F-16 Posted April 27, 2018 Share Posted April 27, 2018 I am thinking of getting some Tamiya clear acrylic green, blue, red and yellow to try to do some wingtip lights. I have never used clear paints like these. Many years ago I tried MM clear green, but did not work to great ad gave up on using it. So now I want to try using Tamiya clear acrylic colors using a brush for small parts like wingtip light, Etc. Any advice you can give me on using this stuff. I don't think it needs thinning.. Scott CNJC-IPMS Quote Link to post Share on other sites
phantom Posted April 27, 2018 Share Posted April 27, 2018 Straight out of the bottle. But one thing i often do is paint the lights silver and let them dry. Before the Tamiya colour. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ichitoe Posted April 27, 2018 Share Posted April 27, 2018 +1 on what Phantom says! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
admiralcag Posted April 27, 2018 Share Posted April 27, 2018 Let it dry thoroughly before recoating. You can also thin 1:1 with IPA or Mr. Color Leveling Thinner for better control. Great stuff! Vern Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Chuck1945 Posted April 28, 2018 Share Posted April 28, 2018 I have also found a couple of additional uses for those clear colors. The blue, orange, and yellow can be dry brushed on exhausts and exhaust collecting front cowl rings (Gladiator, Blenheim, etc) to help replicate the heat tarnished metal. Also if you do WWI aircraft with unpainted wood surfaces (Albatros), a light mist of orange or yellow can help give some depth to the wood's appearance. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
cruiz Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 Hello Scott I use tap water to thin Tamiya clear color, also give me better control for brushing small details, since the water is "thicker" than alcohol I can put a blob over the part without fear of paint spilling over; when the water dries, it takes a thin, smooth finish. As Phantom mentioned, a base coat of silver gave a better look for navigation lights. I used alcohol before, but it dried so fast that the paint took the consistency of honey. Carlos Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RichardL Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 3 hours ago, cruiz said: water is "thicker" than alcohol You mean water has higher "surface tension" than alcohol. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
cruiz Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 5 minutes ago, RichardL said: You mean water has higher "surface tension" than alcohol. Yes indeed, wasn´t sure to use the term but surface tension is what did the trick. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
F-16 Posted May 1, 2018 Author Share Posted May 1, 2018 WOW! Thanks for the tip on using water. What about using soapy water? That usually breaks the surface tension when applying decals? Once the ST is broken the water/paint should level out smooth...right? Scott CNJC-IPMS Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RichardL Posted May 1, 2018 Share Posted May 1, 2018 (edited) 17 minutes ago, F-16 said: What about using soapy water? That usually breaks the surface tension when applying decals? Not for applying clear paints over wingtip lights. You want the paint to bead up and stay in one spot, not spreading out. Otherwise why use water at all? Edited May 1, 2018 by RichardL Quote Link to post Share on other sites
cruiz Posted May 2, 2018 Share Posted May 2, 2018 The more prolonged drying time of water diluted paint helps level it smooth. As RichardL says, you don't want it to spread out but to stay in place. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
paulsbrown Posted June 6, 2018 Share Posted June 6, 2018 Has anyone had this happen with Tamiya clear colors? This is what I discovered when I peeled back Tamiya tape from the Tamiya Smoke sprayed top windows. I know I can polish them back but was surprised to find this mottled effect. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
A-10 LOADER Posted June 6, 2018 Share Posted June 6, 2018 I've never encountered this before but, I always leave painting the clear parts until the very end of the build. Looks like the smoke wasn't thoroughly dry before you masked it and the tape impression was left behind. This will happen on any paint if you mask on it too soon. Steve Quote Link to post Share on other sites
paulsbrown Posted June 6, 2018 Share Posted June 6, 2018 18 minutes ago, A-10 LOADER said: I've never encountered this before but, I always leave painting the clear parts until the very end of the build. Looks like the smoke wasn't thoroughly dry before you masked it and the tape impression was left behind. This will happen on any paint if you mask on it too soon. Steve Good point on painting the clear parts at the end. The paint was about 3 days dry which is why I figured it would be ok. I suspect you're right and it needed more time as it was a few layers. Thanks Steve. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
skyhawk174 Posted June 7, 2018 Share Posted June 7, 2018 On 6/6/2018 at 6:53 AM, paulsbrown said: Has anyone had this happen with Tamiya clear colors? This is what I discovered when I peeled back Tamiya tape from the Tamiya Smoke sprayed top windows. I know I can polish them back but was surprised to find this mottled effect. Hmm when I did my ESCI Viking I sprayed the Tamiya smoke from the inside so no issue with paint as the clear plastic was on the outside. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
paulsbrown Posted June 7, 2018 Share Posted June 7, 2018 1 hour ago, skyhawk174 said: Hmm when I did my ESCI Viking I sprayed the Tamiya smoke from the inside so no issue with paint as the clear plastic was on the outside. Yep, think I'll do that on the Viking waiting in my stash, definitely. Thanks Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy Posted June 9, 2018 Share Posted June 9, 2018 Yep, I've had the same problem with the Smoke on a canopy, on an F-16. Think it had been left a week or so before masking, and when the tape came up, so did half the smoke paint. You may have heard the shouting and cursing from wherever you were on the planet. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RichardL Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 On 6/6/2018 at 7:34 AM, paulsbrown said: The paint was about 3 days dry which is why I figured it would be ok. I suspect you're right and it needed more time as it was a few layers. Time is not the issue here as three days should be sufficient. Your problem is the clear paint was applied to unprimed smooth bare plastic, which greatly increased the chance of the paint lifting off. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 2 hours ago, RichardL said: Time is not the issue here as three days should be sufficient. Your problem is the clear paint was applied to unprimed smooth bare plastic, which greatly increased the chance of the paint lifting off. Yep...except that when the surface in question is a clear canopy, therein lies the catch-22.... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RichardL Posted June 10, 2018 Share Posted June 10, 2018 1 hour ago, Andrew D. the Jolly Rogers guy said: ep...except that when the surface in question is a clear canopy, therein lies the catch-22.... And you wouldn't be encountering the catch-22 if you paint the canopy last after the base coats + clear coats to avoid masking it, as some others have suggested. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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