pearlized or opaque?

[zombiefury]

I'm somewhat new to airbrushing and I'm still trying to figure out the different purposes for all the different paints.I bought a set of createx paints,two of each color,one says pearlized and the other opaque.What is the difference between the two?kinda confusing for now that's because I'm new at this.does pearlized cover better,transparency,tone,hue,or whatever compared to opaque?is there another site I can use that might help explain the differences between all the choices and uses for paints?thanks for any info.

 

[jord001]

Hi Zombie, a quick explanation is that Opaque paints are a "solid" colour, you spray it on and you get full colour saturation in 1 or 2 passes. Transparent are exactly as it says, a more see through paint and it takes several passes to achieve full paint saturation. Your Pearlized paint is basically a very fine metallic paint which gives a really nice shimmer to the colour. I would say its more of a opaque paint than an transparent as it should cover light and dark surfaces. Hope this helps a little. I'm sure others can explain better and give you tips but i'm not that familiar with createx.

Lee

 

[Cuda]

Really depends on what your painting too zombiefury. I've been airbrushing for 8 years and used pearls maybe twice ! When I do use the createx Auto Air I use the trans paints mostly because I like to build my colors up slowly.

 

[zombiefury]

Thanks for the info,would it be wise if I invest in transparents if I plan on furthering my airbrush techniques?I mean what all can I use transparents for,just to give it gloss or what?but thanks for the help

 

[basepaint]

Most of the people who use transparents use them as Jeff said to build up a color that there looking to get without over doing it and going to dark (very easy to do with dark colors like black) when all you really wanted to get was a shade of black that might take 4 pass's where if you wanted black black,It would take 7 pass's hope this help's.watch some of the tutor's vid's and you will see what I mean.and yes it would be wise to invest in some transparent colors like trans black,sepita,white are the main one's

 

[Bodyworx]

Transparents are actually the most useful COLORS in my opinion. Black and white i use opaques but i prefer transparent because you can still achieve full coverage, you just have to do it in layers as opposed to opaques which cover quickly. With transparent, just let them dry a little before applying the next coat. Pearlized just has synthetic pearl pigments in it to give it a shimmer. They are generally very opaque though. Just a tip though, you can add Jacquard Pearl flakes to transparent as well. Another common thing i do is to add pearl pigments to some clear for a final coat. Makes it nice and sparkly. It's all about experimenting.

 

[Cuda]

Hey forgot to ask what do you plan on painting and on what would be super helpful. Createx is good to practice with but I jumped to Auto Air then the Wicked line. Now I don't even use water base paints hardly ever, 99% urethane's are my fav.

 

[zombiefury]

Thanks all for the info

 

[Cpt.Nemo]

Cuda you use urethanes? Isn't that a major pain to clean out between each color? I've been wanting to get into some especially for painting metal. Why do you prefer them?

As for the pearls zombie you'll probably never use them. And they a bit tricky to use. Transparent are great! Theyre much deeper so the color really pops. Generally I put black and white down for shadows and highlights, then put a transparent over to add color.

These are some bike parts I did, painted the white, grey, and black on, the. Sprayed transparent blue over it all. Makes it blue but you can see the color underneath for the camo effect.

 

[Cpt.Nemo]

Better picture here.
Add lights and darks then spray transparent blue over for color. Say your painting a flag, you add shadows and highlights for wave effect then spray red and blue on top. Simplest use of transparents

 

[Cuda]

Cuda you use urethanes? Isn't that a major pain to clean out between each color? I've been wanting to get into some especially for painting metal. Why do you prefer them?

As for the pearls zombie you'll probably never use them. And they a bit tricky to use. Transparent are great! Theyre much deeper so the color really pops. Generally I put black and white down for shadows and highlights, then put a transparent over to add color.

These are some bike parts I did, painted the white, grey, and black on, the. Sprayed transparent blue over it all. Makes it blue but you can see the color underneath for the camo effect.

Hey Capt I just prefer uros over water based because they dry about as fast as you can spray them, always hated how water base paints can skate on you. As far as cleaning goes, I use 7 airbrushes so I rarely have to do color changes ! But when time comes to clean them up for the night I have a handy squeeze bottle filled with lacquer thinner that I rinse out my brushes with, that stuff will clean out anything left behind. Problem with uros is they're super toxic so have to wear a mask and I have a fan blowing the fumes away from me as much as I can. I have my own shop away from the house so I don't have to worry about killing the wife haha!!

 

[Cpt.Nemo]

That's kind of you I'm sure she appreciates that haha. Rinse with lacquer thinner eh? Hope you don't smoke, that shop will go poof real quick if that stuff catches what brushes do you have? I need to invest in a second brush. One is killing me switching colors all the time. Do you get less tip dry with the uros? What's your favorite brand? I'll order some online and give them a try. Always like trying new stuff

 

[Cuda]

Don't smoke and never tried it yuck, my parents smoked and couldn't stand it ! I use nothing but Iwata's. I have 2 eclipse's, 2 HP-C+'s, 2 hi-lines, 1 micron CM-C+ and an HP-B+ I never use. I use HOK (house of kolor) and Xotic uros. I like Xotic's because on their website Innate.com they have a HOK color chart to an Xotic color. So basically they mimic every hok color and it's cheaper. As far as tip dry, I still get it unless I really over reduce but then your hardly getting any color. I started using uros when I tried learning true fire from Mike Lavallee and hok of is his brand.

 

[Smiler65]

I'll pay the postage for the HP-B+ so you can get it out your way

 

[Cuda]

I'll pay the postage for the HP-B+ so you can get it out your way

Haha, don't think I would sell it, I'm a pack rat and save everything !

 

[CALz AyrWKz]

I use the transparents just about 90% of the time. The only time I use the opaques is when I need a solid base of color to work with. Also with the transparents, you can shift colors as you build your layers.