Well, might as well add my two cents in the topic, I can air brush enamels all day log no problem, Vallejo kicks my rear end!! I have scoured the forum and what works wonderfully for me is thin model color 50/50 with tap water and use a retarder, apply thin coats and dry each coat with a heat gun on low, OHHH MY GOD!!! I can now airbrush Vallejo !! wanted to use acrylics because I am a furniture repair tech and I am exposed to Lacquer on a daily basis. I believe the retarder and the heat gun are what make the difference for me.

There are also flow enhancers, you have to be very careful with those.

Adding retarder certainly helps. I've also noticed that LifeColor acrylic thinner not only makes their own paints a lot more pleasant to airbrush, it does the same for Vallejos. Good stuff.

What exactly does a retarder do for the paint? And what kind do you use?
Thanks,
Ziggy

I use Liquitex and a retarder slows down the drying time which is important with acrylics because they dry so fast.