airbrushing error !

[Guest]

I've messed up, feeling pretty p***ed off with myself.

I tried enamel for the first time today (decanted from a can) ... tested on some plastic, seemed to spray ok, then went to the model.. ok for a bit, and then !! was getting a surface finish looking like coarse sandpaper.

What did I do wrong? apart from not test on the test plastic for long enough

thanks

[Guest]

Hi Mark

I would suggest that you were spraying too far away from the model, or it could be spitting due to too little pressure and a thick mix.

[aaron]

mark can we get a pic of the offending can you decanted from also a pic of the effect it had on the model.some info about what psi you sprayed how far away etc

[Guest]

Sorry to hear of your misfortune, problem with decanted paint is , it really needs 48+( small amounts,eg 20 ml ) hours to de-gas, if the gas is still present when you airbrush, then it will splutter, and just shoot blobbed paint( its only when it dries do you see the pebble effect), and most spray paint tins dont contain any retarder, due to the pressure it gets delivered at from the tin, the high pressure gets the paint to the surface quickly, before it starts to dry.

[Guest]

cheers Ray

I had left the paint for over a day and it did seem as if the propellant had gone, but I will leave it longer if I try this again

Whilst spraying though, it didn't splutter or anything (not visible to me anyway), it's just that, all of a sudden, the surface looked sort of furry, or like suede. I don't know if it's relevant, but the paint I decanted is Model Master Olive Drab FS34087. From the can this sprays nicely (although I wonder if it is too green).

I did wonder if my mistake was trying to put too much paint down in one go, but I appreciate there's so many variables to control when spraying, so I must practice more

Am going to do some test spraying of non-decanted enamels and see what I learn from that.

thanks for responses, but I think it's really a case of learning by trying.

cheers

Mark

[Guest]

Its a common mistake to try and get all the paint down in one pass.....maybe try light passes, give it time to dry then a few more light passes, try and build the paint up in many light layers, and I hope that helps you sort your problem out.

When you left the paint to de-gas, did you leave the lid ajar, to help let the gas escape...also, when you think its de-gassed, just put your hand around the jar, and see if it bubbles, then give it a swish around in the jar, then loosen the lid slowly, and listen for the gas escaping....

Good luck mate, and I hope you have success.