I have some Testors dullcoat in a spray can that I have used in the past although it actually changes the color to a faded and very flat finish. I am working on an Amtrak Heritage P40DC, what kind of clear coat would look best for fresh painted well maintained locos? Is there any clear coat that will be entirely clear without making the locomotive shiny? Thanks in advance. PS I don’t have an airbrush so as of right now i would need a spray can.
Dullcoat is a flat clear finish. It should not change colors but instead make it dull. You could get a can of gloss coat and try it on something other than your loco to experiment with. In the past I have used gloss coat and then just dusted (very very light coat ) of dull coat over it to give a satin finish. I have used nothing but rattle cans in the past. I just bought an air brush last month. I have 30 year old Penn Line locos that were rattle can painted and still look decent.
Pete
It sounds to me like you are putting on too much.
Hello NS,
For a fresh paint appearance without looking “toylike”, I would respectfully suggest a Semi-Gloss Clear. It would give you a finish that is similar to this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Amtrak_146_GE_P42DC.jpg
Airbrushing clears offers the advantage of viscosity control and flow out. But from your write up, it looks like you prefer rattle cans. Testor’s MM line has a good semi-gloss clear that might work well for you:
http://www.amazon.com/Semi-Gloss-Lacquer-Clear-Testors/dp/B004QPGAYA
You can probably find it at your local HobbyTown or HobbyLobby shops.
Yeah Semi gloss sounds like the way to go. At some point I would love an airbrush but for a 4x8 confined to a small office I think an air brush is a bit overkill at the moment. Thanks for the advice and that picture really helps.