"clouded varnish" Topic

Wouldn't you know it Just as I put the finishing touches on my British Para Platoon. 2in mortar team #2 decided to cloud up and go white on me. I tried the hair dryer to no avail. Here goes nothing 200 deg. F. in the oven 30 minutes. I have no idea if it will work here is to a hope and a prayer. I am all ears if someone has a better idea…..I just finished a German (Heer) panzer Grenadier platoon and the Para. I was going to show them off to my game group tomorrow. Read the post about varnish recovery. Called my buddy Mike who is a better modeler than I am. He said try the over too.

I don't use varnish.

I used to hate that, till a friend put me on to Xtracolor XDFF matt varnish!

Had that happen before. Just gloss varnish and retry the Matt varnish. Future floor works too

Second the gloss varnish. Cleared many a model aircraft canopy that way.

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These guys reckon they have the answer

I use artist's matt and haven't had the problem – only with Testors.

I sorted the porblem with a second dose of varnish, but made sure that the figures and the varnish (stuck the tin under my jumper for half an hour while computer-bashing) and the room where I was spraying were all warm.

Well The oven didn't work. Since I painted with Acrylics I tried some thinner on the figures. While the thinner was wet everything looked good . Then the evil clouds returned. Then I tried some thinner and a re-spray of gloss coat. When things started to dry. White again, damn. So now after being frantic I broke out the scotch.(For me) tried a little thinner ( on the figures) and I will keep at them little by little. I will also take advice on stripping them back to bare metal . I can always repaint them after all I did it once. Thanks

Only happened to me once with testers dullcote. Nothing and I mean nothing worked. I had to repaint. Never could figure why it happened in the first place. I tossed the dullcote. Luckily it has never happened again.

Use hair spray it is a great sealer and dries flat.
I had some go cloudy from bad dullcoat spray and it worked fine.
Cheap Aquanet extra hold in the aerosol spray can.
This is before
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And after

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Ok I think My basement was a little cold and I should have left more drying time on the paint before dullcoat. Half a dozen times I worked on the figures with thinner. then I used a thin coat of airbrush thinner and dull coated them. I may have some touch up,verdict is still out. Also must keep them warm but not heated up too quickly. I will keep you posted.

Simple Green (in the US) to strip if you have to. Non-toxic.

I only use Testor's Dullcoat.

Future to regloss, and then Dullcoat again will fix it for sure. Never had it happen to miniatures honestly, only to flags.

What brand? And I am currently living in an incredibly cold loft apartment, and spacing out any overlapping paints by 24 hours helps. The same for varnishes and overcoats. The Liquitex matte medium that I use recommends 48-72 hours of curing time for the underlayers before applying. And Liquitex goes on white but dries clear.

I use testors dull coat, I was rushing to get done, the basement was a little on the cold side and I didn't allow for enough dry time for the paint. I think those are the main causes.i never had a problem with dullcoat before.

Two products I will never use again due to numerous bad experiences:

Testors Dullcote (both spray and brush on) – and yeah I know 99% of people seem to love this stuff.

Humbrol Matt Cote – there just aren't enough spare hours in a lifetime to stir this stuff properly.

These days I use Revell Aqua Color Clear Matt.

Second the waive-off on Humbrol Matte Coat. Avoid!

I have never had a problem with Testors Dull Cote for many many years. If you follow the directions, particularly avoid the cold and humidity you should not have problems.

Also, thoroughly dry your figures (wait at least 72hours before the dull cote) particularly if you re using enamels as they give of small amounts of fumes that will fog the finish.

As has been said for your present situation, gloss coat… then dry …then dull cote. Good luck

Humbrol Matt vanish avoid like the plague it has turned any Timecast building I painted white a light yellow over time(good shade for the light yellow Russians paint some buildings, but not for German churches !!!), and will now have to repaint 12 plus buildings sometime this year. Their latest creation turned two 1/300th Hawker Typhoons completely grey, I tried the gloss vanish route, it only turned half of the matt vanish clear. So I have swapped to Windsor and Newton acrylic varnishes, the bonus is they are cheaper here in the UK £7.00 GBP for 125ml for the same amount of Humbrol I would pay over £16.00 GBP-, so far no problems.

Humbrol Matt vanish avoid like the plague it has turned any Timecast building I painted white a light yellow over time…

Humbrol Matt vanish (in the tinlet) is notorious for yellowing. Not sure whether that got worse during the made-in-China era, but best to avoid.

So I have swapped to Windsor and Newton acrylic varnishes…

If you are using acrylic varnish, you could also give Revell Aqua Color Clear Matt a try. It is inexpensive and, if required, it can be thinned with a drop of tap water. It is also self-levelling.

Final report. I used a light coat of airbrush thinner,when the haze disappeared , I then applied some warmed up dull coat (in warm not hot water) . I also opened up my basements vents warming up the room. I set the figures aside to dry in a warmer area without applying direct heat. Drank another scotch and went to sleep on the matter. In the morning the figures had dried 95-97% better than they had been. I did a little bit of touch up and then re sprayed with dullcoat. Figures saved. Thankyou for the tips and information. There is definitely a learning curve here.