Best matt acrylic varnish for brush-painting

[mahavelona]

Hello all

 

Apologies if this is an old subject but I have found it difficult to find recent advice which helped much using the search box.

 

I am searching for a good matt acrylic varnish to use with brush painting. It has to be acrylic because my modelling space is an apartment kitchen/living room, and for the same reason it has to be brush painted. Alas, the younger modeller cannot afford a house, let alone a separate modelling room. 

 

For years I have had a very poor relationship with a bottle of Microscale's Micro Sol Flat. I think I was sold on this product by a persuasive gent at the old Yeovilton Fleet Air Arm museum's model show (RIP) as a teenager. A professional modeller friend, who builds scale houses, gave me a bottle of some unbranded stuff he swore by, but I also found it difficult. Both products give an uneven finish, I can't seem to apply them without brush strokes, and actually come out satin. The result is I have come to dread applying a matt varnish and only do so when the decals are so glossy that I cannot avoid it.

 

So what might be better? I am aware of several products, including Winsor and Newton's Galeria acrylic matt varnish, Humbrol 49 or Polly Scale flat. But the threads I have seen are 5-6 years old, and I have not seen these three in my local model shop. What is reccomended?

 

Cheers

[uncletommy]

I've become a fan of the Winsor & Newton Galeria varnishes.  Although I don't think you'll find them in you local model shop.  More likely an artist's supply store.  Or Amazon carries them.  I use them for both brush painting and spraying.  

 

However, anything I'm doing that has a NMF, I only use the Alclad aqua clear sprayed on.  A friend of mine recommended them and he was right.  Works better over a NMF than anything else I've ever tried.

[bmwh548]

I really like Revell Aqua's flat but I have to ask: are you sure the technique is correct? Maybe you're trying to apply a heavy coat? Or the varnish is too thick?

Try adding a drop of retarder in the mix, that should allow it to self-level. Also don't hope you can get a perfect flat finish with your brush. That is reserved for airbrushing. Alternatively you can try some Molotow spray cans. They have an Aqua line which is pretty safe to use even over waterbased acrylic and the smell isn't that bad (then again, I'm used to lacquer based paint).

[Troy Smith]

2 hours ago, mahavelona said:

including Winsor and Newton's Galeria acrylic matt varnish,

this is W&N Galeria, brushed on

 

there are some light brush marks, but only really visible if the light catches it, and I'm going to try a coat thinned with a little water to even it out.   

 

Seems good to me.

HTH

[mahavelona]

 

Thanks for the prompt advice everyone! Always appreciated.

12 hours ago, bmwh548 said:

I really like Revell Aqua's flat but I have to ask: are you sure the technique is correct? Maybe you're trying to apply a heavy coat? Or the varnish is too thick?

Try adding a drop of retarder in the mix, that should allow it to self-level. Also don't hope you can get a perfect flat finish with your brush. That is reserved for airbrushing. Alternatively you can try some Molotow spray cans. They have an Aqua line which is pretty safe to use even over waterbased acrylic and the smell isn't that bad (then again, I'm used to lacquer based paint).

Thanks for your recommendations! Has anybody else tried Revell Aqua flat; how does it come out?

 

I've tried several techniques:

A) Brush the Microscale product on straight from the bottle, really sparingly, almost drybrushed. Result is poor because it comes out very satin, gives some brushstrokes.

B ) Thin the Microscale product with water; I've tried ratios of about 1/2 to 1/5, this always results in a really uneven application, lumps where it is concentrated, and again the ugly satin finish.

 

I've gotten fairly proficient at getting a finish without many brushstrokes, using a wide brush and properly thinned acrylics. You still get them faintly, but certainly very subtle. So if I could get something similar I'd be happy. Sadly airbrushing is out of my reach for the time being. 

11 hours ago, Troy Smith said:

this is W&N Galeria, brushed on

 

 

there are some light brush marks, but only really visible if the light catches it, and I'm going to try a coat thinned with a little water to even it out.   

 

Seems good to me.

HTH

This sounds like the finish I am used to getting with acrylic paints. I would hope that thinning it with water allows a more even surface?

13 hours ago, uncletommy said:

I've become a fan of the Winsor & Newton Galeria varnishes.  Although I don't think you'll find them in you local model shop.  More likely an artist's supply store.  Or Amazon carries them.  I use them for both brush painting and spraying.  



However, anything I'm doing that has a NMF, I only use the Alclad aqua clear sprayed on.  A friend of mine recommended them and he was right.  Works better over a NMF than anything else I've ever tried.

Thanks for the photo. 

 

I am planning to begin using foil for natural metal finishes on planes, wonder if the Alcad product might be suitable for application over foil. Perhaps another question for another time!

 

Is this the Alcad product you mentioned? I've seen quite an array online!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Alclad-II-Klear-Gloss-ALC310/dp/B01KVSI88G/ref=pd_sbs_21_1/259-6351462-5887368?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B01KVSI88G&pd_rd_r=5638c096-494d-11e9-a334-c3126910e770&pd_rd_w=qjXVx&pd_rd_wg=LgrjA&pf_rd_p=18edf98b-139a-41ee-bb40-d725dd59d1d3&pf_rd_r=NZEFV8RP4YCXT7229GB0&psc=1&refRID=NZEFV8RP4YCXT7229GB0

 

[uncletommy]

4 hours ago, mahavelona said:

Is this the Alcad product you mentioned? I've seen quite an array online!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Alclad-II-Klear-Gloss-ALC310/dp/B01KVSI88G/ref=pd_sbs_21_1/259-6351462-5887368?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B01KVSI88G&pd_rd_r=5638c096-494d-11e9-a334-c3126910e770&pd_rd_w=qjXVx&pd_rd_wg=LgrjA&pf_rd_p=18edf98b-139a-41ee-bb40-d725dd59d1d3&pf_rd_r=NZEFV8RP4YCXT7229GB0&psc=1&refRID=NZEFV8RP4YCXT7229GB0

 

No.  That's not it.

 

This is the one I'm referring to.  

 

My good friend @TheRealMrEd turned me onto it and it's all I've used on NMF ever since then.  I only spray it.  Not sure how it would work over foil or applied with a hairy stick.  

[Rogue.]

‘The Range’ sells Windsor and Newton Galleria if you have one nearby👍