# Tru-Color Paints



## golfermd (Apr 19, 2013)

Does anyone have any experience with these acrylic paints? Do they require thinning for an airbrush? :dunno:


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## Gansett (Apr 8, 2011)

No experience but here's their web site. Says its designed to be air brushed with no thinning required.
http://www.trucolorpaint.com/


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## golfermd (Apr 19, 2013)

Thanks, Jack. I had called them about a few months back about using it straight from the bottle. They said the minimum pressure is around 28 psi to get it through the airbrush. I didn't know of anyone who has any experience using them.


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## MRLdave (Nov 1, 2011)

I haven't run any through my good airbrush.........my cheap brush has been adequate for the couple of projects I've used the TC paint on, but I'm not using 28+ psi. More like 20-22psi. I HAVE noticed the paint doesn't flow till the upper end of the range when I spray so it might be a bit thick, but I haven't thinned it yet.


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## Gansett (Apr 8, 2011)

They say its designed to be air brushed with no thinning required. Yet they do sell thinner.


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## golfermd (Apr 19, 2013)

JackC said:


> ...Yet they do sell thinner.


:laugh: :laugh:

I just put some Teflon tape on all the threaded connectors and am now getting a little over 40psi. My system is a Badger Storm compressor with moisture trap and pressure regulator, and a Badger 360 airbrush.


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## daveh219 (Sep 16, 2012)

Golfer...you could always thin to maybe 50-50 mix and try it. then work up from there. Harder to do it you go full 100%


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## golfermd (Apr 19, 2013)

I ran it straight out of the bottle yesterday. At 42psi it sprayed great. The problem comes with cleanup. It's kind of a slimy, gloppy consistency and doesn't clean easily. I am probably going to have to run a few of the airbrush parts through an ultrasonic cycle to break it up.


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## Mark R. (Jan 26, 2013)

I've used Tru-Color paints exclusively ever since they came out. Have well over sixty bottles and absolutely love the way they cover and the great finish.

Spray straight from the bottle though ? - not a chance. Tru-Color paints are acetone based and thin just fine using regular acetone from the hardware store. To get it to spray really nice, you have to thin it more than you are accustomed to with other paints. I've sprayed a good solid white or yellow over black in two coats - amazing coverage with little build-up.

Unlike pigment type paints, Tru-Color is more of a dye based paint much like printer's inks. The real beauty is that you don't get pigments settling out of the paint in the bottle. Also, your thinned paint can be put right back into the bottle with no adverse effects. Opened bottles may get "stiff" over time - just add some more acetone and good as new.

Not sure why the above poster got his "gloppy" mess - never experienced that myself. (?) If you tried thinning it with anything but acetone (or their own thinner) it could cause problems. Clean up with laquer thinners is a breeze.

Mark.
_Roach Custom Painting_


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## Mark R. (Jan 26, 2013)

golfermd said:


> Does anyone have any experience with these acrylic paints? Do they require thinning for an airbrush? :dunno:


Maybe I should have verified this first ....

Are you referring to Tru-Color Paint, or True-Line Paint ? Tru-Color is an acetone based finish, where-as True-Line is an acrylic paint ....

http://www.trucolorpaint.com/

http://www.truelinetrains.ca/paint-accessories/paints

Mark.
_Roach Custom Painting_


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## golfermd (Apr 19, 2013)

Mark, it's Tru-Color. I now have several bottles. Thanks for the acetone suggestion. I've been using PollyScale paints until now. With the discontinuation of that line I've had to look elsewhere. Yeah, gloppy. It's rather difficult to describe its consistency because it's like no other paint that I've ever used. :laugh: What ratio do you use for thinning?


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## Mark R. (Jan 26, 2013)

What have you been using to thin it ?

As for the ratio - it's a sliding curve really. If you got a bottle right off the production line, you could probably shoot it straight out of the bottle. Unfortunately, the acetone based carrier in the paint continually gases off (the plastic bottles don't help - they need to use glass, but that would increase the cost no doubt). The paint never really goes bad, but the longer it sits, the stiffer it gets. I've gotten paint from the store that appears to be half empty only because the solvent has gassed off. If you get a bottle that is less than full when new- immediately top it off with acetone and you will be back to factory consistency.

This paint actually works better if it's thinned too much as opposed to not enough. If you can't push a smooth wet coat across the surface, you need to add more thinner. This paint kicks off fast, so the extra thinner will help keep it a bit "wetter" so you can get you overlaps to blend easily. It took me a bit to get used to the proper thinning ratio. I was accustomed to the old "thin to a milk consistency" .... you need to go beyond that with this paint for a smooth finish.


Mark.
_Roach Custom Painting_


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