Hey, so when I hand paint I typically use Tamiya Acrlyics, but I always have an obscene number of brush marks that are visible when the paint dries. Is there any way around this? Would thinning it out help any? If so, to what ratio should I thin it? The brushes I have are (what I believe to be) nice quality brushes, theyre red sable.
I have used enamels before, but dont like how thick they dry out to be and how long it takes them to dry, however I can hardly notice any brush marks at all with enamels. Does anyone have any guidance on this issue?
For brush painting, thin your Tamiya acrylics about one part Tamiya X-20A thinner to three parts paint. Apply one coat as evenly as you can without painting over previously applied semi-dried paint, then allow to cure for about 24 hours before recoating. Anything less than a minimum overnight drying time and it will pull up the previous coat in big ugly chunks.
If the first coat goes down unevenly, DO NOT be tempted to touch it up before it’s fully cured.
When applying the second coat, the same rules apply. Brush smoothly and evenly and do not linger on any given spot or it will “burn through”.
You can thin enamels for brushing, too, and they won’t be as thick. But I generally use a full-bodied primer that obscures detail more than a coat or two of enamel anyway.
I have another question, pertaining to thinning! Would it be plausible to put 3ml of thinner in a 10ml tamiya bottle and just stir it around and leave it as is, so I wouldnt have to transfer it to any kind of painting pallet or anything?
Also, probably a silly question but; will thinning it speed or decrease the drying time? Thanks alot again guys
If I have a bottle that I use a lot for detail work, and it lasts a long time, I find it gets thicker with time, as the thinner evaporates a bit with each use. I often add a bit of thinner, stir well, and go on from there.
You will occasionally get to the point where the enamel starts to set up, and goes bad. You have to scrap it at that point, but if it is just getting to thick, yeah, adding thinner restores it. If you find a tough film on the top of the enamel you have reached that point- do not try to re-dissolve it.
You could pre-thin the entire jar if you intend to use it all within a short period of time, though it is preferable to only thin as much as you need for a given painting session and leave the jar unadulterated.
Thinning Tamiya acrylic gives you a little more working time - it slows the drying time a little - not a lot, but enough.
To answer your question about the brush type, ill generally use pointed brushes but i have both available to me, is one more preferable other the other?
