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Hey guys and gals. I have a question.

I would really like to give some minis from a small game I bought a brush-on protective coat, and I was wondering if any of the main paint brands' clear-coats would be a 'hard' enough product to use. I would normally think about spraying a gloss and then flat coat on, but the minis are single-casts and have a lot of nooks and crannies that it was hard to even get a good primer into, and I want good coverage of 'flat' over 'gloss', plus I don't really want to work with the sometimes-temperamental sprays for 10 figures, as I don't clear-coat any of my other minis.

I have easy access at my LGS to the whole Vallejo Game Color line, and I was thinking about giving them a coat of their acrylic Gloss varnish and then a coat of their Flat varnish to dull the shiny-ness. Would that give a hard enough protective coat?

I've also thought about GW's Ardcoat, but that is just Gloss so I'd still have to have a Flat to dull it. Would it give a harder coat than the Vallejo gloss, though?

Thanks for any help/suggestions

I have a friend who dips his in a clear polyurathane coating, then matte coats them.

I have heard of other guys who give them a coat of future floor polish, then matte coating.

I hit my guys with either a matte, or a gloss coat (on the minis I can) as long as it does not mess with the paint job....

I'm just looking for a non-spray alternative to a protective coat, as I don't want to deal with all the humidity/clouding issues, etc.

That's why something that can be brushed on in the traditional gloss-then-matte fashion would be great.

I use GW 'Ardcoat, followed by Vallejo Matte if necessary.

when using vallejo as a brush on (which is very possible) you dont need to put gloss under it first if you want a matte finish

A cheaper and no worse option are artists acrylic varnish.

I use Windsor and Newton Galleria matte varnish and Daler & Rownley gloss, both brush on and spray through an airbrush. I picked these up after seeing the FW chaps using them in their modelling masterclass book.

They also is Future floor polish but feth knows where to get that in the uk/Europe?

For toughness and clarity, I use humbrol matt. Well stirred its finish is flat and very tough. Its also very easy to brush on. You will have to use a dedicated brush though as its enamel and needs thinners to clean the brush. Its finish tough and is second to none. Acrylics tend to be to soft hence two coats also the flat never is really flat. Here's a fig coated in humbrol matt.

notprop wrote:A cheaper and no worse option are artists acrylic varnish.

I use Windsor and Newton Galleria matte varnish and Daler & Rownley gloss, both brush on and spray through an airbrush. I picked these up after seeing the FW chaps using them in their modelling masterclass book.

They also is Future floor polish but feth knows where to get that in the uk/Europe?

They changed the name to Pledge Klear a few years ago. You can get it at your supermarket. It will be somewhere on a bottem shelf out of sight, as they don't pay for it to be pushed mid shelf etc, in the floor and surface cleaning products. It's also usefull for carrying inks and washes. I find it much better for watering inks and washes down than water. It has millions of uses. It also make lino floors nice and shiny and makes your bathroom smell nice.

when using vallejo as a brush on (which is very possible) you dont need to put gloss under it first if you want a matte finish

I thought the whole point of the Gloss coat was because they are tougher than Matte varnishes?

Thanks for the input though. I already have some Vallejo Gloss Varnish, I use it to make my painted Eldar vehicle canopies still look shiny like glass. Maybe I'll just get some Matte and have a go.

If you want a matte finish use GW Lahmian medium. It dries matte clear coat. It can also be used to seal transfers and is EXCELLENT as a paint thinner to boot.

Deadshot wrote:If you want a matte finish use GW Lahmian medium. It dries matte clear coat. It can also be used to seal transfers and is EXCELLENT as a paint thinner to boot.

I would NOT do this. Lahmian medium is not a varnish or protective coating, it is an acrylic medium (literally paint without pigment) so it will have the same rub off effect that are you trying to stop by using a protective. It WILL dry matte, however like I said it has no greater longevity than a normal acrylic paint.

AegisGrimm wrote:

when using vallejo as a brush on (which is very possible) you dont need to put gloss under it first if you want a matte finish

I thought the whole point of the Gloss coat was because they are tougher than Matte varnishes?

Thanks for the input though. I already have some Vallejo Gloss Varnish, I use it to make my painted Eldar vehicle canopies still look shiny like glass. Maybe I'll just get some Matte and have a go.

Not entirely correct, while sometimes Gloss and Matte varnishes vary with their bonding properties, they don't really differ in terms of their strength or hardiness. The major difference between the two types is the finish that they provide at a micro level.

Essentially gloss varnish provides a flat or mirror like surface in which light will reflect in the same direction in a "normal" pattern providing the shiny glossy look. While a matte varnish covers the surface in a clear "rough" coating, which doesn't allow all the light to be reflected in the same direction but rather scattered in a multitude of directions.

If you want to double coat for protection there is very little to no difference between double coating with matte varnish as opposed to gloss and matte, you probably just save money on buying one product rather than two.

Ok, thanks. I now about all the types of finish, I just was always under the impression that Gloss coats had a harder surface than the others.

AegisGrimm wrote:Ok, thanks. I now about all the types of finish, I just was always under the impression that Gloss coats had a harder surface than the others.

Not to the point where it will make a notable difference on avoiding wear from use of the models.

Steve steveson wrote:

notprop wrote:A cheaper and no worse option are artists acrylic varnish.

I use Windsor and Newton Galleria matte varnish and Daler & Rownley gloss, both brush on and spray through an airbrush. I picked these up after seeing the FW chaps using them in their modelling masterclass book.

They also is Future floor polish but feth knows where to get that in the uk/Europe?

They changed the name to Pledge Klear a few years ago. You can get it at your supermarket. It will be somewhere on a bottem shelf out of sight, as they don't pay for it to be pushed mid shelf etc, in the floor and surface cleaning products. It's also usefull for carrying inks and washes. I find it much better for watering inks and washes down than water. It has millions of uses. It also make lino floors nice and shiny and makes your bathroom smell nice.

The Pledge stuff we have in the UK changed formula a few years ago and is not the same Klear as most people in the US post about.

notprop wrote:
The Pledge stuff we have in the UK changed formula a few years ago and is not the same Klear as most people in the US post about.

True. I didn't want to go in to the details, but, they did change the formula. Some people like the change some people hate it. Personaly I see no real diffrence and have not had any of the browning problems others say happen with it and quite like the new smell. For me it didn't make any real diffrence to it.

Winter wrote:
Not entirely correct, while sometimes Gloss and Matte varnishes vary with their bonding properties, they don't really differ in terms of their strength or hardiness. The major difference between the two types is the finish that they provide at a micro level.

Essentially gloss varnish provides a flat or mirror like surface in which light will reflect in the same direction in a "normal" pattern providing the shiny glossy look. While a matte varnish covers the surface in a clear "rough" coating, which doesn't allow all the light to be reflected in the same direction but rather scattered in a multitude of directions.

If you want to double coat for protection there is very little to no difference between double coating with matte varnish as opposed to gloss and matte, you probably just save money on buying one product rather than two.

thanks for explaining what i could not

As you have easy access to vallejo matte varnish, id just use that.

I'm throwing in another vote for futur floor polish, the stuff is amazing. Dirt cheap, dries hard, but thin, doesn't obscure details, and has a million and one uses. Spend much time in other modeling circles where they aren't being constantly catered to by expensive, specialist products and you will notice it is almost universally recommended, and has been for years.

Best of all, if you only apply 1-2 coats it dries like a matt finish. Apply more coats and you can get a beautiful gloss finish. Either way you suffer none of the clouding and detail loss you often get with specialist products like GWs 'purity seal'.

And yes, it brushes on beautifully.

I think I'll go with Vallejo's Matte varnish as I'll be right up near my LGS today (Although I live in the boonies of Michigan, so my "LGS" is 25 miles away, lol).

I tried the Gloss on a whim a month or so ago, and I love how easily and smoothly it paints on, as long as you put it on and then leave it alone, because it dries quicker than paint, so it's easy to streak it by using too many brushstrokes.

I like how they have a "Satin" varnish as well.

I did 2 coats of VMV on this guy: http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/456295.page

I went out to the local hardware store, and looked around the paint department. I was looking for a Clear Polyurethane finish (I found a water based finish by chance of luck) in High gloss (was looking to kill 2 birds w/ 1 stone, tyranid slime here...) that DOESN'T yellow.

After the clear coat, I then grab my rattle can of Krylon Matte finish and BAM! If you still don't want a rattlecan (for the crappy humidity), beside the high gloss clearcoat will also be clear matte (or at least satin. Yep, I bought a satin finish clear coat as well).

Good luck.