GusMac Posted January 19, 2021 Share Posted January 19, 2021 I've never used Alclad metallics due to their lacquer nature and my wife having a health issue which precludes using anything too noxious. I've just tried the Extreme Metals paints and found them very nice to use and they give what seems to be a very robust finish. Most importantly, my wife finds the smell tolerable. So, my question is to anyone who has used Alclad and the Extreme Metals and how do they compare? I'm tempted to do a NMF P-47D as that was the first LSP kit I attempted when I got back into modelling and I did it using rattle can AS-12 as it was before I had an airbrush. So I'd like to revisit it and do it better and I'm wondering if the Extreme Metals are an option for this. Gus 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlrwestSiR Posted January 19, 2021 Share Posted January 19, 2021 Having used both, I like the Xtreme Metal more. They seem to be less fragile than Alclad and for me, have sprayed nicer. I've found it too easy to flood the model surface when I used Alclad. I'm sure it's user error but it happens frequently enough that u think otherwise. Here's Xtreme Metal polished aluminum on the rims for my Stratos. This is on bare plastic with no primer. Here's Alclad stainless steel on the burner area of the F-4: The only shade where the Alclad is better is chrome. It's looks more like chrome versus Xtreme metal's version. 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted January 19, 2021 Author Share Posted January 19, 2021 Thanks Carl, that's good to hear. I see a P-47 in my future..... 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocRob Posted January 19, 2021 Share Posted January 19, 2021 I've used both and I find both smell terrible. I got nice results with Alclads but it depended on the metal tones Titanium is one of the very fragile shades. Some of their products didn't cover well and were very fragile, making masking afterwards near impossible. The metal shine of the Alclads altered a lot with a varnish cover. I tried the Extreme metals on different occasions and these are now my go-to metals. They spray well, they are more durable (I never had problems with masks) and I like their shine and fine grain. I had only slight alteration when gloss- or matte coating them. They were resistant to all my used weathering products For a NMF job, with differently shaded panels, I would use Extreme Metals. On single shaded bare metal jobs, you can get away with the Alclads, which also have a great finish. One Alclad tone, I especially like is exhaust manifold, which is better than what I got from Extreme Metals. As a personal biased verdict, I prefer the Extreme Metals from AK for their general usability. Some Alclad colours give a slightly better result and some have a finer grain than the AK's and therefore a better metallic sheen. In the end, they both smell and I always use a mask when spraying and cleaning the airbrush and I wouldn't use them in the living areas of my house. BTW, I alredy finished a NMF P47-D Cheers Rob 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HubertB Posted January 20, 2021 Share Posted January 20, 2021 If you use AK’S black base, be aware that it dilutes and cleans with water. On the other hand, if you like spending an afternoon - after all we have plenty of time in these lockdown times - cleaning goo in the tiniest spots of an airbrush, you can use my goto thinner for airbrushing, i.e. Mr Levelling Thinner. Trust me when I say it’s a 100% result ... I have yet to try the MRP metal colors. Hubert 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bomber_County Posted January 20, 2021 Share Posted January 20, 2021 Thanks Hubert, just bought the black base and didn’t know it was waterbased, so putting Extreme Metal on top which I assume is “enamel” or similar doesn’t have an effect???........ 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocRob Posted January 20, 2021 Share Posted January 20, 2021 I use the black base only for chrome and polished aluminum, for the other shades I use Tamiya rattle can or Mr. Hobby. Cheers Rob 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted January 20, 2021 Author Share Posted January 20, 2021 Thanks guys. I tend to use Mr Levelling as my go to thinner for everything so that should be okay. I've only used the Extreme metals over black Mr Surfacer 1500 so far and I like the results but I suppose for a shinier result a gloss base might be better. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HubertB Posted January 20, 2021 Share Posted January 20, 2021 32 minutes ago, GusMac said: Thanks guys. I tend to use Mr Levelling as my go to thinner for everything so that should be okay. I've only used the Extreme metals over black Mr Surfacer 1500 so far and I like the results but I suppose for a shinier result a gloss base might be better. My attempt at humour obviously misled you: AK black primer + Mr Levelling Thinner = tar-like goo in the airbrush within 5 ‘ . You are then good for a good afternoon cleaning, with all the hard stuff you can find, including acetone Hubert 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Clunkmeister Posted January 20, 2021 Administrators Share Posted January 20, 2021 I've used Alclad and have had really decent results, but yeah, it's fragile. I'd like to try AK Extreme Metals and see how they work... As an aside, I used Mission Models Paint for the NMF on my Lanc, and absolutely LOVED it. It's water based, you apply it over a white finish, and looks phenomenal when done. I find it looks more realistic than some of the Over-The-Top-Shiny products like Alclad. A nice semi matte sheen to it. 8 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJTX Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 Is the AK enamel? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Clunkmeister Posted January 21, 2021 Administrators Share Posted January 21, 2021 Sounds like lacquer, the way it stinks, Tony 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazzaS Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 I haven't used AK Extreme metals, yet. But I am looking fora replacement for Alclad. Alclad just seems to fly out of the airbrush. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocRob Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 20 hours ago, HubertB said: If you use AK’S black base, be aware that it dilutes and cleans with water. On the other hand, if you like spending an afternoon - after all we have plenty of time in these lockdown times - cleaning goo in the tiniest spots of an airbrush, you can use my goto thinner for airbrushing, i.e. Mr Levelling Thinner. Trust me when I say it’s a 100% result ... I have yet to try the MRP metal colors. 11 hours ago, GusMac said: Thanks guys. I tend to use Mr Levelling as my go to thinner for everything so that should be okay. I've only used the Extreme metals over black Mr Surfacer 1500 so far and I like the results but I suppose for a shinier result a gloss base might be better. @ Hubert, just for clarification, are you referring to AK's acrylic black primer or the dedicated Extreme Metal black base? After much praise, I tried Mr. Levelling and had the results you described, with the acrylic base and some AK acrylic colours as well as some Lifecolour's. I made my peace with the stuff, using it to thin Tamiya acrylics, where it works perfectly good. AK' Extreme Metal flat base is another breed and they recommend it as a base for their high polished shades like chrome and polished aluminum and that's where I used it without problems. Cheers Rob 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HubertB Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 40 minutes ago, DocRob said: @ Hubert, just for clarification, are you referring to AK's acrylic black primer or the dedicated Extreme Metal black base? After much praise, I tried Mr. Levelling and had the results you described, with the acrylic base and some AK acrylic colours as well as some Lifecolour's. I made my peace with the stuff, using it to thin Tamiya acrylics, where it works perfectly good. AK' Extreme Metal flat base is another breed and they recommend it as a base for their high polished shades like chrome and polished aluminum and that's where I used it without problems. Cheers Rob I wish I could post a picture of it, but I just threw the stuff away in disgust after my experience. I have woved since not to touch anything "AK primer" since. But yes, this is the acrylic base IIRC. Hubert 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJTX Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 Did some digging and they are enamel based. I may try them on my F-104 build since theres a lot of masking metal sections on that. 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bomber_County Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 Just bought some of the Black base plus Dark Alu + Alu + have in stock White Alu and Chrome so doing to try a NMF on the Mustang. I think 4 variations should sufficient. Got to buy some of their cleaner as suggested by Rob... 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GusMac Posted January 21, 2021 Author Share Posted January 21, 2021 On 1/20/2021 at 10:27 PM, HubertB said: My attempt at humour obviously misled you: AK black primer + Mr Levelling Thinner = tar-like goo in the airbrush within 5 ‘ . You are then good for a good afternoon cleaning, with all the hard stuff you can find, including acetone Hubert Hi Hubert No I got your meaning but I probably didn't make clear that I've no intention of buying the AK primer. I bought the black primer for the Vallejo Metal Colors which I tried previously and it just seemed like a difficult to use, watery black gloss which made no difference to the finish compared with just shooting it over the black Mr Surfacer. After having my fingers burned by a few products I've decided to stick with that as my go to primer for everything I can. Although you might lose a bit of sheen on a few metallics, as Ernie said, some tend to be unrealistically shiny unless your doing a showroom model. Gus 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted March 10, 2021 Share Posted March 10, 2021 Just catching up and I’ve used both with nearly the same results; the key is the base coat. Gloss black - not necessarily. Black is needed to bring out the metallic/reflective look, but what is needed is a super smooth base for the metallic finish. I’ve tried most and what works best for me: Tamiya Semi Gloss Black, thinned with Mr Color Self Leveling Thinner plus a few extra drops of Mr Retarder Mild. Tamiya Gloss Black requires too many coats and the base becomes too thick, making gluing on parts a mess. Semi Gloss does the trick perfectly, requiring a lot less paint, dries faster then almost all the gloss black base coats and if needed, polishes perfectly: the perfect base coat. I still use a Thin primer coat to get things going. AK vs Alclad almost the same but I have found AK Metallics a bit tougher and resist lifting from masking a bit better. I still use both and depending on the color, mix and match as needed. Yup they both ‘smell’ and I spray them in my paint booth and wear a respirator. Keep ‘em comin Peter 4 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k5ikl Posted March 10, 2021 Share Posted March 10, 2021 I have been using Alclad (beginning with Alclad 1) for years and love it. Haven't tried AK Xtreme as of yet as most colors I want from Hobbyworld USA are either backordered or out of stock. $11.00 a bottle is a bit of a turn off. While on the subject, what is a good replacement for MM Metalizer burnt metal? Having trouble trying to find something to substitute for the MM Metalizer. Couple of my most recent finishes using Alclad 2. Cheers, Jerry 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted March 10, 2021 Share Posted March 10, 2021 Jerry Your NMF's look fantastic Keep 'em comin Peter 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted March 10, 2021 Share Posted March 10, 2021 Wish I could find a few more pics .. both are AK Metallics. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k5ikl Posted March 10, 2021 Share Posted March 10, 2021 4 minutes ago, Peterpools said: Wish I could find a few more pics .. both are AK Metallics. Forgot this one that I finished between the P-47N and F-86F. Trumpeter P-51B. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterpools Posted March 10, 2021 Share Posted March 10, 2021 Sweet! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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