Just got my 1/32 Trumpeter Corsair F4U-1D up to paint stage and have applied the overall Navy Blue colour. My problem is that the blue is XF-17 Matt paint and I want a gloss surface to apply decals too. I have been trying Future but the surface keeps going matt after each coat of Future! Anyone else had this problem and how did you cure it?

Thanks In Advance
Warren

I think the problem might be that the Future tends to be "self-levelling" and is just conforming to the rough Matt surface. Maybe try airbrushing with Tamiya Clear Gloss, then decalling, then your usual flat final coat.

Hope this helps, D

I was hoping that the self-levelling would work in my favour.. Maybe the Tamiya flat, which is very flat, is just too rough as you suggest. Oh well, will give it a shot with Equivelent Gunze, which is semi-gloss, and see how it goes.

Thanks Damien

To be off topic here But Damian I like your avatar's a bunch.

Great job Mate on that fish.

Is that a Dolphin?

Cheers from the Land locked one.

Sure miss the smell of the Ocean in summer.

I'm no expert whatsoever with this, but I've had some "Future" success that might help:

I have encountered the same apparent "self-leveling - to - flatness" issue when trying to create glossy decal locations.

I tried a different route which worked: I moistened my decal, had it ready to go... laid on a little Future at the location with a small brush, and, as it self-leveled, I slid my ready decal into place. The Future actually pulled the decal down and settled it, much like "decal-set" or similar products appear to do. No silvering! After the Future was dry, so was the decal, and it was ready for a little clear-flat.

Maybe this will work for you?

Warren

How many coats have you applied? I have just brushed 5 coats of "Shine Magic" onto my 1/48 Trumpeter Wellington prior to putting the decals on. This was applied over matt Humbrol enamels. While the surface wasn't high gloss it was enough for there to be no frosting of the decals. I reckon that the brushed on coats would be much thicker than anything applied by airbrush.

I have read (here or somewhere else) of people applying up to 10 coats to get a high gloss finish.

So it might just be a game of patience and applying a few more coats.

Brian

Brian, Warren:

Just curious - as a "almost only armour" guy, I use the Future as a decal-setter and as a sealant on matt or flat coats, and actually appreciate that a thin spray coat will seal my paint without really glossing it nor being thick.-

For the plane-types ... seems that putting on several coats may be both heavy and tedious, yet the desired outcome appears to be a glossy surface. Would it work to dip the whole thing into the Future, the way some folks dip canopy pieces to gloss them up? Maybe a dip would yield a complete and glossy coat over the matt without multiple brush or spray jobs?

@ Brian, thanks for your advice. Much appreciated.. Will try a few more coats and see what happens.

@ Bob, the only trouble I can see with that is getting the future all over the lovely interior aand turning it all glossy, and even more so, finding a container big enough for a 1/32 aircraft. I live in Australia and I get my Future when friends go to the USA, which isn't very often, so getting enough Future to do the dipping may be a little expensive..

Thanks to all of your replies.

Warren:

You do not have to actually dip the whole plane into the Future- and keeping the future out of the cockpit may be pretty easy...

I did a version of "Future-dipping" on an old Airfix 1/72 P-61 Black Widow kit I had handed off to my teen daughter for her first-ever build. She had some decal issues, and we approached this by pouring Future over the wings, etc. over a pan to collect the run-off. In this case, she had managed to get the canopies on pretty cleanly and well-enough joined to the body so that no Future evidently rushed in to "fill the cockpit". If there were no canopies in place, I think I could have masked it off with tape just like for spray-painting, and that would likely work as well.

It may take less Future to actually coat the model when poured over (and collected), than if one does several brush-coats.

But just a thought. The "Future" will be your solution, whether applied by brush in layers or by pour-over!

PS: Can't you buy any acrylic floor-shine product "down-under"? I should think you guys use this stuff on floors, too! I had seen on other posts that "Klear" by Johnson & Johnson (same stuff as Future, also marketed as "Future-shine" by "Pledge") was marketed there.

If you cannot, it may well be feasible for someone to mail you a couple of quarts- go for about a life-time of kits, so wouldn't be really expensive given the "coverage"!

I do have a Future - like product marketed here. It is Pledge One Go. I will give it a whirl as well as it may be better than Future.. who knows! We have tile floors and carpet in our house so we don't need these products. That is why I have never looked for them before. Anyway, back to the Corsair for another coat or 10..

Warren:

Sounds like that's the one! If it's a "Pledge" product, it's the same Johnson & Johnson as makes Future.

Give it a whirl!

I am giving up on trying to gloss up the whole model and am trying a different technique which appears to be working fine! I am removing the decals from their backing paper very carefully and dipping the whole thing in Future, well not the big national insignias as there is no clear under or around them to silver. I am just using setting compound on them. Will report back on how it all goes..

Warren
Mate the Pledge-one go does the job. Like others have said, its the same as "future". I just brush on a couple of layers and done and never really have any problems. I did try and airbrush it on, but wasnt any where near as thick. Anyway, just thought let you know, oh, and post some pics of the Corsair!
Nick

With the Pledge One Go, can you really just brush it on with a handbrush? I'm a little sceptical because I'd think the hand brush would leave streak-marks and fill the panel lines.

And if I airbrushed it on, would the Pledge One Go be thick enough to protect the decals?

Sorry for gate crashing your thread Warren, I've just never seen any Future product in Woolies or Bunnings, much less used it.

I buy my Pledge One-Go from Coles Supermarkets and use it on all of my kits, brushed on. I use a very soft "fan" shaped brush with bristles about 1" long. You don't need much, it goes a looooong way and is very thin. I haven't had problems with filling the panel lines yet. The One-Go just self-levels beautifully with no brush marks. I usually put 2 coats on over the decals, then apply the wash and weathering, then another 2 coats to seal the weathering. One thing I am going to try on my next build is to use the One-Go as the decal medium instead of water. I've read a few reports that it works very well and can strengthen some fragile decals.

Cheers, D

Has anyone else had a kit that seems to fight you to the end.. seems this F4U-1D is my nemesis. I gave up trying to get the aircraft gloss overall and used the 'dip-the-decals-with-clear-on-them-in-the-Future method and they seem to have gone on fine.. Then when I was putting on the last star and bar on the wing somehow the decal got caught between my fingers and it tore in one place in about 20 squillion pieces.. I put it aside after I did my best to reassemble the decal and let it dry.. sigh

Then, after applying the decals to the prop and marvelling at how easy it was I put it down to admire it and realised I had put the decals on the wrong side..

I will have to cut the prop hub and reassemble it the right way around...

At least the Eduard Bf109E-1 is starting to behave itself and the Revell (Matchbox) Sea Venom is also going together fairly well... at the moment..

Keep at it Warren, and console yourself that you may well have just got rid of all of your modelling bad luck for the year in one go !!!

Cheers, D

Let's hope so mate!

I have used Future as a gloss clear on race cars before I switched over to military models. The first few times I used it I ended up with a very rough surface and in places the finish was almost frosted white. Granted this was over an ultra smooth lacquer finish while you are painting over flat, but I solved it by lowering my air pressure to around 6 to 8 PSI. I had to spray fairly close to the model and move quickly to avoid runs. In the end the gloss coat it left was superb! It was over a two tone bright yellow and deep wine burgundy color. Your setting may differ because of the type of airbrush, length and diameter of hose, and other factors. Just try lowering the pressure until you get a smooth finish. I also used the Future full strength.

If you do get a run a trick is to roll a piece of masking tape up into a loop with the sticky side out. Lightly touch the run -not the surface itself!- with the sticky tape and it will lift the run. Dab at it until it's gone or as much has been removed as you feel comfortable doing. If the Future hasn't started to set up already it will often flow over the touched up spot and set smooth. This works with paint, too, but sometimes a bit of air brush touch up may be needed.