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10-30-2006, 12:07 PM
Follow along in my album if you want, the pictures are mostly self-explanatory.
http://public.fotki.com/grdeyed/model_cars-1/chrome-test/
Chrome Spray Test – “Killer Chrome” by Alsa vs. Alclad II and Spaz Stix
A few people have raved about Alsa Corp’s “Mirrachrome” paint for replicating chrome. Alsa recently came out with “Killer Chrome”, a less-expensive version of Mirrachrome in a spray can. At $40 per can, it’s not inexpensive, combined w/a can of Alsa’s “Killer Clear” ($30), the order was nearly $100, as shipping added about $26 to the deal. We sure hoped it would live up to the reputation it was getting.
Alclad II Chrome is a lot less expensive (about $8 per bottle), and available in many hobby shops. Many people have had great success with it, but it takes practice. I must be sprayed over enamel as it won't adhere to lacquer or acrylic water base paint, black is the best base but other colors like white, gray, or dark blue will work.
Spaz Stix Chrome is something I heard about (and the people who tried it also raved about it) and found it at a Hobbytown USA in the R/C department. I got a small bottle of “Mirror Chrome” and it was a bit more expensive than Alclad II at $9, and a bit less volume in the bottle.
We took standard white plastic spoons and painted them w/Tamiya TS black lacquer spray, and also airbrushed a few of them in Testors Classic Black enamel (I'll say it again; the Alclad samples must be shot on enamel for durability). The spoons were allowed to dry thoroughly in a dehydrator and the paint was very smooth/glossy on them. The following tests of the various paints were done according to the manufacturer’s recommended instructions to spraying, drying time, and overcoating when applicable.
I didn’t expect such good results w/the Alclad II and the Spaz Stix. After spraying a few very light coats, enough to completely cover the black, in an instant or two right after airbrushing the finish clears up and is very reflective. Not like kit chrome, but like highly-polished aluminum or stainless. Neither Alclad nor Spaz Stix reacted well with a coat of Future, the lowest-volatility clear we could come up with. Funny how these plastic spoons looked like real spoons in their polished metal appearance.
We tried the Killer Chrome last. Their nozzle sprayed the material on in a very fine mist of mostly air. It took quite a while compared to airbrushing to get the spoon covered. The paint looked like anyone else’s silver. Like Alclad II or Spaz Stix, you can buff the surface out after a few minutes to wipe away the overspray, to get the surface as clean/glossy as possible. We were not impressed w/Killer Chrome at all at this point. I’ve seen cheap “chrome” paint from Krylon/Duplicolor or even Tamiya’s Silver Leaf look brighter and more reflective.
We transferred some Killer Chrome to the same airbrush we used to spray the Alclad and Spaz Stix, a Badger 175 w/the medium tip. Results were much better, and it sprayed/built up rapidly just like the others, but the reflectivity still was significantly less than Alclad and Spaz Stix.
Final results from this test? Spaz Stix was the winner. It’s the most reflective, slightly better than Alclad, and it’s easier to use as you can spray it over Tamiya’s spray black, saving one step of airbrushing. Alclad II came next, it’s results were also impressive. As much as anything, this test proved that with a glass-smooth black surface to start with, either of these products work quite well. If you expect them to look like kit chrome, you will be disappointed. If you spray them over black paint that's not ultra-smooth and glossy, you may be disappointed.
Killer Chrome, in our opinion, isn’t. It’s extremely expensive, it’s inferior to the airbrushed versions of it’s competitors. Alsa claims it is best if clearcoated w/a low-volatiles clear. We bought theirs, and also used Future. Alsa’s clear was so strong/volatile it etched it’s way down to the base coat. Future made the Killer Chrome cloud up and turn mostly “silver” as it did with the others. Seems nobody has perfected a spray chrome that can take a clearcoat.
I’d love to try the same test with “real” Mirrachrome to see if the “Killer Chrome” was a fluke. At this point we’re highly disappointed with the results of the Alsa products. I would like to see the same kind of spoon painted w/ real mirrachrome and photographed with the ones from this test. I'm working on that.
Moral of the story? Alclad and Spaz Stix will work decently, but you have to spend the bulk of your time making your base coat of black as absolutely perfect as possible. If it’s not glass-smooth, your chrome will not be nearly as good as it could be. If the black is glass smooth, your results should be good. Airbrushing either product is pretty easy, it goes on in thin coats quickly, dries quickly too.
Here are the pictures:
http://images16.fotki.com/v31/photos/1/10258/4212157/LRKillKillABAlcladSpaz-vi.jpg
L-R, worst to best. Killer Chrome from spray can, Killer Chrome airbrushed, Alclad airbrushed, Spaz Stix airbrushed. No clearcoat.
http://images19.fotki.com/v36/photos/1/10258/4212157/SpazKillFutureRaw-vi.jpg
Clearcoated (with Future) L-R; Killer Chrome w/Clear, Killer Chrome raw, Spaz Stix w/Clear, Spaz Stix raw
http://images16.fotki.com/v31/photos/1/10258/4212157/AlcladKillraw-vi.jpg
Alclad ($8) vs. Killer Chrome ($40).
http://images9.fotki.com/v186/photos/1/10258/4212157/SpazKillAirbrushedRaw-vi.jpg
Spaz Stix ($9) vs. Killer Chrome airbrushed ($40).
http://images16.fotki.com/v29/photos/1/10258/4212157/SpazAlcladRaw-vi.jpg
The winners, Alclad and Spaz Stix, raw w/no clearcoat. I'm waiting to see if I can get a sample of Mirrachrome to spray, or if someone can send me a spoon that was prepped like ours and sprayed w/Mirrachrome (not Killer Chrome).
http://public.fotki.com/grdeyed/model_cars-1/chrome-test/
Chrome Spray Test – “Killer Chrome” by Alsa vs. Alclad II and Spaz Stix
A few people have raved about Alsa Corp’s “Mirrachrome” paint for replicating chrome. Alsa recently came out with “Killer Chrome”, a less-expensive version of Mirrachrome in a spray can. At $40 per can, it’s not inexpensive, combined w/a can of Alsa’s “Killer Clear” ($30), the order was nearly $100, as shipping added about $26 to the deal. We sure hoped it would live up to the reputation it was getting.
Alclad II Chrome is a lot less expensive (about $8 per bottle), and available in many hobby shops. Many people have had great success with it, but it takes practice. I must be sprayed over enamel as it won't adhere to lacquer or acrylic water base paint, black is the best base but other colors like white, gray, or dark blue will work.
Spaz Stix Chrome is something I heard about (and the people who tried it also raved about it) and found it at a Hobbytown USA in the R/C department. I got a small bottle of “Mirror Chrome” and it was a bit more expensive than Alclad II at $9, and a bit less volume in the bottle.
We took standard white plastic spoons and painted them w/Tamiya TS black lacquer spray, and also airbrushed a few of them in Testors Classic Black enamel (I'll say it again; the Alclad samples must be shot on enamel for durability). The spoons were allowed to dry thoroughly in a dehydrator and the paint was very smooth/glossy on them. The following tests of the various paints were done according to the manufacturer’s recommended instructions to spraying, drying time, and overcoating when applicable.
I didn’t expect such good results w/the Alclad II and the Spaz Stix. After spraying a few very light coats, enough to completely cover the black, in an instant or two right after airbrushing the finish clears up and is very reflective. Not like kit chrome, but like highly-polished aluminum or stainless. Neither Alclad nor Spaz Stix reacted well with a coat of Future, the lowest-volatility clear we could come up with. Funny how these plastic spoons looked like real spoons in their polished metal appearance.
We tried the Killer Chrome last. Their nozzle sprayed the material on in a very fine mist of mostly air. It took quite a while compared to airbrushing to get the spoon covered. The paint looked like anyone else’s silver. Like Alclad II or Spaz Stix, you can buff the surface out after a few minutes to wipe away the overspray, to get the surface as clean/glossy as possible. We were not impressed w/Killer Chrome at all at this point. I’ve seen cheap “chrome” paint from Krylon/Duplicolor or even Tamiya’s Silver Leaf look brighter and more reflective.
We transferred some Killer Chrome to the same airbrush we used to spray the Alclad and Spaz Stix, a Badger 175 w/the medium tip. Results were much better, and it sprayed/built up rapidly just like the others, but the reflectivity still was significantly less than Alclad and Spaz Stix.
Final results from this test? Spaz Stix was the winner. It’s the most reflective, slightly better than Alclad, and it’s easier to use as you can spray it over Tamiya’s spray black, saving one step of airbrushing. Alclad II came next, it’s results were also impressive. As much as anything, this test proved that with a glass-smooth black surface to start with, either of these products work quite well. If you expect them to look like kit chrome, you will be disappointed. If you spray them over black paint that's not ultra-smooth and glossy, you may be disappointed.
Killer Chrome, in our opinion, isn’t. It’s extremely expensive, it’s inferior to the airbrushed versions of it’s competitors. Alsa claims it is best if clearcoated w/a low-volatiles clear. We bought theirs, and also used Future. Alsa’s clear was so strong/volatile it etched it’s way down to the base coat. Future made the Killer Chrome cloud up and turn mostly “silver” as it did with the others. Seems nobody has perfected a spray chrome that can take a clearcoat.
I’d love to try the same test with “real” Mirrachrome to see if the “Killer Chrome” was a fluke. At this point we’re highly disappointed with the results of the Alsa products. I would like to see the same kind of spoon painted w/ real mirrachrome and photographed with the ones from this test. I'm working on that.
Moral of the story? Alclad and Spaz Stix will work decently, but you have to spend the bulk of your time making your base coat of black as absolutely perfect as possible. If it’s not glass-smooth, your chrome will not be nearly as good as it could be. If the black is glass smooth, your results should be good. Airbrushing either product is pretty easy, it goes on in thin coats quickly, dries quickly too.
Here are the pictures:
http://images16.fotki.com/v31/photos/1/10258/4212157/LRKillKillABAlcladSpaz-vi.jpg
L-R, worst to best. Killer Chrome from spray can, Killer Chrome airbrushed, Alclad airbrushed, Spaz Stix airbrushed. No clearcoat.
http://images19.fotki.com/v36/photos/1/10258/4212157/SpazKillFutureRaw-vi.jpg
Clearcoated (with Future) L-R; Killer Chrome w/Clear, Killer Chrome raw, Spaz Stix w/Clear, Spaz Stix raw
http://images16.fotki.com/v31/photos/1/10258/4212157/AlcladKillraw-vi.jpg
Alclad ($8) vs. Killer Chrome ($40).
http://images9.fotki.com/v186/photos/1/10258/4212157/SpazKillAirbrushedRaw-vi.jpg
Spaz Stix ($9) vs. Killer Chrome airbrushed ($40).
http://images16.fotki.com/v29/photos/1/10258/4212157/SpazAlcladRaw-vi.jpg
The winners, Alclad and Spaz Stix, raw w/no clearcoat. I'm waiting to see if I can get a sample of Mirrachrome to spray, or if someone can send me a spoon that was prepped like ours and sprayed w/Mirrachrome (not Killer Chrome).