Hi everyone! Today we are going to talk about paint. I will share my experience in using some brands, producing the paint especially for modeling purposes.
The first thing you need to have - is a good breathing mask. The ones by 3M are quite nice. Please remember to protect yourself, even in case of the water based paint usage, as you still inhale it's very small particles. Not to mention that the mask is "must have" for any solvent based paints.
Now, talking about paint, you need to try some different brands/bases and find "yours". There is no good or bad options, I know the people addicted to the acrylic paints only. Or using the solvent ones. Just try it and you'll finally stick to the certain stuff. Also your choice depends on the preferred primer, as some paints don't go well together, and from your airbrush nozzle (I use 0.2 with the solvent based and 0.3-0.5 with acrylics). Here is the short review, based on my personal experience :
1. Mr.Color and Mr.Hobby by Gunze Sangyo.
The common mistake is to mix it up with Mr.Hobby by the same brand. Those two are absolutely different: Mr.Color is the acrylic solvent based, fast drying and durable paint while Mr.Hobby is the water based paint and it takes a while to dry. The smell of Mr.Color is very strong, so use it in the well ventilated areas only. Mr.Hobby has almost no smell at all. The costs are about $2.5-$3 per bottle.
I personally like Mr.Color more, as it allows me to touch & mask the painted area within 20-30 minutes, besides that it sticks to the surface well. Also has very bright and saturated pigments.
Gunze makes a lot of pre-mixed colors, suitable to painting the anime characters. They also have special sets for painting girls and gun dams.
Mr.Color goes well together with Gunze primers, Tamiya fine surfacer (the one in cans) and Gaianotes EVO.
Thinners to use with : Mr.Thinner / Mr. Leveling thinner (slows down the drying) for Mr.Color
Mr. Aqueous (Hobby color) thinner for Mr.Hobby
2. Tamiya enamel and acrylic paint.
Enamel is suitable for the airbrush and normal brush (for small details). Takes longer to dry, but makes nice and durable surface. The smell is sensible, so better use it in a well-ventilated areas.
Acrylic paint is nice as well, but mostly fits for the airbrush. Has no smell. I do not really like it, due to the weaker adhesive properties and "dull" colors. The average costs are about $2.5/bottle
Tamiya paints can be used after Tamiya fine surfacer primer (the one in cans).
Thinners to use with : Tamiya color X-20 for enamel
Tamiya color X-20A, Mr.Muscul for acrylic
3. Vallejo model color, Game color and Model Air acrylic paints.
The paint is good, has nice pigments and does not clog the airbrush nozzle. But still, it's not my best friend... Model Color bottles have a different thickness, and the paint does not stick well to my favorite primers. I mostly use it with a normal brush, to make tiny touches, face details or line corrections.
Model Color is suitable for any figures, Game Color is made especially for the fantasy series, Model Air is made for the direct airbrush usage. Has no smell. Costs are about $3-3.5/bottle.
Can be used with Vallejo primer. Does not stick well to Tamyia and Gaia primers.
Thinners to use with : Vallejo Model paint thinner, water, some use Vodka (Model Color, Game color)
No thinning for Model Air
4. Folkart acrylic craft paints
The cheapest one, about $2/60 ml bottle. Has a variety of pre-mixed colors (a little bit dull, but Folkart metallics are nice ones), should be thinned to the consistency of milk for use in the airbrush. Has no smell. Takes about 24 hours to dry completely, so be careful with masking and sealing.
Folkart also makes the paints for ceramic and textiles, but you need just a normal craft paint (refer to the photo).
Can be used after Tamyia fine surfacer primer (the one in cans) or Gaianotes EVO.
Thinners to use with : water, Mr.Muscul
That's all for now, stay with me for the next reviews and tutorials.
