Hawkeye's Hobbies

SnJ Starter Kit

Reviewed By  Charles Landrum, IPMS# 26328

MSRP: $21.00 (see text for contents) Individually: metals $6.99 (Gunmetal $7.99), powders $6.99 (Gunmetal $7.99). Available from:   Hawkeye's Hobbies, LLC   PO Box 216   Neenah, WI 54957-0216   www.Hawkeyeshobbies.com. I would like to thank Gerald Voigt, President of Hawkeye Hobbies, for this review sample. SnJ is back! Gerald Voigt of Hawkeye's Hobbies has brought a full range of SnJ metals to provide another option for modelers replicating metal finishes. Hawkeye's Hobbies offers SnJ in Aluminum, Platinum, Pewter, Bronze, Gold, Copper and Gunmetal, along with polishing powders for all of these metals. They sell the bottles of the metal finishes and the polishing powders separately or as part of a starter kit for that metal; the starter kit includes two bottles of metal, the metal powder, an empty jar and a polishing cloth. As a metal finish, the advantage that SnJ has over Alclad is that it does not attack the plastic and therefore does not need a primer. Unlike Model Master Metalizers, you can mask SnJ. The only SnJ product that I have ever worked with was the polishing powder. So I was eager to perform a test run with the samples, and tested all of the metals provided. The samples included the starter kit for aluminum and all of the metals offered except the newly released Gunmetal. Hawkeye's Models suggests spraying SnJ in thin coats, allowing 8-14 minutes between coats and allowing an hour of cure time before applying other colors or decals. Using a Paasche H airbrush with a medium tip and 20 psi, I sprayed the SnJ straight from the bottle without thinning; I used a cup, although the instructions recommend using a siphon feed bottle. A minimum liquid flow setting worked well and achieved a thin coat. I was able to apply a few thin coats quickly and directly onto the plastic, and waited the recommended time for additional coats. I tried spraying the pewter with a heavier flow, but the thinner tends to build up and the metal flakes "float" and do not align properly; I later re-sprayed this area. I found the SnJ finish to be hard and semi-shiny. Buffing with the cloth provided in the starter set helped increase the sheen on all of the metal finishes. I was able to achieve a high sheen using the aluminum powder on the aluminum finish. I applied and buffed the power with a Q-tip, wiping it clean with a soft cloth. As a final test I did a pull test on several of the swaths with masking tape - none of the metal flakes lifted. Cleanup went well with brush cleaner/paint thinner. SnJ get high marks for ease of use and durability. I have always liked working with Model Master Metalizers due to their ease of use and colors offered. However, the fact that you cannot mask a Metalizer finish is a source of great frustration. I found SnJ just as easy to use. The availability of the metal powders to achieve high sheen finishes is also a benefit to the SnJ system; you can use these powders on other systems as well. The availability of a buffable bronze metal finish is particularly welcome for ship model builders who want high sheen propellers. There are many more metal finishes I would like to see in the SnJ range and hope that more will become available. The price per bottle is on par with other durable metal finishes. Strongly recommended.

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