Tamiya and semigloss range

[Marcel]

Hello.
Does anybody know why Tamiya has only a small semigloss range in their colors? Is ther a way to mix them to a semigloss shine? When I take a semigloss clear coat it don't work over gloss colors. Any Tips and hints?

Marcel

[SteveNoble]

You can get some matting agent that you add to the gloss colours and it will give you a semi-gloss or matt finish depending on how much you add. It's called Tamiya X-21 Flat Base..

[tubegenius]

Be aware that X-21 is, as the name suggests, a base to mix with other colors. I found out the hard way that it is not flat clear, as I brushed some over a seat belt decal. I had used gloss clear under the decal to make it adhere better, then X-21 to restore the flat finish. It turned milky white as it dried. I should have used XF-86 Flat Clear for that job. Oops.

[Marcel]

Yes, that could be a solution i thought about, mix x-21 flat base in the wanted color. But at which ratio? What happen when I mix aflat with agloss color?
I think I don't come arround try and error.

Marcel

[accuracing]

Hi (Bonsoir)

Recommended ratio for flat base additive is 10% to 15% for semi gloss, 30 % for flat finish. More than that will be unnecessary.

Mix well the added flat base to avoid white spots on your painted surface.

Using XF-86 is also a good alternative. It is basically the equivalent of Tamiya clear with some flat base in it .

Cheers!

[CK]

Hi Marcel,

There is no quick way. If you are using Tamiya paints that have both gloss and matt in the same color, 1:1 ratio usually gives you a good semigloss result. However, semigloss is a very loose term. So experiment with the ratio of two paints or use the flat agent. I have a bottle of Tamiya flat agent for over 20 years and only use half of it. Be sure test the mixed paint on a plastic spoon or scrap pieces before on your subject. Too much flat agent will turn white even with color paints.

[dr_gn]

I've used Tamiya Flat Base, and found it very tricky to get the mixture right, plus, if you want a consistent sheen over a lot of parts painted at different times, getting the same mix is pretty much impossible. As others have said, even mixed with clearcoats (Tamiya or Klear) I sometimes got the dreaded white residue. Far easier to paint the base colour and overcoat with Tamiya Semi Gloss Clear IMO.

[Marcel]

Thank you all that is good inspiration to test arround with different possibilities