IPMS/USA Reviews

I am 57 and as I write this and like many I have mourned and am mourning the demise of hobby paints thanks to Rustoleum. I remember many good paint lines that have come and gone and many due to consolidation under Testors and later Rustoleum, Names like Model Master, Testors, Floquil, Polly S and Pactra to name some. I am more of an Enamel and Lacquer based paint user than acrylic; but have also done my fair of painting with acrylics. There are a lot of other paints available - Gunze Sanyo, Tamiya, AK Interactive, Mig, and Vallejo, but like most modelers I am a creature of habit and change is hard. So, as I have watched a multitude of railroad, naval and now military colors go away, and am faced with change. I jumped at an opportunity to try a new line of paint that has more bite than standard acrylics.

In fairness to Tru-Color they have been on the scene for some years now and continue to expand their product lines. I am not the first reviewed in IPMS to sample their products, but I share my experience using the paint in a build. I requested and received 4 bottles of paint, two of which I used in a build of the AFV Club 1/350 LST-1. The paints I received:

The "press release" on the Mig website states, "In this special issue of The Weathering Magazine, we present a collection of the best articles about weathering techniques for model trains available. Through each inspiring page of 14 excellent chapters, you will learn how to use weathering products with the guidance of some of the world's best railway modelers. Create all kinds of wear and dirt effects on locomotives of all eras, as well as on freight cars, coaches, tank cars, and more.

Upon turning through the pages of this book, you will quickly realize how entertaining and easy transforming your stock train models into hyper-realistic wonders is. You can bring any rail subject to life by applying any type of weathering effect you choose including rust, chipping, streaking, dust, accumulated dirt, soot, fuel stains, and much more, you'll even learn how paint the most intricate graffiti!"

The press release is accurate in its description of this excellent guide to weathering train gear. 

Back in the mid-90's, the late Ed Kinney and I co-founded IPMS Fame Cities in the Akron/Canton area. While many ribald tales could be told of those days, the tenuous link to this review is that the owner of MCW Finishes, Mike Guest, is a member of Fame Cities. I reconnected with Mike after I read about the new line of military colors he's producing in gloss lacquer. I asked mike to supply us with a group of sample colors and he more than obliged. I was recently building the little Brengun 1/144 Horten 229 night fighter, which called for an RLM 75/76 upper finish, so this gave me my first opportunity to try these paints.

I generally don't write overly superlative reviews, but I have to tell you that these are absolutely fantastic paints. Mike and crew formulate their own colors using PPG base, and these are provided in ready-to-spray format.

Thank you to AK-Interactive for providing a U.S. Navy and Marine Corps World War 2 era paint set in their Real Color line. Thank you to the IPMS Reviewer Corps for allowing me to test out some of this new paint line. My review focuses on product application and ease of use. Anyone who builds USN and USMC aircraft and similar subjects from 1943 to the mid 1950's will appreciate this set.

The 4-bottle paint set arrived in a small box with an attractive weathered motif. The glass bottles each contain 10 ml (1/3 fl oz) of paint, and the caps and bottles are well labeled with background colors matching the paint. The bottles are also low profile making them stable on the bench during use. Read this as "more difficult for me to make a mess!"

Tru-Color Paint was formed in 2008 by Rick Galazzo and Scott Cohen, both of whom come from extensive backgrounds in formulating paint on the commercial scale. They set out on their own to develop this paint line of solvent-based paint by reformulating the old Accupaint formulation to flow better and give a more glossy appearance after drying. They currently offer over 600 colors offered with more to follow. Sets and single bottles are available and include lines for railroad, automotive, and military aircraft and armament lines.

The specific set I tested was specifically for NATO and modern armor and includes a sample of their masking frisket papers as well as the following colors in 1 oz. bottles:

• TCP-1410: NATO Green
• TCP-1411: NATO - Military Brown
• TCP-1412: NATO Black
• TCP-1413: OIF - Desert Sand
• TCP-1414: Tan Camo for Vehicles
• TCP-1415: Seafoam Green for Vehicles

I tested the colors on my Bosnian AMX-30. The colors built up slowly and the paints were quite thin, which is helpful when you are trying to ease the layers along in a build.