Am I doing something wrong with paint sourcing?

[jtrb]

This will probably amuse everyone...but I'm really at my wits' end.

 

Is there something I just don't get about how to get the right paints?

 

I am a very entry-level modeller and literally, all I want to do is finish my fairly simple Airfix kit and follow the instructions. There's a paint chart at the back and I'd rather just get the exact Humbrol paints they tell you, rather than have to go through various paint charts to see what equivalents there are in other brands etc.

 

I just want 7 Humbrol paints as either all acyrlic, or all enamel - 22, 53, 112, 127, 144, 147 and 171. I have probably looked at around 20 different online retailers, including Humbrol direct, and every single one seems to have at least 2 of the paints missing, and it's never the same two, or they've got enamel versions for a couple and acrylic for the rest, or vice versa. Even Amazon, which I figured would be pretty good at stock, comes up a blank (and of course charges double the going rate anyway). Given everywhere charges at least as much as another 2 pots of paint again for delivery, I'd really like to be able to just order from one place.

 

As I said, I'm entry-level. Is it just totally normal for model stores to have these stocking issues?

[bentwaters81tfw]

Firstly, welcome to the world of masochism, sorry, modelling.

Secondly - yes you will have to shop around. Paint supplies are sporadic at best, and supplies and supply chains seem unable to keep up.

Thirdly, Humbrol paints can be very iffy, depending on the age of the stock. QC and origin have been poor in recent years, and some of the paint is simply unusable. A good example is 11 silver. Used to be brilliant, now usually a grey sludge.

 

Be prepared to look at alternatives. Are you going to brush or airbrush? Do you want a gloss or matt finish? Note: you need a gloss surface to apply decals, or there is a large chance of 'silvering' (the decal carrier film will be visible). You can apply a matt varnish afterwards (NOT HUMBROL, it's useless).

 

Have a look in the Tools and tips section for advice, there is much information and wisdom there.

 

https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/forum/16-paint/

 

[Greg B]

moved to the correct area.......

[ckw]

32 minutes ago, jtrb said:

 

As I said, I'm entry-level. Is it just totally normal for model stores to have these stocking issues?

I think it is worse than normal at the moment

 

a - due to Covid, demand is higher than normal

b - supply lines have been disrupted due to Covid, and now of course Brexit

 

Of course the shipping premium added to paints makes online shopping a real PITA and greatly adds to the cost of the hobby. I don't have any solutions, though I did discover my local hardware store (which is still allowed to open) had a surprising range of Humbrol in stock. I you live near a Hobbycraft, I think they're doing a click n collect service - though they have discontinued humbrol, they do stock Tamiya and Revell paints.

 

Personally, I'm in this hobby for the long haul, so when I do order online henceforth I will be ordering in bulk and doubling up on colours which I know I will need in due course. Usually there is a flat shipping rate whether you buy 1 or 100 tins so a bit of planning can reduce that overhead to tolerable levels. That said, I always find planning what I will build over the coming months challenging!

 

Cheers

 

Colin

[Giorgio N]

Even back in the good old days of properly stocked local hobby shops it was not uncommon to find that that certain shop did not have all the paints I needed, so in the end it's better to learn how to deal with this.

First thing I'd recommend is to divide the paints in two large groups: generic and specific.

Generic paints will be the ones you'll sure use on most it no all models: black, white, silver, red... all those colours that are used for generic parts and where it is not important to have the right colour from the right company. A black is a black, there's no need to check a paint conversion chart to find the same in another paint line and once you choose between acrylics and enamels I'd suggest getting the one you can source locally as you'll end up using it a lot anyway.

Then there are the specific colours and with these I can understand that you don't want to be bothered by searching for an equivalent in another brand range. So if you can find a stockist of Humbrol that has all the specific paints, get them from there without worrying if they don't have one or two of the generic colours.

 

Now you say that you don't want to have some enamels and some acrylics and I can understand this... unfortunately not all paint companies have all their colours in both forms, for example I'm not sure that Humbrol has the whole range as acrylics while they should do as enamels. In such a case I'd consider using them both, as long as they are paints meant for the hobby and therefore safe on the plastic used in our kits. Water based acylics like Humbrol's are easy to use with a brush anyway and you can cover a type of paint with the other with little or no problem. Same for using different brands, when I started many years ago the local shop had two different brands, both enamels (one was Humbrol, the other Molak that was a local Italian brand), I just bought some paint of a brand and some of the other. I preferred Humbrol paints but then if the Humbrol I wanted wasn't available and the other was, I went for the other rather than waiting for the shop to resupply

[jtrb]

Thanks all! I take the point that there are some extenuating circumstances - I think I was just getting incredibly frustrated this morning as every single vendor I went to on the face of it had huge paint catalogues with something like 180 different Humbrol paints - but always with 2 missing from my list! 

 

I also take the point about not needing specifics -  I guess at this stage I'm just trying to get the end result as close as possible to what it's officially supposed to be, but yes, I suppose I don't have to have the exactly correct shade of grey, particularly when my own build isn't exactly perfect! For reference I'm building an Su-27. Once it's done I might share some photos in case everyone needs a chuckle....

[Graham Boak]

It might be worth checking Humbrol's website to see if they still offer them all.  They have dropped a number of colours in recent years.

 

If you are looking for camouflage colours you are better off with more speciality suppliers such as Colourcoats (which provide a satin finish) or Xtracolour (which are gloss), or perhaps Phoenix Precision Paints.

 

Supplies of paint have been a problem since airlines objected to carrying paints (supposedly after some unpleasant incidents) so this rather ties the hands of the national mail distributers who rely upon air movement of their packages.  Private mail carriers are of course more expensive, particularly as paints are required to be packaged and marked as hazardous materials.  Not all carriers are willing to handle such.

[Scargsy]

Yes it's normal and a pain, even without Covid there's no local hobby stores in my end of London (other than a generic art shop) - and you usually forget to order something or it arrives and looks nothing like it did in the paint chart / website!

 

 

[Jochen Barett]

On 13/01/2021 at 12:14, jtrb said:

###

I just want 7 Humbrol paints as either all acyrlic, or all enamel - 22, 53, 112, 127, 144, 147 and 171. ###

 

22 black

53 gun metal (black + a tiny bit of little silver)

112 tarmac grey (black + white + ?)

127 US Ghost Grey (black + white + maybe a touch of red/green/blue)

144 Intermediate Blue FS 35164 (that's probably a tough one to mix, some nice blue (14 or 25) + white + grey and in the end it may get a wrong (dirty-yellowish) tint anyway)

147 light gray (you already guessed it, white + a little black)

171 Antique Bronze (another tough one, maybe bronze + black/brown) but when needed for discolored metal around the exhaust one might get away with gun metal at the base and thinned brown or transparent orange over it, experty might even go for discoloring in red and very thin blue.

 

Probably all this is needed for some US-operated plane ...  but if these are needed for a Su-27 the colors may be a bit off anyway.  In theory the "official" colors will give you the benefit of hitting the color time after time with any new tin in case you need to do a touch up (an advantage over mixing), but unfortunately that is "theory".

 

It is "all natural" to be totally obsessed with color accuracy, but when "at entry level" ... there might be other priorities (getting seams closed, not messing up clear parts, getting a good paint coat (no brushmarks, no dust), ...) and even with the "porper" paints one may end up stunned when looking a other modeller's shown work.