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hey all, just a quick question to the more venerable hobbyists than myself, what would you recommend for a good clear coat that a) is durable and reliable and b)doesn't take away from the original paint job/ make it waaaay to shiny. I'm looking to preserve my Iron Warrior Army seeing as it gets a lot of play time. thanks in advance!

Hey there Heinrich. My super-secret method of varnishing my models is Johnson's Klear floor polish. I believe it has a different name in the US. It's super-hard, but super-shiny. SO, I use a little artists Matt varnish from the craft store. It's cheap, but it's hella effective.

Tek's got a great idea there, if a little labor intensive. A nice gloss coat will give the model hard protection from scrapes and falls while a matte coat cuts the gloss and shine to a more manageable level. I'm pretty careful with my models for the most part and get by with 2-3 coats of a matte sealant, Krylon by brand.

I do a heavy coat of Krylon gloss varnish (they call it Crystal Clear), and then a second coat of Kyrlon matte varnish to get rid of the shiny-ness. It works really well.

This is the gloss:
Krylon Acrylic Crystal Clear Spray Coating-6 Ounces


And the matte:
Krylon 1311 Matte Finish Spray for Artists

i havent used other brands, but i have had some good success with the GW stuff.. Just brush on light coats of gloss, then spray over with a thin coat of the matte varnish.

Yep, Krylon is the one I hear of most often. Rarely heard anything bad about it.

Albino Squirrel wrote:I do a heavy coat of Krylon gloss varnish (they call it Crystal Clear), and then a second coat of Kyrlon matte varnish to get rid of the shiny-ness. It works really well.

This is the gloss:
Krylon Acrylic Crystal Clear Spray Coating-6 Ounces


And the matte:
Krylon 1311 Matte Finish Spray for Artists

gotcha well I'll see about getting some of this, do you think Lowes or Walmart might carry it? or am I going to have to order it.

Testors dull coat, cheap, effective nad readily available.....I used it all the time when I did models professionaly.

Ashton

Another vote for Krylon here. Walmart carries it, which is a huge advantage over dullcote in addition to the price.

Wal Mart definitely carries Krylon spray paint, but not always the full line. I'm not sure if they carry the gloss and matte varnish. But definitely worth a look, because Wal Mart sells the Krylon spraypaints pretty cheap. Not sure about Lowes. If you have an Ace Hardware nearby, I think they carry all the Kryon spray paints.

Incidentally, the Krylon Primer also works really well, and is much cheaper than the GW brand. Comes in white, black, grey, and brown.

Albino Squirrel wrote:Wal Mart definitely carries Krylon spray paint, but not always the full line. I'm not sure if they carry the gloss and matte varnish. But definitely worth a look, because Wal Mart sells the Krylon spraypaints pretty cheap. Not sure about Lowes. If you have an Ace Hardware nearby, I think they carry all the Kryon spray paints.

Incidentally, the Krylon Primer also works really well, and is much cheaper than the GW brand. Comes in white, black, grey, and brown.

awesome, I'll have to check that out. as far as the primer I'll keep that in mind, I've just started a new army using army painter and I have to say I'm rather impressed with the result and it is worth the price tag IMHO.

dullcote from Testors is flatter that Krylon, but the Krylon is more readily available.

I'm still looking for something that is ultra ultra flat. I don't care about glossy protection first, then flat... I just want flat, and I mean FLAT finish...

I have some Vallejo spray gloss coat and some matte coat. I haven't had a chance to use them yet. They also make a semi-gloss spray. Anyone have any experience with these products?

 Brother Heinrich wrote:
hey all, just a quick question to the more venerable hobbyists than myself, what would you recommend for a good clear coat that a) is durable and reliable and b)doesn't take away from the original paint job/ make it waaaay to shiny. I'm looking to preserve my Iron Warrior Army seeing as it gets a lot of play time. thanks in advance!

This thread is eight years old, please don't necro old threads. Dullcote is always my go too brand though I prefer to gloss varnish first.