Am using acrylic for first time, Pro Modeller Olive Drab, on 2 M4 Shermans. Yes, the same 2 I been working on for months. Anyway, mixed the paint with alcohol and a drop of dish detergent, sprayed with 25 psi and let dry (at least I thought it was) for 24 hours between coats. That was over 3 days ago and the paint still feels a little tacky. What can I do to get the paint cured? Do not want to try anymore paint until it dries hard.

It's the addition of the dish detergent which is suspending the cureing. Eeeek! Usually the dish detergent is used for say, -painting figures with acrylics to get that oil paint effect of "slow dry" so colors can be blended.
Hmmm, I would suggest trying to set them in the sun. Hopefully it's a bright sunny day where you are. Or maybe a super low temp heat lamp...not too close nor hot, you don't want to distort the plastic.
If all that fails, you could wash the paint off with something like "TileX", and start anew w/o the dish detergent.
Maybe someone else here has a better idea.

Give them a shot with a hairdryer set on low. Believe it or not (Ripley) I keep a hairdryer as a part of my standard modelling equipment. Pro=Art, I'm not familiar with this brand. I've used the dish washing liquid technique with Vallejo acryliques, and have never experience a problem.

Jack be serious (for Once!)

Thanks for the tip there Jack!
It's much too early in the morning for me to think with kind of common sense. Besides, I've not yet had enough coffee!
The good ole hairdryer...wonderful solution.

Coffee kill or cure. I'm the same. I don't know my name before my first cup!!

Joe, er Pete, er Jake...........Slurp,
Ah, Jack!

Tanks Guys!!!! I think it may have had something to do with the high humidity, 90% here in OKC the few days I was painting. I'll set them out on the pation in the sun today, good tip. I do not think my wife is gonna go for the use of her hairdryer, but by the way it looks, she could probably use a new one. Just got to find a way to suggest it!

:-) Offer her a new one, then you can obligingly take the old one of her hands, to "do her a favour".

Jack be slick.

Hi Chief. This problem could of been from adding the dish detergent
with the alcohol.
The detergent is actually used to break surface tension when
using water as a thinner. So with alcohol as a thinner, there is hardly
any surface tension, and is just right by itself with acrylics.
I bet if you just used the alcohol plus the paint you will find the acrylic
will dry more quickly as it should have to start.
OR the drop of detergent added to the paint & water alone.
I have a feeling that the detergent added with the alcohol probably acted
as a retarder, and slowed down the drying process.
I could also be mistaken, but please let me know if you find the answer.
- ralph

that sounds right to me Ralph.

Hi Tread ! How have you been ? Been a while since we last chatted.
Yes, I thought it sounded a bit off, using the dish washing liquid w/alcohol.
But if my theory holds true - then Chief has given us a recipe for a homemade
acrylic retarder
CHIEF - LET US KNOW IF THIS IS THE CASE - PLEASE !
- ralph

The paint is still soft and tacky as hell. Last nite I painted the red stripes on the barrell and turrent, and when I pulled the tape off, the paint came with it. Its been a week now since I shot the OD base coat and it is starting to look like crap with every little particle floaring around the garage is actually STICKING to the kits. How do i go about COMPLETELY stripping this crud off the kits without scrubbing the PE pieces off???? I'll be deeply indentted to anybody that can help. I fgure it will be easier to strip and start over than to wait a few years for it to finally cure.

Chief, I use Tilex, the stuff used to clean bathroom tiles. Place the model in a large plastic baggy or something similar and spray the entire model with the Tilex. Let it sit on it for about half an hour or so, and with a soft old toothbrush gently brush the paint off keeping the brush wet with the Tilex. Rince with running water and repeat if nessasary.
Keep your eyes on those little pieces. If they fall off they can easily be glued back on.
Hope this helps.

Does Tilex work better than Easy Off Oven Cleaner?

About 50/50 there Chief. However expect some photo-etched drop off in any event. This is nearly inevitable. Soak your P/E in Acetone, or fingernail polish remover. First the hairdryer, then the nail remover, definitely grounds for divorce! Any ways its probabaly best to do an all around clean up. As Ken mantioned an old tooth brush works well. I can hear the wife now "(Why is my cosmetics cabinet empty!!!!!)" Take the emmery board while you are ransacking and pillaging! Better to be be hung for a sheep, than for a lamb!

Jack :-)

I already get her old emery boards, so no worries. Got a can of Easy Off today, will try it tomorrow. Gotta sacrifice a burnt offering tonite in hopes everything turns out ok. Thanks for the help.

Hey Chief, I agree with the other posts!!! You do not need the dish detergent when using acrylics on armor. I just use either denatured alchoohol or Tamiya acrylic thinner. That should be sufficient to thin the paint. Also there should not be any surface tension when using alcohol as a thinner. Acrylics usually go on almost dry when using an air brush at 25 p.s.i..

Tanks guys! Wish me luck "I am going in!" :-)

All right! I'll cover you. You'll have to watch for the exhaust port, which is only 2 meters wide. The shaft is ray shielded, so you'll have to use proton torpedoes. May the force be with you!
Er. oops. Guess I watched A New Hope too many times...
heh heh...

YodaMan

In my heart, I'd go for stripping, too. But my mind tells me you may damage the kit, and some paint will always remain where you don't want it.
I think the best approach would be to place them on a clean, dry place and forget them for a few weeks. The odds are that your paint will dry in the end anyway.
Hard to tell. Once the paint's dry (flat or glossy, no matter), you can add a coating...

Yoda'd say "Try not. Do or do not". But where is he when we need him the most ???