Vallejo Gloss Varnish

[Adrian "Marvel" Reynolds]

Hi all,

just a quick question, what do I use to thin the gloss and matt varnish so I can spray it, it says water on the label will that be ok and give good results?

Adrian

[Guest]

Vallejo does thin with water or any standard alcohol based thinners though sometimes I have had issues using Tamiya thinners but not every time. If in doubt, water works reasonably well. I would not thin the varnish too much though but make sure you shake the bottle far more than you may do with paint.

[Guest]

Adrian use Vallejo thinners. It has acrylic in it so you will not lose so much gloss as with water.

Best to use un-thinned if possible. Thinning gloss will make it more like satin varnish. I use a .4 needle as I found the .2 gets clogged.

Warning strip your airbrush right down immediately after use & give it a thorough clean especially the needle end & nozzle.

If you do not expect BIG problems. Take note as this warning will be deleted in 2050.

Laurie

[Guest]

I use windscreen washer fluid, meths and surgical spirit with no issue, both for acrylic paint and varnish. As said above, if you have an airbrush that will handle it, only thin it minimally.

HTH

Stuart

[Vaughan]

I go along with Laurie and Stuart on this one thin as little as possible, with Vallejo thinners, and clean that airbrush as soon as.

Vaughan

[Guest]

I only have a .3 needle. Will it work unthinned with that please?

Aidan

[Guest]

Aidan :guilty:got it right.

Try it. But practice first. I would experiment with increasing the pressure for varnish.

Probably not so much it will not work but perhaps drying in the nozzle drying area. I tend with varnish to work as quickly as possible to avoid problems. Bit of retarder added may help.

In the end it is a matter of finding your own technique to suit the materials used & the airbrush. Found that not easy to begin with but I soon got a reasonable idea. After 2.5 years still surprising myself with what you can do with an airbrush. One difficulty with model making you are only using the airbrush intermittently & days go by or weeks where you may not use it so experience is long learned.

Laurie

[Guest]

Also keep a swab with thinners on it, as you increase the pressure, it increases the chances of the varnish drying on the tip. periodically wipe the tip with the swab....

Stuart

[Vaughan]

.3 and .5 will work Aidan I sometimes add a drop or two of vallejo thinners if I'm using the .3, but as Laurie said and in my experience too once you start spraying keep going as it does start to dry out in the cup. I haven't found increasing the pressure helps I normally run at between 15-20 psi with no problems, see what works for you, you just have to experiment.

Vaughan

[Guest]

Laurie, Stuart and Vaughan. Many thanks for the tips. That's this evening's work planned.

Am most grateful.

Aidan

[Guest]

Odd!

I have been practicing the Valllejo gloss on a couple of old wings and had polished these up a treat. I used the Vallejo Gloss Varnish after a very long shake (that's the varnish, not me!) and with airbrush pressure of 18. Sprayed on no bother but it's left a matt coat! Cannot understand it! Then, yes, as soon as I'd finished, the airbrush clogged so I quickly stripped it down and gave it a good cleam. But a matt finish?

Aidan

[Guest]

Need a couple of coats Aidan at least depending on the gloss depth.

Make sure you are in a room with a reasonable temp & dryish atmosphere as dampness & low temperatures will drag the varnish down to matt.

Laurie

[Guest]

Ah! Thanks Laurie!

Aidan

[Guest]

I'm having problems with the gloss varnish. It's patchy on my test bits and I daren't risk it!

I'm wondering. The gloss paint finish, which I've polished, is great. Do I need to add a varnish, assuming the model will not be touched? Will it fade or tarnish?

Thanks as always

Aidan

[Guest]

Aidan you will be lucky not to touch your finished model. They get dust on them & need cleaning from time to time.

Varnish (Here come the Klears) is about the only thing which will protect a model be it matt satin or gloss.

With a polished surface your problem is that the varnish may not look that polished as the bare surface & may have some minor imperfections.

Not sure if you can polish gloss varnish not tried it.

Laurie