VIC Hobby is going to release 5 new metallic colors this month. Thanks to VIC Hobby, we’ve gotten a sample of those 5 metallic colors, and I tried them with a paint brush.
For those of you who do not know VIC Hobby, it is a new paint manufacturer in Japan specialized in water-based acrylic paints. VIC Acrylic Colors are non-hazardous and non-flammable. They are completely safe to be sent via airmail, whereas regular lacquer paints are categorized as flammable goods and cannot be shipped overseas.
The sample paints we got our hands on are: Chrome Silver, Aluminum, Dark Aluminum, Gun Metal, and Burnt Iron.
So here is how they look. In the picture, the parts for the bomb racks and bombs are painted with Chrome Silver, Aluminum, and Dark Aluminum from the left to right — all hand painted with a paintbrush.
Tamiya Acrylic thinner was used for painting these parts, but you can get a good result with just water. The bomb part on the far right is painted with Chrome Silver and water only. Personally, I didn’t notice much difference between using acrylic thinner or just plain water.
Here is another example with Chrome Silver, Aluminum, and Dark Aluminum. From right to left, the first 3 sections are painted with Chrome Silver, the next two sections in the middle with Aluminum, and the last two sections with Dark Aluminum.
Another example. From left to right: Dark Aluminum, Aluminum, and Chrome Silver.
Another example with Aluminum, Gun Metal, and Burnt Iron. The arm parts are painted with Aluminum. The back half of samurai was painted with Gun Metal, and the front half with Burnt Iron.
VIC Acrylic Colors are very easy to apply with a paintbrush. Perhaps you would be able to get a better surface texture with an airbrush, but you can also expect a nice smooth, texture with a paintbrush alone.
Well, you can just see it from the samples I painted. Also, I personally like the ease of use with a paintbrush; all you need to prepare is a palette and water, and you don’t even need to worry about the smell of thinner or the sound of an air compressor. When you finish painting, cleaning up is very easy: just clean your palette and your brush with water, that’s it!
Using an airbrush is fun, but the whole process of preparing and cleaning the airbrush can be a little bit of a pain in the neck sometimes. When you can only spend a limited part of your day on a kit, the combination of VIC Acrylic Colors and a paintbrush offers an easy, safe, and quiet painting time!
– Kuni
