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Hi everyone, my father has just showed me his old collection of modeling paints and I was wondering if they could still be used. It consists on a box of acrylics mostly made by Tamiya with a couple of Vallejos; and a box of emanels with Humbrol, Tamiya and a single can of Revell. They are all from 20 to 30 years ago and most of them are still half full. Here are the photos:

So yeah, are these worth my time? Too old to bother? If so, can these bottles and cans at least be emptied and cleaned for kitbashes?

Depends on the paint. Check them out and see if they have life.

I’m still using paints from the 80s. Not many at this point, but they are still good.

And a lot of dried out bottles over the years.

YMMV.

So it's not a bad idea then. Alright, I'll check them out one by one. I know a couple of them have their pigment very deep in the bottle and the rest is just clear fluid, will a shakeup just do like with a newer paint or do I need to thoroughly stir it with a toothpick?

If you can get the container open and it's still liquid inside, you can use them. Most of my paint stash is 25+ years old at this point.

Just be aware painting with enamels (and hybrid acrylics w/solvent, like the Tamiya) handles very differently from modern acrylics. Don't use your good brushes with 'em, and work in a well ventilated area.

They will need extensive mixing and given the thickness I would use a stirring implement. Shaking alone isn't going to do it.

I would try to revive them!
If not good enough for models, but not totally dry my scrap paint go into the terrain bin and is used on bases or dioramas.

I woud not use the emanels

 skeleton wrote:
I woud not use the emanels

Are they hazardous? I know they don't work like acrylics, but still.

They're awkward - need to use thinner rather than water. But they will work - I started out 30 years ago painting miniatures with Humbrol enamels, as it was what we had available from building Airfix kits...

Watch some videos on how to work with enamels if you aren't familiar with them.

They take thinner/solvent to dilute and clean brushes with. Because of this you'll need synthetics or disposable brushes, a well-ventilated work area, and good table/floor/clothing protection. Acrylic spills are bad, enamel spills are worse.

The finish is often extremely glossy. Most of the early model paints were meant for use on scale cars, planes and other vehicles, where this was an asset.

Even for enamels marked non-toxic (and I'm not sure how many old ones would count as such for modern standards) I wouldn't want them anywhere near my eyes, nose or mouth. Not a good choice if you're a brush-licker.

The consistency is often thick and viscous. Think snot. While it self-levels better than most acrylics it's also incredibly easy to put on too thick and obscure details.

The drying time can be very long, depending on thickness of application. Many hours or even days with brush application.

There are techniques you can do with enamels you can't do with acrylics and vice versa.

Getting enamel off a model once dry can be a real pain in the rump. Be sure you're committing to the colour because it's not nearly as easy to repaint or strip as acrylics.

Oh, for sure. I wouldn't jump on it blind. I consider myself rather cautious when it comes to these things. Thanks for the input, fellas.