Mr Paint Mr Paint, Various Colours

[James H]

Mr Paint, Various Colours
Uschi van der Rosten
Catalogue # See article for references and price
Available from Uschi van der Rosten

 

 

 

Modellers, like me, can tend to be very much stuck in their ways when it comes to the staples of their hobby. Since I came back to the hobby about 7 years ago, and I found out that Humbrol had changed formulation, I was coaxed into using Gunze paints, which, along with Tamiya, I have been using ever since. The stuff sprays like silk and the coverage is superb. I have tried other brands, such as Lifecolor, and I really haven't got on with them very well. In fact, it really solidified my resolution to continue using what I had grown accustomed to, and I rarely venture from it nowadays. A good friend of mine, Alex Glass, from Uschi van der Rosten, tempted me to try something different, however. I always get a bit of a feeling in the pit of my stomach when I come to test new paints, so how would I far with this new brand?

The paints which I have been sent are:

1. MRP-3, Super Silver Metallic, €6.30
2. MRP-4, Basic White, €5.90
3. MRP-5, Basic Black, €5.90
4. MRP-31, Chrome, €6.30
5. MRP-50, RLM02 Grau, €5.90
6. MRP-51, RLM04 Gelb, €5.90
7. MRP-52, RLM23 Rot, €5.90
8. MRP-58, RLM65 Hellblau, €5.90
9. MRP-60, RLM70 Schwarzgrün, €5.90
10. MRP-61, RLM71 Dunkelgrün, €5.90
11. MRP-64, RLM74 Graugrün, €5.90
12. MRP-65, RLM75 Grauviolett, €5.90
13. MRP-66, RLM76 Lichtblau, €5.90

It's highly likely that you've never heard of Mr Paint. Please don't confuse this name with the Japanese Mr Hobby range (Gunze/GSI Creos) of paints. The name similarity is where things pretty much stop. Mr Paint are a new name, and hail from Slokaia, and they are distributed by Uschi can der Rosten, who currently carry the full range of these paints. This is also a range which is still currently expanding, and not only carrying many staple colours for German armour (RAL) and aircraft (RLM), but also paints formulated for Russian military vehicles, as well as modern FS Standard colours, Ukrainian Air Force and modern Russian colours. To cap it all, a range of basic colours are available, a well as a number of metallics. Again, the range here is expanding still.

 

 

All paints are bottled in the same 30ml style bottles that Alclad use, and also have a ball agitator inside them to help you mix the pigment into the carrier solution. I've heard all sorts of stories about 'exploding bottles' with regards to Alclad, but never had any issue with the ball agitators. During my tests with Mr Paint, I also never experienced any issue. Here is where I must mention a first important quality of these paints. They DO need quite a lot of shaking to mix the pigment from the settled sediment that you will see when you first get these, and of course will occur when you come to subsequently use them. The settled pigment is very, very fine, and it can take a few moments before the agitator ball gets going. Stay with it. It's very important you get everything into the carrier solution. So fine is the pigment, that Uschi describes these paints as 'Superfine Inks'.

 

 

Like Alclad, Mr Paint is not intended to be thinned before application. Don't forget though, these are 30ml bottles, in contrast to the Gunze 10ml bottles which need to be thinned by at least a 1:1 ratio. The carrier solution in Mr Paint is quite thin, and therefore doesn't need further thinning.

 

How does this stuff actually cover though? I have tried Vallejo Air in the past, and absolutely hated it. It clogged up the airbrush and was extremely problematic. My faithful Gunze and Tamiya are flawless in application. Having passed every one of these new colours through my Iwata HP-CH, I can tell you that they also perform flawlessly. Like my trusty Gunze, they spray like liquid silk, with excellent coverage ability. From my previous project, my compressor was set at 11 to 12PSI, and that's the pressure I used for spraying these. I do suggest that you use a facemask and/or spray booth when applying these, as, like Alclad, they are quite noxious in the fume department; certainly more so than Gunze, and most definitely more than Tamiya.

 

Drying time is an important factor too, and here it is similar to Gunze paints, with everything being touch dry within a minute or so of application. Of course, you would want to leave your work a good 30 minutes before you contemplate handling it, and longer before you apply any Klear or masking tape. I usually leave Gunze for a good number of hours before I consider working my scheme further. Upon application, I can tell you that these paints do dry with a sheen to them which should be more than sufficient when it comes to adding a pin wash to your parts. Being acrylic, an enamel wash shouldn't affect this in any way, but I would seal with Klear/Future before applying any extensive weathering.

Having Gunze equivalents for more or less all the colours than Uschi had sent me, I decided to create a colour swatch for each of the paints I'd been sent. This is a great way to see how the shades stack up against something I was more familiar with. I was mostly very pleased with the overall results, and perhaps a little more ambivalent with others. Let's look at these in groups of two colours at a time.

 

 

Super Silver Metallic and Chrome

 

 

I have to say that I can't actually tell much of a difference between these two at first glance, but angling the colour swatches slightly does indicate a very subtle tonal change between them. Uschi's site talks of applying these over a gloss black base coat, and for the purpose of this test, I have airbrushed each colour with and without a black base. Again, without the black base, I can't see much of a difference between this and the swatch applied over black. In both cases, the metallic colour is both solid and vibrant, and also sprayed very easily. In fact, easier than Gunze Metallics and most certainly easier than Alclad, despite the fact that I find Alclad quite an easy medium to apply.

 

 

RLM70 & RLM71

 

Out of the two of these colours, RLM70 has the most marked difference in shade when compared to the Gunze equivalent. As this is mostly used for green splinter camouflage, this will be quite noticeable when covering a large expanse. None of these comparisons are going to give you a definitive summary of what is and isn't correct. Actual paint shades varied in real life, and apparently more so as the war was becoming a lost cause for Germany. The Mr Paint RLM 70 is most certainly a lot lighter than the Gunze equivalent. For you, the modeller, it could all be down to a matter of personal taste. I personally think the lighter Mr Paint will look better on a splinter scheme when applied alongside RLM71.

 

With RLM71, there is a difference in shades between both manufacturers, but it is less marked. Whilst discernible to the naked eye when placed side by side, over a large area, I don't think you'd actually be able to tell any difference unless it was pointed out against a swatch.

 

 

RLM74 & RLM75

 

 

Here we have another combination that is most commonly seen together on the same two-colour 'grey' camouflage . Both paint shades are markedly different to the Gunze equivalent, but I have noticed that there is far more contrast between the Gunze shades than between the Mr Paint shades. In short, using Mr Paint will give you a camouflage in which the overall tonal difference is certainly much less than with Gunze. Again, I can't say whose paint is more accurate in hue and tone. I'm sure most modellers won't have that information available, and even museum re-builds have to be looked at with some suspicion.

 

 

RLM02 & RLM23

 

 

Two fairly random, general colours to look at now. RLM02 is of course used as both an internal colour, but also as an exterior camouflage colour in its own right, as well as in conjunction with others. Again, we have a marked contrast between the Mr Paint and Gunze. Mr Paint is actually FAR darker than Gunze. While this may look great on an exterior, I can't say how it will look in a small cockpit which is already quite a dark, cramped area. Some careful highlighting and lowlighting would perhaps need to be employed. Mr Paint's shade does look very good indeed, but as I say, much darker than what I am used to.

 

RLM23 isn't a much seen or used colour. The JV44 Fw 190D machines had this in stripes on their under-surfaces, and Wolfgang Späte had his Komet painted in this colour. Those are probably the most extreme uses of RLM23 Red. This is another colour which varies greatly from Gunze. Both shades aren't strictly a hard red colour, with the Gunze colour lying more on the natural-red side of the spectrum. The Mr Paint colour has more of an orange tint to it, that I admit isn't very convincing to my eye. It's almost as if looking at it through a badly colour-calibrated monitor. I don't know if this would look better in general use, as the Gunze colour has a slight pinkish hue to it that the Mr Paint one doesn't have. This is one I'll need to try out in anger.

 

 

RLM65 and RLM76

 

It almost goes without saying now that both of these colours are again different to the shades I am used to using. RLM65 is actually far 'bluer' than the Gunze paint, and actually more attractive as a shade. It's also generally lighter than Gunze, but still retaining a rich hue.

 

Mr Paint's RLM76 is FAR lighter than the Gunze equivalent, and appears to have more of a greener appearance than the greyer look of the Gunze. Just for comparison, there is far more of a contrast between both Mr Paint shades here than between the Gunze type.

 

In use

 

I recently tested Mr Paint in anger on my 1:48 Eduard Bf 109G-6, by airbrushing the fuselage tail band and rudder. You can see the results for yourself with this image.

 

 

Conclusion
Paint is always difficult to review as we all use it differently, but for me, I can say that this one sprays beautifully, and very akin to Gunze. This brand also has a superb range of colours which is expanding almost weekly, so for me, fulfils most of my spraying requirements. Despite the colour variations between these and my usual brand, and admittedly, I didn't have a third brand to compare against, the colours are still highly attractive and look very authentic. My only real reservation is for RLM23, which has a distinctive orange hue and I feel will look strange in most applications, but I will give it a try.

 

This is certainly a brand to look out for, and I feel that we'll be seeing this more often in future. My next Luftwaffe project will be HK Models' 1:32 Dornier Do 335, and I'll use Mr Paint with this exclusively. I'm really looking forward to that!

 

Check out this video from Doogs Models, showing application:

 

 

 

Highly recommended

 

 

My sincere thanks to Uschi van der Rosten for these review samples. To purchase directly, click THIS link.

 

 

 

[rieser]

Confirms others' experiences/observations.  They do look the business.  Shame about the Australian dollar exchange rate!

[JeroenPeters]

Lovely! I need to take these bottles for a shake and spin myself!

[GusMac]

These do look the business. Wish I'd known they did the Soviet barf turquoise cockpit colour before I tried to mix my own.

 

Just out of interest Jim, how did you find these for clean up from the airbrush?

 

Thanks, Gus

[James H]

I use Premi-Air Liquid Reamer to clean my airbrush. That stuff will remove anything including potential nuclear waste. It eats Mr Paint for breakfast.

[Fran]

I use Premi-Air Liquid Reamer to clean my airbrush. That stuff will remove anything including potential nuclear waste. It eats Mr Paint for breakfast.

 

Premi-Air Liquid Reamer??? Can you take a pic of it to see if I can get here in Portugal?

[James H]

[One-Oh-Four]

image.jpeg

 

Seems to have been developed in April 1986 in this facility...

 

 

[GusMac]

Thanks Jim, looks good stuff. Notice it's got Xylene and Acetone in it, so ticks all the boxes - toxic, flammable, carcinogenic....

 

My wife will love that!

 

Gus

[Wouter]

Can confirm the findings of Jim. These paints are what you're looking for. You can spray them right out of the bottle without thinning. I've used them with a 0.15, 0.2 and 0.4 nozzle without clogging. Spraying has to be done in very thin layers with no more then 10 psi. This way the paint dries almost instantly with a satin finish and can be handled within in minutes. And I mean really handled, like bare fingers and masking.

 

Any con's? Yes, two. For one, the smell at least as bad as Alclad and two, you can't paint over real acrylic paint (like Vallejo), This produces cracks in the acrylic layer. Although they say acrylic, It isn't. This is probably done to overcome shipping problems.

 

In the end I can wholeheartly advice this paint, but the use of a spray booth is almost mandatory.

[James H]

I'm tending to airbrush at around 10 to 12 PSI. Yes, thin layers are preferred, but these build up quickly and use a surprisingly small quantity of paint.

 

I do believe these are lacquers too, and if you want to weather on top, I spray Klear and work as normal. Some acrylic paint, such as Tamiya, spray well. I've also used Gunze with no problem.

[Wouter]

I'm tending to airbrush at around 10 to 12 PSI. Yes, thin layers are preferred, but these build up quickly and use a surprisingly small quantity of paint.

 

I do believe these are lacquers too, and if you want to weather on top, I spray Klear and work as normal. Some acrylic paint, such as Tamiya, spray well. I've also used Gunze with no problem.

Ah yes, I meant 10 psi, not 1. Edited my post

[dr_gn]

Sorry for the thread bump!

 

I've been struggling to find the correct colour for a 1:12 F1 car I'm building. It's a flourescent red (Marlboro McLaren red/orange). Someone on a car forum found the exact RAL code for this colour, so I put a request on Mr.Paint's Facebook page. Within about an hour, I got a reply that the paint would be available on around 2 weeks. Somewhat skeptical, I checked 2 weeks later and found the exact RAL flourescent red had been mixed and was available to buy. I've ordered 2 bottles, and some white, and am waiting for delivery.

 

That's pretty impressive service! I hope the paint turns out to be just as good; I'm sure it will be.

[rkranias]

my order of MP arrived today.  Look forward to give it a test drive.

[dr_gn]

I got the Mr.Paint Basic White and RAL Flourescent Red yesterday.

 

To be honest I'm not very impressed: Despite shaking the bottles for several minutes, and agitating them with a dropper before airbrushing, they are so thin that the white is like spraying milk. Pretty much no depth of pigment even over white primer. The red is spot-on in terms of colour, but again it would take litres of the stuff to finish my 1:12 scale F1 car. I've used about half a bottle per colour on a test piece, and they are still nowhere near solid colours. Also noticed this morning a slightly textured finish as if they have attacked the plastic in places.

 

I've sent a message to them asking for advice, but I doubt I will use them again, certainly not on this MP4/6 model.

[Wouter]

I got the Mr.Paint Basic White and RAL Flourescent Red yesterday.

 

To be honest I'm not very impressed: Despite shaking the bottles for several minutes, and agitating them with a dropper before airbrushing, they are so thin that the white is like spraying milk. Pretty much no depth of pigment even over white primer. The red is spot-on in terms of colour, but again it would take litres of the stuff to finish my 1:12 scale F1 car. I've used about half a bottle per colour on a test piece, and they are still nowhere near solid colours. Also noticed this morning a slightly textured finish as if they have attacked the plastic in places.

 

I've sent a message to them asking for advice, but I doubt I will use them again, certainly not on this MP4/6 model.

Hi,

 

can't help on the attacking plastic thing, it's a pretty aggressive paint. If you sprayed directly on the plastic this can happen. But i guess you used a primer. If you used an acrylic you can get issues with Mr paint. Found out the hard way with Vallejo primer and MR. paint on top... cracks all the way. I know use Gunze surfacer 1200/1500. No issues with that.

 

About covarage, your right. Getting an even coat on a light base will take ages and a lot of paint. My advice would be to prime with a dark color grey or black and then build up your topcoat. But the lighter colors do take time to build up, so your mileage my vary.

 

Hope this helps.  

[dr_gn]

Hi,

 

can't help on the attacking plastic thing, it's a pretty aggressive paint. If you sprayed directly on the plastic this can happen. But i guess you used a primer. If you used an acrylic you can get issues with Mr paint. Found out the hard way with Vallejo primer and MR. paint on top... cracks all the way. I know use Gunze surfacer 1200/1500. No issues with that.

 

About covarage, your right. Getting an even coat on a light base will take ages and a lot of paint. My advice would be to prime with a dark color grey or black and then build up your topcoat. But the lighter colors do take time to build up, so your mileage my vary.

 

Hope this helps.  

 

Thanks for that, so I guess it's not some error in my technique or a faulty batch. I was using Tamiya Fine Surface Primer (White), which usually seems fine with most paint types.

 

I suppose Mr. Paint is not really suitable for large areas - it could get very expensive based on my experience. I think becasue it's a satin rather than a matt finish on these particular coulours, it isn't helping with coverage.

[bluebottle]

My second order is on it's way, direct from MR Paint, as the Uk supplier never has any in, and NEVER answered my emails...

[bluebottle]

Rene of Mr Paint, many thanks !

 

Arrived Thursday , nicely packed , I ordered Sunday, packed and tracked Monday!

[bluebottle]

and  by Thursday, they  were here...

[fab]

Hello

 

 

I've got a misunderstanding with my skill level in english...

 

Can we spray this paint above:

Gunze colors

Tamiya

humbrol

 

And can we spray this last third brand above Mr Paint?

 

Thank you!

 

Fab

[bluebottle]

All of them...YES!!