what colors you "need" to have in your kit

[installer]

well, i can see from what i have read, and from what others are doing you need lots of different colors of paints in your arsenol, obviously depending on what you work on, and what your desogns are. but for the new guys (me of course) how many colors do you have in your kits? i realize that over time you end up with almost everything, but what do you suggest to get to start out with?
what colors in opaque?
what colors in transparents?
or is this all a matter of personal choice?

might be a dumb question, but i don't wanna go out and spend a fortune on paints that i may not even use/need y'know?

[redanner]

If I was doing commercial work I would spend the money and have what might be needed! Its also hard to match colors you have made if you don't create a formula and write it down with a color name!

[sharonsstudio]

if your good at colors all you need is white, black, red,yellow,and blue they are your primary colors that make all your secondary colors.. you can pretty much do anything with those colors.. opaque colors are solid colors.. mostly white then you can use transparent ove the white to make your colors.. especially on a dark surface..
hope this helps

[Whit]

There are usually sets available,,, basics,,,
you don't say what paint you're interested in,,
but even uro's I think can be aquired in kits !!!
As Sharon said,, with a working knowledge of
colors,,, you can limit the choices you make !!!

[draggin81]

The type of paint you need depends entirely on what you're planning on doing, but the basic colors you'll need are the same.
At a minimum, I'd recommend black, white, red, green, yellow, magenta, and turquise. From those colors you can pretty much literally create any color you could need.
If you go to drublair.com and look for his "color buffer theory" link, print it off, and read it about 100 times. LOL. It's one of those things that seems like the information is straighforward, but everytime you read it, something else "clicks". That article will also help you with your questions on transparent vs. opaque, ect.
What are you planning on painting on?

[XZOTIC INK]

I DID NOT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT MIXING OR EVEN THE WORD TRANSPARENT OR OPAGUE,,i used rattle cans with one color,,THATS IT,,took a while for me to realize how to layer up colors and what OPAGUE WOULD DO or transparent,,

stick basic till you understand the paint,,BUY A BASIC set,,i still do when im not sure if i have ran out of the colors at home,,later on you can mix and match and make ya own formulas,,,

HAVE FUN WITH IT,,EXPERIMENT,,and post!

[installer]

i think i may have just figured it out.........correct me if i wrong. you need to use auto-air opaques with auto-air transparents and candys right?, but what i'm using is the createx brand just not the "auto-air" series, so if i buy some auto-air paints can i use auto-air transparents with regular createx opaques?

i'm going to buy some anyways and give it a shot, but i thought i'd ask seeings how i'm sure someone here has tried. i would assume i need to get my primary colors in the auto-air series to properly use the candies and what-not. i printed the "how to use" section off of the auto-air web site, and it doesn't specify what i was asking.......all i'm doing by the way is a helmet. which is going rather slowly. lol.

[Vatos80]

buy half litre of opaque colors.
1.Black
2.White
3.Red
4.Yellow
5.Blue
6.Green Blue
7.Magenta
8.Tansoxide Red
9.Green

thats it and u ready to go...

as for transparent, u may need to try the over reduced the opaque method 1st, before u actually start to play with trans paint and kandies..GOOD LUCK!

[draggin81]

Candies are usually sprayed over a silver sparkle or one of Auto Air's Aluminum Bases. The whole idea with candies is that whatever is underneath them can "pop" through.
I wouldn't neccesarily recommend using candies for a first project. AA candies in particular can be a PITA to use. If you do use the, mix them at a 50:50 ratio with transparent base, and make sure to strain before you putthe paint in your gun. Adding a little reducer can help somewhat with sprayability issues.
Also, be VERY careful when un-masking after putting the candy on. The candy doesn't bond all that well, and it's easy to make it lift with the tape. Next heat cure it, then spray on a layer or two of just transparent base to protect and help seal the candy.

[installer]

thank you for the insight guys, i wasn't sure if i was gettin' it just yet, but i have one question though...........vatos80 said that you can dilute the opaque's to the point where i may be able to use them as a transparent color is this true? i hope i didn't miss-understand his reply, but thats what i took from it. lol.

[Whit]

With opaques,,, a color is a color,,,
with transparents,,, a color is the combination of
the added color plus what's under it (colors),,,
Hence,, opaque red,, is red,, spray a lil yellow on top,,,
it's yellow ,, now you've got yellow on red,,,
now,, take your trans colors,, spray the red,,
make a fan (dark to light),, then apply the trans
yellow over the whole thing,,, you'll get everything
from red,, to oranges,, to yellows !!!
All from just two colors !!! (on a white base)
Transparents are much more forgiving than opaques !!!
You cn build more color variations,, with fewer colors
meaning you buy fewer bottles of paint to achive
more colors with the trans paints as well !!!
Well,,, just two cents here !!!
Good Luck on it !!!

[draggin81]

I'd have to disagree with Vatos. I think it's easier to make a transparent and turn it inot an opaque than the other way around. All you need to do to turn a transparent paint into an opaque (or semi-opaque, really) is to buffer it with a little black or white (which are opaque).
What paints and techniques you want to use depends on what you're trying to acheive. For a fairly simple, solid colors job, opaques qould work best. for more intricate work tansparents may work better, or might not.
Can you post a pic of what you're trying to paint? That would make it alot easier to give the best advice.

[Vatos80]

yepp..better to see what u trying to do 1st, then we can guide u corectly...