Does anyone use Krylon dulling spray (instead of Dull-Cote)?


Chevron_GATX

Chevron_GATX

Member
Dulling spray is an industry-standard removable spray used in film and TV production to reduce reflections. Has anyone used it in a modeling application? I want to dull certain scenery items, but I may also want the option to change my mind and "un-dull" it. I've read that Testors' Dull-Cote clear flat lacquer is a popular product for modeling applications, but does a removable dulling spray have its place in the modeling world as well?
 
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I have been using Krylon and other dull clear flat spray paint for years. For the same price as dullcoat, you can get three to four times as much. Haven't had any problems at all with it.
 
Test it on sprue or some other scrap first. I used Krylon with good effect on cars I painted and on factory decorated cars that I weathered. Then I used it on a Red Caboose tank car that was factory painted in a silver color. It crazed the paint and ruined the car.

It's not compatible with all paints.
 

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Chevron_GATX said:
Dulling spray is an industry-standard removable spray used in film and TV production to reduce reflections. Has anyone used it in a modeling application? I want to dull certain scenery items, but I may also want the option to change my mind and "un-dull" it. I've read that Testors' Dull-Cote clear flat lacquer is a popular product for modeling applications, but does a removable dulling spray have its place in the modeling world as well?
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Yes, I love Krylon spray paint. Don't like their new nozzles though, but if necessary one can take it out of the can and use it in an airbrush.

JWhite said:
It crazed the paint and ruined the car.

It's not compatible with all paints.
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Yipes. How heavily did you apply that?
 
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It was a light coat to seal the minimal weathering. It didn't react to any other paint that way, but it hates whatever silver paint Red Caboose used on that car.
 
Just to be sure we're not talking apples and oranges, the Krylon matte finish most of us use is a flat lacquer with an acetone and toluene solvent base and not "removable" after 2 to 3 hours of curing. I'm not familiar with the industry specific removable spray (my only take out of the film industry is gaffer's tape).

JWhite - I'll bet it was the toluene that crazed the paint. I've used both Dullcote and Sherwin-Williams flat lacquer over both Scalecoat I and Scalecoat II silver. Neither (Testors or S-W) contains toluene. They both use acetone and MEK as solvents.
 
Red Oak & Western said:
Just to be sure we're not talking apples and oranges, the Krylon matte finish most of us use is a flat lacquer with an acetone and toluene solvent base and not "removable" after 2 to 3 hours of curing. I'm not familiar with the industry specific removable spray (my only take out of the film industry is gaffer's tape) . . .
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Good point! The Krylon product I was referring to is the removable dulling spray used in photography: Krylon Dulling Spray (removable). Was anyone referring to this particular product in their previous posts?
 
Red Oak & Western said:
I'll bet it was the toluene that crazed the paint. I've used both Dullcote and Sherwin-Williams flat lacquer over both Scalecoat I and Scalecoat II silver. Neither (Testors or S-W) contains toluene. They both use acetone and MEK as solvents.
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Yes, I believe toluene is the solvent which dissolves most plastics, which is used in just about everything in a can (though, polypropylene is supposedly somewhat resistant at room temperature). Is there even such a thing as a latex paint in a rattle-can? I once bought some aerosolizers from Home Depot to spray water-based latex paint onto some home theater speaker grilles to match the interior paint on the walls. Those are probably a good solution for those of us without airbrush set-ups.
 
I have no experience with Krylon, but the Rust-Oleum flat finish (in the white can, not the green one) works quite well.
 
Test the Krylon first on something finely detailed. Every spray can I've used, including Testors dullcote, is thicker than it really should be and tends to make your details less sharp. Paint cans just deliver too much paint too quickly, and there's no way to dial it down. Misting it on from a distance sort of works, but tends to leave a sort-of pebbled finish that's not completely smooth. I doubt it's nearly as noticeable in larger scales, but in N-scale it really comes out. You'll get best results using an airbrush, and there's really just no substitute for it if you do want the finest detail and cleanest end result.
 
MikeOwnby said:
. . . Paint cans just deliver too much paint too quickly, and there's no way to dial it down. Misting it on from a distance sort of works, but tends to leave a sort-of pebbled finish that's not completely smooth. I doubt it's nearly as noticeable in larger scales, but in N-scale it really comes out. You'll get best results using an airbrush, and there's really just no substitute for it if you do want the finest detail and cleanest end result.
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Yeah, I think I'm starting to realize that (I haven't tried anything yet). I bough a BLMA billboard sign, and it's molded in brown plastic. None of the billboards I see are brown so I was going to paint it gray, but my suspicion is that only airbrushing will be able to paint something that small without "building-up" and obscuring the ultra-fine detail. I wonder if any of the Tamiya spray-on acrylics in a can would do the trick?
 
Not to hijack the thread, but I am completely in the air brush camp. I only use rattle cans for around the house projects. You can purchase flat lacquer in pints and quarts (or gallons) at some big box stores and almost all paint stores.

Air brushing is a skill that is relatively easy to learn and will stay with you for a lifetime. There are several (okay, lots) of airbrushing threads here on the forum. My first and biggest advise is to 1) buy a quality (name brand: Paasche, Badger, Iwata, etc.) DUAL ACTION airbrush {avoid cheap, aka Harbor Freight, airbrushes}, and 2) a good pancake compressor {here, Harbor Freight will do; it won't last as long as a name brand, but will get you started}.
 
I agree with Mike, any spray can will deliver too much paint too fast. The only real way to get a clear dull coat and not cover details is with an airbrush. The brand you use is not going to make a difference but I have noticed Dull Coat in a can is better than the others IMO.

Dave
 
Perhaps someday I'll invest in a proper airbrush and compressor, but for now I think I'm going to try a Tamiya spray paint for the BLMA sign: Tamiya TS-83 (metallic silver). I have some Tamiya spray cans I bought to darken the badging and taillights on my 1:1 vehicles, and the spray seems finer than a Krylon spray can's. The plastic scenery I need to dull is less critical (but large), so I'll probably try one of the dulling sprays mentioned.
 
MikeOwnby said:
Test the Krylon first on something finely detailed. Every spray can I've used, including Testors dullcote, is thicker than it really should be and tends to make your details less sharp. Paint cans just deliver too much paint too quickly, and there's no way to dial it down. Misting it on from a distance sort of works, but tends to leave a sort-of pebbled finish that's not completely smooth. I doubt it's nearly as noticeable in larger scales, but in N-scale it really comes out. You'll get best results using an airbrush, and there's really just no substitute for it if you do want the finest detail and cleanest end result.
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That's been my experience in the past, and why I posted my question. I was hoping that they had thinned their paint to the point that it would flow better and thinner. I think I'll stick with the airbrush.
Thanks
 
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