White glue as varnish?

MikeBer

Active Member
Quite by accident, I ended up covering a card part with white glue (PVA).
When it had dried, it had dried clear and the colours of the part were not affected but I had a clear protective skin over the part.
I then tried it again on another printed part but this time slightly diluted with water. It painted on perfectly (it looks unsightly until dried) but it dried to a smooth, clear, "gloss varnish" effect.
This is great for reinforcing the glue lines and protecting the coloured ink on the parts.
I don't know the long term effects of the glue - yellowing with age, etc, but I am going to use it to protect my models.
 

MikeBer

Active Member
Most white glues have lignin which causes them to yellow.
keep us informed, Pictures would be nice too!:)

Here is a quick sample that I did - left to right - original - PVA applied - finished wheel.
I only diluted the PVA with 1 drop of water. Diluting it more will result in a much smoother finish.

PVAwheels.jpg
 
Z

Zathros

To be honest, I like the first picture best. Of course, that is just my opinion and in a picture, you see things differently. When I look at a model, I like the surfaces to represent as close as possible, the sheen that the original had. The effect may look better on the wheel part (rubber) only, and on pieces that should be chrome or brass. Hard to tell without being there. :)
 

Haereticus

New Member
I was going to say that it might look particularly good if you just did it on the rubber. You'd want to make the coat as even as possible.
 
N

niebla de fuego

This is interesting.
I tried this before on some other kind of handi-craft years ago, and it is probably a good option for paper models.
Will see your experiments :)





Most white glues have lignin which causes them to yellow.
keep us informed, Pictures would be nice too!:)
That's true for some glues. But not all ;)

When I worked in book binding we used to use white PVA glues to glue the spines of the books prior to the actual process outer binding. I notice that even after several layers of white glue, and if let to dry properly, they remain transparent for several years without yellowing.

In older books there was yellowing and the glue became crystalized. But with the newer glues that didn't happened. I still have some samples of book spines I bound in the mid 1990s, and they are still very transparent and flexible.

But I guess it depends of the brand and the specific way they create the glue.
 
Z

Zathros

If you were binding books, you were working with some expensive glue (I would hope). Without knowing what brand or make, there's no way of repeating what you were able to do. The stuff they sell around here is horrible. I think that's because most of it is edible kids glue!! Yum Yum!! :)
 

MikeBer

Active Member
Thanks, Zathros for the positive criticism, I tend to agree with you about the tyre. I did another experiment, this time diluting the glue 50/50 with water.
I painted it on the inner wheel and it dried to a very nice Satin/Matt finish,
I coated the tyre with almost pure glue.

PVAwheels1.jpg
 

paper hollywood

Active Member
I believe acrylic artist's medium is very similar to PVA, but thinner and designed for brushing on, of course. If you wanted something that's a better bet for longevity that might be a good replacement. I keep a jar of acrylic gel medium around for various uses with models and sometimes as just a clear coating. I haven't tried it on a card model though. I might test that out.

Wade
 
Z

Zathros

I have a bottle of Liquid Electrical Tape. I always thought this would looks for rubber hoses, wheels, etc, as just before it dries, it becomes impressionable. I always wondered if tire treads could be pressed in, or if painted on thinly, maybe it could enhance paper treads. Just thinking with my fingers! :)

P.S. MikeBer, I think it is excellent and shows real character, when a person posts and asks questions, and make the exchange of ideas pleasant. That goes on a lot here, and you continue this tradition in the best possible manner! :)
 

DanBKing

Dan the Man
I think you guys in the States call it "Future"; it is an acrylic floor polish in liquid form, that dries to a very tough, resistant gloss finish. The plastic modelling community swear by it, and in my experience, the things that you can do with the stuff you can write a book on.
I don't know if it would be suitable for card, but it would be worth an experiment.

Just thought I'd add my 10c worth..... :)
 
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