spirits!!!!! you will have a mess!!!!! Mike makes some great points!!! Ratio of paint/reducer more reducer less paint . As rattle can paint is already reduced you are going to have to experiment. Duplicolor to me smells kind of like lacquer but not a true lacquer, who knows what they put in it. Your needle and nozzle should be sized to the material you are applying, if you are trying to push a high metallic through a small hole it's going to be tough.

As Mike stated you could use a high temp reducer or you could use a retarder, However with either of these flash times will be longer as the paint will dry slower. try not to trap the thinners as this can lead to many problems.

A good rule of thumb for non reduced lacquer is 1 part paint to 11/2 to 2 parts reducer.

I hope this helps, jwrass

What do you mean by "not to trap the thinners"?

[jwrass]

Not allowing the proper flash times (time between coats) will trap the thinner that is trying to off gas. Think of it like this, Thinner/Reducer is a carrier for your paint to the substrate (object) once the paint has been applied the Thinners/ Reducers evaporate (gas off) if you apply more paint before the previous coat has had time to flash off you will in theory drive that Thinner/ Reducer back into your substrate and soften the previous coats, usually all the way to the primer which typically results in swelling, swelling produces sand scratches, bubbles, delamination just to name a few. I have seen it many times over the years of painting 1:1 most of the failures of paint are due to improper flash times, Waiting a bit longer between coats is always better than trying to hurry it along. Great paint work is a exercise in patience!!!!

jwrass

[Kit Basher]

I recently painted a body with decanted Duplicolor. My experience was somewhat different than yours, but maybe it will help. I sprayed it unthinned using a Badger 200. I sprayed from 2-3 inches away. The spray would not cover in one pass, so for the first coat I kept spraying all around the body until I built up a wet coat. I let that dry for a day or two, and wet sanded it. Since I had good coverage from the first coat, I just shot a quick wet coat for the second coat. The result was a nice smooth finish, with a flat sheen. I didn't sand that coat, since it is a metallic, and I have added one coat of clear. I have sanded the clear, and I hope one more coat of clear will finish it. I had minimal problems with texture, a very slight orange peel in the first coat, that sanded out easily. No texture in the second coat. I had no clogging issues, since I was spraying one coat and then cleaning the A/B. I can see how it might clog, tho, the stuff does dry very fast. I would suggest practicing spraying closer to the body. Shoot it wetter. This stuff dries so fast I think it would be difficult to make it run. I hope there is something helpful in all of that.

[Cato]

I didn't sand that coat, since it is a metallic, and I have added one coat of clear. I have sanded the clear, and I hope one more coat of clear will finish it.

Was it Duplicolor clear also?

[bigbluesd]

Thanks for all the advice, it is currently sitting in the brake bath. I'll give it another shot this weekend.

[Kit Basher]

Was it Duplicolor clear also?

Strangely, no. I use Testors clear lacquer because it's in a bottle and ready for the A/B.

[DiscoRover007]

Despite the massive color selection of Duplicolor I don't use them anymore. i find them to be way too sensitive to humidity. Additionally their paint seems to have a "crinkling" effect, particularly their metallics when I use them. So I just stick to Tamiya now.

Edited June 6, 2014 by DiscoRover007

[jwrass]

I only use BIG BOY paint and don't have any of the problems listed