How to spray HOK Kustom Kolors?

[Smart-Resins]

Hello. I got in my HOK Kustom Kolor paints today. 10 bottles in all. I will be sraying these with my Paasche VL1007. I need to know, do I need to thin these down? If so, whats best. Also if so, what mixing ratio should I do. Also what base coats are good for these colors..

Pavo Purple

Metallic Blue

Transparent Gold

Transparent Persimmon,silver

turquoise

green

ultra orange.

Thanks. Jody

[Tommy Kortman]

Jody,

I have not shot the Kustom Kolors line yet. I had heard some back and forth comments. I'm sure someone here can tell you how to thin it. I have used their actual automotive line though, and I can honestly say they were a breeze to use. I bought mine pre-thinned from Black Gold through Slixx.

As for the base color question... I as assuming that these paints are similar to the HoK Shimirin line of pearls. For these you can use a base of white, silver, gold, and even black. Each will give you a different finished color. White and silver will give you a brighter final color, gold will make the same color "warmer". Part of the fun of painting with the Hok line is the fun of experimenting. Although if goes without saying (which is why I'm saying it), practice on a test piece before trying it on the real thing.

[Smart-Resins]

Thats what plastic sppons will be used for now! LOL. Thanks. Jody

[Karmodeler2]

Hey Jody,

Because you are using HOK, I will HIGHLY suggest you stay with their brand of reducer. It is RU-312. I recommend this one because like you, I live in the south and this will be the best one for you with the humidity. Because HOK is so unique, if you mix other brands, you could have disastrous results. I would recommend that you also pick up their book which shows numerous base coats and how they affect the final finish...it is worth it's weight in gold!! And they have an 80 page tech manual that covers EVERY base, primer, clear, color, candy, reducer that they carry and how to use their products effectively. IT is FREE...yes, FREE and I know that Coast airbrush has them. IF you buy the $50 book with all the colors, they can ship both to you at the same time. The book may sound expensive at first (and also later) but it is a very nice, hard bound 3 ring binder with the HOK Bird carved into the cover...it is really nice. And what I did, since it was a 3 ring binder, I put all my PPG sheets (they are free at car shows and they have the holes already for your notebook) and Dupont sheets (same) in their and now I have a really nice paint book with about every color you can imagine.

One thing that you will definitely want is the free tech manual. I use it all the time because I'm not about to memorize what products go with what bases and primers and it offers priceless info on how to paint (mix ratios, psi, flash, recoat, cut & buff) in general and the do's and don'ts. It has been most helpful and my modeling buddies have it and they feel the same way.

Good luck.

That site is: http://www.coastairbrush.com/categorypage.html

David

[Karmodeler2]

okay, you live in the NORTH...sorry....I was thinking of someone else. You might want the fast reducer, and not the slow.

Sorry!!

David

[Zoom Zoom]

okay, you live in the NORTH...sorry....I was thinking of someone else. You might want the fast reducer, and not the slow.

Sorry!!

David

Hey Dave, is this correct for the Kustom Kolor stuff? I thought that was a completely different animal than traditional (real) HOK paint. The Kustom Kolor stuff was Valspar "by the makers of HOK" paint with a strange formulation that some say was an acrylic enamel.

The Kustom Kolor stuff was discontinued. I've heard a lot of horror stories over the stuff. I never bought any of them, except for a couple cans of both kinds of clear when Wally World used to sell it.

Kustom Kolor Website

[4BKT VET]

Hey Dave, is this correct for the Kustom Kolor stuff? I thought that was a completely different animal than traditional (real) HOK paint. The Kustom Kolor stuff was Valspar "by the makers of HOK" paint with a strange formulation that some say was an acrylic enamel.

The Kustom Kolor stuff was discontinued. I've heard a lot of horror stories over the stuff. I never bought any of them, except for a couple cans of both kinds of clear when Wally World used to sell it.

Kustom Kolor Website

I found this when I went to the site...

"Effective immediately

Kustom Kolor products are no longer for sale. We apologize for the inconvenience."

[pstreet]

I thought that was a completely different animal than traditional (real) HOK paint. The Kustom Kolor stuff was Valspar "by the makers of HOK" paint with a strange formulation that some say was an acrylic enamel.

The Kustom Kolor stuff was discontinued. I've heard a lot of horror stories over the stuff. I never bought any of them, except for a couple cans of both kinds of clear when Wally World used to sell it.

I picked up a bunch of the Valspar HOK product after it was put on clearance at walmart.

The paint out of the jars isn't bad, I couldn't find the proper reducer so i just cut it with xylene for my airbrush. In hindsight i think the cans need to be decanted though. i ran into more than a few faulty cans, that either didnt have proper pressure or bad tips. probably from people playing with them in the store.

[Brian Fishburn]

I've used the Kustom Kolors stuff from Stuff-Mart, and have had no problems.

Yes, I thin it before AB'ing it, but I use the famous (infamous?) "Norbie method," so I thin EVERYTHING.

And I'm sure that some will disagree with me on this, and probably with good reason, but I thin it with my standard poison- cheap Autozone lacquer thinner. Someone may give good reasons not to do this, and they may be 100% correct, but I am also 100% correct when I say that it works fine for me.

Here's some KK Pavo Purple, with HOK clear from Black Gold. It's over Plasticote gray primer. All shot through a 175 Badger, and all thinned with the same cheap lacquer thinner.

[Smart-Resins]

Thank you guys for the responses. karmodeler2, I did use to live in TN, but we moved to NY last August for family reasons. I will have to get the tech book for sure! The $50 book is too much to swallow since I am unemployed right now! I did not know they stopped selling them! I picked mine up cheap from a online buddy. Thanks. Jody

[Karmodeler2]

Hey Dave, is this correct for the Kustom Kolor stuff? I thought that was a completely different animal than traditional (real) HOK paint. The Kustom Kolor stuff was Valspar "by the makers of HOK" paint with a strange formulation that some say was an acrylic enamel.

The Kustom Kolor stuff was discontinued. I've heard a lot of horror stories over the stuff. I never bought any of them, except for a couple cans of both kinds of clear when Wally World used to sell it.

Kustom Kolor Website

Hey Bob,

I guess I was not reading correctly, but you are right. I thought he was using the traditional HOK and not something else. I,too, have used Kustom Kolor and had some weird things happen, and it was upsetting, since I really loved the color. I shot it out of my AB and it turned into little strings that floated all over the model room...it was actually drying before it hit the model. I used lacquer thinner and it laid down fine.

I do want to add to Brian's comments about lacquer thinner. He's right about using it in everything. I use it in all paints except water base ones, but don't tell anyone. And I use the cheap stuff. I also use it with the Model Master(MM) line from testors. I get a gallon of it and it's cheaper per volume than that little black $10 can of airbrush thinner they sell for their MM paints. It works great. (And that little can is a mix of mineral spirits and lacquer thinner..but don't tell anyone)

I keep my lacquer thinner in a squeeze bottle (just like ketchup or mustard) next to my desk and when I'm ready to paint, I put paint in my air brush cup, put in a little lacquer thinner, and then cover the end of the gun with my finger and push down and pull back to force air in backwards in the cup and mix the thinner and paint. Do this VERY carefully the first time so you don't end up with a face full of paint!!! (only works with a double action..and maybe only Paasche)

David

[Brian Fishburn]

Jody, sorry to hear that you moved away from TN!! What part? As soon as we can sell our house, we're moving to Eastern Tennessee. Not Knox county, but one of the surrounding counties, preferrably Union County.

[Zoom Zoom]

I do want to add to Brian's comments about lacquer thinner. He's right about using it in everything. I use it in all paints except water base ones, but don't tell anyone. And I use the cheap stuff. I also use it with the Model Master(MM) line from testors. I get a gallon of it and it's cheaper per volume than that little black $10 can of airbrush thinner they sell for their MM paints. It works great. (And that little can is a mix of mineral spirits and lacquer thinner..but don't tell anyone)

I keep my lacquer thinner in a squeeze bottle (just like ketchup or mustard) next to my desk and when I'm ready to paint, I put paint in my air brush cup, put in a little lacquer thinner, and then cover the end of the gun with my finger and push down and pull back to force air in backwards in the cup and mix the thinner and paint. Do this VERY carefully the first time so you don't end up with a face full of paint!!! (only works with a double action..and maybe only Paasche)

David

I've been using lacquer thinner for enamels since the early '80's. Henry Gonzales, the guy that painted all the models for the Testors Model Master line and the car colors clued me into using it instead of Testors thinner, and he also clued me into using Flexigrit sandpaper and Bare Metal Foil polish to polish out enamels the same way I would polish out the automotive lacquers back then. Nowadays I rarely use enamels, but using lacquer thinner w/them and a dehydrator sure made them a lot easier to deal with.

And did you know that you can usually thin Tamiya aqueous acrylics with lacquer thinner? It does work...usually. Jim Drew mentioned that one time. And it's also a good airbrush cleaner for everything.

[Smart-Resins]

Thank you guys very much! Someone had mentions mixing it 50/50 with laquar thinner. So I will start out with that. Can I assume using Dupli-color automotive primer under it is fine? Also, we had lived in Seveirville ( seveire county) It was great the 2 years we lived there. Sure do miss themountains and some of the cheap prices like on gas. I guess the trade off is cooler summers and milk for a $1.65 a gallon! LOL. No hobby town or habby lobby here though!! Jody

[nitrojunkie]

The custom color is a different line made by valspar and not HOK they won't mix with HOK stuff with good results.I learned the hard way.If you need to reduce further Lacquer thinner would probably work best.I use the actual HOK stuff.I buy it from the local auto body supply house in 4 oz squeeze bottles made for airbrush use.I reduce with RU 311 mostly but I'm in the Charlotte area you may need a faster or slower reducer depending on temp and humidity.I reduce 1 part paint to 2 parts reducer for airbrush use this is the recomended ratio for airbrushing.The tech book says 2:1 that is for a full size spray gun.

Bob; I couldnt agree more with the lacquer thinner for airbrush clean up thats all I use in mine and have never had a problem.I noticed back when I used enamel that thinning with lacquer thinner enhanced the gloss tremendously.

Edited July 7, 2009 by nitrojunkie

[samdiego]

I was told that the stuff was a urathane (sp). I've thinned mine with a standard auto type thinner. It's definitely different. I found it to be rather resistant to running, but the colors are very transparent so light coats are a must. it does flow out nicely and rubs out well too.

[pharr7226]

I've used Kustom Kolor thinner and reducer, both recommended by KK, and cheap lacquer thinner. The recommended thinner, I don't remember the no., is slow drying and gives a good gloss finish. The thinner is also used for brush painting due to the slow drying time. You should not use Kustom Kolor brand REDUCER coats over KK brand THINNED paint because it will craze. Also, don't apply the KK clear over KK THINNED paint... it will craze. Apparently, the KK Reducer and Clear are hotter than the thinner. You can get a great finish if you know what to use and what not to use. I suggest Krylon Crystal Clear, an acrylic, for your clear coats to avoid compatibility issues.