Hi,
For those of you that use Tamiya Acrylics I was wondering if you always have to mix paints to create certain colours. For example, Tamiya’s light grey isn’t exactly like the light grey according to the Federal Standard.
Does Tamiya have different names for these colours, or is it that they just produce basic colours that each individual can mix together?
Thanks
Farhan
never buy a paint according to its name. Many companies make a light grey but it is either called something else or it is different in shade.
I agree with Robertomoe…I usually mix mine to get the required results.
Regards, Dan
i have tamiya flat blue, red, yellow, green, brown, black, white, and a color wheel. i normally find plenty of pictures of the model im assembling online so i make a “slide show” in “my pictures” and just compare my mixed color to the photos. works well for me.
I think I will do that saltydog. I’ll just get a few of the basic ones and make the colours I need.
Thanks again
How does a color wheel work and where would on procure one? [D)]
Any decent arts-supply store should stock colourwheels or colour fans, most of them come with a short description on how to use them too.
Here is a link to some quick online explanation:
oh, i use tamiya thinner as well. a 250ml jug can thin enough paint to justify the meager extra cost. some people use 90% isopropyl alchohol but tamiya thinner is the way to go if you ask me. cool link madmodelfactory! i saved it to my favorites. i find it a tad difficult to mix brown for some reason, so thats the only reason i purchased flat brown.[;)]
I have just used Tamiya acrilics for the first time. I have yet to airbrush the paint, but using it with a normal brush I found it did not cover a smoothly as enamil paint. I don’t get this less toxic stuff. I find that the paint, and thinnners in particular is far more toxic than enamils. Not looking forward to spraying and cleaning my airbrush. Am I going wrong here somewhere?
Mooro, you can pretty much forget trying to brush paint Tamiya Acrylics, stick to your enamels for that. As far as spraying them, they work very well. At first try thinning with Tamiya thinner at 50/50 and about 15 to 20 PSI pressure and then experiment from there to find you own preferences, but those guidelines should get you off to a good start. As far as cleaning your airbrush, just use some Windex and water to clean up. Beats using Turps and thinners I reckon. For small details, I like using the Citadel paints, they work really well with a paintbrush, clean up with water and are non-toxic. Hope this helps you mate.
Cheers…Snowy.
Why is it a bad idea to brush paint them? I’ve tried before and it didn’t work out too well but I thought it was because the colours were red, yellow and white and read that most people have problems with those particular colours.
Farhan
They are formulated too thin for reliable paint brush work is why they are not recommending them.
Mike
Is that true for all acrylic paints or just Tamiya’s? Would applying a primer be a good idea?
Thanks again
Farhan
Tamiya and Gunze got similar characteristics. They are hard to brush. You can’t brush a second layer on while the first layer hasn’t cured yet. The second layer will just lift the first layer off. Most other acrylic paints brush very well, in fact they brush better than some of the enamels. Model Master and Polly Scale are great for brushing.
The only paints I have used for brush painting are the Poly Scale ones and they work excellent if you put a couple of drops of dishwashing liquid in them to ease the surface tension.
Mike
It’s not always the case for me. I use Tamiya Acrylics for both airbrush and handbrush. When handbrushing you need to stir the paint well because acrylics tend to suffer from pigment segregation during storage. You just need to practice until you get the correct consistency of the paint.
If you are getting a very thin and transparent coat of paint then it is either that your paint needs stirring or it has gone bad.
Good luck.
How long should I stir them for?
Farhan
I ended my last message a little short, basically I’ve brushed some paints on before and they worked well. Though with the white, red and yellow, it doesn’t stick to well and it’s too thin or sticks to the brush. So how long do I stir it for? A minute, two?
Thanks again
Farhan
Actually until you get the correct consistency. Stir and check by brushing on an old plastic or surface.
I think that tamiya colors, at least certain ones, are made to go with the Japanese military standards. I personaly have IJN light grey and it does not match FS light gray.