Should I apply lacquer over Alclad chrome?

Wow, that has never happened to me. It must be that there is a compatibility problem with the Humbrol paints. I know these are prevalent in England but maybe you should try another enamel paint. What I usually do without problems is to spray any black paint and then brush or spray Future over it before applying Alcad. You can even polish the future a bit to get an even glossier shine prior to the Alcad. Hope this helps.

That hasen't happened to me either ,, and I DO use Humbrol gloss black under mine. There shouldn't be a problem ,, BTW ,, Steve Boutte also uses Humbrol under his Alclad.

IIRC ,,Alclad DOES make a clear to use over thier chrome but I've never needed it. I haven't heard of anything else to use that wouldn't ruin the chrome effect.

All the "chrome"engine parts in this pic were done using the Humbrol under alclad,, I did have to touch up the valve covers but they got handled A LOT during construction.

I have applied Alclad II per the instructions from Alclad's website and have no problems at all. If you have doubts, consult their site.
http://www.alclad2.com/alclad-home.html

It's coming off on my fingers whenever I touch the chrome - goes straight back to the black paint below.

I'm going to have to try and re-coat it I think and just hope it will cover Tamiya lacquer okay - they recommend it as a base coat so should be okay, unless anyone has any other bright ideas that don't include BMF?
Mike

QUOTE: Originally posted by Cycolac Fan

It's coming off on my fingers whenever I touch the chrome - goes straight back to the black paint below.

I'm going to have to try and re-coat it I think and just hope it will cover Tamiya lacquer okay - they recommend it as a base coat so should be okay, unless anyone has any other bright ideas that don't include BMF?
Mike

Alclad does not adhere to Tamiya gloss black lacquer. I learned that the hard way. It works best over gloss black enamel paint that has been drying for only two days or so. I have been told that alclad needs a slightly soft paint to bond with. Gloss enamel paints can take upwards of a week to cure to the hardness of a laquer that has been drying for a few hours to a day.

I seems to me that there is something on your black paint that is preventing the Alclad form grabbing onto. Be sure to let the gloss black paint "gas out" before using Alclad.

From the Alclad website; which mrmike kindly provided a link to:

QUOTE: ALCLAD High Shine -Chrome and Polished Aluminium both require a dark glossy base. Polished Aluminium should be used over Tamiya TS-14 gloss black,or gloss black auto paint. Chrome and only chrome should be used over gloss black model enamel paint.

So Tamiya is fine for everything but the paint I'm using - typical!
I don't know of another enamel spray paint available in the UK other than Humbrol.

The Humbrol enamel black paint has been dry for well over a month, probably nearer two months. Humbrol enamel always used to take a long time to dry so I was careful to let it completely cure.

The Alclad is rubbing over almost melting onto my skin. It can also be taken straight off with a clean dry cloth so clearly something I have done is wrong.

I'm going to try and re-coat it. The finish was a little patchy anyway so perhaps a heavy coat and a long drying time will help?

Thanks for all the suggestions thus far.
Great looking Lincoln there CanCon.
Mike

Well I stil haven't solved the problem but I have learned some stuff:

You can airbrush Alclad chrome srtraight over Tamiya lacquer without problems, Alclad will also go straight over Humbrol black paint that has been sprayed only minutes before with no ill effects.

You can recoat Alclad chrome several times. I'd always heard two coats was the limit but managed five today without problems.

I always found through various oversprays and spillage that you chrome black plastic (a jar lid and the airhose of my airbrush) and blu tack (fun tac) as well as cardboard.

It's less inclined to rub off tonight some 8 hours after spraying but still by no means soild and dry.
Is it as reaction to the warm oils in my skin? I sometimes get the same effect with newsprint - the ink used on the cover of Scale Auto for instance.

The experiement continues, all comments are welcome.
Mike

Hey Cycolacfan I have had the same issues with alclad II chrome. I used Krylon glossy black as a base ,then a couple coats of chrome, and when I pick up the part, regaurdless of how long it has set, it always exposes the black where I have touched. If you find a solution I'm all ears?

Hi there Cycolac Fan

I understand yours and others frustration using Alclad, but it is a great product and just takes some time and a little help to become successful at it.
I did a posting on this 6 or 7 pages back called TIPS USING ALCLAD. There's 3 pages from different users and may help you some.
I have been using ALCLAD since it came out and have done seminars up and down the West Coast, Calif. to Wash.,including at the 2007 NNL West in Santa Clara, so I've paid my dues on this stuff - LOL
I've never used the Humbrol products you mentioned, but I'll share with you what works for me.
Regardless what the instructions say on the ALCLAD bottle, I can spray it over everything I've tried so far - enamels, lacquers and even catalyzed urethanes. What's important is the "Bite" or grip the ALCLAD has on what you spray it over.
If your base coat color ( Black or clear - I recommend using clear over the black - I'll tellyou why later) is too dry, where the ALCLAD won't stick, or the ALCLAD hasn't dried long enough, in either case, it will rub off EASILY!! There is a window of time for the black to dry - never more than 24 hours, then it's too dry and the ALCLAD will, as I said, rub off - Redundance
Heat and timing are critical to successful painting and to the use of ALCLAD CHROME.
Paint and ALCLAD dont like the cold. Moisture is ALWAYS present when it's cold and any professional painter on this site will tell you that moisture and cold are KILLERS in any type of painting. Moisture mechanically and chemically change the product.
HEAT - I realize that probably most everyone reading this, unfortunately, spray outdoors, which is really the worst case senario, and there is nothing predictable i.e temperature, quality of STILL ( not moving ) air, dust free, etc., even a garage or shed is better, if availabe.
I have a small walk in spray booth that is heated, lit and ventilate. I've been building over 50 years now and got tired of dealing with all that - LOL
Anyway, at about 80 - 85 degrees, I seal the plastic with a good quality lacquer primer, I set it aside a week to off-gas and dry.
Next, at the same temperature, I shoot my Duplicolor gloss black lacquer. Three coats - light, medium and heavy. 15 minutes drying between each coat. Wait another 15 minutes and shoot a wet coat of Plasticote clear ( after my last posting on ALCLAD TIPS a lot more guys here are using the clear - refer back to page 6or 7).
At this temperature I shoot the ALCLAD 15 to 30 minutes later and can handle it within an hour without it rubbing off. ( Because of the heat and timing, the ALCLAD has a "grip" and won't rub off)
If you shoot the ALCLAD at around 72-75 degrees, let it dry for a week before handling.
Don't clear coat it, as it will dull !!
I hope this helps. Any questions I'll be glad to answere them.

All the best - Dave

first off your issue is you put a lacquer over an enamel.  ok with that said, alclad makes a topcoat to use over their lacquers but you oculs also use automotive laquer put on in thin coats after the chrome has dried for a hour or 2.  also i dont know what the difference is but there are 2 versions of "chrome" on alclads site one for plastic and one for lexan.

 

what i recommend is a black lacquer base coat either alclad brand or automotive laquers, and top it with alclad clear or automotive clear lacquer.

I find it best to spray Allclad right after the black while it's still wet. They do make a clear coat for the Alclad. Future will only make it worse and recoating over the clear won't work either. Best option is to strip-n-clean, re-prime and hit it with a couple mist coats of automotive black. Then have your Alclad ready to shoot when you throw the wet coat of black. I don't even let the black flash before the first hit of Alclad.