Primarily been using Tamiya acrylics since I have returned to the hobby. You can get nice effects by thinning it down aggressively. I have kind of bought into the whole Tamiya “system”.
Also liking Ammo Atom paints - they brush very smoothly and I run them through the airbrush after thinning them down to 30% with their leveling thinner.
Couldn’t believe Model Master went away while I was on a 30 year break. Their colors were spot on for automotive and military models. Still have a few jars and cans left, along with a few square bottles of Testors enamel. Have some Apple Barrel acrylics.
Bit of a side question here to ask everyone, but when it comes to “accuracy” of the paint colors/shades, what does everyone prefer? What brands do you think are most accurate?
Or does the accuracy of the colors/shades not matter to you when painting models?
I know some people can be really stubborn and want an EXACT match to the real color on the real aircraft, ship, tank, etc.
And then there’s people who just don’t quite care as much and will just settle for getting as close, but not exact, color match as possible.
For me if it represents or is close then I’m happy.
I work on these old war birds occasionally and I can tell you that they have seen many color shade changes over the years even though the product is “the same”.
Trying to be “accurate” actually take the fun out of it in the long run.
Even in theater they used what they had on hand and it might just be close enough and that’s it.
James Esq.
The Sade of your poop is to light, the shade of your poop is to dark……… poop is poop and stinks just as bad regardless of its shade.
That’s mostly because Vallejo is what I started with when I got back into modeling about a year and a half ago. I’ve learned how to airbrush it successfully, I understand how it behaves, and I really like not having to mess around with a bunch of chemicals. For the most part I can clean everything up with water, and that’s a pretty big advantage for me.
I also have some Kaleido metallics, which spray beautifully, and a handful of specialty paints that I’ve raided from my wife’s art supplies over the years.
And then there are these AMMO Missing Link Brush Markers. I’ve discovered that these things are wonderful for weathering. They’re easy to control and have become another tool I’m really enjoying experimenting with.
I’m really looking forward to Kaleido eventually coming out with military colors. If those spray anything like their metallics do, I can see myself gradually switching over as I use up my Vallejo.
But for now, Vallejo is definitely the vast majority of what I use.
Yes, it took me a long time of trial and error, and research, to figure out how to use Tamiya’s acrylics for hand-brushing. It’s basically the same as airbrushing-they need to be thinned. I use Tamiya’s proprietary thinner for both, airbrushing and hand-brushing.
Many years ago, when I started modeling I used the old Testor’s enamel paints and hand brushed. With the expected results when a 10 year old paints something without knowing what they are doing. When I got back into modeling and after doing some research on paints that did have a lingering smell, I went with Model master Acrylics until they stopped making them. Now I use Vallejo acrylics.
I am just returning to the hobby also. I have mostly been using Tamiya and their Acrylic Thinner. And I use some Model Master paints I have had left over. I experimented with MCW paint but it seemed hard to get the right consistency for spraying (too thin). I used to have a cheat sheet with paints and solvent/thinners to use and the ratio of paint to thinner but it was lost in my move 3 years ago. Anybody have a “cheat sheet” they would like to share? Of course the ratio needs to be adjusted depending on local conditions at the time of the mixing but usually those were very small adjustments.
