Klear'ly my inexperience

[Adrian "Marvel" Reynolds]

I'm lucky to have been given a bottle of Klear last year and have tried to use it on my builds with varying success, so I'm in need of advice,

I've lowered the pressure to different points including 10 and 15 psi and yet I still either get a semi gloss coat or stippled coverage. My only success seems to come from brushing it on and then sometimes it takes a couple of coats to look as glossy as I see on many of your builds, so where am I going wrong?

Adrian

 

[spanner570]

Ade, I have the 'new' Klear and I brush it on. I'm probably wrong, but I don't see why the finish needs to be glossy, I only use one coat and that is semi- matt, but enough to prevent silvering.

I don't use the stuff enough to make a diffinitive comment, the above is just my own take on it. I'll leave that to folks who use it regularily....

Ron

 

[tecdes]

Used Klear Adrain, about 4 times, found that Airbrushing was not an option for me. Was horrible & seemed to lose any gloss it had. Brushing was the easiest.

Not sure what you are using Klear for. Decal/de silvering or a gloss finish for your model.

If you want to Airbrush use a varnish such as Vallejo Varnish. I use it for de silvering & model finish. This comes in matt (and it is very matt & flat), Satin & Gloss. They are perfect for airbrushing. One bit of advise clean out your airbrush if you use Vallejo (cannot advise on other makes) Varnish immediately with Vallejo airbrush cleaner or you will find great problems fall right on your napper. Especially the nozzle otherwise it will be like little white squeege worms squeezed out of the end with a reamer to clean it.

Laurie

PS for de/silvering coat before applying the decals use gloss varnish.

 

[Adrian "Marvel" Reynolds]

Used Klear Adrain, about 4 times, found that Airbrushing was not an option for me. Was horrible & seemed to lose any gloss it had. Brushing was the easiest.Not sure what you are using Klear for. Decal/de silvering or a gloss finish for your model.

If you want to Airbrush use a varnish such as Vallejo Varnish. I use it for de silvering & model finish. This comes in matt (and it is very matt & flat), Satin & Gloss. They are perfect for airbrushing. One bit of advise clean out your airbrush if you use Vallejo (cannot advise on other makes) Varnish immediately with Vallejo airbrush cleaner or you will find great problems fall right on your napper. Especially the nozzle otherwise it will be like little white squeege worms squeezed out of the end with a reamer to clean it.

Laurie

PS for de/silvering coat before applying the decals use gloss varnish.

Yeah it was to hide the decals, I just bought some Vallejo gloss from Johns shop, but no cleaner

 

[Dave W]

I apply Klear with a brush.Just one coat and it always looks horrible.But the decals go on without silvering.Then a couple of coats of Vallejo matt varnish and it looks perfect.

 

[Adrian "Marvel" Reynolds]

Do you guys just brush Klear on the areas the decals will be going, or all over the model?

 

[tecdes]

Do you guys just brush Klear on the areas the decals will be going, or all over the model?

You may get away with it Ade. However if you do not & it shows up after the finished varnish coat bet you will be very mad. My advice do the whole thing. For another 5 minutes you are in the safety zone instead of the possibility messing up your model.

Laurie

Lets face it Klear only costs £50 a bottle now !

 

[m1ks]

It's really only 'good' for dipping clear parts and canopies.

It's OK for pre decal application, a couple of brushed coats is fine to prevent silvering, you really need to dry it overnight to make sure it's ok and cover it while drying, it's a dust magnet, more so than standard paint and varnish.

For quicker more consistent results Xtracrylics gloss varnish is unbeatable and as cheap if not cheaper than 'rare old formula for only £25+ on auction sites' (new formula works the same BTW for £3.50 from Morrisons), Xtracrylics do a semi and matte varnish too, big bottles 300ml, cheap, thin with water to (at least) double the quantity, airbrushes well and completely dry in 15 minutes flat, (i've oil washed and decalled onto it after 20 min with no problems, flush AB through with plenty of warm water then clean with IPA as for acrylic paint)

Video on Klear here for info on use and misinformation you'll likely have had.

[video=youtube;k6dXkL6CwGY]

 

[m1ks]

Video on thorough airbrush cleaning process here.

 

[yak face]

Youre not doing anything wrong Adrian , thats how a lot of people (including myself) use it. I find brushing is easiest and just one coat doesnt give a gloss finish , more like a semi matt , but this is enough to seal the paintwork and give a good base for the decals. Once its had 24 hr to dry (keeping it covered as mike says )all i do with the decals is to paint a little klear where the decal is to go then lay it straight on to this wet coat, then just leave it - it will dry down fine and usually settles in to any detail without resorting to decal solvents. Once its had another 24 hrs drying , just give it the final finish coat , wheter its matt,satin,gloss , whatever. cheers tony

 

[tecdes]

Tony noted you use wet Klear as the medium to place the decal on. What happens when the Klear starts to dry & you have not finished with the decal do you add Klear over the decal & surrounding area ?

Laurie

 

[AVB99]

I bought two bottles of orginal Klear a couple of years ago and, apart from dipping, I cannot get on with it. Am thinkig about putting the unopened bottle on ebay but I'm not sure I can be that unethical by making such a huge profit. I paid £5 each for them.

Aidan

 

[CDW]

I'm not sure I can be that unethical by making such a huge profit.

If £30-40 quid (or whatever it is) is the accepted price and some idiot will pay it and be happy with his purchase ...... go for it Aiden ... there's nothing unethical about it if both parties are happy with the transaction.

As for the debate concerning pros and cons of Klear, can't comment as i haven't used it on models..... i've always been happy with just using cheap hairspray (which is acrylic laquer) and warm soapy water for decals

But now i've worked out what all this expensive "decal sol /set stuff" is i've tried adding a drop of softener (lenor) which helps more than you'd think, and a drop of vineger seems to "chemically" prepare the decal film itself.

Worth a try if nothing else

 

[tecdes]

Always a chance to multi task here Colin. Found that Vinegar is also good with fish & chips providing it is good quantities !

Laurie

 

[yak face]

Tony noted you use wet Klear as the medium to place the decal on. What happens when the Klear starts to dry & you have not finished with the decal do you add Klear over the decal & surrounding area ?Laurie

Precisely that laurie, if the decal is an awkward one and takes a bit of time i just keep slightly wetting it with a bit more klear or a drop of water , and when im satisfied its in the right position go over the decal with another coat of klear then leave to dry , cheers tony

 

[AVB99]

Always a chance to multi task here Colin. Found that Vinegar is also good with fish & chips providing it is good quantities !Laurie

I hope the vinegar goes only on the chips Laurie. Where I come from, vinegar on the fish is considered a sin!

Aidan