Minwax Polycrylic

[crxmanpat]

HD had some Spar on the clearance shelf today, but only Gloss. I asked and they said they would not be carrying Spar at all anymore. Bummer.

I am placing an order with Amazon tomorrow for something else, may stick a can of Spar in the cart for good measure.

[Alpha]

Hey Pat, I'm curious if you've ordered the Varathane from Amazon? I'm having trouble finding outdoor UV Matte. Satin, I can find, but I really want to try the Matte. The only Matte I have found is Interior "Soft Touch" Varathane.

I'm thinking of first rubbing in two basecoats of the UV Exterior Varathane in Satin (since I can't find Matte), then top coating with a single topcoat of the Interior "Soft Touch" Matte. I'm hoping that will give me a harder base and still the final sheen I want.

I have the Varanthane Interior Semi-Gloss, and its properties are very nice, but it's not the final sheen I'm looking for.

[Pheonix]

Thanks for the good tips. Now, I know why I had issues with min-wax application on my F-7. I just could not get it to stick in certain areas on the wing. I applied, sanded, applied and sanded between each application, using 3,000 and 7K for polishing. I noticed that the foam texture was different on some plane parts. I never thought about the mold release residue could be the issue. The last application was good enough this time and I will leave it alone. Thanks doe the tips and great discussion.

[doctormike]

Yeah...I've noticed that different parts will accept a clear coat in different ways. Doc

[Grossman56]

Hey Pat, I'm curious if you've ordered the Varathane from Amazon? I'm having trouble finding outdoor UV Matte. Satin, I can find, but I really want to try the Matte. The only Matte I have found is Interior "Soft Touch" Varathane.

I'm thinking of first rubbing in two basecoats of the UV Exterior Varathane in Satin (since I can't find Matte), then top coating with a single topcoat of the Interior "Soft Touch" Matte. I'm hoping that will give me a harder base and still the final sheen I want.

I have the Varanthane Interior Semi-Gloss, and its properties are very nice, but it's not the final sheen I'm looking for.

What I've done in the past is mixed the satin Varathane with the same color that I'm painting over maybe three to one, the Acrylic paint is naturally a flat sheen, so it helps to knock the sheen down. This acts like a glaze and is great for weathering and you can be very subtle with it, depending on what ratio you use. try it on some scrap packing foam first to see what you think.

Grossman56

[crxmanpat]

Hey Pat, I'm curious if you've ordered the Varathane from Amazon? I'm having trouble finding outdoor UV Matte. Satin, I can find, but I really want to try the Matte. The only Matte I have found is Interior "Soft Touch" Varathane.

I'm thinking of first rubbing in two basecoats of the UV Exterior Varathane in Satin (since I can't find Matte), then top coating with a single topcoat of the Interior "Soft Touch" Matte. I'm hoping that will give me a harder base and still the final sheen I want.

I have the Varanthane Interior Semi-Gloss, and its properties are very nice, but it's not the final sheen I'm looking for.

Couldn't find any of the outdoor stuff on Amazon either. I like your idea of two coats of satin finished off with a single coat of matte. I may have to try something like that.

For now, I have a pint of the new Minwax matte. Will be putting that on my new Bearcat after I get the tailwheel mod done.

[Grossman56]

Couldn't find any of the outdoor stuff on Amazon either. I like your idea of two coats of satin finished off with a single coat of matte. I may have to try something like that.

For now, I have a pint of the new Minwax matte. Will be putting that on my new Bearcat after I get the tailwheel mod done.

https://www.amazon.com/RUST-OLEUM-250131-Varathane-Outdoor-Semi-Gloss/dp/B000XMW8Z0/ref=sr_1_21?ie=UTF8&qid=1485111894&sr=8-21&keywords=spar+varathane

[F106DeltaDart]

Just checked and you can also order it on the HD site and do free shipping to the store: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Varathane...241H/202057149. Planning on getting some to try out for a P-38 and P-47 repaint.

[F106DeltaDart]

*Edit* Never mind, just realized it was the interior stuff.

Also, just found the matte finish varathane on amazon as well and order a set: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01EM9DP9M...O5-BFYD2H&th=1
.

[Grossman56]

There you go Delta, I figured the internet had it out there somewhere, welcome to the 21st century eh guys?

Grossman56

[crxmanpat]

Unfortunately, none of those links are for outdoor matte. They are either satin or semi-gloss, and the last link says indoor, even though it's in a blue can. Oh well.

[F106DeltaDart]

Unfortunately, none of those links are for outdoor matte. They are either satin or semi-gloss, and the last link says indoor, even though it's in a blue can. Oh well.

Yeah, I am planning on using it as a base coat and painting over it. Maybe a can of Testors flat cote or the indoor matte stuff over the finished paint as a sealer

[doctormike]

I always apply one or two coats of Varathane before spray painting. It protects the foam from gatoring (even EPP/EPO can be affected by spray paint) and gives a much better finish. Varathane works great as a final clear coat over spray paint. A coat of Varathane, a light sanding and another coat helps to hide where those pesky factory decals were. It sounds like Varathane is going out of business, or something. How many times have I found a great product, only for them to stop making it?! Home Depot still carries it here in Santa Fe, thankfully. Doc

[redtwilight]

I hadn't been able to locate the Varathane in any of the local area stores. But I did find a Minwax Pro Series brand of waterbased outdoor Spar Urethane.

Has anyone had any experience with this stuff? I bought a quart of the satin to try out myself. There was no tag or a space for matte finish. So matte may not be available either.

[Beeg]

I picked up a quart of that a few months back in gloss but haven't gotten around to experimenting with it yet.

[Grossman56]

Hey Red, give it a try and let us know how it works out.

Grossman56

[redtwilight]

Hey Red, give it a try and let us know how it works out.

Grossman56

I'll try to locate my Minwax Polycrylic and compare both on a scrap piece of foam this weekend sometime.

[Paul1PA]

New member here and great discussion on RC foam finishes! Like several others, I could not locate the Varathane products locally. However, Minwax appears to make a competing product called Helmsman Water Based Spar Urethane. Approved for outdoor use since flexible and has UV inhibitors. Best of all, can be found at just about any hardware store and Wal-Mart as well. Basically, it's the more economical version of the Minwax Pro Series redtwilight posted above. Here is what the can looks like along with the aerosol version as well. Available sheens are Gloss, Semi-Gloss and Satin. Anyone have experience with this product?

[Grossman56]

Thanks Paul1PA and welcome to the Squawk!
Did you notice if it's available in gloss as well?

Grossman56

[Dewey H Lee]

Hey Dan. I'm not Paul but yes it is available in gloss as well.

[doctormike]

Home Depot, at least in Santa Fe, stocks all sheens of Varathane. I wonder why it is so difficult to find elswhere. It's a shame. It out performs Minwax by miles! Doc