Tamiya clear vs Citadel Wash

[Cpt_Reaper]

How similar are these? I love my tamiya paints and have been slowly trying new techniques in my painting.

[Tyberos the Red Wake]

They are nothing alike. Tamiya Clear is like 5 coats of Citadel Glaze in syrup form.

[Cpt_Reaper]

Ah. Well that complicates things. I have some paint thinner. Worth trying it?

[Gordon Shumway]

Try water or matte medium if you are trying to thin citadel paints. Just water works for me.

[Tyberos the Red Wake]

Ah. Well that complicates things. I have some paint thinner. Worth trying it?

 

It should work. Thinned Tamiya Smoke for example can achieve similar results to Citadel Nuln Oil or any other company's black wash. For best effect, neatly apply the thinned Tamiya only in the cracks, or seal the model in gloss varnish before applying thinned Tamiya, or thin the Tamiya with flow improver instead of regular water or thinner.

 

Compared to a regular wash paint, which can simply be thinned with a little bit of water or not at all, and easily applied to the model or cracks with no other steps, this is why I said Tamiya is not very similar to purpose made washes. But you can use them as washes with a little bit of effort. Even regular solid colors can be made into a wash if you have some good thinner and know what you are doing.

[Cpt_Reaper]

Cheers. I think I might just get some citadel washes.

[sockwithaticket]

Cheers. I think I might just get some citadel washes.

Or get Army Painter, particularly for the basics like black and brown. 17ml in a dropper bottle for less than 12 ml in a GW 'knock it over and spill everything plus dries out real quick' pot.

[Cpt_Reaper]

I'll have to see if anywhere around here stocks army painter.

[Kierdale]

I did a bit of experimenting with Tamiya Clear paints recently here.

I painted them -thinned with Tamiya thinner- over citadel paints and occasionally they caused the Citadel paint to flake or be damaged so I'd recommend a layer of varnish beforehand (citadel Purity Seal/Gloss varnish).

And I tried some Tamiya Clear Smoke to layer a marble effect recently :tu:

 

It's worth experimenting.

[Subtle Discord]

If all you're after primarily is a Black, Sepia, and a Brown-black wash, and you were already thinking about how to alter Tamiya products, consider mixing your own as an option. I did this years ago, then shifted to pre-made products when they were introduced, and have since returned to making my own. It's simply too easy and economical an opportunity to pass up.

 

All you need is distilled water, some flow-aid, a few bottles of reasonably good quality ink, a soft body acrylic medium, and containers for the results. For the cost of a few bottles of pre-made wash you can make essentially a lifetime supply; and you can control the mix to control the intensity as an added benefit. Once you have your preferred formula, it easy to make as much as you need anytime.

[Major_Gilbear]

If all you're after primarily is a Black, Sepia, and a Brown-black wash, and you were already thinking about how to alter Tamiya products, consider mixing your own as an option. I did this years ago, then shifted to pre-made products when they were introduced, and have since returned to making my own. It's simply too easy and economical an opportunity to pass up.

 

All you need is distilled water, some flow-aid, a few bottles of reasonably good quality ink, a soft body acrylic medium, and containers for the results. For the cost of a few bottles of pre-made wash you can make essentially a lifetime supply; and you can control the mix to control the intensity as an added benefit. Once you have your preferred formula, it easy to make as much as you need anytime.

 

I do use the pre-made ones, but Sublte Discord is quite right that making your own is easy, cheap, and allows you to make any colour you like.

 

The original recipe that I saw posted a long while back (er, 8 years ago?) was Les Bursley's: link ;)