Tamiya paint drying time and other questions

[Chris1992]

Hi guys! So I've just sprayed the body of my current project with Tamiya TS-14, and over all I'm reasonably happy with the finish, although it has some slight eggshell. 

I'm planning on spraying it with a couple coats of TS-13 clear, and then flatting and polishing it, but I have a few queries.

Firstly, should I flat the colour coat before spraying the clear to remove the eggshell? Or will this ruin it? Secondly, how long should I wait before spraying the clear? I have heard horror stories from people who sprayed the clear the next day, and then experienced cracking due to a difference in drying times. The Tamiya site suggests up to a week, but others have told me to wait up to a month! Has anyone used these paints before and could maybe offer some advice? 

Thanks

Chris

[MrObsessive]

Chris, this is my own personal opinion, but I'm of the big belief that solid colors need no clear coat to come out nice. There's enough hardener in the paint that if you spend the time to rub out and polish the paint, clear coat is wholly unnecessary.

Some will disagree, but that's how I've been doing paint jobs for many years now. Metallic paint yes........solid colors, no clear coat.

As far as the drying time...........that's a tough one as it'll depend on the climate you're experiencing right now. I tend to wait about a week before doing any rubbing out and polishing. Some may say that's a bit long, but my rule of thumb is if you can no longer smell the paint, then it should be sufficiently dry.

Hope all this helps!

 

[Chris1992]

Chris, this is my own personal opinion, but I'm of the big belief that solid colors need no clear coat to come out nice. There's enough hardener in the paint that if you spend the time to rub out and polish the paint, clear coat is wholly unnecessary.

Some will disagree, but that's how I've been doing paint jobs for many years now. Metallic paint yes........solid colors, no clear coat.

As far as the drying time...........that's a tough one as it'll depend on the climate you're experiencing right now. I tend to wait about a week before doing any rubbing out and polishing. Some may say that's a bit long, but my rule of thumb is if you can no longer smell the paint, then it should be sufficiently dry.

Hope all this helps!

 

That's some great advice, thanks very much! I had considered simply polishing the solid colour, but all the tutorials I've watched used clear, although come to think of it, they were all metallic colours too, so it makes sense! lol.

I'd rather be safe than sorry, so I'll definitely give it lots of time before pressing on with rubbing an polishing. 

Thanks again! 

[MrObsessive]

Just to show an example of clear vs. no clear........

This Magnum was clear coated due to the metallic paint.

This Impala was rubbed out as the red is solid. BTW, I use Meguiar's Car Cleaner Wax and a chamois cloth for all of my polishing. For the rubbing out portion, I'll use Detail Master's polishing cloths--------3600-12,000 grit...........then polish out.

[AC Norton]

Hi guys! So I've just sprayed the body of my current project with Tamiya TS-14, and over all I'm reasonably happy with the finish, although it has some slight eggshell. 

I'm planning on spraying it with a couple coats of TS-13 clear, and then flatting and polishing it, but I have a few queries.

Firstly, should I flat the colour coat before spraying the clear to remove the eggshell? Or will this ruin it? Secondly, how long should I wait before spraying the clear? I have heard horror stories from people who sprayed the clear the next day, and then experienced cracking due to a difference in drying times. The Tamiya site suggests up to a week, but others have told me to wait up to a month! Has anyone used these paints before and could maybe offer some advice? 

Thanks

Chris

Everyone has a different method and approach, however I have used Tamiya spray now for 20 years plus on bodies and other areas, so here is what I do. Spray your color on until the desired effect is achieved,,,,, then, let the car dry for between 2 and 5 hours depending on humidity level. Hopefully low humidity will then allow you to spray your clear on at this point, spraying until you are pleased with the overall look. If it dries without any ripple or imperfections, then a light polish will be all that's required. If not, let the clear dry about 24 hours, then using your favorite polish/wax rub out until your happy. I have no camera to show you my results, but most times I can clear using Tamiya clear and not need to polish heavily later at all. I find that a couple of light coats sprayed on a couple of minutes apart, then drying up for 10-15 minutes, finished by a couple of heavy clear coats gives me the effect I like, but as stated earlier, everyone does things in their own way....hope this helps, and, oh, the Tamiya clear pearl coat is very nice too for the right project.......the Ace....

[ChrisBcritter]

 and, oh, the Tamiya clear pearl coat is very nice too for the right project.......the Ace....

Could you elaborate on that a bit? I've been wondering if that clear pearl would give a solid color a scale metallic effect. Also, could it be sprayed over thoroughly cured enamel?

[AC Norton]

Could you elaborate on that a bit? I've been wondering if that clear pearl would give a solid color a scale metallic effect. Also, could it be sprayed over thoroughly cured enamel?

I've never tried it over enamel, so you will have to try it on something as a test run first. As for solid color coverage, the effect it has varies greatly depending on the solid color, so once again,  a test run on something is essential. I personally like the results, especially on oranges and reds, and I find over some heavy metallic colors the look is quite nice, with a custom flare to it.....do the spoon test...get some cheap plastic picnic spoons and blow a variety of colors on them, then clear them to check the results. the Ace...

[moparfarmer]

I find when polishing one of the most important things is the rag..Use only flannel, not t-shirts or stuff like that..It will leave fine scratches..I also use Meguiar's Cleaner or Scratch X 2.0 which I think has just a bit more abrasive..Then finish off with Meguiar's Gold Class paste..No I don't work for Meguiar's but have used their products on my 1:1s and models for about 30 years..Best you can get,bar none...

[ZTony8]

The Tamiya lacquers will NOT work over an enamel! Personal experience here.

Yes, the clear pearl over a solid color looks great.

Ace, you seem to apply TS-13 sooner than has been recommended. Have you experienced any of the infamous cracking for which TS-13 is famous?

 

Edited July 7, 2017 by ZTony8

[maltsr]

The Tamiya lacquers will NOT work over an enamel! Personal experience here.

Yes, the clear pearl over a solid color looks great.

Ace, you seem to apply TS-13 sooner than has been recommended. Have you experienced any of the infamous cracking for which TS-13 is famous?

 

I use a similar method to Ace, and haven't experienced any cracking after several years.  I've also applied clear gloss as my final colour wetcoat!

Edited July 7, 2017 by maltsr

[AC Norton]

The Tamiya lacquers will NOT work over an enamel! Personal experience here.

Yes, the clear pearl over a solid color looks great.

Ace, you seem to apply TS-13 sooner than has been recommended. Have you experienced any of the infamous cracking for which TS-13 is famous?

 

No, not once thru many years of using this spray almost exclusively....the one and only time I had an issue was back in 1995 were I cleared a yellow plastic Fujimi Porsche in humidity higher than I should have, and when drying some areas went slightly ' sugary' or  speckled a touch. Once dried out for several hours, I simply polished with some compound, followed by waxing and they were gone. Guess what I'm saying is that Tamiya sprays are loved by those of us that have learned the tricks about them, but many builders have commented they don't care for them because their result wasn't what they expected. Its all practice and the luck of the draw....I love their sprays....the Ace....

[Art Anderson]

Chris, this is my own personal opinion, but I'm of the big belief that solid colors need no clear coat to come out nice. There's enough hardener in the paint that if you spend the time to rub out and polish the paint, clear coat is wholly unnecessary.

Some will disagree, but that's how I've been doing paint jobs for many years now. Metallic paint yes........solid colors, no clear coat.

As far as the drying time...........that's a tough one as it'll depend on the climate you're experiencing right now. I tend to wait about a week before doing any rubbing out and polishing. Some may say that's a bit long, but my rule of thumb is if you can no longer smell the paint, then it should be sufficiently dry.

Hope all this helps!

 

Or, do what I do--use a food dehydrator, which will dry Tamiya lacquers click-hard in about 2 hrs--then, polish it out.

Art

[Chris1992]

Thanks for the help guys!! Really appreciate it. I shall take everything on board