Xtracolor + Revell thinner problem

[mirageiv]

Hi guys.

 

Has anyone encountered this before?

 

 

Both the thinner and two pots of RAL 7012 are only a few months since purchase. The thinner and paint mixed up fine, began spraying, then around 30 seconds later it mutated into a pink, gritty mixture. I thought it was coming out a bit strange from the airbrush! Having used Revell Color Mix with Xtracolor successfully in the past I'm not sure what has happened. Even stranger a few weeks before I used the exact same paint and thinner to do some colour testing and it was fine. I've ordered some new tins and proper Xtracolor enamel thinner but i'm interested to see if anyone knows why this happened, never seen it before. The paint was fine in the tins and the mixing cup was clean.

 

 

Any suggestions?  

 

cheers

 

David

Edited April 6, 2017 by mirageiv

[Andrew]

Wow, that's an unfortunate reaction, especially as you'd already started spraying... It's a surprising reaction as well - given your earlier tests and experience.

 

I would have assumed you could very safely thin Xtracolor with a product specifically formulated for use with enamel paints to your heart's content, but clearly that's not the case. Perhaps on this occasion it was a case of exceeding some unknowable point of ideal dilution, beyond which the paint breaks down...? Sorry that I have no useful insight to offer here, other than to suggest trying a different thinner, perhaps something like Mr Color's levelling thinner? I'm sure that I've used this stuff with Xtracolor paint, and don't recall having any issues. I also recall that new(ish) Xtracolor is often fairly thin, so probably doesn't really need much additional thinning (perhaps not exceeding 2:1, paint to thinner).

 

Hope the new goodies resolve the problem.

 

Andrew.

[Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies]

There are many subtle differences between commercially available enamel, lacquer and acrylic bases. If any thinner other than the branded thinner made by the same brand does work with their paint, then consider it a happy coincidence.

 

I think the fact that there is such a wide range of opinions between the performance of different brands of the same classification of paints should indicate that the overall compositions are different and hence the different thinners available to suit the specific bases/binders used by each.

[spitfire]

I have seen something like that before (but not quite the same) using Xtracolor paint and Xtracolor thinners, whilst airbrushing the paint seemed to drop out of solution and created a right lumpy mess, it only happened the one time though and I put it down to a duff tin of paint as some of my paints are quite old.

Normally I use Xtracolor thinners on all my paints (enamels) Xtracolor, Colourcoats, Revell, Humbrol and Model Master with no problems.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

[Tony C]

Normally, I use the branded thinner with its specific paint range (Xtracolor with Xtracolor enamels, Revell Color Mix with Revell enamels) although I have had success using Humbrol's thinner with other manufacturers paints!

[mirageiv]

14 hours ago, Andrew said:

Wow, that's an unfortunate reaction, especially as you'd already started spraying... It's a surprising reaction as well - given your earlier tests and experience.

 

I would have assumed you could very safely thin Xtracolor with a product specifically formulated for use with enamel paints to your heart's content, but clearly that's not the case. Perhaps on this occasion it was a case of exceeding some unknowable point of ideal dilution, beyond which the paint breaks down...? Sorry that I have no useful insight to offer here, other than to suggest trying a different thinner, perhaps something like Mr Color's levelling thinner? I'm sure that I've used this stuff with Xtracolor paint, and don't recall having any issues. I also recall that new(ish) Xtracolor is often fairly thin, so probably doesn't really need much additional thinning (perhaps not exceeding 2:1, paint to thinner).

 

Hope the new goodies resolve the problem.

 

Andrew.

 

Andrew you are right, I just did some more testing and if you over thin it, I get the gritty pink result. I like to spray paint really quite thin (at the point where is changes) so I'll wait for the proper thinner I guess. I have tried Mr Levelling thinner but I found with my AB technique I didn't get as nice a surface (counterintuitive to using retarderd thinner) as with standard enamel thinner.

 

10 hours ago, SovereignHobbies said:

There are many subtle differences between commercially available enamel, lacquer and acrylic bases. If any thinner other than the branded thinner made by the same brand does work with their paint, then consider it a happy coincidence.

 

I think the fact that there is such a wide range of opinions between the performance of different brands of the same classification of paints should indicate that the overall compositions are different and hence the different thinners available to suit the specific bases/binders used by each.

 

Yup I agree and I always try to do so, just previously it had worked with the Revell thinner, even highly thinned to the point where it seems to be breaking down now. Ah well live and learn! At least I realised before I started spraying a pink Starfighter .

 

6 hours ago, spitfire said:

I have seen something like that before (but not quite the same) using Xtracolor paint and Xtracolor thinners, whilst airbrushing the paint seemed to drop out of solution and created a right lumpy mess, it only happened the one time though and I put it down to a duff tin of paint as some of my paints are quite old.

Normally I use Xtracolor thinners on all my paints (enamels) Xtracolor, Colourcoats, Revell, Humbrol and Model Master with no problems.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis

 

5 hours ago, Tony C said:

Normally, I use the branded thinner with its specific paint range (Xtracolor with Xtracolor enamels, Revell Color Mix with Revell enamels) although I have had success using Humbrol's thinner with other manufacturers paints!

 

hmm I will watch out for it and do a little testing with Xtracolor thinners too then, maybe I got a bad batch of Basalt grey opposed to the thinner.

 

Thanks for the input guys, much appreciated. I'll try a highly thinned Xtracolor with their own thinner at the weekend to see if it is in fact some naff paint instead of compatibility issues.

 

cheers guys

 

David

[spitfire]

Just to say that I usually use a 50:50 mix thinners to paint with all the enamel paints that I use.

 

Cheers

 

Dennis