Hi

I am fairly new to auto modeling but I am experiencing a problem with Tamiya paint. I have been using it to airbrush the bodyshell of my Nissan 350Z.

When i apply the paint, it dries with crystals in it: giving it a bumpy and rough feel .

Obviously, I want a high gloss effect for bodyshells, but Tamiya paint fails to give me that. Although it is not matt, it is no-where near as glossy as I would like it to be.

So here I ask this question "what is the best gloss paint for body shells?"

I am thinking of looking at revell aqua mix but i do not know if it is good or not.

Also, i would like it to be an acrylic paint for me to airbrush.

All help will be appreciated.

Jake Kilshaw

all you need to do is clearcoat it, the tamiya paint are more than fine.

you can simply use krylon crystal clear, or more pricey auto paint clear. no need to really airbrush because most time you would wet sand and polish anyway so laying on perfect isn't important so spray bombs work fine

What paint are you using from Tamiya? The ones that come in the bottle and you are thinning it to put through your airbrush? If it is, what are you using to thin it? As it sounds like it is partially drying before it hits the kit. I had the same problem when I was using straight alcohol to thin Tamiya Acrylics, I switched to Tamiya's Acrylic thinner and it worked wonders.

I personally don't use Tamiya anymore, preferring Vallejo for my military kits, and use either the Testors or Tamiya lacquer from their spray cans for cars (decanted into a bottle and then sprayed through the airbrush for better control), but each person has their own preference.

For a clear coat....there are a few in acrylic, but something you might want to try is a Future Floor Wax (might be called Johnson's Floor Wax where you are) it is essentially a clear gloss acrylic, spray it straight through your airbrush, windex to clean it up. Can be purchased at your local Supermarket/Grocery Store in the cleaning section.

Hi James and Scott,

Thanks for your replies. I have been using isoprop as thinner so that may be the problem. I will buy some tamiya thinners and give that a go.

Jake Kilshaw

I use windex to thin tamiya. you can also add in a drop or two of future.