Some time back I liked the idea of the handy little Valley Joe bottles and the product sounded appealing. I ordered a whole, great big heaping gob of the stuff, including all of their thinner and other items. Exciting to see it arrive, read up about it, then used it.
I’m glad others that have and are still using it, get results that please them. After giving it plenty of attempts to use, I quit and “came in from the ledge.”
First issue was their advice to just roll it between your hands to mix. B.S.! I was getting very poor consistency that way, after lifting the nozzle off and stirring the bottom, I was seeing thick globs of Model Air solids on the stirring paddle. By stirring I got the stuff to a smooth consistency, then put in some tiny stainless nuts for shaking to ensure proper mixing for further use.
Next was dry tip, eventually finding flow improvers that did indeed help.
Then it stayed tacky and easily marked for a few days after use.
Next was the paint lifting with tape removal. Model Air primer offered no help in preventing that. Adios, Amigo’s, I moved on.
The fact that others use Model Air with good results does not speak well for my attempts, but for whatever reason I just was unable to make it work for me.
For several years I’ve stuck with Tamiya, predictably good results, simple and straight forward. It can be thinned with their X-20A, lacquer thinner, IPA, all work well. Cleanup with same products.
Wow, Patrick… thank you for sharing that. What a huge confirmation to hear all of this from you. I say that because I know you are not a person to give up easily. Interestingly, your experience with using flow improver is exactly the same as mine. It extends the drying time by days and the paint is extremely delicate. I might go as far to say that the paint becomes compromised.
It is funny you mentioned pulling the nozzel because I was thinking of trying that too, to manually mix it.
I always hesitate to bring these things up because yes, there are people using the paint and they seem quite happy with it. I feel like it must be me, but no matter what I try with this, I can’t get there. I really want it to work.
I 100% agree about Tamiya and that has been my go to paint for several years. Supply chain issues have forced me to try other things. My local hobby stores can’t keep the racks filled!
Thanks again, Patrick. It is great to hear from you! [Y]
A small update. Being committed to finish this job with the paint I have, I did another application. This time, I tried using Windex to clean, and that was a no joy as well. It was more of the clumping, only, maybe, not as severe. So, I reached for some Revell Aqua Color Cleaner that I had mistakenly purchased months back. That actually seemed to work. It dissolved the paint. It still took a little longer to clean than I would have liked, but at least, it seems to cut the paint.
I went to Hobbytown today to purchase Vallejos cleaner. This did little to improve my mood about Vallejo. With tax…$5.01 for a tiny 85 mil/2.87 fluid oz bottle. Seriously? That won’t last very long at all unless it is some magic stuff that cuts the paint like nobody’s business. Whatever… I have to see this through. I will let you know how it goes. [;)]
Ok, final word from me on this. Vallejo cleaner worked, no clumping. Though, I had to work at cleaning. It cuts paint but not like a lacquer would. I had to scrub the color cup with a swab to work the paint free. But, at least, no clumping. I have to say that the Revell Aqua might have a slight edge with cleaning power.
Secondly, I almost had a disaster. After about 10 minutes of painting the brush became clogged. So much so, paint was bubbling in the color cup. I isolated it to dried paint at the tip. The thing is, I was wiping it with a swab through those 10 minutes. But, now that I think about it, I put lacquer thinner on the swab. Maybe that didn’t help in light of what I am seeing happen with this paint and lacquer. Once I cleared it, it was not spraying all that well. It kept clogging and it started spitting. I had to stop painting at that point. Needless to say, I had to do a deep cleaning afterwards.
Final conclusion: I am avoiding this paint if I can help it. Btw. Tonights episode was with a different bottle, different color. So, we can’t isolate it to being one bad bottle.
I’ve used Vallejo Model Air for years. If I need to dilute it (rarely) I dilute with distilled water. When finished, I fill the cup 1/2 full of Windex, swish it around the cup with an old stiff paint brush and dump it out into a empty jar. Then I add another 1/2 cup of Windex and do the same. This is followed by a 1/2 cup of distilled water sprayed through the airbrush. Never had any trouble with the airbrush.
As to cleaning Vallejo paints I just flush and back flush with really hot tap water. Then flush and back flush with Windex and final rinse with cold water and spray that through.Never had an issue with MA or with MC.
I thin with my own thinner which has Liquitex retarder in it and the retarder stops tip dry. But I have the Liquitex on hand anyway that I use in this way but in all acrylic paints as well, even in art work. I spray both MA and MC, no issues, no complaints. I thin the MA to run through a .25 needle. And MC has to be thinned. But even if I did not intentionally thin MA I would still put some retarder in it. My thinner has both retarder and flow aid though.It doesn’t hurt MA to thin about 1/3 or so thinner, it just sprays all the better and without tip dry. In my experience. I have no issue with it but then I have no issue with craft paints either lol.Or with most any acrylic paint once I learn it’s ways.
Since I’ve been adding Vallejo Flow Improver in greater proportions (1:1 - 3:1, Flow to Paint) I’m able to spray with minimal tip dry. I can finish a side of a 1/48 Bf 109 fuselage without tip dry, including mottling. I also have a mix using 70% Flow, 30% Vallejo AB thinner, 10 drops of Vallejo Retarder which I also reach for at times, but use Flow Improver just alone as a thinning and flow agent most of the time. I add a Vallejo Gloss Clear Coat after a few days to seal and protect finish. When laying down fuselage bands and yellow identification markings, I seal these with an acrylic clear (either Future or Createx 4050 thinned 50/50 with Createx 4012 reducer) in preparation for masking these areas.
I cleanup with tap water (never alcohol, Windex or lacquer thinner, these contribute to problems with Vallejo paints since their residue remains after cleaning) and then cup full of Vallejo AB Cleaner to include a little back flushing. I also use Createx 4012 when cleaning after using their 4050 Gloss. (Note: I also prime with Createx 4050 before painting…very versatile clear).