A lot has happened in the world of model paint in recent months. Here are some of the planned changes:

Badger has sold Accuflex to Testors who will market it unchanged, except that it will be in glass bottles. Badger will issue a new product called "Model Flex".

Scalecoat will continue with their existing solvent based paint since getting approval from the E.P.A. to do so.

Floquil has a new water based product just out, called "Polly Scale". I tried some and like it fine.

Polly Scale comes in the 1 ounce glass bottles Floquil has used for many years, but with new labels. Price is about $2.50 which makes it the lowest cost water based paint. They have an assortment of railroad colors, but I haven't seen a list of colors yet.

Polly Scale is different from the other water based hobby paints - because it is solvent based - you can't get more different than that! According to the label it contains solvents and is flammable, but it thins and cleans up with water. Odor Is very low, on a par with Accuflex though different. You have to really sniff to find any, and you won't notice any during or after spraying. Shake the bottle before using, but it doesn't appear to separate and settle like most paints. The real treat is when you spray it. It sprays fine from the bottle, or you can thin up to 10% with water. It sprays smooth and even, without clogging the nozzle or spitting chunks of color onto the surface. It sprays like solvent based, not water based. Spray pressures are low, about 10 to 15 lb. with a Paasche double action. It doesn't dry and clog when you stop spraying. You still need to avoid too much wet paint causing runs but lighter spraying is much easier. It dries fast like Accuflex, ready to coat again in a few minutes.

Polly Scale gives a very smooth low gloss surface. It takes decals well, but you may prefer a higher gloss for decalling. Adding high gloss water based varnish, like I do for Accuflex, gives a shiny surface. Add 1/2 oz. of varnish to 1 oz. of Polly Scale. Once added, even the varnish doesn't settle out like with Accuflex. It looks like Floqull has learned from the problems with Accuflex and has made a much befter product for the modeler's use. Give It a try when you find it, you won't be disappointed.

Rusty Spike Vol 25 #4 Summer 1995

I was once asked where to get empty bottles to thin paint or mix colors of the modeling paints, especially if you're just starting out. You can sometimes find empty bottles for sale with the paint, but rarely. There is another way, which is easy. Instead of buying the larger cans of thinner all the time, get several small bottles of thinner, pour the thinner into something else safe for storage, and you have a supply of clean, empty bottles.

You can clean out the bottles containing paint after they're empty if you have a real need, but you'll invest time, effort, and a fair amount of thinner when you do. Be sure to clean the inside of the lid and the inner liner also, or the lid won't seal properly. It's much easier to buy the bottles of thinner.

Avoid trying to use small plastic bottles that drugstore items come in to store paint or thinner! Most of these are now hard plastic instead of glass, and the thinner in paint will soften them and come right through. You'll have a mess and a ruined batch of paint. Be sure to use only glass bottles (or cans) for paint. (We won't discuss how I made that great discovery.)

There is one thing you can do to get the true color of the model paint each time. Yellow, red and orange are very transparent, and will be affected greatly by the color of the surface. Sprayed on black, they will be dark and show variations even after many coats. A good way around this is to paint the surface white, which has good hiding ability, then apply the final color. It gives a much better color with much less paint. If you want a little variation from one car to the next, like a string of yellow reefers, paint one car white, the next light gray, and another silver. Then paint them all with the final color and each will be uniform but a slightly different shade.

Rusty Spike Vol 31 #4 Sep-Oct 2001

Several methods have been suggested over the years for matching a paint separation line to a decal stripe when it is a complex curve such as a Santa Fe "Warbonnet". Most involve tracing a plastic or paper pattern from the decal and tracing that on the masking tape, etc. Fortunately, modern technology can make life a little easier for the modeler.

Get a piece of adhesive backed plain paper, such as Avery label #8165 which they call an "8 1/2 x 11 inch label". Blank stock for bumper stickers will also work, which can be found at some copy shops like PIP. Take your decals and the adhesive paper to a copier, or shop, and copy the decals onto the paper. Make several copies to allow for mistakes. Cut out along the curved decal line with scissors and leave extra paper on the side away from the cut for strength. Mark or keep track of the pieces for right and left sides of the model.

Tape over the area on the model to be masked, and a little beyond to allow for trimming. Peel the paper off the back of the pattern and apply to the tape on the model. Press lightly to allow for alignment or repositioning. When it is lined up to suit you, rub it down firmly so it sticks firmly to the tape.

Use a sharp hobby knife to cut along the edge of the pattern, cutting the tape. Peel off the extra tape and the paper pattern. Rub down the tape along the cut line with the end of the knife handle or burnisher. This will seal down the cut tape edge and on plastic will close the groove left by cutting. After painting and peeling the tape, you'll find the separation line exactly matches the decal line.

Rusty Spike Vol 26 # 2 Mar-Apr 1996