Mr Surfacer

Hi

Lacquer Thinner.

That's it :)

Allan

I dunno what Gunze Sangyo recommend, but I personally use laquer thinner. Seems to work quite well.

RobG

I am not certain it is the same....but I thin "Mr. Surfacer 500" with plain old, cheap Isopropyl Alcohol.

WoW !!! I am surprised that it works !

It is DEFINITELY Lacquer Thinner that is the solvent here.

I actually thin Mr. Surfacer 500 down with lacquer thinner to whatever consistency I need. That said 100 is finer grained and easier to use. Though you can get 500 very close.

I still am surprised that isopropyl alcohol actually works ! Whooda thunk it.........................

Allan

Only A Gentleman Can Insult Me And A True Gentleman Never Will

A couple of caveats: I have not tried airbrushing it thinned as such; so I don't know if there are any "gotchas" there. And it *must* be Isopropyl alcohol. I had a bottle of Ethyl alcohol (accidently purchased I guess, as until I read the label, I was even unaware it was sold along side Isopropyl...); and the Ethyl alcohol just creates a *goo*....lol.

And, as I said...I have only used "500". I do not know if the others act differently.

You can thin it with alcohol or lacquer thinner but the best thinner I've found is Mr. Color Thinner. It's not as hot as lacquer thinner and I don't spray "cobwebs" and it's quicker and more predictable than alcohol which sometimes causing clumps.

And I might add that you only have to thin it enough to shoot. Over-thinned it does not cover well and may run. Done correctly, it may look too thick on the model but it draws down tight and does not obscure detail. It's great stuff, especially if you are doing natural metal with Alclad.

MB

I'm curious about something. I have seen Mr. Surfacer 500 and 1000 mentioned for some time. Now my local purveyor of plastic has a jar of Mr. Surfacer 1200 in the shelf. How many grades of this product are there and is there any guide for their application??

Bill Shuey

I think just three grades, the 500, 1000, and 1200. There is a good guide on usage here:

It doesn't have to be sanded off. Dampen a rag with denatured alcohol and rub the excess Mr. Surfacer off with that. No loss of detail whatsoever.