I have broken out five Metal Colors, and five of the ubiquitous spoons. I have chosen silver, dark aluminum, aluminum, steel, and chrome for this brief test.
Each spoon took a bath in IPA, left to air dry, and then each received two coats of Vallejo's self levelling polyurethane primer which was left to cure for 12 hours. In preparation for a metal finish, each one was then buffed lightly with cotton jersey fabric (an old Iron Maiden tshirt) after curing.
The airbrush was stripped down, properly cleaned out to avoid any kind of contamination, reassembled with a 0.3mm setup, and then two coats only of each colour were sprayed in a single left to right direction, leaving a timed 15 minutes between each coat.
No thinner was used, each paint was sprayed directly from the bottle. Between colour changes I shot two colour cups of neat Timbertech cleaner through the airbrush and left it a few minutes between each cleaning. Upon reloading a new colour, enough was shot through that I was satisfied the previoius colour was not contaminating the new one. The needle tip and aircap were also thoroughly cleaned between colours.
I do not know my exact PSI, I use an inline MAC to regulate pressure and I just leave my compressor set at 2.5 bar, I would guess I was spraying at 15 PSI. The MAC was not altered during the test. Each bottle of paint was shaken for two minutes before spraying. This length of time is excessive but I wanted a consistent test. I did not use any kind of accelerated drying eg., heat or air, the paints were allowed to dry naturally at a comfortable 16 degrees Celsius. Allowed drying time was 30 minutes.
Each colour is labelled and you may decide for yourself which one suits which description. The chrome, of course, is not chrome at all but is nevertheless still a very useful bright metallic with good reflectivity.
Personally I think these are very easy to use, and provide an excellent result for those of us who do not wish to use volatile solvents on the workbench for whatever reason. Certainly a step above the regular ModelAir metallics.
The particle size of the "metallic" flake (mica) is commendably tiny, and the overall result can be outstanding. In this respect, they compare very favorably with the laquer based alternatives with which we are all familiar.
They are buffable after 24 hours and the results can be very good indeed, but you do this at your own risk.
They are, especially when purchased individually, quite expensive, and I would suggest buying these in the themed sets that Vallejo sells. The saving can be significant. Also keep in mind that coverage is exceptional, and a little does go a long way.
Thoroughly recommended.
