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Hey Folks,

I was really enjoying my Vallejo rattle cans, having coloured sprays that laid down pretty well and were a good match for their in-pot equivalents (at least the ones I tried).

But one big negative I've come across, I've noticed that even months after painting them they seem to remain soft and with the warmth/pressure of my fingers they can go sticky and leave fingerprints. I have an Arvus Lighter I sprayed months ago and his base (which was sprayed with Vallejo grey then black) is still sticky. A model I sprayed brown isn't so bad, it feels hard, but if I hold the model by its base for a while there's definitely some tackiness there, not enough to leave a finger print.

I shake the crap out of them before using them, I spray from a pretty good distance, humidity could be an issue as I just spray outside and the weather is what the weather is. I've got models that I've sprayed between Autumn and Winter (which out here is not terribly cold, but can be damp).

Has anyone else noticed this?

I'm thinking of swapping to a different brand, well, I've already swapped back to GW sprays for some colours, and maybe I'll swap to Liquitex or Montana Gold for my coloured sprays (I haven't tried either before, but have heard them recommended).

Perhaps any other recommendations for coloured primers?

I have had somewhat similar behavior when I apply my second coat too quickly, especially when switching to another color. Never tried valejo sprays though.

Pretty happy with army painter matt white atm.

I would not think the piece you sprayed would have this issue, so must be a bad batch of paint.

A long time back I sprayed some of the Reaper plastic minis and the paint remained tacky and was quite the mess, but I do not think that is the problem here.

Since you mentioned the Arvus Lighter, I'm going to assume its resin. I've had some issues with resin not being cleaned sufficiently (warm water, dish soap or iso, let dry thoroughly, check for remaining release agent/uncured resin), which has resulted in what you describe.

Either the release agent still on the model, or uncured resin could be reacting.

You also mentioned the base, if that is plastic, and you have the same issue, its possible its release agent, but less likely a culprit, since plastic doesn't seem to need much clean up IME.

Last but not least, a bad rattle can, or a can that has gone bad (do they do that?). If you've used that can on other models without issue, then its likely something to do with the Arvus and its base.

 MDSW wrote:
I would not think the piece you sprayed would have this issue, so must be a bad batch of paint.

A long time back I sprayed some of the Reaper plastic minis and the paint remained tacky and was quite the mess, but I do not think that is the problem here.

Yeah I've also tried it on different models (GW plastic, CMON ASOIF, FW resin).

It also seems to be both the grey and the black that have an issue, so if it's a bad batch it seems to be affecting multiple different cans.

I noticed it at first on the black that even after a few days the base was tacky (because I was holding the model by the base when painting after priming). I've used other paints that take a while to cure so no big deal, but when I noticed that *months* later my arvus was still tacky it's made me a bit more cautious and hesitant to use them again.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Irdiumstern wrote:
I have had somewhat similar behavior when I apply my second coat too quickly, especially when switching to another color. Never tried valejo sprays though.

Pretty happy with army painter matt white atm.

Hmmm, maybe it's applying coats too quickly, I'm used to sprays where I can apply the 2nd coat within a minute or so of the first and I was just using the Vallejo the same way. So maybe? Though from memory I believe I used pretty thin coats on some of my AI flyers and they still seem a bit soft also.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Cruentus wrote:
Since you mentioned the Arvus Lighter, I'm going to assume its resin. I've had some issues with resin not being cleaned sufficiently (warm water, dish soap or iso, let dry thoroughly, check for remaining release agent/uncured resin), which has resulted in what you describe.

Either the release agent still on the model, or uncured resin could be reacting.

You also mentioned the base, if that is plastic, and you have the same issue, its possible its release agent, but less likely a culprit, since plastic doesn't seem to need much clean up IME.

Last but not least, a bad rattle can, or a can that has gone bad (do they do that?). If you've used that can on other models without issue, then its likely something to do with the Arvus and its base.

It's both the model and the base, the base is plastic, I can't remember if I washed the base prior to spraying, I definitely washed the resin model though, using soap and water and a toothbrush, and I didn't notice any soft or sticky resin when prepping the models.

Just a note, the Arvus is an Aeronautica Imperialis model, not that it makes much difference in this case because they're both resin, but it's a little guy on a plastic base rather than a big guy.

I think the can has had issues on other models, it's just I hadn't noticed it being sticky so long after spraying (months) until I was fiddling around with the Arvus.

I usually aim for 15 minutes+ between coats, depending on the brand. I do try to get a covering coat in one go, so maybe your layers are just a dusting each time, but a minute drying time seems optimistic to me.

Irdiumstern wrote:
I usually aim for 15 minutes+ between coats, depending on the brand. I do try to get a covering coat in one go, so maybe your layers are just a dusting each time, but a minute drying time seems optimistic to me.

It works fine for GW sprays and the Tamiya sprays I've used in the past. It's only when I've used enamel based paints I've bothered to wait a bit longer.

I guess when I say "coats", I tend to mean coats from different directions which partially overlap the first.

My usual spraying strategy is to lay down a dry-ish flash coat (very very thin coat) wait just a few seconds for that to start to dry and then hit it with a wet coat, the flash coat just helps the wet coat go on smoother, then hit it from the opposite side, then hit it from the bottom, usually 3 or 4 sides I hit it from, then I wait in the realm of a minute for that to dry, looking for other directions where I need to hit it in order to get into the crevices and hit it again (so that's my roughly 1 minute wait time). Generally just waiting for the paint to visibly look like it's drying, so that the additional coats from different angles don't pool.

With other cans that works fine, but maybe Vallejo doesn't like it. I used to wait longer but I discovered that people who use spray cans in different fields (graffiti, car paints, scale modellers) tend to use much thicker coats and it works fine, so many years ago I tested it and discovered the rattle cans I was using at the time didn't care as much as I thought they would if I laid down thicker and/or faster coats, the paint had very high shrinkage and the solvents in rattle cans are much more volatile than in paint designed for hairy brushing or air brushing.

But maybe the Vallejo sprays are more sensitive than that?

I have had a similar issue, but only with certain colours.

I use the Vallejo Ultramarine Blue a LOT, and have have never had this issue.

I also use the Vallejo Bone and it never seems to dry properly.

I have only used it on GW plastics so far.

I do think in your case though you might have "sweaty resin"?

I have had the same issue. However, after I apply a varnish over painted mini the paint feels dry and I haven't had any chipping issues.

StraightSilver wrote:
I have had a similar issue, but only with certain colours.

I use the Vallejo Ultramarine Blue a LOT, and have have never had this issue.

I also use the Vallejo Bone and it never seems to dry properly.

I have only used it on GW plastics so far.

I do think in your case though you might have "sweaty resin"?

Good to know I haven't gone completely insane if others have had the same issues. For me it seems like the black and the grey are the worst, the brown seems okay, a little bit sticky but that might be because I sprayed it black first.

It's not the sweaty resin, as it also happens on plastic.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Gallahad wrote:
I have had the same issue. However, after I apply a varnish over painted mini the paint feels dry and I haven't had any chipping issues.

I actually wondered for a moment if it intentionally stayed soft to resist chipping.

I don't usually varnish my models, and the base rims often just stay the same colour I initially sprayed the model (unless they got messy during the painting process and need to be repainted). Maybe with another layer of hairy-brush paint over any parts that don't get another colour might fix it? Will have to try it.

I bought a Vallejo Magic Blue and it has the same problem, 5 days later it's still sticky. Not as bad as some of the previous ones I've tried, but still a bit annoying. It's not too bad if you just touch it briefly, but if you're holding it to paint or get a close look at it, after a few seconds holding it, it feels tacky. If I apply another paint over the top the problem mostly goes away, but I can still feel it's on the soft side, so I worry if I leave the models in a carrying case for a long time are they going to stick to the foam? Dunno.

I grabbed a can of Montana Gold in a blue variety, that dries super quick though I've learned since buying it that I probably wanted the Montana Black rather than the Gold, the Gold is low pressure and I feel like it doesn't atomise properly. It's much lower pressure than the spray cans I'm used to from Vallejo, Tamiya, Gunze and Games Workshop, using it for a zenithal spray it's not as smooth in its transitions as those other sprays are.

So yeah, might try a Montana Black next, as that's a high pressure can, if it's good then perhaps I'll drop the Vallejo sprays for Montana ones.