SPA Modeler

When decanting paint from a rattle can to bottle for airbrushing, does it needs to be thinned or can I shoot straight from the bottle? Also, can I use lacquer thinner to clean enamel paint from my airbrush?

Shouldn't have to thin it unless you want it to be thinner. I use lacquer thinner to clean my airbrush, just the cheap stuff from Lowes and it hasn't hurt it any and cleans it very well. After you decant the paint it has to degas for awhile before you are able to use it.

What Floki said. Got a gallon of lacquer thinner at Walmart the other day for not much more than a small can of Testor’s enamel thinner.

I buy my cleaning thinner in gallons. I have a small glass grape jelly jar I put some in for the bench

Floki wrote:Shouldn't have to thin it unless you want it to be thinner. I use lacquer thinner to clean my airbrush, just the cheap stuff from Lowes and it hasn't hurt it any and cleans it very well. After you decant the paint it has to degas for awhile before you are able to use it.

De-gas the paint as in stirring it first?

You got to let the propellent bleed out of the paint usually can see gas bubbles in the paint

I also don't thin it. Let it sit for a few minutes until no more bubbles are seen. Then you can shoot straight from the airbrush, no thinning necessary. I also use the lacquer thinner to clean my airbrushes. Shoot the lacquer thinner through a few times, then backflush a few more and they are clean as a whistle.

BlackSheep214 wrote: De-gas the paint as in stirring it first?

I would not suggest stirring the paint while it is off-gassing. The propellants used in rattle-cans can be volatile. I have seen pictures from guys who were decanting spray-paint into glass jars and ended up being covered in the paint themselves from the off-gassing happening rapidly. Just as a suggestion, when you decant paint into another container, the new container will be extremely cold from the propellants in the paint. Just the heat from your hand holding the container can cause the paint to off-gas faster and thus make a huge mess.
The container I used to decant paint into is the Tamiya glass jars that you can get online or at some hobby shops. I take a bendy straw and secure it to the nozzle of the spray can, then I sit the new container next to the spray can and cut the straw to just above the bottom of the new container. The bendy part of the straw seems to concentrate the paint and it will run down the straw in a stream into the new container. As you do this, the propellants will be clearly visible coming out of the new container as it off-gases. Do this in a well ventilated area!!

As an add-on to this comment, I have used thinners for decanted paint. Typically, when first decanted it is not necessary; however, if you have paint left over and it has completely off-gassed, it can start to thicken a bit in the container, even if sealed. I typically use Mr. Leveling Thinner for thinning these paints. The only paints that I have ever decanted were the Tamiya-brand spray lacquers. If you keep them in a sealed container, even though they can thicken a little over time, they still tend to last awhile. They will separate some, with the pigments sinking to the bottom of the jar, but they still seem to work just fine.

This is just my .02 cents worth of information.

Good and interesting info. Thanks...

I off-gas frequently all day.

So the next question is, Lyle excluded, how long should the paint be allowed to de gas before use?