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Hi guys,

So here is my issue, iv currently varnished a model with ultra matt varnish that was currently layered in gloss varnish with an oil wash in between. The matt varnish has dried perfect besides from one small patch on the model that has stayed gloss.

I airbrushed it on, so iv tried focusing on that gloss area and use a regular brush to apply the matt varnish and it's still stayed gloss.

Iv never ran into an issue like this before after using varnishes for years.

It's been shaken up properly because the rest of the model went matt so iv ruled that out.

Any help would be much appreciated because my orks glossy neck is driving me crazy ?

In canvas painting, there's a pretty hard rule: Never paint acrylic over oil. In mini painting, you are using much less paint with much less solvent, so it's a bit more flexible. But nonetheless the rule exists for a reason...

Oil dries very slowly (obviously - I assume you've noticed this already ) and can interfere with an acrylic layer on top, making it do weird things.

Acrylic literally dries - the solvent evaporates, leaving the pigment and binders which attach it to the surface. Oil does not work this way. The oil does evaporate, but the paint also undergoes curing - ie a chemical reaction. The paint will oxidise with contact with the air, further hardening, even when evaporation is finished.

All that is to say - oil paints 'dry' quite a while after they feel/ appear to be 'dry'. If you apply acrylic over the top of oil that isn't fully cured, it can make weird things happen. I assume that is what happened to you ! a small patch of oil paint that hasn't fully cured that is doing weird things to the subsequent layers. When buried under more and more layers, it will never properly dry.


I think the only way to fix it would be some solvent and cotton bud, and carefully remove all the paint on that area... That or leave it for a few weeks and try another layer; you never know...

Yeah I think that's what's happened here by the sounds of it. Iv had a play about and think iv managed to fix it. Thanks for the info, much appreciated ?