Why do people put so must faith or trust in TAMIYA paints? What makes them so popular?
But the bigger question I have or rather a pet peeve I have is that some modelers consider the paints to be "accurate" which I think they are not. 
Let's take model ships for example. On various websites and forums, I see people using TAMIYA TS-33 Dull Red or XF-9 Hull Red for the hull bottoms of American naval ships.
From what I have been told or what I have read, both of those colors are WRONG. They appear to be too dark and would most likely be better for painting Japanese WWII ship hulls.
I don't know how accurate TAMIYA paints are for aircraft or armor. But every time I hear somebody using them for painting ships, I just cringe and do a facepalm.
There are so many better, AND MORE ACCURATE, paint choices on the market. But yet, people still prefer to use cheaper and less accurate paints like TAMIYA. Why?
There are better choices like:
White Ensign Models Colourcoats
Scalecolors.com
Tru-Color paints

     I am so glad to don't care about reality in the whatif world .

But the combination of TAMYA PAINT with some other products can produce strange effects. 
That is what I care about ...

Well, if they're anything like me, I find many of the more accurate paints don't get along with my airbrush (I've broken 3 using supposedly more accurate paints that kept on gumming up my airbrushes until they broke no matter how I thinned them or how often I thoroughly cleaned the airbrush), whereas I've never had a problem with Tamiya paints using an airbrush, which are also amongst the easiest to clean out of the airbrush. That ease of use is a really big plus.

However, money does come into it, when you buy as many paints as I do, & Tamiya's price is very competitive (about 1/3 the cost of my other preferred brand & I get about 3 times the coverage from a Tamiya jar).

After all, even with modern paints & QA/QC systems in place, colours vary from the prescribed standard from manufacturer to manufacturer, & even from batch to batch, & some may look exact when freshly applied but a week after being exposed to the elements are showing completely different qualities.

But, when push comes to shove & you get right down to it, especially as a whif modeller, I just don't care & ascribe to the theory that "close enough is good enough" in most circumstances.

When I do Real World builds or I want the look to be closer to RW I now tend to use the local SMS lacquer paints (made in Victoria, somewhere) but I find that if you look at enough colour images of the subject you'll find some where the Tamiya colours are certainly close enough to not be out of place.

Of course your mileage may vary.

Tried Tamiya twice. Didn't like the way they brushed and loathed them through the airbrush. And the smell is vile.  I got rid of the very few I had very quickly.

Conversely, the more accurate Xtracrylix I've rarely had an issue until recently.

If brushing Tamiya, brush it where you want with one stroke and then don't touch it. Airbrushing was so so for me. Too heavy of a coat made it do strange things.
When the issue of accurate paint colors comes up I say what factory did the RW paint come out of during the war? Wartime production was more concerned about if it would stick than exactly what shade it was. Then add in factors like fading from sunlight, salt spray and ageing and you could get all kinds of shades even on the same vehicle or aircraft. So I'm not that exited about the perfect shade. Just use what paint works best for you and your equipment and skills. One of the reasons I got into whiffs was so I didn't have to worry about such things so much.

I've been using Tamiya paints for as long as I can remember..for me they don't brush for crap ..seems to start drying before it gets close to the plastic but as air brushing goes its one of my all time favs.
I just stir the pot until smooth and thin it as I need it .
It sprays with out any hassles for me at all and like Giy said..super easy to clean with the system I use for cleaning .
As for the colours being right ..couldn't care less as for RW builds don't exist in my world anymore..I just that bored with them .
If you take an old abandoned ship or tank which has Sat for yrs you will find at least 10 different shades of  the same colour ..different light will show different shades ..light or dark water will show the same ..reflections from the sun bouncing off the water will show different shades.
All in all it's nearly impossible to get the exact right shade or colour and the best part of wiffy world is every colour is right .

I still use a lot of good old Testors in the little square bottles.

Could never brush Tamiya well...
they airbrushed well, but then my airbrush went T-U and I went back to hairy-sticking with Humbrol enamels... my stash of 20+ year old tins! Then tried MM enamels and liked them too.
Vallejo as well, now.

The Tamiya are probably meant more for Japanese Military subjects... and the point about different manufacturers would be why they market different shades for different makers of the Zero, among others.

Well, as far as "accuracy" goes, I really don't give a toss. I've no time for arguing over whether or not a colour is "right" or not. I suspect most of us, with the possible exception of rivet counters don't care either. I only ever use the T L A R (That Looks About Right) paint charts.

As for Tamiya paints, I think they are appalling. I don't airbrush and, as far as I'm concerned (based on experience) their paints are only fit for the bin.

I used to brush paint Tamiya and at best they were temperamental. Some colours worked ok but others could be a right pain and as has been said anything more than one brush stroke and you've got problems. So I don't tend to go near the few I've got left now.

So it's mainly Xtracrylic (some Xtracolour for shades they didn't carry over) and Hataka nowadays. I still use good old Humbrol Metal Cote for Aluminium etc.

Quote from: kerick on May 18, 2023, 06:22:52 PMIf brushing Tamiya, brush it where you want with one stroke and then don't touch it.

Exactly, can confirm this. The Tamiya paints have a unique and peculiar way of curing, and they do not lend themselves to wet-in-wet brush techniques or dry-brushing, at least the way I do it. I basically like the paints, because of their opacity and very good finish. But for me they are only good for large uniform areas, even delicate camoflage patterns can be cumbersome, so I rarely use them.

Tamiya "acrylics" have a carrier that's a combination of alcohols and glycols, they're water soluble rather than water-based. This is why a second coat will dissolve the first if it's not fully cured, dry to the touch doesn't mean cured. The acrylic resin base that forms the paint film takes time to cure, it's an advantage when airbrushing because a second coat applied before the first has cured will melt into the first.

Based on what I've seen and read about the classic solid modelling in Japan, which is still practiced by some, the paints behave in a manner similar to the traditional lacquers that had been used for a very long time. The brush painting method being thin coats built up over several sessions with at least a day between each, the result is a very smooth, brush-stroke
free finish. It's definitely a method that requires patience and precision.

In regards to the Tamiya, adding a retarder, and a flow aid, to the paint is a good idea as it increases your working time and improves workability with a brush.

I've always had trouble with Tamiya paints when using a brush, but absolutely no trouble with an airbrush. The explanation above makes a load of sense why.

Xtracrylix feel more authentic in colour but I've had trouble with thinning them for the airbrush. There seems to be a small sweet spot that I always miss.

Quite like Vallejo Air at the moment and I've tried some Ammo by Mig, through the airbrush. Both seem to be trouble free so far.
Really like the Ammo metal colours, have some good depth to them and a nice sheen.

Never had too much of an issue thinning Xtracrylix, but I've some syringes which helps.  I also use cheap car screen wash, rather than the expensive thinners.