Author:
Simulacrum
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Date:
7/27/2020 5:47:40 AM
Subject:
New discoveries
Let me preface this by saying that there are two things wrong with Badger Stynylrez primer. (1) It dries very fast and will clog the crap out of your airbrush. (2) It has become mysteriously scarce. Otherwise, it is an excellent product. The fast drying works to one's advantage if one can live with constant airbrush deep cleanings. It's also durable and it self-levels better than anything I've ever seen.
Yesterday, I was applying it to an AMT 1950 Chevrolet pickup model, and I noticed that it was pooling no matter how I adjusted my air pressure or manipulated the airbrush. I also noticed that it was almost immediately turning to flecks when I tried to clean it out of the airbrush color cup. Since I spray it neat (as per commonly accepted wisdom), I know that this was not caused by some exotic solvent. Possibly the airbrush needed to be cleaned. It's a new Badger Patriot 105 with a .5mm needle and has behaved wonderfully up to now.
Either way, I had to clean off the Stynylrez and decide whether I wanted to try it again or go with another primer. My other choices were (1) Rustoleum flat white primer, (2) Vallejo white surface primer, or (3) Tamiya white surface primer in a can. I won't go into the shortcomings of choices (1) and (2), and the reason I hadn't used (3) up till now was solely because I didn't know how well it would self-level.
Well, I tried the Tamiya, and let me tell you: this is the stuff. What a great product. It self-leveled nicely and dried like a proper eggshell. I love it so far.
The other discovery -- well, it has two parts, actually. Part one is a decision to abandon Iwata airbrushes and try the humble Paasche Model H siphon-feed starter brush. This seems to be very popular among model car enthusiasts because it's simple to operate and because it sprays like a fire hose. The hype is absolutely true. It's perfect for model cars. The second part is using a combination of plain old Testors enamel mixed 50/50 with straight lacquer thinner.
Wow. What a difference. I recently finished a Revell 1929 Ford roadster and can credit the Paasche and the Testors/lacquer thinner combination for the best paint job I have done to date. I'm actually unashamed of it. I can scarcely say that about the gamut of acrylics I've run through, not to mention the ridiculous things I've tried with my Iwata airbrushes.
Isn't it ironic that the best paint I've been able to find for model cars is the crappy brush enamel I used as a kid back in the nineteenth century?
Yes, it is ironic. Ironic is the word.
