finding a good match for silver

I'm beginning to notice how many kinds of silver there are, and how modeling silvers rarely match real cars' silver. I'm using spray cans (though I have access to an airbrush) and painting a silver Miata.

Getting the right amount of metallic flake is hard enough. Should I use a light gray, and then use a pearlescent overcoat on top?

Anyone have a favorite slightly-bluish silver?

Model Masters has a good silver that ends up actually silver I believe. Tamiya has Silver Leaf and another one in a can. Silver leaf is fairly dull, but I don't know about the other. Just experiment if you can.

Duplicolors has some nice silvers

alclad

Automotive silvers might get you a good range. Sometimes you can ask them to mix metallic colours with smaller flakes to make it look more in scale. I ask when I have them mixed.

Tamiya TS-17 is a nice silver. This is my Z-Tune in TS-17 with TS-13

http://www.blurryimage.com/pic.php?mode=O&pid=41236

Alclad II is great for that silver metal look, what do you want the silver for? Metal parts, or the body?

If you are painting bodies, the TS-17 Gloss Aluminum by Tamiya is nice. The new TS-76 Mica Silver is also good... - Mark

The body.

I used to do airplanes, so I'm familiar with metallic paints that you use for bare-metal finishes. But not with paints that mimic paints that mimic silver.

www.paintscratch.com


-Chris

If you're in the states Cobra Colors may have something that will suit your requirements. Do a search in the Progress - Street and Show forum, I recall a very nice silvery light blue on a Lamborghini Miura.

RR's right! Cobra Colors is prolly your best bet here!

Automotive paints tend to go down a lot easier than the available hobby paints. On either note, a light hand when spraying should also be had! Silver is a tricky color to paint and tends to want to mottle on you if you build up coats too fast.

Here's a 1/43rd scale model I painted with PPG paint right in a full size autobody shop. If you choose the correct paint with out a lot of heavy metal flake the "scale look" should be fine. Most paints these days use a pearlescents anyhow and huge flakes are usually a custom thing.

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/503/18590J1s.jpg


If you're in the states Cobra Colors may have something that will suit your requirements. Do a search in the Progress - Street and Show forum, I recall a very nice silvery light blue on a Lamborghini Miura.