Coat D'arms black

[MagpieJono]

Has anyone had any issues recently with the standard black paint from Coat D'arms?

I ordered two pots on my last order and both seem to have metalic flecks in them.

This hasn't been a problem I've had before so I'm wondering if it's a duff batch rather than a change in the recipe...

[Mr Tough Guy]

I haven't bought coat d'arms black in a long while, but the last few bottles I had all dried shiny so I switched to Vallejo since that was easier to come by anyway

[dadlamassu]

Bought some at Carronade and it is fine.  Sounds like a bad batch.  Used them since they were Citadel!

[Nord]

Only problem I have with coat d'arms is getting hold of them, a lot of the online traders no longer stock them, not sure why.

[dadlamassu]

Only problem I have with coat d'arms is getting hold of them, a lot of the online traders no longer stock them, not sure why.

Colonel Bill has them
http://shop.colonelbills-store.co.uk/epages/4f27da57-42ee-48c0-9cb8-22c9dd921a68.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/4f27da57-42ee-48c0-9cb8-22c9dd921a68/Categories/Coat_dArms_Paints

And Black Hat Games
https://www.blackhat.co.uk/product-category/coat-darms-paints/

[Captain Blood]

Stopped using Coat D'arms paints many years ago because they always dried shiny. Not a fan I'm afraid.

[katie]

Don't often get to say this, but I think you're doing something wrong there then Cap... 

I love 'em -- apart from the light browns, obviously. Don't recall any going shiny.

Is it down to thinning maybe? Your painting style looks like you thin the paints a lot and use several coats, whereas I'm lazy and norty and I often paint straight from the bottle so I don't have to.

I also run the bottles on a vortex mixer before use..

[Orctrader]

I use some CDA.  They definitely do NOT dry matt.  But then, P3 don't and neither do Foundry.  I don't mind too much as I varnish all of my figures so they are matt in the end.

I often use the white and the black "triads", but only for ease, as I can make up my own from other manufacturers.

I find their paints very thin, but that suits my style. 

I mix them with paints from other makers - but then I do that with all of them.

Their "Leather" Triad - I rarely use anything else for, er, leather.   

Steve Dean arranged their triads.

I've never had the problem of metallic flecks - but I haven't bought any for years.  I'd just contact the seller.

[Dags]

A drop of Tamiya Flat Base sorts out the shine.

Don't use much CDA/Foundry/P3 these days - black and white mostly -  but one advantage I find they have over Vallejo is that they're much more hard wearing.

Not had an issue with metallic flakes either.

[Major_Gilbear]

I use P3 paints, which are manufactured by the same company (HMG Paints in Manchester), and are designed to basically be a more up-to-date version of the old Citadel Colour range.

They do have a low satin sheen to them, but adding a little matte medium and water to them on the palette fixes this. Besides, I always put the paint on my palette and water it a little, so adding a dab of medium whilst I'm at it is trivial.

Failing that, I suggest a matt sealer at the end (or a glaze of clean water with a touch of matte medium in it) to kill any shine.

Now, all that said, if you bought plain black and have a problem with contamination (i.e., metallic flakes in the black), I would suggest going back to the store with a photo and a polite email to request a replacement. I would also suggest making a note of the batch (if there is one) in your email to the store so that the rest can be checked too.

Personally, whilst I have had a few paint do odd things over prolonged periods (sediment/flocculation normally), I have never ever had an issue with metallic flakes in regular flat paint.

[Captain Blood]

Well, it's been several years, but I bought several different colours and they were all irredeemably shiny when dry. Not high gloss, I accept, but rather more than a low satin sheen in my book. If you're a detail painter like me, the last thing you want is shiny paint. It just makes it too difficult to see what you're doing because of the light reflecting off the surface.

I do appreciate some matte medium would probably sort it out, but - call me old-fashioned - why should I have to faff about like that? If someone sells me a pot of paint labelled matt, flat or flat matt, that's what I expect to get. Not a semi-shiny finish. Its basically a breach of the Trades Descriptions Act. If Vallejo, GW and most 'craft' acrylic makers can manage to make their matt paints truly matt, why can't everybody?

Anyway. I binned them long ago. Sorry to be a stick-in-the-mud, but nothing is going to make me recommend a product which doesn't do what it says on the tin. Unless they've fixed their recipes in the last few years, I wouldn't touch Coat D'Arms paints with a bargepole.

[MagpieJono]

Thanks for all the replies. From my point of view I've never had an issue with Coat D'arms myself and haven't noticed them being particularly shiny when dry.

There's definitely something not right with the black though. Think I'll email Black Hat.

[voltan]

If someone sells me a pot of paint labelled matt, flat or flat matt, that's what I expect to get.

Don't know if it's recent or not but the paints aren't labelled as matt and the railmatch paints I use that are also made by hmg are the same.

[Doug.Sundseth]

There's no standardized definition of paint sheen terms. For some manufacturers, "matt" (or "matte") is synonymous with dead flat. For others, matt and flat are different, matt being slightly shinier. This is exacerbated by different pigments reflecting light in different ways, so even if you use the same techniques with two different pigments, you might get a different level of shine.

Managing that to get the effect you want is part of the job of the painter.

[Gary Peach]

There are international and EU standards for the terms Matt, Gloss and satin, they are in % terms too, so if they fit the band they can use the term.  The paints industry has been regulated for a long while, as its part of a very very big business they all work as best to conform to a standard.

As others have said, get back to them as it could be a duff batch and even on a recall.  There should be a batch number ref somewhere.  I can guarantee they would want to know and if possible try to rectify the issue.

Had a number of occasions Ive had problems and always been stisfied with wither the shop, wholesaler and makers.