Hello All -
I'm new to Acrylics, have always used enamels. Been seduced by the less noxious fumes, and easier clean up of acrylics.
Primarily experienced with Testors Model Masters Enamels, and i do like them.
have bought my first batch of Tamiya Acrylics and Squadron.com should have them on my doorstep any day now.

my questions are -
Can i mix them on my model with my Model master's?
(Say a base of one, and a wash with another???)
I know not to mix them wet in the same jar of course.

Also what is with this Tamiya Clear Orange/Red/Blue, etc? Those are the ones I ordered. Will i be able to use them as a base coat? If not, i have other plans for them if they truly are "clear"
(Cockpit faces and colors, etc)

It seems acrylics take a little longer to dry and are a little worse on showing brush strokes on my detail painting. Also they dont seem to be mixed as smoothly or evenly as the enamels I've used.

Thanks for any feedback & guidance

Acrylics tend to have thicker pigments so an effective wash is quite difficult. Also, the surface tension of water makes this a more difficult process. You should be able to intermingle your acrylics.
IMHO, Tamiya paints are worth the bottles they're packaged in. Some people have success in airbrushing but they are nearly impossible to brush. They skin quickly bu the slightest touch of wet paint lifts this and destroys the finish. Mixing them to gert a specific shade is frustrating because they dry way too fast.

The other poster is right...You can only basically airbrush Tamiya Acrylics...I dont know why Squadron does NOT carry. MM Acryl,,,Its a much better acrylic than Tamiya. If you can find MM acryl..Try that as well.

Oh one more,, The tamiya clear paints do dry clear...The clear green on clear parts makes a nice green glass bottle color.

There is an old trick to breaking the surface tension of water. Just add a drop of dishwasher detergent to the water. I got this info from the model railroad press. This should be done whenever trying to get water to flow nicely in any use. I seem to recall reading that you can substitute a drop of denatured alcoholbut I've never tried this. If you do use the detegent, don't agitate the wash too much or it will develop some foam.

I must correct myself . I would not use the detergent when doing airbrushing. Only for washes or to get diluted white glue to better flow into a dioramas ground cover.

Thanks All
I noticed squadron didnt have Model Master Acrylics either...
bummer...

looks like www.internethobbies.com carries MM Acrylics,
found them through this site
Hope thats good for Armorama...

do you thin acrylics with water? I thin them with alcohol and they work perfect and dry very fast, I just have to be careful they don't clog my airbrush!

HI

I use PollyScale acrylics. Squadron has those, and I've found them to be WAY better thand ModelMaster paints. My opinion of course, but give PollyScale a try and see!

Andy

Welcome from the dark side! I use Model Master and Testor's Acyrlic. I only use enamels when I absolutely have to. And, so far I haven't ever had any problem with MM with my airbrush (Except for the occasional dusting and cleaning). Oh, and I have seen, though this could be different with humidity, enamels seem to take forever to dry, while acryl dries within ten minutes (Maximum). Hope this helps. Thanks for your time.


TO ENAMELS!

I use Tamiya acrylics for almost all of my models, and have never even owned an airbrush; yet the models seem to be OK from the comments received. Just use good quality soft brush. As for wet paint lifting the coat underneath - not if you let the first one dry properly, and this happens a lot quicker than with enamels in my experience.

Coming from airbrushing motorcycle helmets, etc., I suggest Createx airbrush acrylics. You can find them at Michaels arts and crafts, etc. - 2.99 per 2 oz bottle. They are thinned out for airbrushing..unfortunately they are not flat, and not in "military" colors. But they are made for airbrushing, and can be mixed to any color combo that you might like. Also, they come in "transparent" colors as well as opaque. that way you can get lots of depth.(Btw, You can pretty much mix any bottled acrylics together - just watch out for the consistancy. Tamaya seem to have a alcholol additive to make them dry faster or something, they have a funny smell. Normal acrylic artist paints have a "sweet" smell to them. Dive in and mix colors - it's not all that scary. When all is said and done, a good "flat" final spray evens things out. Also, denatured alchohol is best for cleaning the acrylics up. Have a hairdryer close by to speed up the drying time if you can't be patient for 2-3 minutes. If you need to slow the paint down you can get some "acrylic retarder" as well. Using this, you can "glaze" color on and manipulate it after you paint in on (ie. a faux finish) Have fun.

THX Andy
will do in a few weeks

Thanks for ALL THE FEEDBACK Fellas
Can twait to try some and see how it goes.
Have ordered some Model Masters ones (acrylics) from internet hobbies last night

After they run down, or when I need a new color I'll try the PollyScale and the other recommendations.

I thought PollyScale was laquer based only.
I'd heard that PollyScale could "melt" plastic 10-15 years ago
(so its probably a different story)

I think you are referring to Floquil paints, also by the same company. You can get the same colors. I've never had them melt plastic though. Floquils are great paints, but I have moved to acrylics for most stuff.

If you want to try another good acrylic, try Vallejos. They make regular and airbrush mixes. PollyScale are cheaper by volume, and I find work better for brushing on models. And don't forget to checkout the line of railroad colors from PollyScale. Bigger bottles, and cheaper! You can get lots of good camouflage colors and primaries in that range.

Andy

That was it (I think) Floquil
Thanks for the railroad tip ($$$/volume)

No, no, you can use just a tiny bit of detergent (or, my favorite, Windex) to get better flow with airbrushed acrylics. It's particularly useful if you're thinning with alcohol, which can cut the drying time so much that the A/B clogs before you finish a single cup of color. Just one small drop will really help avoid clogging, avoids the pebble-finish that you can sometimes get with paint that dries on its way to the model, and makes clean-up easier afterward. Give it a try.

I've been using Tamiya Acrylics for over 5 years. I began thinning them with water, then distilled water and then finally alcohol. The advantages and what you should use them for would be that they dry fast after airbrush application, they dry flat making them ideal for uniforms, cheap, easy to clean, and they should normally be used for base coating and camouflage. TRy to avoid using them for painting fine details and washes as mentioned earlier in this thread. Those are the jobs of enamels and artisits oils. Try using other paints and you will discover what their strenghts and weaknesses are and then come to the realization that there really is NO single best paint for a modeling project.