I found this link on Hyperscale last year when the whole Tamiya paint availability scare was at a frenzy (well, on line it seemed like a frenzy). I was getting low on thinner so wanted to see if somebody had figured out what the stuff was made of.
I found four choices to work from:
- Denatured Alcohol. 32 oz = $ 17 at your local hardware store.
- 91% Isopropyl Alcohol with a few drops of retarder. 16 oz = $3.99.
- mix 5 parts 70% Isopropyl Alcohol with 2 parts 99% Isopropyl Alcohol to achieve 91%; plus a few drops of retarder (why mix if you find it straight?)
- 32 oz 91% + 16 oz 70% + 10 oz lacquer thinner + 2 drops of retarder.
All of these came from the same poster, Mike Witous, on Hyperscale. A fifth option is to use lacquer thinner straight; some modelers swear by it.
I did a sample paint of all 5 using a new jar of XF-24 Dark Gray, plus a control shot using the remnants of my Tamiya X-20A.
All 4 options were comparable to the X-20A, with #4 actually coming out a bit better in terms of flow control and using straight lacquer thinner the worst.
- DA: Okay in a pinch and not appreciably different than using the cheaper 91%.
- 91%: Okay in a pinch but not quite as good as X-20A.
- 91% Mix: I didn’t mix it…
- Recipe: I was actually able to get a tight line and coverage was good, better than X-20A.
- Lacquer: Too “hot” in that the paint obviously started breaking down in the cup. While it works, it seemed to require some finesse to keep the paint from drying before it hit the plastic.
So for about $25 you can make 58 oz of Tamiya Thinner; if you buy the 3/4 oz jars at $2 each…you do the math!
Thanks for reading.
Thanks for reading.