Humbrol Fluorescent Enamel Thinning Issues

[viscount806x]

Bit of dead modelling time today so I decided to get my paint ready for spraying in a day or twos time. Humbrol Fluorescent Red, a somewhat ancient but unused tinlet of venerable enamel. First time ever in fact that I have used fluoro paint.

After thorough mixing and decanting I tried to clean out the tin with white spirit and to my dismay it curdled the residue. Thankful that I tried it first with a small amount I then had a little look at things. Just to prove a point, I attempted to flush out the pipette with my dirty paint brush washing white spirit and had to write that off as a result, full of curdlings.

It thinned perfectly with good old fashioned turpentine so I am puzzled, never having suffered this ever in over half a century of modelling.

Has anyone else seen this phenomenon with an enamel? The only thing I can think of is that cheap white spirit isn't what I think it to be or perhaps it is a feature solely of fluorescent enamels. Be nice to know the answer if anybody could help in this respect.

Cheers, Nige B

[ejboyd5]

Perhaps a difference in our use of language, but I had always thought white spirit to be the same as turpentine. In the event, I have always used turpentine to thin enamels from all the manufacturers and have never had a problem. What then is white spirit?

[Graham Boak]

White Spirit is labelled as "Turpentine Substitute" in the UK, although the last qualifier tends to be forgotten. Turpentine is an organic substance (don't ask me where or how it is obtained) but is therefore both pricier and more variable. White Spirit is (I believe) from a mineral source, presumably a distillate of oil? I don't think I have ever used real turpentine, sticking to white spirit or manufacturers' thinners. It has however been a long-standing habit of never putting thinned paint back in the tin/jar, for fear of the remaining paint then setting, or curdling?

[alan1302]

Turpentine is an organic substance (don't ask me where or how it is obtained)

From trees strangely enough

[Andrew Jones]

I might be wrong but I always thought Humbrol fluorescents had to be thinned with cellulose thinners.

Andrew

[viscount806x]

White Spirit is labelled as "Turpentine Substitute" in the UK, although the last qualifier tends to be forgotten. Turpentine is an organic substance (don't ask me where or how it is obtained) but is therefore both pricier and more variable. White Spirit is (I believe) from a mineral source, presumably a distillate of oil? I don't think I have ever used real turpentine, sticking to white spirit or manufacturers' thinners. It has however been a long-standing habit of never putting thinned paint back in the tin/jar, for fear of the remaining paint then setting, or curdling?

Thanks Graham but it wasn't just because I did it back into the tinlet, it definitely curdled up virgin paint.

I might be wrong but I always thought Humbrol fluorescents had to be thinned with cellulose thinners.

Thanks Andrew but it doesn't explain why it thinned OK with 'proper' turps. Plus, on trying cellulose thinners, the rest of the tinlet was written off by curdling

[Mitch K]

I might be wrong but I always thought Humbrol fluorescents had to be thinned with cellulose thinners.

Andrew

Indeed they do. And cellulose thinners don't mix well with styrene. Or enamels, or acrylics...

[viscount806x]

Indeed they do. And cellulose thinners don't mix well with styrene. Or enamels, or acrylics...

Not this tinlet - I just wrote off the rest of it trying cellulose thinners, thankfully I put enough by for the job first. Maybe the current stuff is differently constituted, the ones I have here are over 35 years old.

On a more positive note, the 'proper' turpentine seems to be fine and I got the spraying done this morning. Very odd that white spirit upset it though. I couldn't even 'clean up' with the cheaper white spirit because of the problems.

Thanks everyone for your input.

Nige B