Painting on a budget

Owen E Oulton · Post by **Owen E Oulton** » Mon Jan 25, 2010 11:35 pm

Well, I finally solved the age-old problem of how to get an acceptable gloss finish on a model car. I'm not looking to get a flawless show-room finish on a show-car, just a good-looking finish on a regular day-today driver. Finally I got an acceptable strategy. I lost my airbrush during the move, and I wasn't very good with it anyway. However, I found that using a good flat rattlecan paint, and going over it with a gloss coat I found at Zellers (sort of a Canadian K-Mart) I can get a decent effect. Testors Intermediate Blue really pops with this gloss-coat. It's KG Excel Patio Clear rated for metal or wood. It doesn't caze plastic or enamels, so long as you let them dry fully (label says 72 hours, but I find I can get by with 24 hours over Testors).

Andrew Gorman · Post by **Andrew Gorman** » Mon Jan 25, 2010 11:51 pm

That's how it works on painted furniture! You can give your gloss coat a rubdown with toothpaste or rottenstone, and follow that up with a coat of carnuba floor wax for even more of a shine. Flat paints just cover and look better.

Apollo Adama · Post by **Apollo Adama** » Sun Jan 31, 2010 4:31 am

Indeed. You can even use Future to finish it.