Application and Examples

Transcript*

Intro

Tamiya, you know and love them. Makers of masterpiece models and tools that will last you forever. So then why when you brush this on does it look like skid marks? Hello all. This is David from Sunward Hobbies and in today’s video I’m going to share with you the secret technique on how to properly brush on Tamiya acrylic paint.

Why Can’t You Brush on Tamiya Paint?

Before I show you how to use this paint, let’s quickly diagnose why Tamiya paint is so difficult to paint with a brush. That’s because Tamiya Paint skips over from XF28. Nah, just kidding. Tamiya paint is a solvent based acrylic. In layman’s terms, it’s alcohol-based paint. And if you know anything about alcohol, one, it makes you happy. And two, it dries very, very quickly.

As a result of this, when you put the paint over your the surface of your model, it creates a skin that dries before it can even self-level. And because of that, you may get a good brush stroke on your model, but then once you go in and go over that same spot, the new paint that you’re putting on is just going to lift the old paint off. Thus, you have a very uneven and ugly texture.

Now, if you like to airbrush these, then you have no problem at all. These airbrush beautifully, and all they require is some thinning from their corresponding thinner. Painting this on with a brush isn’t quite as simple. You are going to not only need the aforementioned thinner, but you will also need some retarder. This is Tamiya’s Acrylic Paint Retarder. And this obviously slows down the drying time of these paints, which in turn solves the issue of the paint lifting off of itself.

Paint/Thinner/Retarder Ratio

So, I’ll start off with XF50. XF obviously meaning it’s a flat paint. Oh, and by the way, uh if anybody tells you to thin this properly by dumping acrylic thinner to the lip of the inside of the lid, don’t listen to them. Never thin your paint directly in the paint jar. You’re just setting yourself up for a ruined paint in the near future. So, first thing you want to do is stir it. You can either use one of these Tamiya paint stirs and manually do it or if you can get your hands on an electric paint mixer that’s even better.

So I’m going to take a few drops of XF50. That being field blue, I did five drops of that. Now I’m going to take some acrylic thinner. We’re going to mix this 50/50. Now you can even do 60/40 if you like thinner to paint. However, for brush painting, I don’t recommend that. 50/50 is good enough. And lastly, we’re going to add our retarder. And for this, I honestly recommend for this low quantity, just one drop. Stir it all up. Make sure it’s mixed in very good.

Paint Application

Here’s my little fuselage half that I will be testing this on. Now, you’re going to want to take a decent amount of paint on the brush. And as you can see, it’s brushing on pretty smoothly, not lifting itself off. Now, the one thing about this technique is because you’ve thinned it and put retarder in it, the first coat is going to look a little streaky. So, what you’re going to have to do in that case is just let it sit for anywhere from 12 hours to a whole day. I do not have a full day to record this video for you lovely people.

Second Coat Application

Luckily, however, I did just happen to have this wing, which I tested some red Tamiya paint on, and it’s had plenty of time to dry. So, I will show you in just a moment how a second coat will look. My red paint is all mixed up. Again, getting a good amount on the paint brush. And for red, the first coat wasn’t bad. There you go. Two coats in. And I’d say that’s pretty good.

David’s Conclusion

In conclusion, Tamiya paint isn’t the most friendly paint to brush on with. And if you’ve ever felt frustrated with it, I understand. But as long as you use the proper techniques, this paint is very usable. So if that’s the road you want to go down, then go down that road. So I hope you found this video useful. You can find all the Tamiya paints and products I used at Sunward Hobbies in store or online. Thank you very much for watching this video. Remember to like, comment, subscribe, follow us on our socials, and until the next one, adios.

You just couldn’t have waited 12 to 24 hours, could you?

About the Author:

David Peckam has built scale models since he was 12, specializing largely on military aircraft. He is a makeup artist and background actor for films and TV. He enjoys watching hockey and of course, movies. He has an excellent knowledge of hobby products and if you have questions concerning scale model airplanes.

*Video by David Peckham
Video Edited by
Daniela Castellano and Leo Nguyen
Transcript generated by youtube
Edited by Angelo Castellano