Humbrol Drop bottle acrylics - Issues

[Paul821]

Recently a localish model shop started stocking the Humbrol drop bottle acrylic paints. I had ceased using Humbrol paints when my usual shop stopped stocking them and I had issues with quality.

 

I thought the quality must have improved....

 

The paint in both the bottles I purchased was so thick, even after shaking, that the amount coming out of the dropper could not be controlled. I'm my time away from Humbrol I got used to painting with Ammo Mig and never had issues with them. After this experience I won't be buying Humbrol again.

 

PS: I am primarily a brush painter

[Casey]

I have same feeling, some of those paints were full gunk, and some were completely broken (probably the paint frozen during transport)

 

Here were my last attempts to use Humbrol dropper bottles:

 

 

They still have serious quality issues, and their dropper bottles are worst possible design ever. Taking out the plug to add a mixing ball requires heavy machinery or more force than I would want to use on a dropper bottle.

 

[flyboy2610]

6 hours ago, Casey said:

I have same feeling, some of those paints were full gunk, and some were completely broken (probably the paint frozen during transport)

 

Here were my last attempts to use Humbrol dropper bottles:

 

 

They still have serious quality issues, and their dropper bottles are worst possible design ever. Taking out the plug to add a mixing ball requires heavy machinery or more force than I would want to use on a dropper bottle.

 

Eeeeeewwwwww!

[stevehnz]

I've tried a few, they take a bit of mixing, I've made a stirrer from a paper clip with a bent end that I can thread through the nozzle & then stir it around. They seem to be OK after that but to my eye they all come out too dark. I think Humbrol still has some work to do on these. They paint out ok once they're sorted. I've never had the sort of thing that Casey shows & I guess I've tried about a dozen so far

Steve.

[Casey]

I had a chance to test a lot of them and this is what actually started my adventure with this forum - with my disappointment with Humbrol quality. The examples above are the extreme cases, most of the paints are as you describe. None of them was even close to an artist paint quality though, and that was bad.

 

[Casey]

On 8/27/2024 at 3:07 AM, Paul821 said:

I am primarily a brush painter

Did you ever consider professional artist paints? I am serious there.

[PhantomBigStu]

I was quite falsely encouraged by them when they first came out but yes the quality is hit and miss, some are really thin where as others come out thick plus the pot design is poor, I’ve split at least four trying to force the contents out, they still very much have their uses as a brush painter and some good colour matches in the range 

Edited August 28 by PhantomBigStu

[Paul821]

28 minutes ago, Casey said:

Did you ever consider professional artist paints?

For painting card buildings etc I do tend to use these but the main issue with kits is colour matching. As long as I stick with one manufacturer then I known that their olive drab, will be an approximate match to the real thing. I am just about to get into RLM colours and they are a mystery to me, let alone colour match them..

[Casey]

21 minutes ago, Paul821 said:

For painting card buildings etc I do tend to use these but the main issue with kits is colour matching. As long as I stick with one manufacturer then I known that their olive drab, will be an approximate match to the real thing. I am just about to get into RLM colours and they are a mystery to me, let alone colour match them..

I may have solution for that.

 

Here is example of my build:

 

Here are some helpful materials including color mixes and reference for RLM:

 

If you want some simplified recipes for any of the color lines I have data for, or for any color reference you may need, just pm me

 

  

21 minutes ago, Paul821 said:

As long as I stick with one manufacturer then I known that their olive drab, will be an approximate match to the real thing.

That is sadly a sometimes a very ballpark figure. A lot of vendors simply don't care and give you wrong colors.

 

Edited August 28 by Casey