I was sent a review bottle of a new paint from the makers of SnJ. This is an acrylic aluminum metallic paint, something that is somewhat new to the hobby. I'm always interested in things that will make painting natural metal finishes easier so gave it a try. While I didn't have an airplane in the works to use this on, I was building a car model and had several parts that required an aluminum finish. What's more, the plastic was black, giving the paint a chance to show how it could cover.

Instructions on the bottle (which will be a different shape on the production paint) say it is ready to spray and to use light, overlapping passes until the desired density is attained. So I did just that.

The results are very good. The paint is a tad more grain than standard SnJ, but once dry, it is nearly impossible to differentiate. This also takes a while to dry and mine was a bit tacky at about an hour, though overnight drying gave a solid and hard surface that does not come off on one's hands. I also put tape on it to see how it held up and had no problems with paint pulling up. You can see how it turned out on the radiator section leaning up on the bottle. If one wants to use SnJ's polishing powders, one can. The bottle's instructions recommend applying it while the paint is still slightly tacky.

Overall, this looks like a real winner. Those who are adverse to petroleum based metallics now have a viable option. I'm sure you can tint this with lighter and darker colors just like you can SnJ. It is expected that this paint will be generally available later this week, so check the website at the URL listed below for updates.

My thanks to www.hawkeyeshobbies.com  for the review sample. Get yours at the link.

March 2007

If you would like your product reviewed fairly and quickly by a site that has over 350,000 visitors a month, please contact me or see other details in the Note to Contributors.

Back to Main Page