Gloss vs Satin Clearcoats

[Mike_C]

At the risk of being branded a heretic, was curious on opinions of gloss versus satin clearcoats. 
 

On customs and show cars I understand wanting the 3 foot thick gloss clear coat appearance.  It may not be fully prototypically correct, but it looks “right.”

The question arises on replica stock, commercial, and (for me) racing vehicles. For some reason, throwing a high gloss clear coat on such vehicles just doesn’t look “right.”  Most of the time, clean replica stock, commercial, and race vehicles seem to look more prototypically correct with a satin or high semigloss finish. I understand that this may not win contests over the high gloss painted vehicles.

Just curious to hear the opinions of others.

Thanks!

Mike

 

[slusher]

I like satin satin on some older cars and some commercial cars…

[peteski]

I thought the paints were made in gloss, semi-gloss, satin, and flat.  I would think that semi-gloss would be more appropriate for a pedestrian vehicle than satin.

Semi-gloss is shiny, but not mirror-smooth like gloss.

[NOBLNG]

This is Mr. Hobby semi gloss rattle canned.

 

Edited June 20, 2024 by NOBLNG

[slusher]

That’s sharp Greg!

[bobss396]

8 hours ago, NOBLNG said:

This is Mr. Hobby semi gloss rattle canned.

 

I used that over some Tamiya Flat Red and it also looks great.

[StevenGuthmiller]

I've always had the same opinion that very often, raw high gloss paint jobs can look too reflective in 1/25th scale, making the model look toy like, or as I sometimes describe it, giving it the "hard candy" look, which unless it's supposed to be a very high end custom show car, looks entirely out of place.

This is part of the reason why I have avoided the 2K clear craze that we find ourselves in.

To my eye, raw super high gloss clear is just too much for most genres of model cars.

This is why I still continue to use clear lacquers, followed by cutting and polishing.

 

I know nothing about the science of it, but it's my opinion that the polishing process not only removes any orange peel or other blemishes, giving you a perfectly smooth surface, but it also has the tendency to mute the over the top, or dipped in paint shine that you often get with some paints or clears straight from the can.

I understand that a lot of people don't want to take the time to go through that process, but in my view, it's the absolute best way to achieve a showroom type shine without it looking like a toy, and after all, realism is the ultimate goal.

 

My opinion on using a satin or matte finish to replicate a factory stock type of finish is that it would be far too flat.

Much like what I feel is the completely misguided opinion that most stock vehicles have orange peel in the paint, and therefore orange peel on the model is acceptable, or that the heavy texture of masking tape for a vinyl top looks correct on a model, I often feel as if we as modelers put too much emphasis on textures, which in turn has an adverse affect on the realism of the model.

We sometimes forget that everything we do on a 1/25th scale model should 25 times smaller than the actual article, making the orange peel theory, or the use of masking tape texture on a vinyl top wholly inaccurate.

 

With that said, The polishing process will go a long way towards giving you a glossy and reflective factory stock type finish without going overboard.

As I said, I know nothing of the science of this, but my assumption is that sanding and polishing, while affording a smooth and reflective finish, also adds microscopic scratches and swirls, much like a real car would have, that has a tendency to mildly reduce that reflectivity without making it dull.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steve

[Hi-Po]

I totally agree with everything that Steve has said.  When I build factory stock (daily driver), I strive to achieve the same look that Steve presents with his builds, which are absolutely beautiful.

[rattle can man]

perfect, high gloss is for show cars. in reality, Daily use will take away from that perfect shine Paint fades, oxidizes, and scratches, dulling the appearance. race cars, heavy equipment and commercial vehicles will be lucky to get a wash. so think about what your subject is 

What bothers me is overdoing polishing and weathering. Examples exist for both, but reality is somewhere in the middle. The majority of the time, minor scratches, texture/ orange peel, (I totally get that texture looks out of place if it isn't in scale and should be polished out) i and sometimes slightly mismatched paint (either from the factory or a repair) are common. Even two of the same color cars next to each other might be slightly different shades.

[Tom Geiger]

I'm not a shiny car guy.  As said, regular cars as seen in town aren't all that shiny.  There are also degrees of shine, look at the differences between brightwork shine.  Bumpers, aluminum trim and later bumpers were more like steel than chrome.  My models reflect this. I just hate when people BMF all the trim and then pile 10 coats of gloss coat over the entire car.  Heck, the shine level on the paint and bumpers both have their own levels of reflectivity.

Back in the day there was a guy who built NASCAR models.  He did rather well at contests, but he put the decals on the car and then added those 10 coats of gloss and polished the whole thing to look like fine jewelry.  It certainly didn't represent any racer I saw!

[Claude Thibodeau]

Hi!

I like smooth shiny paint finishes as much as the next guy, but sometimes, just for the sake of building something different, a satin top coat may have a distinctive effect on the table.

Here are two very different colors, both covered with Modelmaster Metalizer Sealer, via airbrush, straight from the bottle. The bike is Modelmaster burnt iron, the TBird Tamya's metallic gold. 

Varietey is said to be the spice of life... 

CT