The Future is Here
The many uses of Future Floor Finish
by John Admire
Future is a water-soluble coating for linoleum flooring. It is a clear gloss acrylic liquid, not a wax. Future is maybe the most useful non modeling material. Future fills in microscopic surface scratches which makes the plastic look clearer.
Thinning Future: Future can be airbrushed of brushed on full strength, but if you want a longer leveling time and thinner coats, Future can be thinned. You can thin it with a little water (I like distilled), 90 percent rubbing alcohol, Polly Scale Airbrush Thinner, or even Windex.
Cleaning and Stripping: Future can be cleaned from brushes, airbrushes, and surfaces using Windex, or a mixture of ammonia and water, or plain alcohol. You can use these same items to strip Future off if you need to. If you get it on you it can be taken off with soap and water.
Gloss Coat: Future can be airbrushed straight from the bottle. It has quick drying and self leveling properties. Allow your paint (especially enamel) to cure for 48 hours before coating it with Future. Airbrush two or three light coats and wait about 5 minutes between coats. Sometimes strong decal solvents will cloud uncured Future, usually another coat over the area will clear it up. The Future gloss coat is also a great surface for applying a thin wash made from oil paints, enamels or acrylics. The wash will flow better running over the glossy surface and when the wash is dry its easy to remove the excess. Future can also be used for high gloss aircraft paint schemes.
Decaling: Future can be used as an under coat for decals and as an over coat to produce a glassy smooth finish. Some modelers use Future as a setting solution. A thin puddle underneath the decal and another over it will merge the markings seamlessly with the underlying Future coat. Mop up excess Future with a cotton swab before it begins to dry. The down side to this method is that the Future dries pretty quick so adjusting the decal on the model may be tricky if you wait too long. The up side is this method pretty much ensures no silvering.
If you choose to apply Future and let it cure before applying your markings to it you should allow 48 hours before decaling after applying Future. Although dry to the touch in less than one hour, uncured future can reliquify if moistened by water or decal setting solutions. After decaling wait another 48 hours before applying a final finish to seal the decals. Cured Future is impervious to light coats of enamels and lacquers, so flat overcoats like Testors Dullcoat can be used, just don't over do it! Acrylic flat coats such as Polly Scale, Testor Acryl or Gunze Sangyo Aqueous clear flat will not harm Future.
Future Flat: Future can be made into a clear flat overcoat with the addition of a flattening agent. Some modelers mix talcum powder with Future, others combine a flat base such as Tamiya or Gunze Sangyo with Future and airbrush that for a flat finish.
Photo etched parts adhesive: Modelers can use Future as an adhesive to tack small photo etched metal parts to cockpits and canopies.
Making Mud Puddles: Future can be used for making mud puddles or standing water in dioramas. Its not as thick a epoxy and is easier to work with. Pastel powders can be mixed with Future to create grime and mud. Future can also be sprayed over ground work to simulate dew or rain.
Instrument Glass: Tiny drops of Future can simulate the glass covers of instruments in cockpits of dashboards.
Seam Filler: A mix of talcum powder and future makes a quick-drying seam filler that sets hard, yet sands easily.
Tinted Clear Parts: You can create your own transparent colors by mixing Future with food coloring and brushing it on. For those gold colored canopies of jets you can try using a few drops of Tamiya X12 Gold Leaf to a couple of teaspoons of Future.
Master Sealant: If you make your own mold patterns for casting in resin, a coat of Future over the masters helps create a clean molding.
Metallic Future: Mix a little SnJ powder with Future to create a rock hard gloss solver finish.
Coating Clear Parts: This is the most common use of Future in modeling. Make sure that the clear parts are free from wax or oils such as your fingerprints before you apply Future, any oily contaminate will repel the Future. Remove or decant the Future from its bottle into a wide mouth jar such as an empty salsa jar. Leaving a sprue attachment point on the clear part provides a handle for you. Slowly dip each clear piece several times, you don't want to create bubbles. Pull the piece out and let the Future drain for a few seconds by touching the lower edge against the jar. Wick away any excess build up along the lower edge on a paper towel. Then attach the sprue to a third hand and cover with a Tupperware or something similar to keep any dust off the Future. Let Future dry at least 48 hours before masking and painting. Masking does not usually leave any adhesive residue on Futured parts. A Future coated clear part free of fingerprints resists the white fogging caused by super glue as it cures. If fogging does occur another coat of Future often will make it disappear. If you are not satisfied with a clear part coated with Future you can remove it by soaking it the ammonia/water mixture for an hour or so. Even a soak in fresh Future will dissolve the previous coats.
I would like to thank Fine Scale Modeler (March 2004 Issue) and author Matt Swan for information used in this section.
Tips
Future can be retarded or made to dry more slowly by adding a couple of drops of liquid dishwashing detergent to a jarful of Future. Other retarders a Windex, Polly Scale airbrush thinner, and rubbing alcohol.Clouding: Strong decal setting solutions like Micro Sol will react with Future that has not cured fully and create a white haze. This haze will disappear when you apply a second coat of Future. Remember to allow Future to cure long enough to prevent this.
Improving Your Clear Parts with Future
1) Remove the clear part from the tree but leave a section of the tree connected to the part.2) The piece of the parts tree makes a perfect handle while you treat the part. Pickup the part with a set of alligator clips or strong tweezers make sure the part is held securely.
3) Submerge the part in the Future. Just dunk it in! Look for any air bubbles that might be trapped in the parts engraved details. If you see bubbles, turn the part over using the alligator clip and let them float out.
4) Once the part is thoroughly submerged and you're ready to remove the part. This is the tricky part. Slowly pull the part out of its Future bath. Removing the part slowly will allow the excess Future to flow back into the bottle and prevent runs. When you can, have a corner of the part be the last thing that comes out of the Future.
5) No matter how slowly you remove the part, a drop of future will probably remain at the last point to come out of the Future bath. If the drop is at a corner you can drag the corner along a sheet of paper, and the excess Future will wick away. You can take a look at the part while its still wet, if the layer of Future dust, or looks uneven, simply give the part another dunk in the Future and try again. If the coat of Future looks even and smooth, we are ready to let it dry.
6) I use an extra hands stand to hold the part and then I place it under a plastic container to prevent any dust from sticking on the Future. After the Future is completely dry the parts handle can be trimmed off. You will be amazed at the smooth finish and extra clarity the parts will have. This also makes it easier to remove masking materials.
7) What happens when you are not happy with your Futured part? Just give it a dunk in Windex, it will remove the Future without harming the plastic parts.
I would like to thank Fine Scale Modeler (March 2007 Issue) and author Matthew Usher for information used in this section.
Article copyright 2009 by John Admire. All rights reserved. Article used with permission.
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