Hey guys!

I have a question regarding tide marks. I often get these when painting with oils and enamels.

I use MiG, Abteilung 502 and AK products exclusively.

I have made an artistically questionable illustration of my problem. However, the tide marks appear not only when I'm doing panel line pin washes and rivets, but when I try to make regular washing aswell.

What might cause this, and what can I do to avoid it?




Thanks in advance for your input!

What thinner are you using?

I am using Enamel Odourless Thinner from MiG

You should be able to go back over the tide marks, with thinner until they disappear.

Not sure why you're having difficulty removing them, unless you're applying them over enamel paints and they are etching into the surface...

You should be able to simply go back with a brush damp with thinner and clean them up after a short amount of time.

Hejsan
I personally always moist the entire area in thinner, especially when pin washing. Also have a moist brush ready to use as an eraser, if you accidently add too much wash in one area.
Jacob

Thank you all for your responses!

Am I correct in assuming that all of you are affected by tide marks from time to time?

Tide marks happen constantly unless you are covering the entire surface, there will always be an 'edge'.

But they clean up easily after just a short wait, like working your way slowly around the vehicle, by the time you are done you can go back to the start and clean up previous work

Something that has not yet been brought up, but bears mentioning, is that it is generally a good idea to do your oil washes over a glossy surface, rather than a flat/matt surface. It will reduce the occurrence of tidemarks in the first place and will make it easier to remove them when they do appear. I generally use a coat of Future over acrylics to seal the base coats and provide a smooth surface for the oils.

That's more of a personal preference thin though, I never gloss coat before weathering. I do all my work directly over cured acrylics.

All right, this clears things up a bit for me. I thought that tide marks were a sign that I had made some kind of mistake.

The cleaning up is not overbearing, I can do it. But since i thought they shouldn't be there in the first place, I was worried that my paintjob was messed up already.

Thanks for the replies!

I should really rephrase that.


I used to apply a separate satin varnish stuff prior to weathering, but haven't in a couple years. And since a model I finished back in 2014 is about to come out in print, I know someone will call me out on it.


Anyway... I just found it was an unnecessary step. Not only do I hate spraying separate clears and dealing with their nuances, but too much of a slick surface like a gloss, and the colors just don't grab for me and have a tendency to just wash away.