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Hey! I'm looking to get my Water Transfers to not be so shiny, but I don't really want to cover the entire model in a Matte Finish since other parts are meant to be shiny. I'm having a heck of a time finding any good/recommended brush on Matte Varnish, can anyone point me in the right direction? Thank you!

You can get a gloss coat to brush on. I use Testors brand which can be found at hobby shops (the places that carry planes and military/car plastic models).

ZatGuy wrote:You can get a gloss coat to brush on. I use Testors brand which can be found at hobby shops (the places that carry planes and military/car plastic models).

Wouldn't a gloss coat still keep the Water Transfer looking...shiny?

Gloss, transfer, gloss, matt. That order. There's a decal help thread going on. For a brush-on Matt, use an artist's one - I like WIndsor & Newton Galleria Acrylic Matt Varnish. Mostly I airbrush it, but it paints on fine thinned a bit, with a drop of flow improver.

Err, yes. I was thinking about the " don't really want to cover the entire model in a Matte Finish since other parts are meant to be shiny"

In that case brush on just enough matte to cover the decal, if you get any excess you can reapply the gloss.

It's usually better to hand paint on gloss rather than matt. The reason is the gloss goes on shiny and stays shiny so you can see where you've effectively varnished. Gloss varnishes also tend to self-level a lot better than matt (which are 'thicker' due to the matting agent in them). Not to mention that there's usually fewer shiny areas than matt.

winterdyne wrote:It's usually better to hand paint on gloss rather than matt. The reason is the gloss goes on shiny and stays shiny so you can see where you've effectively varnished. Gloss varnishes also tend to self-level a lot better than matt (which are 'thicker' due to the matting agent in them). Not to mention that there's usually fewer shiny areas than matt.

So are you saying to not to matte at all or just to do it after using gloss?

For general use I spray the matt over the whole model, then gloss anything that needs it by hand. Generally this is just metal surfaces, eyes, lenses, teeth etc.

For heavy gaming use I gloss the whole model, then matt the whole model to kill the shine, then gloss by hand as before.

If decalling, any surface to get decals is glossed before they go on. If there are a lot, I'll gloss the whole model. This is done before weathering, oil washes etc. Sometimes there may be 5 or more layers of gloss going on a model in places.

Obviously, you wouldn't spray matt a model that's mostly gloss (but very few are).

for brush on varnish i use Vallejo...
their brush on primer is good as well...
when you live in the tropics, like i do, sprays are way too unredictable...
i also use the airbrush metals...

varnish, primer, and air metals are the three best Valljo products, in my opinion...

good luck with your decals...
i hate those buggers...
makes freehand seem like less hassle...

cheers
jah