I see some people thin Tamiya acrylics with X-20A and others thin with the Tamiya lacquer thinner in preparation to airbrush. What is the difference?
The 20a is alcohol based. You can also use 91% rubbing alcohol to thin it too
I’d suggest learning with the recommended X-20A thinner to get a baseline for how it behaves before experimenting with alternative thinners.
I only use the X-20A thinner with the Tamiya acrylic paint, and I only use the Tamiya lacquer thinner for the Tamiya primers.
I’ve not experimented much with thinning materials and Tamiya paints, have used Tamiya lacquer thinner, X-20A and DuPont lacquer thinner. All worked well, I thought the Tamiya LT gave a nice smooth finish, the DuPont mix sprayed on nicely as well, but seemed to tip dry just a bit more.
Of them all I prefer the X-20A, as it seems some additive ingredients MAY help prevent tip dry or clogs. I have had some very long spray sessions, with either zero or next to no tip dry problems.
I commonly thin about 50-70% thinner to paint, and spray at 14-18 psi, medium needle size. It seems I do much better spraying several thin coats, as opposed to one or two heavier ones.
Patrick
Lacquer thinner in acrylic paint=[:(((]
I’ve always used isopropyl alcohol as mentioned - at 50-50. But I’d like to try the X-20 if it prevents clogging.
GM I originally thought the Mr. Color were like the old Gunze paints and thinned with lacquer thinner (which I use for enamels). What a mess!
I have only ever used Tamiya Laquer Thinners with Acrylic Paint = 
I use Tamiya lacquer thinner to thin their paints. It’s sprayed beautifully for me, but I haven’t used anything else to thin their paints for airbrushing. I will throw out this caution: I’ve read and heard stories of some who thinned Tamiya with water or isopropyl alcohol for airbrushing and had the paint flake off later (maybe not so much if the model is primed first).
I like to use the Tamiya lacquer to thin their paints to airbrush because, first, the lacquer thinner is ‘hot’ and gives the paint a ‘tooth’ to bite into the plastic. This means you can skip the primer step and can still be confident the paint will stick to the plastic.
I also brush painted Tamiya recently, first dampening my brush with Tamiya lacquer, then dipping it into the paint jar. This gave a streaky first coat, but after that dried I put a second (non-thinned) brush coat down. Finish turned out great.
Dave
I use only the x-20a now just for the idea of using the same brand thinner as paint. But even using isopropyl I’ve never had clogs or tip dry with Tamiya paint even with long AB sessions. I thin around 50/50 or for really thin coats like molting 70/30 thinner/paint
I don’t like using alcohol for me it dries too quickly,I have been usin the Tamiya Lacquer Thinner also with good results with all of their paints
I’ve had success thinning Tamiya acrylic with Expo Dry Erase Board cleaner. The stuff smells the saem as Tamiya’s proprietary thinner. One of the things my Organic Chemistry Professor taught was how to smell & recognize materials.
Of course, experiment with any new paint/thinner material before committing to your current masterpiece. Your milage may vary. Void where prohibited. New Jersey and Califonia residents pay appropriate sales tax. Allow 6 to 8 weeks for delivery.