Rick Brown Posted May 24, 2014 Share Posted May 24, 2014 I've learned the hard way that any brush applied acrylic benefits from at least some degree of thinning. Trevor Except Vallejo MA, that's great from the bottle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albeback52 Posted May 24, 2014 Share Posted May 24, 2014 (edited) I brush paint all my models. Certainly recommend Humbrol - either enamel or acrylic. Both brush very well. Second choice would be Revell Aqua Colour. I avoid Xtracrylix / Xtracolour like the plague. Very poor colour density for both types and inordinately long drying time for the Xtracolour enamels put me right off them. Add to that, BOTH suffer from poor adhesion. I'll never use them again. Good results using Tamiya acrylics as long as they are thinned using their own proprietary thinner. I believe Isopropyl alcohol can also be used to thin these? Anybody confirm that please ps I LIKE the Revell Aqua Colour lids!! I keep them. Ready made little paint trays/mixing trays Allan Edited May 24, 2014 by Albeback52 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Brown Posted May 24, 2014 Share Posted May 24, 2014 I actually quite like the Xtracrylix, but it does seem to lack pigment. Brush paints quite well when thinned with a little retardant. Allan, I use the W&N retardant for thinning Tamiya, dead cheap and easy to acquire. This also works with Xtracrylix and Vallejo too. Rick. EDIT. Allan, I also use cellulose thinners with Tamiya (acrylic) for the airbrush, maybe that's okay for hairy brush too? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albeback52 Posted May 24, 2014 Share Posted May 24, 2014 Don't mock me on this, but revell aquacolor is good with a brush. Worth a try. No reason why anybody should mock you. I've been using these paints since they first appeared. Results consistently good. Allan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phildagreek Posted May 24, 2014 Share Posted May 24, 2014 I've used Humbrol enamels with a brush forever. Perhaps even a little longer! I always thin the colour in/on a mixing pot with a drop or two of Humbrol thinners before I use it. At the ripe old age of 46 (today in fact) I don't see me going any other way. Plenty of drying time in between coats & before varnish. Slow & steady wins the race. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Work In Progress Posted May 24, 2014 Share Posted May 24, 2014 Xtracrylix: a couple of people have criticised them for poor pigment density. I had this at first too, along with peculiar colours, until I realised that they need stirring FAR more than ANY other paint I have ever used. I can't explain this: it's not even as if you find a crust of stodgy pigment at the bottom of the bottle. But once I started stirring them with a bent heavyweight paper clip chucked in a Dremel, I have had nothing but good results from them. Once I've given a bottle a good belting like that it seems to stay fine for several days. (Warning: Be careful doing this if you are not used to it, and make sure you don't lose control of either the power tool or the bottle, or it gets EXTREMELY messy). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhtmo Posted May 24, 2014 Share Posted May 24, 2014 No reason why anybody should mock you. I've been using these paints since they first appeared. Results consistently good. Allan Cheers Allan, I'm still a bit of a noob at this lark. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jean Posted May 24, 2014 Share Posted May 24, 2014 Humbrol are still the best for paint brush work, in my humble opinion. I tried Humbrol acrylic years ago, but the damn paint dried far too quickly in the plastic bottle they used then. Mind you, with 45-50 degrees Celsius temperatures, the paint can be forgiven to be tempremental! But I regularly still use Authentic colours from the 70s, and they are still as good as the day I bought them... Of course, the Aeromaster enamel were the top of the top for me when they were in production. And they still keep well. So enamel all the way, and you can get high on Turpentine fumes for the same price! JR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newpiggypod1 Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 Would the fact that the Humbrol range is carried in many more stores than other paint ranges be affecting peoples choice somewhat, particully with the stupid Post Office ban on transporting enamel paints. My first choice has always been Xtracolour but what with postage charges it is a lot easier to bulk buy Humbrol when nipping into town ( Kings Lynn ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenko Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 Would the fact that the Humbrol range is carried in many more stores than other paint ranges be affecting peoples choice somewhat, particully with the stupid Post Office ban on transporting enamel paints. My first choice has always been Xtracolour but what with postage charges it is a lot easier to bulk buy Humbrol when nipping into town ( Kings Lynn ) Good point. But you can also put that argument with the amount of Revell and Tamiya paint that is available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newpiggypod1 Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 Good point. But you can also put that argument with the amount of Revell and Tamiya paint that is available. Tamiya paint is only available in Norwich and as i've heard it's not to good for brush painting so that rules that out for me, I have also found Revell enamels a bit thick and streak badly so i do stick with Humbrol as a second choice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenko Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 Tamiya paint is only available in Norwich and as i've heard it's not to good for brush painting so that rules that out for me, I have also found Revell enamels a bit thick and streak badly so i do stick with Humbrol as a second choice Revell Aqua colour needs to be thinned and flow enhancer (W&N) added. Shaken not stired. I use it for internal areas (large ones) and find that 2 coats works wonders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Millman Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 Tamiya paint is only available in Norwich and as i've heard it's not to good for brush painting so that rules that out for me, I have also found Revell enamels a bit thick and streak badly so i do stick with Humbrol as a second choice Tamiya is fine to brush paint if you decant it and add a few drops of acrylic retarder. I use Liquitex Slow-Dri Fluid Retarder which you can get in art shops but there are other brands available. A bottle of it will last ages. Nick 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Archer Posted May 26, 2014 Author Share Posted May 26, 2014 Thanks All! It seems there are a few paint lines out there which are brushable. Does anyone have a color chart for Humbrol which lists British and Federal spec numbers? Bruce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black Knight Posted May 26, 2014 Share Posted May 26, 2014 Most Humbrol paints do not have BS or FS numbers. One of the best cross references is on here - http://www.ipmsstockholm.org/colorcharts/colorcharts.asp although it is getting rather out-of-date now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ c Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 I use Humbrol enamels and brush paint almost exclusively and ( I think ) do alright with them, EXCEPT for the new formula Matt Varnish 49 which I cannot get a good result with and has almost ruined two builds. I contacted Humbrol about it, they have recommended I use Humbrol Mattecote instead and are sending me a sample to try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tbolt Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 Thanks All! It seems there are a few paint lines out there which are brushable. Does anyone have a color chart for Humbrol which lists British and Federal spec numbers? Bruce The Humbrol Colour chart is available here, http://www.humbrol.com/_assets/files/Humbrol-Wall-Chart.pdf giving FS numbers and other manfacturers cross references. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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