Aloha All,

So I just put the dunkelgeld on my Sdkfz 222 and I got a total orange peel effect. Any guess as to why this happens? too much or too little thinner? Air pressure?

I mixed tamiya XF-60 / XF-59 / XF-57 at a 50:50 ratio with Tamiya XF-20 thinner and sprayed at 18-20 psi, although I think it might have dropped to 12 psi toward the end. (my regulator is not too precise).

I'm also assuming my only real remedy is to give the thing a bath in Windex and start over?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Zon

Did you hold your airbrush too far away maybe? Anyways any time that you paint something like an entire model , test your paint mix and your distance on a test piece of plastic or old model that you are not fond of. This way you can make corrections without trashing the model.......................Al

orange peel is a combination of holding a brush too close and making slow passes. orange peel commonly, commonly seen in a bad car paint job, is caused by the air causing indents into thicker paint.

I had it backwards Jesse. I thought orange peel was that bumpy grainy effect that you get from holding the thing too far. I paint that way when I want that effect like painting airfield concrete for example.

Are you sure you're getting orange peel or is it some other effect? It's rare to get orange peel of any description with Tamiya flat paints - it's more commonly seen in gloss paints. A pic would be helpful.

Orange peel is (usually) more indicative of paint being applied too heavily and the surface drying at a different rate to the lower layers, resulting in dimpling of the paint. It's more prevalent in gloss paints because the surface dries to form a less permeable "skin", reducing the ability of the solvents to escape from deeper in the paint layer. You don't usually get this impermeable skin with flat paints.

In my experience, it's nearly impossible to over-thin flat Tamiya acrylics - I often go to 75 - 80% thinner without any issues (you do need to adjust your technique when using it that thinly though).

Phil...you are pretty much on target with the explanation on Wickipedia. Too thick too close..........................

Aloha Al, Jesse and Phil,

Thanks for the replies and the help. It could be a different effect, but I'm thinking my mix was too thick. It is rather bumpy (but not gritty or grainy) and the thicker parts seem to be on the verge of small cracks. I wont be able to post a photo until tomorrow or Monday.

Next time I'll practice on some card. Thanks again guys.

Zon

its hard to say exactly what is going on. orange peel effect is typicall seen on cars. in fact, if you find a car that has been repainted, you will probably see it. what you refer to as orange peel may be different than what most of us are thinking of.
orange peel on a model, especially with flat paints, wouldnt be that noticable unless it is really thick.
one key to avoid this is to do multiple thin coats