Thinning Enamels

[Tojo72]

Quick simple one,will hardware store lacquer thinner effectively thin enamels like Modelmaster and Testors,I have decent supply of these paints,but almost out of Testors Universal Thinner.I know I can get Mineral Spirits,but will LT or Mr Leveling Thinner work

[tcoat]

I use normal old varsol for most Modelmaster enamels. Lacquer thinner will work with some but can turn others to jelly. Can also be a bit aggressive on some plastic.

[kyledehart5]

I use Mr Color leveling thinner with all of my enamels. Haven’t had an issue yet but that doesn’t mean I won’t run into one down the road.

[stikpusher]

Mar 10, 2024 14:59:58 GMT -5 Tojo72 said:

Quick simple one,will hardware store lacquer thinner effectively thin enamels like Modelmaster and Testors,I have decent supply of these paints,but almost out of Testors Universal Thinner.I know I can get Mineral Spirits,but will LT or Mr Leveling Thinner work

Yes it will. It won't be quite as nice as the Testors Universal Enamel Airbrush Thinner, but it works well enough. It tends to work better with flats than gloss paints. I recently tried the Mr Levelling Thinner with enamel paint, and while it did work, lacquer thinner was superior in my experience.

[mz3]

The only thing I use to thin enamels is generic hardware store lacquer thinner.

[keavdog]

Yep, for enamels I like hardware store lacquer thinner - years of success with Tstors, Humbrol and more recently Revells new line. For Tamiya - I use isopropyl alcohol. Mr color - their leveling thinner.

[fox]

I use Jasco odorless paint thinner on all my enamels with no problems.

Stay safe.
Jim 

[eaglecash867]

My observations are the same for lacquer thinner with flat versus gloss paints. Lacquer thinner worked well enough with flat Testors enamels, but with gloss I got much better results using the Testors thinner. YMMV.

[Tobi]

You should also check the plastic and, if used in an airbrush, the effect on the rubber sealing (which will only show in a long term).