Brushpainting Colourcoats: how long between coats?

[Seahawk]

Of late I’ve been brushpainting with some of my Colourcoats, which date back to the White Ensign era.  They cover beautifully but one coat isn’t quite enough to give the colour density I want.  Drawing on previous experiences, I left the coat 48 hrs to cure but it still showed a tendency to lift when a second coat was applied.  Would more experienced brush painters please share how long they find they need to leave Colourcoats before recoating safely?

 

Thanks in advance

[Stew Dapple]

I haven't many (if any) tins of the WEM-era paints left, and I don't brush-paint very much any more, but when I did I'm pretty sure I never left it as much as 48 hours. What thinner-to-paint ratio are you using, and are you using a primer or applying directly to the plastic?

 

Cheers,

 

Stew

[Seahawk]

Unthinned (newly opened tin, I think), applied directly to unprimed plastic.  Last time time I used Xtracolor over Humbrol 1 primer but the undercoat didn't give me as smooth a finish as I wanted.  I was hoping that a second coat of enamel would achieve a better result than the primer.

 

I'm afraid I'm having to relearn the art of enamel painting after an enforced break in the hobby followed by a dalliance with AFVs for which I use acrylics.

[Stew Dapple]

Hmm I always thinned about 50% for brush-painting and factored the need for a second coat in, but I wouldn't think using un-thinned paint would make that much difference like the case you describe (though I still wouldn't do it myself and do recommend that you thin the paint).

 

The main problem I do know of that causes enamels not to function as advertised is insufficiently mixed paint- this can prevent the paint drying properly; it's a bit of a delicate subject to bring up as everybody is sure that they mixed the paint sufficiently and some can get quite vexed at the suggestion that perhaps it could have been mixed better... but it really does need more than half a minute's manual stirring with a Tamiya paint-stirrer, especially a new tin that may have been standing for quite some time. I got a couple of IKEA 'Produckt' battery-powered coffee frothers of Ebay for less than a fiver (this was a  few years ago), stripped the springy part off and use these as stirrers. I have to say that while I had no time for such fripperies before, I have not looked back and recommend something like that (or the proper Badger paint stirrers if you want to be a bit more spendy).

 

I hope I haven't given the impression of trying to teach you to suck eggs, but I hope some of it might be useful for the future,

 

Cheers,

 

Stew

[Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies]

I agree with everything Stew said. When you do thin though, only use household white spirit or turpentine substitute if cost is very much more important than time or smell, as both will result in extended drying times compared to naptha due to their oily constituency and slow evaporation rates. You can brush paint with it thinned with cellulose thinner which buys time in exchange for more smell, but you may find the thinner too aggressive for the second coat.

[Ray S]

@Seahawk, I have the old and new Colourcoats, and found the same issues as you. However, I then took the plunge and bought their own Naphtha Thinners and all is well now.

 

Basically, as Stew said, one of the first things I learnt was to stir the paint until my arm ached, then do the same again (sage advice from White Ensign when I asked them for help!), and the second was from @Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies to use their thinners. It reduced the smell for a start, and made the brush painting so much easier.

 

I use a metal paint palette, a piece of runner as a stirrer, and then allow the paint to drip off the runner. I count the number of drops that go into the palette and use that as a guide to how many drops of the Naphtha thinner goes in, I try for the same number. As you go along, remember to keep stirring the mixture from time to time, and don't be afraid to add another drop of thinner. 

 

 

That 1/72 Arma Hurricane was done with Colourcoats and a brush, with their thinners. I was able to re-coat after a couple of hours, but it was touch dry way before that. I err on the side of caution.

 

I will bring it to the Club meeting tomorrow if you like!

 

I hope that helps, Ray

[Seahawk]

Thanks, Stew (and Jamie).  I'm not proud: I'll take advice from anyone if it gets me a better result.

 

I invariably give my paints 5 minutes' agitation: stirred non-stop with a bit of runner for enamels, shaken for acrylics.  When I thin enamels, I use Winsor & Newton's Artist's White Spirit but it sounds as if I need to get hold of some of Colourcoats' own thinners.  I did experiment with naptha (in the form of lighter fluid) once when someone on here told me it helped make the infamous Humbrol 24x series (late Luftwaffe) enamels vaguely usable: results were, ahem, inconclusive.

 

Thanks, Ray, for your detailed explanation.  I look forward to tapping into your expertise, as well as admiring the results, tomorrow evening.

 

Key learning points: 1. treat modern enamels like acrylics by thinning 50:50 2. use Colourcoats' own thinners on Colourcoats' enamels.

[sapperastro]

I might be a bit late to the party, but sometimes I cannot get the colourcoats thinner down here, so have settled for Humbrol enamel thinner. No problems thinning colourcoats paint for brushing, and no drying problems either.