Hi Guys,
Over the last few months I seem to be having a re-occuring problem with Humbrol matt Olive Drab 155.

Usually all Humbrol matt paints are bone dry within 10 mins or so, certainly within 30 mins max, yet the 155 no matter how much I shake the pots before opening, and stir the paint for minutes, before use, it still always takes 3 or 4 days to dry, seems to be very thick, and 50% of the time is drying as a satin!

Even if I try mixing in talcum powder to matt it down (which usually works) it can still dry satin!

Anyone heard of this before or any ideas what I can do about it.....I am wondering if Humbrol have had a bad batch or something?
I am not impressed by the paint going on well, and drying so badly that I have to almost wreck the kits trying to get it off again, or paint over again and again making the paint way too thick.
This has happend on different plastics as well as resin, so I am fairly sure it is nothing to do with surface contamination.
Also using different brushes and buying the same paint from different shops, one in Staffs, one in Notts!

Carl

Hi mate! yup me too!
it irritating innit?
i have no idea about a pre drying remedy
only to matt varnish afterwards even when i thin it right out (i mean almost consistancy of water) with thinners its still either lumpy or satin
i noticed it being like this for sometime
i bought a tin just before december last year same thing
then another around 2 weeks ago ...same thing!
its really bugging me too


K

Dam!

I have also been using the 155 which I had left over from 4 years ago, these are fine, but the new stuff is crap!

I have searched the colour reference chart and only 2 makes (which I have never heard of) match this colour!

Can anyone advise me of an alternative make / olive drab which is a pretty close match to the Humbrol 155, ......would also be good if someone produced it in a spray can.

Carl

Hi again carl!
i'll take a look around for you and let you know what i can match up (if i'm successful?) K
p.s. you are painting armour? not aircraft?
is it for russian/eastern bloc subjects?
does it have to be enamel?

Some shades of Humbrol seem to be a bit hit and miss. Most are fine...but there does seem to be one or two colours that don't stand up.

No 30 is sometimes very thick and dosen't like my airbrush for example.
Whereas No 80 whether tin or rattle can is a real cracker...always smooth and thinable with good pigment and coverage and dries really smooth.

It must be down to the pigment ingredients...some are better than others.

Hope you solve your problem.
Cheers
Peter

One way to work with those Humbols, which do not want to dry matt, is:

1. put the can aside for a few days. The longer the better. The pigment should separate from the thinner and fell to the bottom of can.

2. open the can and remove some thick paint/pigment from the bottom. DO NOT SHAKE OR STIR THE PAINT!

3. put the thick pigment in some small container and add Humbrol Thinners, stirring it well, until you get correct consistency for airbrush or hand painting.

4. paint!

I have been always able to get perfectly matt coats from Humbrols this way.

Pawel

Great tip Pawel...

That should work for all the naughty ones...
Cheers and thanks
Peter
:-)

Just remember that you have to prepare only the amount of paint needed for one painting session this way and not more. Pigment with Thinners will quite quickly "go bad".

Pawel

great thanks Pawel gonna try it today!

K

Hi,
I am painting armour, all 1/16 and 1/15 scale, so I tend to use quite a few tins at a time, therefor mixing colours is not an option as I need consistent colour matches.
I have a 2nd T-34 half way painted, an M113 ACAV with top part painted, these ones need a good match to finish them!
M41 Bulldog and M18 Hellcat both can be a different olive drab, as these are still in pre-paint stage.
I do not own or use an airbrush, therefor everything is brush painted or spray can, paint does not have to be enamel but has to be compatible for enamel and washes, dry brushing, pigment powders, etc to be used over the top of after.
I appreciate any help offered

Yeah i noticed it too ! for me now drybrushing with hunbrol is out of the question! theyre just too thin!
even when i leave em to seperate in to the thick stuff then it goes kind of like a jelly???

Hi mate! oh i get ya! :-) big stuff!
ok you do need a match thats pretty good then,
for half done stuff its not exactly a cheap kit to ruin!
shame about the airbrush though ,i was going to suggest villejo russian green its a pretty similar colour from what i heard dont know exactly i have yet to try it ,but its a bit awkward to hand brush on in large areas , i was down at my local model shop today and i told him about our problem and he has had no less than 17 tins returned! and humbrol dont seem to be interested ,according to him this is the reply he got from them;" if its not a suitable paint for a desire effect then modellers should not use it" ,now i'm only going of what he told me but if thats true and i have no reason to doubt it ( i have known him years) then that SUCKS!

Yeah,
from what I keep hearing Humbrol need a xxxxx good kick up the arse.
Our local model shop closed down around 5 months ago, the local art suppliers stock a small range and keep requesting the Humbrol rep to go in and see them, to re-stock (as now everyone is buying from there) and to ask for the entire range as we no longer have a model shop....Humbrol just keep ignoring them!

thats not good!
what the hell is wrong with them?
surely its not that hard to get a rep down to see them?
maybe they just dont need the business ?>
yeah right!

Hi Carl

There are a couple of other solutions for getting stubborn enamels to dry quicker.

The first way is to use cellulose thinners - this is only safe for airbrushing, because it creates a "hot" mix which attack plastic if applied with a brush.

The second way is to add a couple of drops of Driers, which I first heard of it via Mal. Although it's purple, it doesn't discolour the paint and it reduces drying time dramatically... imagine Xtracolor drying in about 30 minutes (rather than several days) and you get an idea how useful Driers can be.



All the best

Rowan

Well, good news!!
For those of you like myself who didn't already know this, Humbrol have now rectified the problem with OD 155 and made a new batch now labelled up as the older "Super Enamel".
My local art shop had it in the other day and I purchased almost the entire lot.....it has cured many problems for me

Carl

hi had the same problem, bought 2 tins same place same time ones ok but ohers crap! am gona try thinning it down for airbrushing, hopefully it ll work.