Spraying Future

[K-nadian]

Hello builders,

I will be spraying future for the first time and I was hoping you could direct me to some good info for a begginer. I was curious about pressure, thinning, whether or not I should only shoot small sections or just cover large areas... any help would be wonderful.

I should also mention I read through "The complete future" guide.. but didnt get much about spraying from it.

Thanks in advance!

[phasephantomphixer]

Well, I like to thin it but others here do not. If you thin it, you don't need to change pressure, etc. and it doesn't get unpredictable.

And others use windex, but after discussing it directly with the manufacturer years ago (figure they should know!) have used pure

Ammonia with NO problems ever since. About a 60-70 Future to 30-40 Ammonia. And do not get scented or sudsy Ammonia.

Also go in the following steps; base paint, two coats future over entire model (30 min. dry in between) then decal after several hours

drying, re-coat future to seal decals, weather, then flat coat, de-mask.

Edited March 19, 2012 by phasephantomphixer

[phantom]

I just pour it in the cup from the bottle and spray. Nothing hard, no mixing.

[volzj]

I also thin it slightly with Windex, and spray at 15 psi. It seems to have a positive effect on surface tension and allows the Future to lay smoother. Since the Windex is a solvent a light mist of just Windex at the end will help soften and homogenize all of the layers you put down, further improving the finish.

[galileo1]

I too thin Future with Windex as I like the consistency and smoothness I get with it. I used to shoot it without thinning and it always seemed a bit rough.

Rob

[Devilleader501]

I may be nieve but isn't Future an acrylic? That being said couldnt you in turn thin it with demineralized water say from a water bottle you buy from a store. I also thought amonia stripped away the future as that is almost the only thing that affects it. As far as windex the only stuff I get here is blue and I would think it would tint the future. I still have never futured a whole model and am currently building a 1/48th F-8E Crusader and will need a good gloss coat so I will be watching this thread. I have also heard about dulling Future with Tamyia Flat has anyone tried this before and if so how well does it work and what ratios did you use.

[ChippyWho]

Anyone know if you can use Tamiya (or other) acrylic thinner for this purpose, or is that a no-no?

[K-nadian]

Hey thanks for all of your replies. I would have thought the consensus was no need to thin it... but I get the impression most of you do. I have the same question as Devilleader... my windex is blue... should I avoid using that? As far as masking, does the future make the tape edges all soggy and make a mess of my edges?

Thanks

[scapilot]

I wouldn't think the tint in the windex would have a negative effect. Think about when you spray a window with it....it doesn't leave a blue smear streak behind it, so I think the coloring will disolve equally when shooting through an airbrush gun. Again, I have no experience with thinning with Windex, so this is merely speculation, but I would assume that it wouldn't hurt anything. Especially if people swear by it.

[chuck540z3]

Hey thanks for all of your replies. I would have thought the consensus was no need to thin it... but I get the impression most of you do. I have the same question as Devilleader... my windex is blue... should I avoid using that? As far as masking, does the future make the tape edges all soggy and make a mess of my edges?

Thanks

I thin with blue Windex all the time. I use just enough Windex to give the Future a slightly blue tint, so I'm guessing about 10% Windex. It also won't bother your masking tape, as long as you don't put too much on at once. Now some tips:

• Try to always spray on a horizontal surface so that the Future spreads out and doesn't run. This means sometimes holding your model at 90 degrees while it gets sprayed and dries- about 10-15 minutes per coat before you can let it be vertical again- like the sides of the fuselage.
  
• Get the surface totally wet but no more. Avoid pebbly thin coats and avoid soaking wet ones too.
  
• If the finish is a bit pebbly or "orange peel", you can hit it with a straight coat of Windex after it dries to get it to "melt" and resettle in the depressions, using the same method of wet but no more. This assumes the rough surface is due to the Future rather than a rough paint job.
  
• Speaking of the above, make sure your paint finish is very smooth to begin with. I always lightly sand the entire model with 2000 grit sandpaper, then remove the dust with a tack cloth before a coat of Future.
  

Good luck.

[phasephantomphixer]

I may be nieve but isn't Future an acrylic? That being said couldnt you in turn thin it with demineralized water say from a water bottle you buy from a store. I also thought amonia stripped away the future as that is almost the only thing that affects it. As far as windex the only stuff I get here is blue and I would think it would tint the future. I still have never futured a whole model and am currently building a 1/48th F-8E Crusader and will need a good gloss coat so I will be watching this thread. I have also heard about dulling Future with Tamyia Flat has anyone tried this before and if so how well does it work and what ratios did you use.

You can clean up with distilled (demineralized) water, but it doesn't thin future as Ammonia does. The ingredient thinning Future in Windex is...Ammonia! Windex has other ingredients I don't want in my Future coats. Windex is also a good airbrush/paintbrush cleaner after future application. Has anyone tried Ammonia? For final dull coat I use Humbrol since Aeromaster is no longer available. Why try to convert Future?

[TonyA]

If you want to thin Future all you need is a little water. Preferably distilled water but tap water will do in a pinch.

Tony

[phasephantomphixer]

I give up! I will be over here using my Ammonia thinned future, the rest of you enjoy you're unpredictable Future! :unsure:

[Devilleader501]

hey Phase I appreciate your comments. I was just unsure of how to thin Future myself and was just curiouse about it. You definatly have sparked my interest in using ammonia because of Future being so forgiving with it. This F-8E Crusader will mark the first time I have ever actually used future over the entire model though thats why i had concerns and questions. If there are anyother recomnedations you could give me on Futuring the model it would be appreciated. You said 10-15 minutes between coats is that enough time in colder weather to alow the vaporto bleed off like its suposed to or should one wait a little longer. I know the timing is critical on most paint jobs requiring more than one coat tis why I ask :D one more thingcan i use straight ammonia for thinning and if so whats the best brand/streangth should one get.

[K-nadian]

Hey thanks again for your comments,

I just sprayed on some future that I thinned very slightly with windex.. about 10% as chuck noted. I had an easy time with it, but I think i put my coat on rather thin for fear of putting it on too thick and getting a runny mess in places. Im practicing on an old F-117 that Im simply trying to salvage as it was something I built when I was much younger and even MORE inexperienced than I currently am haha.

My intent is to put some custom made decals on it (which Ive never done before) and I guess I wanna ask just how do you know when your future coat is good enough to prevent silvering of decals?

Thanks!

[Devilleader501]

Thats another good one what is silvering anyways.

[dmk0210]

I'm curious, why do you guys thin Future?

What problem are you having with un-thinned Future that thinning it solves?

[bugs3144]

i guess I am from the old old old school. I don't thin future since it is pretty watery anyway and I definately don't airbrush. People rely way to much on airbrushing to do every thing. I use a flat tip wide bristle brush dipped gently into the future then wiped off and a very light coat is put down. I have never had any problems doing it this way. Quick and simple and no time wasted in setting up and tearing down and cleaning an airbrush.

Frank

ATL

[Janissary]

I used to spray future straight from the bottle, but now I almost always use about 20% windex. Windex seems to break the surface tension and improve the flow from the airbrush. Without trying windex, one might feel straight future already flows nicely, but to me the difference is very noticeable.

When spraying, I refer to straight future as 'bi-modal'; either has a tendency to end up a little pebbly on the surface, or is quick to pool and start running. With good user control, one can certainly hit the sweet spot. But windex makes this optimization a little easier by giving more flexibility in control. I have found that I can dramatically change the spraying distance and pressure, and adjusting my spraying to these changes becomes easier when there is windex. There are times when I need these variations: For instance, I may need a very light mist to get a semi-gloss surface without orange peel, or may want a super glossy surface without any runs. Windex makes these variations more achievable with less headaches.

Of course this is my experience, but having tried both version, I swear by it.

[K-nadian]

Devilleader501, someone else might be able to articulate "silvering" better than me, but I would describe it as that white-silvery look around the clear portions of decals (happens after some time)as a result of it not being applied to a smooth glossy surface.

dmk, I have very little experience with future, and MOST of the feedback has been leaning toward thinning. I tried applying it months ago unthinned and I had a difficult time keeping it from pooling and going on too heavy in spots. Ill admit, I cant be certain it wasnt due to my technique.

bugs, ill try out your method but how do you keep it from running over edges? I found that putting a coat on thats too thin doesnt give me the smooth finish im looking for.

Janissary, I was finding it hard to find a balance between holding the brush far enough away as to not pool future and spider-web it with the air pressure, but close enough to apply a thick enough coat. When it goes on should I wet it MORE or LESS than I would if it were paint??

Thanks gents!

[dmk0210]

Thanks for that explanation Janissary. That makes sense.

[K-nadian]

Okay just an update... im pretty certain now that my future coat is going on slightly pebbley and its not just the paintjob. Its not highly noticeable... in fact I can only really notice it when i run my finger over it that it is not perfectly smooth... rather its surface is stippled. Again, hardly noticeable by the eye, but I can feel it and its not glossy smooth. Worried this will ruin my decal work... What am I doing wrong? Ive tried spraying at 15-20psi, just wetting the surface enough to stop before runs happen.

thanks!

[chuck540z3]

Okay just an update... im pretty certain now that my future coat is going on slightly pebbley and its not just the paintjob. Its not highly noticeable... in fact I can only really notice it when i run my finger over it that it is not perfectly smooth... rather its surface is stippled. Again, hardly noticeable by the eye, but I can feel it and its not glossy smooth. Worried this will ruin my decal work... What am I doing wrong? Ive tried spraying at 15-20psi, just wetting the surface enough to stop before runs happen.

thanks!

It could be for a hundred different reasons, but my guess is that it's drying a bit before it hits the surface. Try using lower pressure and get closer next time.

For your current problem, hit the surface again with 100% Windex, again just getting it wet without letting it pool up too much. Test a small area like this and after 15 minutes of drying time or so, run your finger over the surface. If it's better, do the rest of the model the same way. I actually do this to all my models as routine, even when things are going pretty good.

Now for another tip. I keep a small space heater near by paint booth, which is in my garage. I have it at the same height as the paint booth to not only warm things up, but to dry paint and Future a lot sooner than just air drying. I even hold my model about a foot away from the heater, letting the fan and heat do its thing. I can get a Future coat dry in 5 minutes doing it this way, or a coat of Windex in about 2-3 minutes. Of course you need to take obvious safety precautions with a heater near volatiles like paint and thinner.

[blunce]

I can get a Future coat dry in 5 minutes doing it this way, or a coat of Windex in about 2-3 minutes. Of course you need to take obvious safety precautions with a heater near volatiles like paint and thinner.

I do this too, but in this case, do you think it would be better to allow the Future to flow out naturally rather than speed up the dry time? Just something I was arguing with myself about.

[chuck540z3]

I do this too, but in this case, do you think it would be better to allow the Future to flow out naturally rather than speed up the dry time? Just something I was arguing with myself about.

I don't think so, because when it's flat, it's flat. What you don't want is the fan of the heater to blow hard on the finish and wrinkle it, so there's a fine line. I find this very helpful when I'm doing my big 1/32 builds and I need to spray the fuselage sides, which I hold in my hands at 90 degrees to its normal position, in order to keep the Future or Windex flat and horizontal. When you're holding 300 hours of work in your hands, you don't want to do it for very long!

Edited March 20, 2012 by chuck540z3