Johnson Wax Klear Vs Pledge Multi-Surface Wax

[Guest]

Upon reading your posts and with the help of deduction science learned by studying the works of Sir A. Conan Doyle I by now have discovered the identity of the mysterious 16 bottle owner. Yet I will remain silent. I have tried a few brands of floor polish that contain polymers in their formula and they work fine. Be ware that you have to skillfully use the power of deduction science before you pick you subject and try something funny on your priceless model. I now settled for a certain Cobra floor polish made by Reckitt & Benckiser. It does the job for me and I even glue my canopies with it with great results. Just to say that there are plenty of options out there.

[Ian M]

Right then. All this twaddle about Klear, be it the old type or the new type. Is it really the only way to go? I have some of the new stuff and yes I do use it for dipping canopies. Did the idea of using klear as a clear varnish arise due to the lack of a viable alternative? Was it because it was cheap and readily available? These days there are many water-based acrylic varnishes to be found. Not as cheap, I will give you that but can do every thing that we expect of the floor polish. (Except the dipping bit maybe others have tried with better success than I had. maybe it just needed thinning down some more).

I cant say for the original as I came after that boat had sailed but I often find that with the new one, it is not as resistant to spirit base washes, and often absorbs some of the wash. This has happened a couple of times and on each occasion, it has had a couple of days to dry before the wash was applied.

"Proper" acrylic clear coats have not given be the same problem.

I guess the question is do we use these Johnsson products because they do what we need, or do we use them 'because ever body else does'?

As for the chap with 16 bottles, I think we all know who that was and good luck to him. If he can sell them for a tenner a bottle, well his hobby is self supporting for the next few months.

I don't think I will be needing any more soon. But then again it is very good for granit floors.....

Ian M

[Guest]

Phew this is hotting up makes things very interesting !

Found stashed away in my wife's cleaning cupd. a bottle of the original Klear (£250 any offers ?)

So asked wife to coat an old wing half with old & half with new Klear (not to take sides with new or old so to speak). Studied the result & found that the old Klear is just a fraction glossier & only just. The new one seemed to me more smooth. Also that the old is thicker than the new. Placed a decal roundel on each trial & no difference whatsoever. Interestingly my wife had coated thicker in places & the thicker parts were more glossy suggesting that two coats will be more glossy than one.

Note what you say on spirit washes Ian M & soon going to embark on my first "weather the model" project. After finishing the small number of models completed so far I have airbrushed either satin or matt varnish on completion. Surprised that you use washes on the Klear is that the nomal procedure ? I had thought it best on the varnish finish but have only the knowledge about weathering that I have read.

Laurie

[Guest]

Of course its not the only way to go, there are lots of alternatives, Lakeland do one thats been mentioned round and about the forums, obviously we now know that cobra floor polish, (new to me but maybe a pic of the bottle a supplier sources would be good for the folks interested?), theres another in a blue bottle i've seen but don't recall the name at present, it looks like the new Klear, it lists ingredients the same and I suspect that it'll do the same job.

The irony with the old stuff being so expensive when you see it is that the whole reason for using this stuff in the first place was that IT WAS CHEAP! it's a cheap thin acrylic gloss varnish perfect for a pre weathering / decalling coat, whereas now, it isn't and i'm baffled that some people are so convinced of it's mystical power they'll pay and average of £15 for a bottle.

Some people believe that if you wipe a Klear saturated rag over a 70's airfix warbird it transforms it into a current Tamiya 1/32 scale highly detailed warbird, i think, utterly insane.

If the stockpiler is who I think i'd happily buy one or maybe two bottles from him at a reasonable cost which would see me for a long time for my useage of it, the only reason for me as said is the perfumed smell, that aside i'm happy to use the new.

Personally I think what he should do is list them one after the other individually on ebay for £10 start price and rake in the money and laugh his pants off, if I had 16 bottles i'd offer say 6 on here to people you know would appreciate and flog the other ten on ebay to the highest moron, i mean bidder

Re the coats and glossiness Laurie, the more coats, the glossier the finish, (you can also flatten with Tamiya's flat base for those who like to use it as a finishing coat) 30% dead flat, 20% Satin, 10% Semi Gloss. One coat won't give a high gloss, two will be looking a nice glossy / semi gloss and three will get it nice and shiny, not had any issues with Turps based oil washes getting through it, i always let it cure 24 hours before washing or using decal solvents.

Re alternatives, Hannants own Xtracryl gloss, semi gloss and flat varnishes are great value, £3 ish a big bottle, thiins with water and is gloopy so very economical and the best bit is it dries in 15 min, I didn't believe it either but first try i touched it after 20, bone dry, i oil washed it after 30, not a single hiccup, excellent stuff and I tend to use this for my finishing varnish, not tried the flat and some say it's more satin than flat but the gloss and satin are great.

There is one thing and one thing only it's perfect for, dipping clear parts, i've not found anything else that does the job quite as well., canopies or lenses, dip, sit on kitchen roll to soak up excess and result is a super glossy see through bit, also makes painting of canopy frames better and easier to clean up edges, if you make a complete mess re dip the part and wipe the lot off and start again.

[Guest]

I once dipped a motorcycle fairing screen in Kleer and it worked beautifully however just about everything else I do is with Tamiya clear in the bottle. It's just simple to me!

[Guest]

I once dipped a motorcycle fairing screen in Kleer and it worked beautifully however just about everything else I do is with Tamiya clear in the bottle. It's just simple to me!

Was that dipped, brushed or AB, BB?

I never had much success brushing tamiya acryls including clear though they spray excellently.

[Ian M]

M1ks; You have understood my point. Why when there are so many alternatives, do people still pay silly money for a bottle of floor polish when there are a) cheaper floor polishes that do the same. b) "Proper" clear varnishes that are just as easy to use, just as thin and give the same or better results.

One thing baffles me still. Klear will remove clear, as we all know. Make a botch job and just dip it again to remove the first coat and then give it another go. How does it work when you give some thing two or three coats, to build up the shine? Does the first coat not get lifted by the next one???

Ian M

[Guest]

Was that dipped, brushed or AB, BB?I never had much success brushing tamiya acryls including clear though they spray excellently.

Smaller parts are brushed but larger surfaces I tend to use small spray cans. I'm just lazy and hate taking air brushes apart to clean them.

[Guest]

One thing baffles me still. Klear will remove clear, as we all know. Make a botch job and just dip it again to remove the first coat and then give it another go. How does it work when you give some thing two or three coats, to build up the shine? Does the first coat not get lifted by the next one???

Ian M

This only happens if you brush excessively, once the first coat has dried off you can brush on a second and as long as you swipe it on quickly and don't go over and over with the brush it won't lift, it has to have time to dissolve in itself, so with a canopy that's been messed up you'd have to dip and wipe.

Typically as it's so runny and self levelling you're only laying a quick thin second or third coat on it with brush or AB.

[stona]

Right then,all the answers are spread about the thread.

We started using Klear (Future for those across the pond) because it did the same thing as gloss acrylic varnishes much more cheaply. Buying a bottle for fifteen quid defeats the object of the exercise.

There are alternatives and the cheap ones include other acrylic floor polishes which various modellers have given a thumbs up to.

Many products that we put on our models,either by spray or by brush,will dissolve themselves and hence eventually remove themselves. For example any brush painter will be able to educate us on the pitfalls of "dragging" enamel paint about when applying subsequent coats. Klear or anything else needs to be thoroughly dried before re-coating.

The 16 bottle hoarder is a good friend of mine,Nigel a.k.a. Lampie,a managing editor of Aeroscale and P-47 authority. He had a "bit of a moment" when he heard that his beloved old formula Klear was to be discontinued and over reacted......slightly! If anyone is daft enough to offer fifteen quid for a bottle I'll have a word with him for them. His intention was not to profiteer or enhance his retirement fund but for silly money he would probably part with some of his stash. I've been asking him how he intends to live to be 250 since he revealed the stash to me. He's also one of the slowest model builders I know! It took him more than a year to build his superb Vintage Fighter Series 1/24 scale P-47.

There are lots of threads on forums all over the internet about Klear (Future) and I think this sometimes gives the impression that it is some kind of wonder product or panacea. It isn't,it's just a cheap and easy to apply gloss varnish. I love the stuff and will use it until my stash (only three bottles which is about ten years worth) runs out,however I'm open to silly offers. I know others who don't use it yet still produce great models,once again it's each to their own.

Cheers

Steve

[Guest]

Quite seriously steve, tell him to get at least ten of those bottles on ebay, i guarantee having watched several auctions in utter amazement he can't possibly get less than a tenner a bottle so theres an easy £100 for him there which would buy him a very very nice model or two.

Personally i'd struggle to use up 2 bottles in ten years but then I use it selectively, not on everything and i'm not a quick builder.

Johnson Klear wax 500ml unopened | eBay

Currently 6.59 over a day to go

Johnsons Klear Original Floor Polish, unopened, new | eBay

Currently 6.00, over 3 days left.

JOHNSONS KLEAR 500ML UN-OPENED, BRAND NEW | eBay

Sold listing, £23, yes really and this is an old and cloudy one.

Johnson KLEAR | eBay

Sold listing, £21

Johnsons Klear Original Floor Polish, unopened, new | eBay

Sold listing, another, £21

JOHNSONS KLEAR 500ML UN-OPENED, BRAND NEW | eBay

Sold listing, yet another, £23

I could go on but you get the idea. Show him these links or mug him, LOL

I'm going to add to this, £20+ for 500ml of gloss acryl varnish, what idiot thinks its worth this?

The hannants xtracryl comes in 100ml pots for £3.25 and thinned (water) will at least double that if not triple.

Y'know i'm half tempted to sell my 3/4 full bottle.

[stona]

Those links are a revelation! There is indeed a sucker born every minute. Maybe I'll nip round and burgle Nige's house!

Cheers

Steve

[Bugatti Fan]

I wish people would not refer to Klear as polish. It isn't.
Although when applied it leaves a nice shiny finish, it is a clear acrylic sealant, not a wax.

[Tim Marlow]

That thread is over ten years old Noel………they may not all be still listening

[BarryW]

LOL. I saw the title and wondered why people still go on about this and only realised it’s an 11 year old thread towards the end…..

For the record AK produced a product specifically designed for dipping and I am sure there are others. No need to worry about floor polish at all now…