Tamiya Flat Base Frosting

[RKic]

What causes it, why does it temporarily vanish when more is applied, and is that the key to getting rid of it.

I hope there's a solution, I'd really rather not repaint yellow rings on 12 bombs

[Thorsten Wieking]

Are you using the Flat Base directly from the jar? It is a matting agent, not a Flat clear coat.

Cheers

Thorsten

Edited March 26, 2014 by Thorsten Wieking

[RKic]

I thinned it with 4 parts isopropyl. I am using it as a flat clear coat.

[Thorsten Wieking]

Flat Base is not a clear coat, it is merely a matting agent (Talkum?) suspended in a liquid. You could use it to flatten regular Tamiya Clear gloss or just get some real flat clear like the one from Gunze.

Cheers

Thorsten

[Crazy Snap Captain]

You should use Tamiya's XF-86 Flat Clear. As mentioned above, X-21 Flat Base is an agent used to turn a gloss finish paint into a matt finish one.

Edited March 26, 2014 by Crazy Snap Captain

[White Wolf]

I'm having the same problem with my clear coat frosting, but I'm using Mr. Top Coat. Only the flat coat causes the frosting but the gloss coat gives no problems. Any idea what's wrong?

[Crazy Snap Captain]

Couple of questions for you:

1) Obvious, but did you ensure that you stirred or mixed the paint adequately before use? The flat base in flat coats tends to collect at the bottom of the container when not used for a while, more so than normal paints, and it takes a while longer to mix.

2) Is it an older batch? Could be that the paint has reached it's use by date. I had this happen with a container of Tamiya Flat Clear. It would frost no matter how much mixing I did.

[White Wolf]

Hi CSC, if you're replying to me, I use Mr. Top Coat straight from the spray can. I might not be shaking the can enough before using it, I will try that the next time.

[Hawk10]

Sounds to me that you have a case of blush - basically it's a case of your paint (varnish, dope, lacquer, enamel etc)picking up the moisture in the air while it is being applied. Depending upon which medium you are using, the cure may be a simply as wiping the area with a rag and some thinner, or sanding the area out with fine sandpaper. If you know the humidity is or is going to be high, you can prevent blushing by A. waiting until the humidity in the air has lowered or B. adding retarder to your paint prior to applying it. In most cases, A is preferred!

[mingwin]

you should use it as a matt agent for tamiya clear, like specified before... i use it as a matt agent for Future, when i wanted a slightly more dull finish. but i never acheive a totally flat finish that way.

Edited March 29, 2014 by mingwin

[gb_madcat_sl]

This frosting is usually caused when spraying flat clear paint in a humid environment. The humidity is usually near 100% where I am located so I have a hair dryer handy when I use the flat coat, using it to blow dry the coat immediately after application. I find that this prevents the frosting.

When it does frost up, just spray thinner via your airbrush on the affected areas.

Mark

[nzgunnie]

What causes it, why does it temporarily vanish when more is applied, and is that the key to getting rid of it.

I hope there's a solution, I'd really rather not repaint yellow rings on 12 bombs :bandhead2:/>

As noted above, tamiya flat base is not a flat coat, but a medium that is added to gloss paints to dull them down.

It doesn't matter what you thin it with, it will still dry frosty because it is not a flat coat.

I have read of people having success spraying a coat of future or other gloss coat over it, then using a proper flat coat after that.

[B-17 guy]

you can mix the flat base with future for a flat coat. Once you figure out the ratio of one to the other it gives a nice flat coat. But flat base is not a stand alone product because it frosts, as you have found out.