I"m considering going to Home Depot this afternoon & buying a quart/litre size container of paint thinner. I have some old smaller containers I can transfer the thinner to, rather than make a complete mess from the larger one. Has every modeler done this rather than go to the hobby shop every week for a teeny bottle of thinner?
Thx
Yep. I have a bit quart tin of lacquer thinner that I use for cleanup. Wouldn’t use it for mixing paint or anything (it’s a bit coarse), but for clean up after the fact it’s very nice and economical.
I buy mineral spirits by the 5 gallon can and lacquer thinner by the gallon. I’d love to find some of the Model Master thinner for airbrushing in a larger size too. [:D]
Yes, but many hobby shops have half-pint bottles of the Testors thinner, and if you buy those, thinner is not a major hobby expense. Be very careful of what thinner you buy in a hardware store for thinning enamel. Some of that stuff, sold as generic “paint thinner”, is really cruddy. It has a milky appearance, and has a lot of dissolved solids in it.
I only buy stuff specifically marked as turpentine or mineral spirits.
Don, I’ve never seen the Testor’s airbrush thinner is anything larger than 1/2 pint. Wouldn’t it be cool to get a gallon of it; of course, at the price they charge, that might get expensive quick. I usually buy mineral spirits and lacquer thinner at the paint store. Yeah, watch out for that crappy, milky-looking “paint thinner”. It’s not even good for cleaning up paint equipment.
Gary
Yeah, but even the half pint cans bring the cost down signifcantly over buying it in t he small bottles. Yeah, I won’t even clean brushes or airbrush in that milky stuff.
Is that milky stuff the kind that is sometimes label as a “safe alternative” or “environmentally friendly”?
The cruddy stuff I bought was not labeled as either safe alternative or environmentally friendly. Further, a couple of years ago I bought a can of oderless paint thinner and it was clear. Never used it on model paints, however, only oils.
Thanks for the tip. I’ll keep that in mind when shopping & I forgot that hobby shops carry half pint bottles of thinner, it may be for the best anyway rather than starting to paint & the color doesn’t look just right on your new model.