Paint Out of Solution

[HorusLupercal]

So I'm having a little bit of difficulty when trying to dilute my paint down to the appropriate consistency for glazing/NMM. I'm thinking that the most likely culpret is my paint, but on the off chance that it's something that I don't know about/haven't thought of I figured I'd ask the masses. Here's what's going on; when I set up color on my pallete the colors begin to slowly separate from the water as well as each other depending on the actual colors. A couple examples are when I used straight black + water to try and even out some highlighting on black armor the pigment will actually begin to form a little pool in the center of the water it is mixed with. This causes me to have to constantly remix the mixture in order to try and keep a consistent quality in the paint. When this really becomes an issue is when several colors are mixed together they will actually striate within the mixture. For example, Black + Fortress Gray + Water the original mixed color will begin to lighten as the black actually settles to the bottom of the mix, again making consistency problems for my paint.

I am currently not using a wet pallete (this may be the problem?) and my paints are a tad on the old side and a brand I've never heard discussed here (Adikolor).

Any suggestions would be great, and I am planning on changing over to Vallejo, but if the Adikolors are still good I'd prefer not to have to throw them out.

 

[supervike]

Are you mixing the paint up well before you begin?

 

[HorusLupercal]

I believe that I am yes. Now, I'm not throwing the paint and water in a bottle together and aggitating it, but I am making sure that the paint is mixed in it's own pot before adding it to the pallete and then making sure that everything is mixed well on the pallete itself.

 

[MrPickles]

sounds like youre adding too much water. try glaze medium for glazing. iv tried glazing with just watery paint - its impossible to control and looks like ass.

 

[Einion]

Welcome to the world of acrylics You will see this less with some paints than others but it is perfectly normal for acrylics (water-borne paint generally) to separate in fluid mixtures, although it does sound a bit like the paint might not be 100%.

With a multi-colour mixture, one of the main issues is the weights of the pigments - some pigments (earths, white) will easily separate from some of the brighter colours because mineral pigments are heavy, and will obviously try to sink, while many of the colourful paints will use lightweight organic pigments which have a tendency to float.

What I'd recommend is buying just one of something else and doing a side-by-side comparison, if the same thing happens you know your paint isn't directly responsible.

I'd also suggest trying some dishwashing liquid added to your diluting water, that alone might lessen the problem.

Einion

 

[DarkStar]

You will see this less with some paints than others but it is perfectly normal for acrylics (water-borne paint generally) to separate in fluid mixtures, although it does sound a bit like the paint might not be 100%.

Aye, in my experience this is the *normal* state of our mini paints when diluted or even left to rest. It's the way they are and I don't think there's a magic fix for this issue.

The way I deal with it is to just have a mixing brush at the ready and stir up the paint when it separates, which is quite often. It's second nature to just reach for the mixer brush, stir up the paint then rinse the brush quickly. I use a dedicated mixing brush because I don't need the extra wear and tear on my fine/dear detail brushes since mixing is so often needed you can save the bristles of your "good" brushes by using a beater brush to mix and stir with.

What Einion said is what I thought when I read this topic. Separation of paint is just the natural state of affairs with this stuff, some paints being worse than others in terms of how often they separate. Vallejo (of all varieties) being the ones in my experience needing to be stirred most often. If you're shaking your paints, stirring them in the bottle from time to time and keeping them agitated and well mixed, it's the best you can do and I recommend just adopting a workflow that allows for constant stirring and remixing of your diluted paint after it's on your palette. Get a comfortable setup with a dedicated brush and mix and stir when needed.

 

[HorusLupercal]

Thanks for the great info. I do keep a mixing brush nearby I probably just need to work on how often I actually use it. I never thought about putting a drop of dish soap in my mix water I'll have to give it a try. I did go out and get some P3 paint from the LGS and I have a sneaking suspicion that some of my paints are indeed a bit on the bad side.

I'll be trying some of these things out tonight! Thanks again.