4030 questions

Finally got around to painting a fishing lure, which is why I got into this before I caught the "art bug". I got a primary color set of Wicked and mixed up the color I wanted. That went real well. I used a Sotar 2020 because my .3 iwata was out for repair. After a few drops of paint reduced with 4012 more than 50/50 I plugged up seriously. Got it cleared finally.
After searching in here a lot I saw where someone said 4012 speeds up the dry time. I have some 4030 and I read where that helps the paint flow better. Is that true?
Also the final paint job is very flat. Does the 4030 add sheen to the color? I know it's called "intercoat " so I assume it can be applied straight between coats, but don't know why(?).
For the lure I am thinking of finishing it off with epoxy which would likely shine it up, too.
Lastly, is 4030 any more difficult to clean out of the brush? Thanks for any info. Attached(I think) a a foto of the dull finish.

4030 is itercoat clear . aka paint with out color . The 4020 Professional automotive reducer should fix the problem .
Now my question to you is how do you reduce?
using wicked or autoair the MFG recommend 1 part paint to 3 parts reducer . which is more then 50/50 basically in airbrush terms that is 1 drop of paint to 3 drops reducer. so 50 drops of paint would be 150 drops reducer just as a starting point.

No, by 50/50 I mean equal paint to reducer, and I was reducing with 4012

still not enough reduction . that is a 1 to 1 mixture 50 % paint (1) to 50% reducer (1) if you want to go by % they 25% paint to 75% reducer would be closer to what the MFG recommends .
Mainly you are not starting with the proper reduction ratio which is why it gums up the works so to speak .
4012 works well . adding 4030 adds more binder and can give the paint a more transparent look ,
the 4020 contains acetone which is why it is rated for automotive use . which means you would want a good rated mask when using it.

The 4030 is multi use, I use it for candy 2.0, but have also mixed it into regular wicked. It will help flow, but needs to be cut with 4012 or 4020 and needs a bit of time to work its magic in the mixing cup before you put it in gun. ALSO you need to use 4012 to clean your a b after using 4030, water won't do it. Try thinning your mix a bit more or upping your air flow too that may help. It takes a bit of tuning to get paint flowing how you like. For shine you're gonna need epoxy or good clear. Epoxy has its own issues, short working time, needs turning to keep runs out. You can make one with a BBQ turner. You won't get good tough gloss for lures from 4030.

ALSO I use larger nozzles/different a b for my base coats and metallic. BIG nozzle will really help with thicker paint and some metallic. I've run wicked, some auto air and pearls straight out the bottle with my 155 and 150 with big nozzles and 40 psi or so.

What's a big nozzle, .5? I've had zero luck with the pearlized paint flowing. I have a harbor siphon that likely is a .5 and that might work for a final coat of pearl, ya think?

I think my 155 is around .7 nozzle, and the old 150 I use for primer is wearing its large needle and tip is around the same. You should be able to run wicked pearl with .5 nozzle. Pearls and metallics do some strange things if you thin them too much and spray too heavy.

What's funny is .5mm is the "fine" tip in the t-shirt airbrush tips like the VL and Crescendo.

4020 has acetone, so if you have a good OV filter on your mask you could add a drop in and see. There was somewhere I read on a ratio, I did try this on a goalie helmet I'm painting and the black went down fine

Also it has glycol which you should also be able to buy, it slows down drying of paint and allows it to level. I know with acrylic paints and models I used GlycERIN, but you should be able to buy Glycol as well.

good info guys. been using this line almoat exclusively for my personal projects for almost a year. learning the ins and outa. what works, and whats a waste of time and money. And while the candies are a bit tough to augment with pearls and flake on the best of days, the 4030 is what makes it all happen.

The n3xt project Id like to try something different with some amall micron flakes and large pearl grainuals. All that will flow through the airbrush, of course. Candy tends to bury the flake too much, or require too many passes to achieve a "depth" effect without darkening the overall color tpo much. You finally get enough flake, but your candy apple red is more like a crimson and without much pop from the gold base.

what id like to do, in theory, is to spray my candy with just a bit of flake until i have the color i want, then come back with an intercoat full of the various solids. the last few coats of clear would then be straight up to avoid any textures and to lock it all in. Do you guys know enough about the 4030 to be able to say if it can be used as a standalone intercoat without being added to another color? Just clear suspending the flake? The final couple coats, of course with sonething more durable.

Ive got about 50 zippo cases, so thats what Im testing with. They come with a ready made metallic base!

Jayhawk said:

No, by 50/50 I mean equal paint to reducer, and I was reducing with 4012

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50/50 is a good reduction ratio. I've used Createx exclusively for the last ten years and I almost always start at a 50/50 ratio. Sometimes I go further, but most of the time 50/50 is the sweet spot in my experience. One thing nobody has mentioned: 4012 is a fast, aggressive reducer (you can smell the difference in chemicals when you open a bottle of 4012 as opposed to a bottle of 4011). Rapid overreduction with 4012 can "shock" the paint and cause it to gum up. I could be wrong, but it sounds like that might be what you experienced when I read your first post. It's best to start out with a little 4012 in your paint, stir or shake and allow that to sit for 10 or 15 minutes so it can acclimate, then you can add more 4012 (allow it to acclimate again) if further reduction is needed.

Fast drying, or flash time is important for painting large objects (like a complete vehicle). It isn't a necessity for painting small objects like fishing lures. 4011 might be a better reducer choice for what you're doing and I've never experienced "shocking" the paint with 4011. 4011 is slower and less aggressive compared to 4012.

4030 is an additive that does improve spray performance, but again, this is more critical for large jobs. You're not likely going to see a huge improvement when spraying small objects. 4030 can also be used as an intercoat clear to protect previously sprayed artwork or color for a number of reasons. It's a good idea to use it before masking over metallic and pearls.

4030 doesn't add sheen. Most Createx water-based paint dries to a matte finish. There are a few that dry to a semi-gloss finish, but the real shine comes from the final clear coat you choose to apply. And cleaning 4030 out of your airbrush is no different than cleaning any other Createx product used in your brush.

It is often recommended to let your paint/reducer sit, and is probably good practice - however I never do. Am too impatient for that. I just mix, shake and go . Depending on what colour you are using, you may need more reduction. For example using wicked my baseline mix is 3 reducer:1 paint but for yellow, I could go 1;1, or straight from the bottle if using higher pressure, but with black I can go as much as 10 -15/1 using low pressure but will always start at least 5:1. 4012 does help with flow, and dries paint quicker, and cures it harder, but many people do seem to add a touch of 4030 these days to improve flow even more. 4030 is a great intercoat, and stops bleedthrough, and is spot on with the candies.