Scale finishes paint?

Hi guys,
I used to buy Cobra Colors paint and loved it. I also bought a lots of Zero paints jars, but shipping is more expensive since I live in Canada.
I see that some people are using Scale finishes. Is it as good as Cobra Colors and Zero Paint? I was always thinning Zero Paint and Cobra Colors 50-50, can I do the same thing with Scale Finishes? I only want a jar of Nissan Ultra Yellow, so I don't want to order from England for one jar.

I live in Canada, but I can get the paint shipped to USA and bring them back home, so it's not a problem for me.

Thanks

I've used Scale Finishes paints a few times, and they are great. I would consider them equivalent to Zero or Cobra Colors (I've also used both of them). They also sell reducers for their paints, so you can thin them to your liking. For those of us in the US, the free shipping is nice, too. They also do a nice job with packing and shipping. I have no connection with the company, I'm just a satisfied customer.

Larry

Same here. Jameston is a super guy. His paint is as good if not better as Zero and Cobra Colors.
He's very quick to reply back to any question you might have.
Great paint!
Chris

Excellent, thanks guys.
Guess I will order more than one jar of paint then ;)

Apparently they are automotive acrylic enamels, unlike Cobra Colors and Zero (automotive acrylic lacquers). Acrylic enamels are acrylic based pigment in an enamel matrix, so they go on and behave like any enamel. This means the paint cures with air contact instead of outgasses. So you have to apply it all at once, or wait a week or two between coats. With acrylic lacquers (acrylic pigment in lacquer matrix), you can respray whenever you want. So in that sense acrylic enamel is not as convenient or forgiving as automotive lacquer.

To make a complicated story shorter, it's not the same stuff. I'm sure you can certainly get spectacular results from it, but you may have to change your techniques in applying it. This is the biggest reason I've been unenthusiastic about trying it- I'm very happy with lacquers, and don't want to bother learning a new medium.

Thank you MPWR!
I was going to use the same thinner I am using for Cobra Colors and Zero Paint. I guess that lacquer thinner + enamel paint = big troubles ;)
I know that Testors spray paint is enamel and I am not a big fan of these, but I will try Scale finishes paint to see.

**Edit
I took a look at the website and I think there are 2 types of paint, Basecoat and Gloss Enamel. Is Basecoats are lacquer paint, since they are flat and require clear like Zero Paint and Cobra Colors?

BASECOATS
Scalefinishes colors are solvent based Acrylic Basecoats and require a clearcoat to achieve a gloss finish.
If further thinning is required, Thin with Scalefinishes Basecoat reducer.
Air pressures will vary with different airbrushes, painting styles and temperature. I recommend around 20PSI as a starting point.

GLOSS ACRYLIC ENAMELS
Scalefinishes gloss Enamels are Automotive grade Acrylic Enamels and do not require a clearcoat.
If further thinning is required, Thin with Scalefinishes Enamel reducer.
Air pressures will vary with different airbrushes, painting styles and temperature. I recommend around 20PSI as a starting point.

OK, I had missed that. Yeah I agree that the 'basecoat' is likely an acrylic lacquer- the key words being 'solvent based'. But he application guide doesn't make much sense to be. 5 min between coats and 20 min before clearcoating seems frighteningly fast. :uhoh:

5 min between coats and 20 min before clearcoating seems frighteningly fast. :uhoh:

You would need smelling salts if you saw how I paint (and I think Veyron is also a similar speed demon) :biggrin: We both enjoy those "1 session" paintjobs; basecoat, clean airbrush, clearcoat, dehydrator. Often I'll scuff that clear & then do a second round for best quality. Throw it in the dehydrator, wait 6 hours or so...ready to go :smokin:

Those basecoat (flat) lacquers flash off very fast. I like to mix some clear in the final coat before going to 100% clear. As long as you don't drown it (and your primer/sealer is working properly), it should be just fine.

The dehydrator revolutionized model painting...allows you to move on with your builds instead of obsessing over watching paint dry and how much mythical time should pass before the next layer.

With lacquer basecoats and clears, I can prime, correct, paint, and clear the body in about 40 minutes. Most of it is actually waiting for the primer to dry. I will usually paint and clear in less than 10 minutes.

With lacquer basecoats and clears, I can prime, correct, paint, and clear the body in about 40 minutes. Most of it is actually waiting for the primer to dry. I will usually paint and clear in less than 10 minutes.

:smokin:

It still surprises me how many people are firmly rooted in the dark ages when it comes to painting.

It's probably more due to the fact that they're not building often enough to get comfortable with the pace & techniques that those who do build often can accomplish. That's not a cut, that's just an observation-I love showing people how to speed things up. When we do modelpaloozas & 24 hour builds (as a group), hands-on in-person how-to's help people see how quickly things can happen...and have little or no affect on ultimate quality.

I've used Scalefinishes paint several times and I'm impressed with the quality and ease of use. The clear coat compliments the paint quite nicely. Somewhere there's a completed thread for a '58 Chevrolet Impala I buit and I used Scalefinishes paint & clear on. I was more than pleased with it. By the way, it was primed, painted and cleared in a day and a half; that was a few months ago and no problems yet. :sunglasse
sam-r350 UP.Browser/6.2.3.8 (GUI) MMP/2.0

:smokin:

It still surprises me how many people are firmly rooted in the dark ages when it comes to painting.



Different philosophies, I suppose.

I used to believe/assume that body painting could/should be done in an hour or so. I painted this way for a number of years- and simply hated it. It wasn't any fun. Painting bodies was a miserable chore, which often ruined an otherwise perfectly good hobby. Then I learned to slow down and relax, and that there was absolutely nothing to be gained by doing it quickly (the slow onset of maturity for me?). Suddenly I discovered that I could easily and consistently get perfect results, with very little effort. All it took was the mental flexibility to apply time and patience. And then I discovered that I really enjoy painting this way. Painting went from the thing I hated most in modeling to one of the things I look forward to most. This hobby has been very useful for me in learning to relax and enjoy what I'm doing. I honestly can't see appeal in rushing it. :headshake

So I can't really start and finish a build in 24hrs. I can't start and finish a whole pizza in 5 minutes, either. Or maybe I could if I tried- but don't see the reason to do so. :dunno: Not to cut on anyone who enjoys their hobby differently.

Scalefinishes.com is a very nice paint that I dont have to order from over seas. He can also color match anything you dont see on the site.

As far as the other debate goes, Im in the speed realm. I build almost exclusively race cars. A 2 day paint job keeps me from the fun of decalling. I Primer, dehydrate, Base Color, dehydrater, Second coat, dehydrate, Base Clear for decals, dehydrate, all in about 25 minutes. I can be decalling in an hour if I dont thing I need to use Micro-sol. Micro-sol can stain the clear if the clear hasnt dried properly. Microset on the other hand seems just fine.

Thanks for this thread guys, I just ordered some Ultimate Black Opal from them and its my first order. Makes me feel better that i've read some good reviews.

I guess its time to get a dehydrator too then..

Gray

Thanks for this thread guys, I just ordered some Ultimate Black Opal from them and its my first order. Makes me feel better that i've read some good reviews.

I guess its time to get a dehydrator too then..

Gray

Yes Gray, I found a dehydrator speeds the process of drying considerably. It works well to heat cans too if you have to go that route.
Not sure what I would do without mine. Probably watch paint dry!
Chris

Zoom, what's the temperature setting you use?

360spider, what's the temperature setting you use?

I also bought some several weeks ago for my project, but I have not yet used them.

Will use it in next few days and report back here!

http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-3.jpg

OK, I had missed that. Yeah I agree that the 'basecoat' is likely an acrylic lacquer- the key words being 'solvent based'. But he application guide doesn't make much sense to be. 5 min between coats and 20 min before clearcoating seems frighteningly fast. :uhoh:

Based on the flat finish and the quick drying time, they sound like automotive urethanes to me. AUs also require a medium temp reducer. Ordinary lacquer thinner can cause curdling.

In normal humidity, AUs flash almost instantly. The five-minute wait time is about right. The finish is very smooth; there's virtually no orange peel.

I get them in coded colors at my local automotive paint supplier. If I want to look at samples, they have several Dupont and PPG books I can select from.

Synthetic clear lacquers (U-POL, Tamiya TS-13) and 2K urethane clearcoats work just fine over automotive urethanes.

what is the web site for scale finishes and cobra colors so I can order some?

www.scalefinishes.com . Cobra Colors paints are no longer available. However, there are some of us that have a few bottles stashed away :sunglasse

Question on the food dehydrator. Is there any special brand or can you pick up a regular one from Bed Bath & Beyond. What sort of drying timespeed up are we talking here?

Hi guys,

I said I would report back here after my first experience with the Scale Finish paints.

Well, here is my report. :)

First of all, I am a heavy acrylic paint user. I am not a subject matter expert when it comes to lacquer based paints.

Having said that, I do use lacquer based paints when the coloring matching option is limited. Scale Finish paints being automotive/lacquer, I might not have all of the expertise as some of you guys already have. So this is purely FYI only.


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-71.jpg
I decided to give a try on this snap style Camero kit which my 4 year boy assembled last year. No paint has went on and I don't think he minds if I use this as a guinea pig for my paint testing session. :iceslolan


http://www.cifesystem.com/super_enzo/senzo_205.jpg
When I was building Enzo using the Finisher's paint for the first time, I remember testing the paint on another Camero kit although that was 1/32 scale.

I guess Camero kits are becoming my test kits!

At any rate, I am sure you will agree that it all makes sense to test unknown paint on a junk kit first.


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-72.jpg
The paint is called Velocity Yellow. I think this would be a good test since yellow is not the easiest color to spray because of its transparency characteristic.

My first attempt, this was a light mist coat without thinning straight out of the bottle. The body has been primed two coats using Tamiya's lacquer primer and was cured roughly 3 hours before the first coat.

Coat 1.(hood) : light mist, 20psi, no thinner


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-73.jpg
I dried the coat in the dehydrator for 3 minutes and applied another light coat. And this is the result. You can see "spots" where the color is uneven.

Coat 2.(hood) : light mist, 20psi, no thinner


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-75.jpg
After another drying session of roughly 3 minutes, I have sprayed a thicker coat with less pressure for more volume. Noticeably darker and less spots visible.

I think this was a mistake. This was when I noticed that the paint solvent was starting eat into the primer and the plastic itself (see red arrows). Should I have gone with another light mist? Should I have gone with medium coat? Hmmm....

Coat 3.(hood) : heavy mist, 15psi, no thinner


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-76.jpg
Dried another 3 minutes. Realizing I screwed up the paint session, I took another approach at this time. I have added "Mr. Gunze Self Leveling lacquer thinner" in 3:1 ratio to the paint and the thinner. Maybe this will lessen the paint solvent potency.

And then started another session on the roof!

Coat 4.(hood) : light mist, 15psi, 3:1 thinner
Coat 1.(roof) : light mist, 15psi, 3:1 thinner


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-77.jpg
Dried 3 minutes, and then repeated the light coat. I can see the etched surface on the hood is being covered with layer of paint. But this still does not fix what I have done wrong.

Coat 5.(hood) : light mist, 15psi, 3:1 thinner
Coat 2.(roof) : light mist, 15psi, 3:1 thinner


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-78.jpg
3 minutes drying, switching to a medium mist session. The hood doesn't get darker anymore even though I shoot more paint. The roof is coming out nicely. Diluting with a paint thinner seems to be helping.

Coat 6.(hood) : medium mist, 15psi, 3:1 thinner
Coat 3.(roof) : medium mist, 15psi, 3:1 thinner


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-80.jpg
Staying with medium mist, I have lower the psi to 12. The hood color doesn't get darker and didn't see any difference. The roof is as dark as the hood and it is smoother.

Coat 7.(hood) : medium mist, 12psi, 3:1 thinner
Coat 4.(roof) : medium mist, 12psi, 3:1 thinner


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-81.jpg
3 minutes drying session, another medium coat application. For sake of testing, why not go another round? :)

Coat 8.(hood) : medium mist, 12psi, 3:1 thinner
Coat 5.(roof) : medium mist, 12psi, 3:1 thinner


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-82.jpg
It this point, it seems to be not affecting the outcome.

I can see the the hood surface etching issue has been less visible, maybe I can fix it by sanding and patching.

Coat 9.(hood) : medium mist, 12psi, 3:1 thinner
Coat 6.(roof) : medium mist, 12psi, 3:1 thinner


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-83.jpg
Let's make it 10 times, the hood is not getting any better, but it is not getting worse. The roof is decent and I would be satisfied to apply clear coat at this point after some light sanding.

Coat 10.(hood) : medium mist, 12psi, 3:1 thinner
Coat 7.(roof) : medium mist, 12psi, 3:1 thinner


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-84.jpg
Another picture showing the colors. I am satisfy with the roof, but not the hood.

My conclusion is that, thinning the paint does help, multiple light and medium coats were all I needed for this color. I would stay away from applying heavy coats, although I might have made a mistake shooting way too heavy.

As most of the lacquer paints, the paint doesn't show shine at this stage, a clear coat is required.


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-85.jpg
Here are some of the tools I have used to perform the color test. I use Adobe LightRoom software to record and keep track of photos I took.

It keeps the camera settings, organize photos by dates/keywords, etc, which is very helpful when taking multiple pictures of same object!


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-79.jpg
Of course, this is to protect my health, a correct filter is needed for protecting from the paint fumes!


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-74.jpg
And this is the dehydrator which I get to use, my my wife. :) I used this to speed up the drying time between the coats. 137"F was used.


http://www.cifesystem.com/c6r/c6r-57.jpg
This is the reason I am going through the mess of learning the painting process. Scale Finish's Velocity Yellow seems to be a good match, I just hope it is worth the trouble. :)

Ok, thanks for reading up this long boring report. Let me know if you have any questions or things I should have done better.

I am going to ask what is probably 2 dumb questions. 1) how much paint have you used out of the 2oz and 2) if you are painting yellow would you not have used a white undercoat? Wondering how far 2oz gets you as I have the 1/12 jagermeister and I am not sure if 2oz is enough?

I am going to ask what is probably 2 dumb questions. 1) how much paint have you used out of the 2oz and 2) if you are painting yellow would you not have used a white undercoat? Wondering how far 2oz gets you as I have the 1/12 jagermeister and I am not sure if 2oz is enough?

You are correct, we should use "white" or brighter color-ed primer on yellow. If you look at the picture closely, you can see that the hood and the "front" of the roof received the white primer. :)

I started out with "gray" coat and then followed by "white" on the frontal area.

After this testing, it looks as though I have only used 1/6th of the paint. Looks like I can probably cover two to three cars in 1/24 scale, but again this one is yellow and it needs more coats than other darker paints.

I think 2oz might be very close when painting 1/12 (assuming orange), but I am not too so absolutely certain...

My gut feeling is that you can probably give 2 light coats and 1 full medium/heavy coat with 2oz if you diluted with a proper amount of thinner. :)

White primer makes an enormous difference. It's another world compared to what you've attempted.

Seems like you were struggling to fully cover the gray primer by using multiple coats, thick coats and heavy, wet coats. It may be the photos, but it looks like you still haven't achieved full coverage; to be blunt, the yellow still looks drab. For your next attempt, white Tamiya primer is the obvious solution; it's much more opaque than regular paint, so you can use far fewer color coats.

In a nutshell, white primer should always be used under yellow, red, and all light colors.

I don't know about the opacity of Scale Finishes, but with PPG or Dupont Chromabase urethanes, I get a brilliant finish with just two color coats, even shooting white, pale yellow or a pastel tint.

Wet coats seem to have caused you problems. Once again, they aren't necessary if you've got white primer underneath. I use those automotive urethanes thinned 3:1 with medium temp reducer, and I've never had a problem with solvent "eating into the primer." (I buy both the basecoat and the reducer locally at Finishmasters, an automotive paint supply house. The basecoat costs $14 for 2 oz.)

Automotive urethanes flash in less than a minute, and are fully dry in less than ten. With paint that dries at that rate, I've never seen the need for a dehydrator.

For your next attempt, white Tamiya primer is the obvious solution; it's much more opaque than regular paint, so you can use far fewer color coats.

Would you believe there was white primer underneath? See the previous posting/comment, another member suggested that. Maybe the photos weren't bouncing off the "white" clearly. Maybe I shot these pics with less light... :sly:


Automotive urethanes flash in less than a minute, and are fully dry in less than ten minutes. With paint that dries at that rate, I've never seen the need for a dehydrator.

Now you are confusing me; are you referring urethanes as the automotive lacquer? These lacquer based paints (Scale Finish) evaporate as they dry.

My understanding of the urethanes are cured via a harder.

Two different types, no? Maybe we are not using the same terms?...

Possible that I may be using too much thinner, but I never had my paints (All types) fully drying on me less than ten minutes. If I can achieve that, it would be fantastic I'd start polishing in 30 minutes then.

Would you believe there was white primer underneath?

Sorry for the confusion.

Which raises the question: How many coats did it take to get full coverage? For flat-finish basecoats that don't require sanding, there's no need to apply more coats than are necessary to fully cover the primer.

Aside from the underexposed photo, you first coat seems to have been your best coat. Tip from Tom: Don't try to fix mistakes by applying more paint!

When things go bad, stop right there and let it cure. Then you can decide whether you can fix things by sanding and re-coating, or if you need to strip and start over.

By the way, I doubt that a coat of fresh paint was eating into the primer, especially since the paint was not thinned. There was something else going on; I'm not sure what.

Now you are confusing me; are you referring urethanes as the automotive lacquer? These lacquer based paints (Scale Finish) evaporate as they dry.Did I say anything about automotive lacquer?

I couldn't find anything on the SF website that says the paints are "lacquer-based," although they may be. He uses the phrase "solvent based," which isn't very informative, since all except waterborne paints are solvent-based. The SF paints can be thinned with lacquer thinner, but that's true of just about everything!

He does say that his primer is "lacquer based." I assume he means synthetic lacquer; real lacquer is very unfriendly to styrene.

My understanding of the urethanes are cured via a harder. Some are; some aren't. For small jobs, nick n' dent guys use 1K urethanes that don't require a catalyzing hardener. That's what I use. I don't think the 1K urethanes are quite as durable as the 2K type, but it doesn't matter, since we don't leave our models out in the freezing rain or scorching sun.

Urethanes are not lacquers. In fact, it's illegal to sell true lacquers where I live. Lacquer thinner will clean up urethane, but, depending on temperature, it can also cause it to curdle. So I never use it to thin urethanes. I only use medium temp reducer at a 3:1 ratio, in accordance with instructions from my automotive paint supplier. (Automotive urethane is very thick.)

Possible that I may be using too much thinner, but I never had my paints (All types) fully drying on me less than ten minutes. If I can achieve that, it would be fantastic I'd start polishing in 30 minutes then.A. Yes, you may be. The SF instructions say that it's pre-thinned. The usual sign of too-thick paint is orange peel, but that wasn't a problem for you.

B. More thinner normally accelerates drying; it doesn't slow it down.

C. Properly thinned automotive urethanes are dry to the touch in about two minutes, maybe less. But they require a clear-coat, and clear-coats take longer to cure.

D. Polishing? I assume you're using SF's "solvent-based acrylic basecoat," so it can't be polished. On the other hand, their "Gloss Acrylic Enamels" dry glossy and can be polished.

I have talked about pricing in other posts. Suffice to say that I think 1K automotive urethanes purchased from an automotive paint supply house are a very good deal.

Best of luck with your "real" model!

Thanks for the clarification, it makes more sense now that what you are referring to.

Which raises the question: How many coats did it take to get full coverage? For flat-finish basecoats that don't require sanding, there's no need to apply more coats than are necessary to fully cover the primer.

I would say my third coat attempt seem (roof) to be my base. Remember though, this isn't to lay a perfect coat. This was more of experimenting to see what I get.

I would say 10th coat is probably crazy in real life, but repeating multiple test may strenghten my findings. And you would agree that it was entertaining to look at. :smile:


Aside from the underexposed photo, you first coat seems to have been your best coat. Tip from Tom: Don't try to fix mistakes by applying more paint!

When things go bad, stop right there and let it cure.

Seeing color saturation spots, I thought my first coat didn't cover enough? Hmmm...


By the way, I doubt that a coat of fresh paint was eating into the primer, especially since the paint was not thinned. There was something else going on; I'm not sure what.

Yes, this is what I am interested to find out. The surface seem to be reacting quite badly. My guess was that the "pre-thinned" paint solvent was too strong. I could be wrong, but it didn't happen on my second test (roof) when I dilutted with modeling thinner.


Did I say anything about automotive lacquer?

No you didn't, but my post was all about lacquers. I assumed Scale Finish paints are lacquer based. I didn't have other information that they were otherwise and was confused why you were discussing about urethanes.


A. Yes, you may be. The SF instructions say that it's pre-thinned. The usual sign of too-thick paint is orange peel, but that wasn't a problem for you.

B. More thinner normally accelerates drying; it doesn't slow it down.

C. Properly thinned automotive urethanes are dry to the touch in about two minutes, maybe less. But they require a clear-coat, and clear-coats take longer to cure.

D. Polishing? I assume you're using SF's "solvent-based acrylic basecoat," so it can't be polished. On the other hand, their "Gloss Acrylic Enamels" dry glossy and can be polished.


A. Right, they are pre-thinned and that was the approach I started out with.
B. Understood, but remember that self-leveling thinner actually slows down the curing time and it is the sole purpose.
C. That's excellent! This could be a big advantage. Unfortunately, I am bit hesitant to use "urethanes"... :(
D. Right, these paints require clearcoat.

To recap, your feedback is that the paint seems to be okay, but I may have applied too much. I think so too, I may try lighter coats and redo the test to see what I get.

But I may also play around with the adding more thinner just to see it makes anything better or worse.

Thanks for the clarification, it makes more sense now that what you are referring to.

Good. As you can see from a previous post, I speculated that Scale Finishes was following a business plan similar to Zero Paints': repackaging and supporting automotive urethanes in small bottles. My guess was wrong.

What is "roof"?

And you would agree that it was entertaining to look at. :smile:

Not so much, actually.

Seeing color saturation spots, I thought my first coat didn't cover enough?Fair enough. But from image #4 on, I can see glitches on the hood and fender. Just from the photos, they appear to be either fish-eyes or dust motes. Regardless, when they appeared, it was time to stop, let the coat cure, and sand out the glitches. Instead, you pressed on. See Tom's Tip about never trying to fix problems by adding more coats. That only works 1% of the time - bad odds.

The surface seem to be reacting quite badly. My guess was that the "pre-thinned" paint solvent was too strong. I could be wrong, but it didn't happen on my second test (roof) when I dilutted with modeling thinner.The solution to a chemical reaction is rarely more chemicals. I don't think you had a chemical reaction in the first place; I think you had a dirt problem. A chemical reaction usually appears as a pattern over a widespread area. Specks like those on the fender and hood are usually caused by dirt, or by water or grease or some chemical on or under the paint.

I have never had anything react badly with Tamiya Surface Primer. I would be very surprised if Scale Finishes cannot be used over Tam Primers.

...my post was all about lacquers. I assumed Scale Finish paints are lacquer based. I didn't have other information that they were otherwise and was confused why you were discussing about urethanes.I don't have any contrary information either, but I'm still not convinced that the Scale Finish paints are lacquers, especially in light of the fact that more and more places are outlawing them all the time. Solvent-borne acrylics, possibly. As I said, "solvent-based" could mean almost anything except water. Nail polish, for example.

Here's an idea: Why don't you ask SF what they are?

By the way, a paint that's soluble with lacquer thinner is not necessarily a lacquer. Enamels are one example. Urethanes are another. Waterborne acrylics are a third.

...remember that self-leveling thinner actually slows down the curing time and it is the sole purpose.

I can't remember what I never knew! I admit to complete ignorance on the subject of self-leveling thinners. Sounds like something you'd use with enamels to reduce orange peel.

Unfortunately, I am bit hesitant to use "urethanes"... :(Why? If your experiment is any indication, it seems to be a lot easier to get a good result with automotive urethanes.

To recap, your feedback is that the paint seems to be okay, but I may have applied too much. I think so too, I may try lighter coats and redo the test to see what I get.Not exactly. I'm still skeptical about the first point, especially in light of my excellent experiences with urethanes. Before conducting more "experiments," I think you need to make sure you're painting a clean, well-prepped surface.

But I may also play around with the adding more thinner just to see it makes anything better or worse.:eek2:


As I said, you have no indications that the pre-thinned paint is too thick. So why thin it more? The point, well, MY point, is not to "play around," but to get a consistently good result. The more variables you introduce, the deeper the mystery will become.

I believe Scale finishes paints are enamels.

Didymus,

I am beginning to think that you have not read the post I wrote throughly.

That is why we are having miscommunication. Maybe if I weren't putting the pictures, people would not have only look at the pictures and made their points?

I have stated the reason why I am doing this and the purpose behind the test.


What is "roof"?


Case in point...


Fair enough. But from image #4 on, I can see glitches on the hood and fender. Just from the photos, they appear to be either fish-eyes or dust motes. Regardless, when they appeared, it was time to stop, let the coat cure, and sand out the glitches. Instead, you pressed on. See Tom's Tip about never trying to fix problems by adding more coats. That only works 1% of the time - bad odds.


Another case in point... My objective is not make things pretty, but finding out any "surprises". And I was not trying to fix a mistake by adding more coats. Please re-read.

I might be able to do a closer shot for this and then you can judge again.


The solution to a chemical reaction is rarely more chemicals. I don't think you had a chemical reaction in the first place; I think you had a dirt problem.

The entire surface etched. I was pointing out the obvious areas, but the whole area was affected.

Here's an idea: Why don't you ask SF what they are?
I assumed lacquer and you assumed otherwise. Why don't you ask SF what they are?

Truthfully, my goal wasn't to find out the source of Scale Finish, but to apply and find out any surprises. I am positive you would know that if you read the post again.

...remember that self-leveling thinner actually slows down the curing time and it is the sole purpose.[/quote}

[QUOTE=Didymus;6117651]
I can't remember what I never knew! I admit to complete ignorance on the subject of self-leveling thinners. Sounds like something you'd use with enamels to reduce orange peel.

My turn to say:

:eek2:





[quote] Unfortunately, I am bit hesitant to use "urethanes"... :(

Why? If your experiment is any indication, it seems to be a lot easier to get a good result with automotive urethanes.


Please read my post.


As I said, you have no indications that the pre-thinned paint is too thick. So why thin it more? The point, well, MY point, is not to "play around," but to get a consistently good result. The more variables you introduce, the deeper the mystery will become.

Ok, I will indicate that the coat was not thick. The real reason why I was adding the thinner was stated. Please read.

Please read my post why I am doing this. Playing around is all about this exercise.

I understand your point and appreciate your feedback as to what you are trying to tell.

But to be honest, we seem to be going into pissing contest as whose knowledge is better.

We can continue to have additional conversations off line if you would like.

I rather not post these info using the common channel here where I don't think people will be benefitting anymore.

I believe Scale finishes paints are enamels.

Adding a new twist! :)

I think some of their line up is enamel based as stated in their web site.

I believe Scale finishes paints are enamels.

Thanks! That would explain a lot. Assuming, of course, that CifeNet was using those enamels, and not Scale Finishes' other line of paints.

Why doesn't someone just email the proprietor (Jameston) with whatever questions you may have? Just curious. He's quite a decent fellow to deal with.
sam-r350 UP.Browser/6.2.3.8 (GUI) MMP/2.0