Supplies?

[timster]

I posted in the "So, what's on the bench?" thread about a Cromagnon build I will be starting eventually. I used to do some tanks and aircraft in the mid 80's, and have some experience with putty, CA glues, dry brushing, etc.

I assume products have changed a great deal in 25+ years. I was mostly using Tamiya bottle paints, squadron green putty, spray bomb clears (testors?). I'd like to keep the fumes and hazardous materials to a minimum. And this will probably go in fits and starts so long shelf life will be a plus.

So, any recommendations for fillers, paints, clears? Looks like the products I used to use are still around, just wondering if the quality has improved, stayed the same, of if they have cheapened their products.

[TAY666]

No experience with that putty, but I know lots of modelers still use it.
I personally use Aves MagicSculp and occasionally Testor's putty for real small stuff.

Dulcote is still the best think for clear flat.
Though the Krylon is pretty good and a whole lot cheaper. I use it for sealing my progress along the way. So, if I screw up and need to take something off, I don't take it back down to primer.

Craft store acrylics are really popular with builders now.
They are cheap, plentiful, come in a huge range of colors and can be found lots of places.
Plus they dry fast.
The vast majority of my work is done with craft acrylics and spray cans.
Though I do still like to use Testor's enamels on occasion for certain things.
Lots of people still swear by the Tamiya paints. I have never personally used them, so I can't comment. But if you are comfortable with them and get them pretty easily, then use what you know.

[timster]

Thanks for the reply.

The model is partially painted. I was going to just leave it on unless I find it has been globbed on or is flaking off.

I was thinking about a primer coat, for a variety of reasons. Is spray can OK, like regular department store stuff, or is it safer to use a brush on paint (or primer) to get an even base to work from?

[TAY666]

No, you want to spray your primer.
Will give you a much thinner coat than a brush will. Which will cause less loss of detail.
Also, you won't have to worry about brush marks either.

Most spray primers will work just fine. My preference is the Kmart house brand. (think it's called Fresh Look, or something like that. It's like $2 a can)
Just go with multiple light coats to do the job.
That will avoid runs and paint globbing up.
I find using a lazy susan works great for spray painting. I can spin and rotate the parts to get much better coverage.

As far as the paint already on the kit. If it isn't in bad shape, you can prime right over it.
If it were me, I'd probably toss it in stripper first. But then I have that right here at hand.
I use Purple Power. Which is a kind of generic version of Super Clean.
Both of which are sold as automotive cleaners.
I just fill a plastic tub with the stuff and drop my parts in it.
I have a lid to keep the stuff from evaporating (which it will over time)
Then when I get back to it, I just take the parts and scrub them with an old toothbrush in the sink with running water.
Sometimes the paint starts coming off within an hour or so. Other times it takes a few days.
I've left parts in the stripper for weeks at a time (because I forgot they were in there) with no damage to the pieces.

[cromagnonman2000]

Yes, most of the products from the 1980's are still around, and even from the 1970's. I've got tins of Humbrol enamel paint from the 1970's which are still usable, so shelf life needn't be a worry. I don't think glue lasts that long though.

If you're wanting to keep fumes to a minimum, than Squadron Green Putty is one to think carefully about. I used Green Putty on an Aurora Mammoth kitbash, and the fumes from the putty were so strong that afterwards I had to hang the kit in a polythene bag outside the house until it dried, which took days. Only when the putty had hardened did the fumes cease, and I still keep it wrapped up just in case!

[TAY666]

Good point.
I know Aves is non=toxic, and has no fumes.

[desslock]

Apr 23, 2011 20:36:01 GMT -5 cromagnonman2000 said:

I've got tins of Humbrol enamel paint from the 1970's which are still usable

I have about a hundred tins of Humbrol - and don't know if enamel has faded away because it's less versatile than acrylic, or if people just like acrylic because it's cheaper and less toxic smelling. People seem strangely defensive, which makes me think that enamel isn't as bad as its rarity suggests, but interested in opinions.

[timster]

How is the testor's brand putty, as far as fumes given off? I seem to remember there was two or more different types of the Testor's stuff.

Is there some sort of code word, like "non-toxic" or some other phrase I should look for on the packaging of model fillers??

[TAY666]

As for enamels. I don't have anything against them. They still work just fine, and are better in some situations.
But acrylics are easier even if somewhat inferior most of the time. Less pigment, and not as even a coverage sometimes. As well as the fact they don't 'grab' as well.

But that is also one of the benefits. If you screw up, acrylics are easier to take off. Especially within the first day or two after application. A little water and a brush and just work them over a bit. Most of the time you can take them off.
It's also easier to clean brushes after acrylics. A little soap and water in the sink and there you go.
Though, enamels actually clean out of the brushes easier, the use of paint thinner and such makes it more hassle.

On the putty question. Never really noticed any fumes with the Testor's putty I use. The stuff in the gray and white tube. Though, I still use their tube glue as well, and the fumes don't bother me.