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Hi everyone!

Seeing how some metal models of mine got the occasional chip of paint lost, I've been thinking about coating them in some sort of varnish. From what I read between the lines there are different types of clear protective coating, providing different effects.
A search in the tutorials section didn't yield any results so I'd love to ask whether you could give me a short overview on what you can get and what it's good for. I know of GW's 'ardcoat, but as it's never mentioned here, I guess that is not one of the prime choices..?

I really like the look of vallejo satin varnish(thinned down with vallejo airbrush thinner), applied with an airbrush. It creates a very smooth and nice finish. You can add some gloss varnish on gems or lences with a brush and get a very cool result.
If you don't have an airbrush, you can use a large brush, like a washing brush and apply it that way. You just have to water the satin varnish down a bit and it will work, too.
Another varnish i like, is the old gw matt varnish. It's pretty thick, but with some water it works pretty good.

Vellejo makes 2 good varnishes. Matte and Satin would be my choice for that finish. I would try Pledge Future/ Kleer Gloss for cheap varnish and the bottle last a very long time. You can add Matte to the Pledge as well instead of sticking with a smooth coat.

Okay... what's the big difference between matte and satin?

Also, I don't have an airbrush. Are the varnishes also available as spraycans or do i have to brush them on?

Matt varnish gives a matt finish. Gloss gives a gloss finish. Satin is in between, giving a finish with a bit of sheen to it. Satin can be a good choice for vehicles.

There are plenty of spray can varnishes available. Enamel and polyurethane types are available from DIY shops. Various model supply manufacturers including GW, Tamiya and Humbrol, make spray cans that you can find in model shops. I think the spray cans are usually enamel rather than acrylic.

My preferred method is to first paint acrylic gloss on any metallic enamel areas, then spray hard gloss polurethane, then matt or satin (for vehicles) spray, and finally pick out items such as jewels with gloss acrylic brush on varnish.

Matte is flat. Satin is slightly shiny. Gloss is really shiny. That's about the long and short of it.

You can get varnishes in either spray-on or paint-on form. Vallejo does a very good paint-on matt and gloss. Tamiya is also OK for matt.

The standard for matte at the moment is Testors' Dullcote. It's a fairly toxic chemical, though, so spray only in ventilated areas.

Most industry painters will use matte.

I'm cautious of industrial products right now. I tried to use my girlfriends nail polish but it melted down the upper paint layer in no time so i had to rub it off before it had the chance to corrode the plastic.

Thanks for the hints anyways, I guess I'll be visiting the next model shop soon.

Nail polish contains acetone, which is a fairly strong solvent of organic chemicals.

Well, didn't expect it to be in there.

Dullcote and Glosscote by Testors. Nuff said.

Oh! One important question.

Can you get rid of the coat with something?

You can strip the varnish with anything that will strip the paint. The nice thing however, is if you don't like the finish, you can just paint another over top. For instance, I usually use Future as a gloss coat for protection on metal models. Since I don't want them to be shiny, I then spray on a coat of Testor's Dullcote to take away the shine. Just be sure each layer is completely dry before adding another.

Cool, thank you all guys. Really don't know what i'd do without dakka. Get consulting from local GW probably.