HELP! Thinners are making my head hurt! (Not literally)

[mikewint]

Very nicely done Robert. One addition if you'd like is to add plain ordinary automotive windshield washer fluid (the blue stuff) to your list of thinners. I've used this for many years to thin acrylics...and believe it or not the blue does not affect the paints color, not even white.
Washer fluid is generally a 40-70 mix of methanol (methyl alcohol) and distilled water though some higher quality fluids contain ethylene glycol as a wetting agent. A small amount of methylene blue is added to keep most cretins from drinking it.
Oh yea, for the former foreign occupiers of the colonies its SCREEN WASH

 

[Night Fighter Nut]

Sorry for the wait but I had a bit of searching to do. Finally found some of what you needed in the November 2014 edition of Fine Scale Modeler.
This is geared toward Acrylic paint.
Common Paint-Thinner ratios... This is for air brushes.
Paint Thinner Ratio (Paint : Thinner)
CSI Creos (Gunze Sangya) acrylics -- Tamiya thinner, alcohol, distilled water -- 1:1 to 2:1
Humbrol acrylics -- Water -- 1:1 to 2:1
Italeri acrylics -- Italeri thinner -- 2:1
LifeColor acrylics -- LifeColor thinner -- Pre-thinned, but add a few drops
Polly Scale acrylics -- Distilled water -- 9:1
Tamiya acrylics -- Tamiya acrylic thinner or alcohol -- 2:1
Testors Model Master acrylics -- Universal thinner -- Pre-thinned, but add a few drops
Vallejo Model Color -- Vallejo thinner -- 3:1
Vallejo Model Air -- Vallejo thinner -- Pre-thinned, but add a few drops
Xtracrylix -- Xtracrylix thinner -- 3:2

It comes with a caution, "These should be considered starting points for basic painting. Keep in mind that things like type of brush, air pressure, air temperature, and humidity can affect how paint sprays. Adjustments may be necessary."

Hope this helps... Still looking for more information.

 

[fubar57]

You read my mind Bill. I'm going to break open a bottle of Polly Scale and was wondering about ratios/thinners. Thanks for posting

 

[Robert Porter]

Sorry for the wait but I had a bit of searching to do. Finally found some of what you needed in the November 2014 edition of Fine Scale Modeler.
This is geared toward Acrylic paint.
Common Paint-Thinner ratios... This is for air brushes.
Paint Thinner Ratio (Paint : Thinner)
CSI Creos (Gunze Sangya) acrylics -- Tamiya thinner, alcohol, distilled water -- 1:1 to 2:1
Humbrol acrylics -- Water -- 1:1 to 2:1
Italeri acrylics -- Italeri thinner -- 2:1
LifeColor acrylics -- LifeColor thinner -- Pre-thinned, but add a few drops
Polly Scale acrylics -- Distilled water -- 9:1
Tamiya acrylics -- Tamiya acrylic thinner or alcohol -- 2:1
Testors Model Master acrylics -- Universal thinner -- Pre-thinned, but add a few drops
Vallejo Model Color -- Vallejo thinner -- 3:1
Vallejo Model Air -- Vallejo thinner -- Pre-thinned, but add a few drops
Xtracrylix -- Xtracrylix thinner -- 3:2

It comes with a caution, "These should be considered starting points for basic painting. Keep in mind that things like type of brush, air pressure, air temperature, and humidity can affect how paint sprays. Adjustments may be necessary."

Hope this helps... Still looking for more information.

It does indeed help, I have a bunch of updates to add as well as these, thank you very much. As soon as I do I will post here that the file has been updated!

 

[fubar57]

Found this while searching for stuff...

​

Website: Ultimate Airbrush Thinner

Two reviews...

Internet Modeler Ultimate Airbrush Cleaner and Thinner
Ultimate Airbrush Thinner - Scale Modelling Now

 

[Robert Porter]

Thanks! Into the mix it goes! I have reformatted my word document into a spreadsheet. It works better. There was a start on a similar one over at the Forums on Flory models. I am adding that as well. It has grown fairly large but I hope it will be helpful. I think I am going to publish it on a sharing site like Google Docs where it can be easily shared and modified. It will never be "complete" per se as new products are always being released.

 

[mikewint]

Did you check the price? 7.29 GBP for 250mL that's a bit over $9 USD for a 1/4th Liter then shipping. Better be GOOD stuff at over $137 a gallon

 

[fubar57]

...and it's also about 1.5 times the shipping to Canada

 

[mikewint]

Understandable George, the sled is only soo big and them Huskies eat a lot of blubber

 

[Robert Porter]

That particular Thinner may well be good, but I am glad it is now being carried by HobbyUSA and a few other retailers here in the states at better prices. To be honest I use good old Lacquer Thinner from the hardware store as well as Mineral Spirits for most things, including acrylics. Vallajo white cap acrylics as well as Tamiya turns to paste at first with lacquer thinner, but keep adding a little bit at a time and all of a sudden it goes back to a liquid that shoots fine!

 

[Robert Porter]

Heck Tamiya X-20A is a bargain at $92.00 USD a gallon!

 

[JKim]

Just to throw my experience into the mix. I use Tamiya and Gunze Sangyo acrylics almost exclusively and have found 91% isopropyl alcohol to be a great thinner for these paints when using an airbrush.

 

[turbo]

Just to throw a tangent into the discussion, does anybody use a flow aid or retarder, especially with acrylics?

I've just started playing with Lifecolor paints and they tip dry like a b@stard! I've read people use flow aid or retarder, apparently Liquitex is good??

 

[Robert Porter]

Just to throw my experience into the mix. I use Tamiya and Gunze Sangyo acrylics almost exclusively and have found 91% isopropyl alcohol to be a great thinner for these paints when using an airbrush.

Very true, I am increasingly surprised by how many things will thin paints. Even across types like Enamels and Acrylics!

 

[Robert Porter]

Just to throw a tangent into the discussion, does anybody use a flow aid or retarder, especially with acrylics?

I've just started playing with Lifecolor paints and they tip dry like a b@stard! I've read people use flow aid or retarder, apparently Liquitex is good??

Yes I use Vallejo and Winston's acrylic retarder and flow improvers with almost every acrylic I use, especially when the temperature and humidity are both low. It does not eliminate tip dry but it does extend the useful shooting period considerably.

 

[mikewint]

Sounds as though you are not thinning your paints enough. Though I've used Lifecolor it's only to add weathering detail so I've never sprayed it

 

[N4521U]

Learned in a small IPMS workshop Gunze Leveling Thinner can be used with most all paints with great results. Has a small amount of retarded added. Acrylics, lacquer and enamel!!!!!

 

[fubar57]

Still trying to source Gunze in Canader. I can get it cheap in Japan but our $ has to be over .80¢

 

[N4521U]

Still trying to source Gunze in Canader. I can get it cheap in Japan but our $ has to be over .80¢

Same case here Geo.
AU $22 for a 400ml bottle of the leveling thinner, delivered!!!!!!
Good thing petrol is not in that price range.

 

[Zipper730]

I committed to trying to build an airplane model when i was an adolescent: I often had issues with focus and discipline (something that must blow people's minds), so I figured I should do it.

Of course, I forgot some important facts about airplane model building: Firstly the instructions never seen to be in the correct order. Basically assemble all the smallest components first, assemble the larger components, then finally, the largest components last. So I glue on the canopy and then there's mention of adding something to the canopy -- right after I glued it.

And I started getting this horrible headache and nausea (I'm not sure which came first, but I think it was the headache) which was like a really bad migraine (radiating pain from behind the eyeball), and I came down with this terrible headache to eat dinner. First I was just complaining about the headache, then I puked a few times, and after all that was over, I kind of realized that the headache was caused from being in a closed room with a whole bunch of glue fumes (I closed the door because I didn't want any distractions).