How long does paint take to dry?

[Bloodfinger]

Hi, hope you don\'t mind me asking a stupid question, but how long does acrylic paint (Vallejo) take to dry before you can paint another coat or colour over it?

I\'ve just switched to acrylics having always used Humbrol enamels, which I left to dry overnight. I know acrylics are faster, but how long do you need to leave them to be sure they\'re dry and you won\'t get any colours running or bleeding?

Thanks.

 

[frenchkid]

Well depends on how much the paint is diluted. When I\'m layering my paint dries almost instantly, I can see it drie as I applie the brush strock. For base coat it take a bit more but not much maybe somwhere between 15-30 seconds. And when wet blending (well when I try ) I add a bit of retarder so it goes up bite but there again not very long.

 

[freakinacage]

that depends on a load of factors: humidity, air temperature, how diluted the paint is. your best option is to look at the paint. as frenchkid says, you can watch it dry - it becomes slightly more matte in appearance. if you are unsure, wait a couple of minutes - you don\'t want to ruin something you\'ve just done

 

[Spacemunkie]

How long is a piece of string?

You do realise you\'re talking about actually watching paint drylol!!

To be serious, acrylic paint dries in seconds. Just make sure it\'s totally dry before a recoat - partially dried stuff will crust up really badly.

 

[Bloodfinger]

Originally posted by Spacemunkie
How long is a piece of string?

Twice as long as the distance from the middle to the end!

Thanks for the advice guys, I painted over my first coat last night with no problems. Much easier than enamels.