7 Likes
Yep. I have posted this video more then a few times here.
I have been gluing all my models the last two years with the airbrush cleaner. So much so I recently refilled my old Tamiya green bottle with cleaner.
You can apply the glue then attach the part. While saying this, one cannot diddly daddy around doing so.
6 Likes
Best reason to buy Tamiya Extra Cement in the small bottle is for the small bottle & excellent pointed cap brush.
As mentioned above Tamiya airbrush cleaner is practically the same as the Tamiya Extra Thin. Likewise, some folks seem to really like straight MEK or MEK Substitute for ~$13 a quart/32oz.
I build too slow and prefer the old slow Testorās Liquid Cement in a Tamiya bottle 
most of the time.
2 Likes
Didnāt know that you had posted this before.
I plan on trying it.
2 Likes
Always good to see this posted again. I have been using the airbrush cleaner as liquid cement for several years now and actually just refill the same old green top bottle with an eyedropper every so often from the airbrush cleaner bottle.
I keep another 3/4 full old green top bottle with the brush removed as a brush cleaner next to the glue bottle. Great for getting the last of the acrylic paint from your brush even after you have cleaned it with water. It cleans up lacquer paints too like metallic ones. Once a year I strain out the sediment and add back a bit of new liquid.
By the way, the chemical composition is 50% acetone and 50% butyl acetate for the glue and 49/51 for the cleaner. Basically the same.
Every day is a school day ā¦
2 Likes
I use pure ethyl acetate,
can sometimes be found in acetone free nail polish removers.
The last time I bought it from a paint store, in a one gallon can ā¦
One possible source in the UK
https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/F9B06ABE-CCAB-4F73-A52C-36B30DA59C84/?_encoding=UTF8&store_ref=SB_A04653523OF3A85RV0NZ5&pd_rd_plhdr=t&aaxitk=68fbd981d99dad815fd3acc4cea549fa&hsa_cr_id=7478715160401&lp_asins=B07TVFJZ8G%2CB08H8TSBSW%2CB07TVKWFMS&lp_query=Ethyl%20Acetate&lp_slot=desktop-hsa-3psl&ref_=sbx_be_s_3psl_mbd_hl&pd_rd_w=OYKRN&content-id=amzn1.sym.85014337-b4b1-4f3c-85f8-828d3b814280%3Aamzn1.sym.85014337-b4b1-4f3c-85f8-828d3b814280&pf_rd_p=85014337-b4b1-4f3c-85f8-828d3b814280&pf_rd_r=DWP0ANVQ9FARVHQ5KGGG&pd_rd_wg=XEVEc&pd_rd_r=b7cd78fe-4eb4-4d65-9017-eccce8f86901
Maybe Sigma Aldrich in the US
https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/SE/en/search/ethyl-acetate?focus=products&page=1&perpage=30&sort=relevance&term=ethyl%20acetate&type=product
ACS Reagent, 99.5% is plenty good enough
or ask Google about ethyl acetate
1 Like
I switched to airbrush cleaner after @Tank_1812 recommended it! Couldnāt be happier, it is a little hotter than extra thin and evaporates faster but itās a much cheaper alternative. One bottle of the airbrush thinner was like $8 and lasts like 5 times longer than extra thin. I just top up my extra thin bottle when itās low
1 Like
This is interesting. I never knew about this, although Iāve never used Tamiya Extra Thin glue either.
Jim
Is this, MEK, or something else?
Is there a market for empty Tamiya Extra Thin bottles, perchance?
2 Likes
Iām definitely interested and could find a use for several more. Hit me up with and email and lets see if we can work something out.
I was wondering to see if I could buy some for myself, because then I get the handy bottle with its brush, and the cheaper ācementā from the airbrush cleaner. Iāll be moving for Uni soon, so I will be leaving my leaving my almost empty bottle of extra thin at home, since I can get cement when I get there.
My apologies if I hadnāt made myself clear enough.
1 Like
2 Likes
Try it!
Vinegar can also be used for cooking, just check the other shelves.
Sort of a dual use product, can be consumed, can be used for cleaning
and can also be weaponized (a spray of vinegar to the eyes will make anyone
reconsider their choices in life).
Some like to use it to improve the taste of water, I do it even if my kids
think Iām nuts. Just a few drops though ā¦
4 Likes
I am 99% sure that microset is white vinegar, as you say it smells identical
2 Likes
With all this talk of cheaper glue, I gotta wonder - just how much building does everyone do? I get through maybe a bottle a year, and itās just not worth the savings to go for cheaper bulk options for me! But maybe there are folks churning through it faster than me?
The one area where I do go bulk is using car screenwash to clean acrylics out of my airbrush. Saves a lot compared to Tamiya X-20A, which I limit to its primary use to thin their paintsā¦
Assuming microset is white vinegar, whatās the dilution? It canāt be 100%, and I know my Walthers Solvaset is far more aggressive so has more active ingredient.
Might be worth a try. Iāve got plenty of spare decals to do a test.
Many of the products are dual use:
Floor polish (for floors, duh)
Vinegar (cooking, drinking, cleaning)
Nail polish remover, works great for sticker glue as well
so most of the cost would be ābookedā against the other
purposes.
2 Likes
The only issue i have with pink-top Tamiya airbrush cleaner is that it is unobtainable in the UK.
I had a āstudents free shippingā promo offer on a well-known site, so i had some shipped from Italy, together with pale blue-top paint retarder.
It would have been uneconomic without free shipping.
2 Likes