Tru Color Paint


N

NH Mike

CEO & Wheel Cleaner
Fairly new in the hobby shops. It is a solvent based mix and they have several prototype colors including 5 for the New Haven which is part of what I model. TCP has its own thinner which is clearly said to be acetone and because I always had best results using thinner from the same maker I picked up some paint and a bottle of thinner. Directions indicate the paint can be sprayed directly without thinning starting at about 25 psi. I tried it and it wouldn't lay down smooth but somewhat grainy instead. Next I thinned it about 25%, better but not smooth so bumped to 30 psi with no change. Next I tried some application by brush and found it didn't spread very well and the brush dragged very quickly. About all I can figure is the acetone evaporates extremely fast. I am going to keep trying different ratios and even different thinners until I am satisfied. I'm not knocking the product and in fact the colors are very good. Just a little stumped in working with it after almost 40 years of spraying all sorts of hobby paints. If 30 psi won't atomize it correctly I don't see it to be a pressure problem when the paint is almost water thin. :confused:

Has anyone else tried TCP? How did it turn out?
 
I recently tried it on some SP&S engines I am making and was happy with it for the most part. I shot it strait from the bottle with out thinning it and it sprays fine at 20 PSI. The paint does not do well on a brush I found out as I had a few touch ups to make on some of the details. It did however dry up in my air brush as I was spraying it and had to clean it our half way through spraying 4 engines. Over all though its nice paint. I still prefer pollyscale but TCP has some nice accurate colors pollyscale does not have.
 
I started using TruColor paint when it first came out - about a year or so ago. I have just about the entire line on the shelf and have converted to using it almost exclusively.

The paint is an extremely fine grind - more so than any other paint I've ever used. I started by thinning it with their own thinner, but quickly converted to using straight acetone as I thought their thinner was a bit on the pricey side for what it was.

I've never been able to spray it straight from the bottle - way too heavy. I thin it almost 50:50 with acetone and it lays down smooth as can be ! The fine grind pigments cover extremely well, so even with this amount of thinning, it still covers well in a few coats. The finish is perfect for decalling as is.

The one drawback is the fact the acetone based carrier evaporates quickly in the bottle. According to the owner, all the bottles are full when packaged, but I have yet to purchase what I would call a "full" bottle - proof that the acetone carrier is gassing off in the bottle. Maybe right from the factory it would spray right out of the bottle, but not after it has sat on the shelf for a time. Once you get the hang of this paint, you will find it necessary to thin this paint much more than any other solvent paint you are accustomed to. Consistency of milk isn't quite right with this paint, you need to push more towards water.

You will also probably note that even after it has sat on the shelf for some time, the pigment does not separate from the carrier and settle to the bottom of the bottom - another testament to the extremely fine gring of the pigment. This fine grind gives much better coverage with less paint. I've even been able to paint lighter colors solidly over darker ones with minimal coats, which is a real advantage at times when it's easier to put the darker color down first.

In their entire color line, I've only experienced two colors which I thought to be incorrect (BCRail Blue and Alaska Blue - both too dark IMO). Absolutely love the stuff myself.


Mark.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Jeff & Mark: thanks for the feed back. It looks like you both have the same conclusion I have in that the thinner evaporates extremely fast. I too noticed the bottles less than what I would call full but initally wrote it off as leaving enough room for mixing without spillage. Agree that almost $5 for a bottle of thinner is pricey but for the first go around I thought it best to stick to the recipe of the paint maker.
 
TCP is the only thing I use now !!!!! one thing to cut your cost go to a beauty supply store and buy non-scented acetone by the gallon I pick up mine for about $20.00 a gallon.
Also on the dark colors you'll find that you may will need to shake the living day lights out of it and also thin it but thin it no more then six drops at a time,I swear by TCP now !!!

L
 
So will any solvent, ie petroleum based, thinners. It depends on the amount and the method of application. I've never damaged any plastic model with any solvent based paint or the solvent used for thinning.
 
Cjcrescent said:
...I've never damaged any plastic model with any solvent based paint or the solvent used for thinning.
Click to expand...

You must have never used original Floquil Dio-Sol from a few decades ago.:)
I forgot to put on Floquil "Barrier" protective coating before airbrushing a loco I was doing. Darn stuff ate the plastic right up.:mad:
 
Kisatchie said:
You must have never used original Floquil Dio-Sol from a few decades ago.:)
I forgot to put on Floquil "Barrier" protective coating before airbrushing a loco I was doing. Darn stuff ate the plastic right up.:mad:
Click to expand...

I began using the original Floquil with their Dio Sol thinner back in 1975 and never used barrier first. The trick I was taught was to spray on a couple of thin light drier coats first and let the Dio Sol "flash off" before continuing with heavier wetter coats. Never had it attack any plastic piece. Duplicolor automotive spray can touch up paint was a laquer and I used it many times when building model cars with no problem by applying it the same way. Everybody develops their own methods and techniques and sometimes we get lucky I guess. :)
 
Kisatchie said:
You must have never used original Floquil Dio-Sol from a few decades ago.:)
I forgot to put on Floquil "Barrier" protective coating before airbrushing a loco I was doing. Darn stuff ate the plastic right up.:mad:
Click to expand...

Actually, I've never used barrier on the old Floquil lacquer based paints. Spraying a plastic model with a solvent based paint, esp lacquer based, isn't difficult. You just have to use lighter coats to cover the plastic with. I still have a lot of the old Floquil, and use it quite often on plastic models.

As for Diosol, its a mixture of two regular thinners, with a couple of extra stuff in the 1-3% range. The thinners that make up the old Diosol is Tuolol, and Xylol. The same thinners used in Scalecoat's thinners, just in slightly different ratio's.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.



Back
Top