After all the testing I did I finally found something that works. A month or so ago I posted up various tries at metallic coats using Alclad crome, Tamiya clears, and Mr Color clears each with their share of problems. Unsure on what method to take I listened to advice on reddit and reviewed this video over and over again. I eventually came to the conclusion that I should give Alclad’s enamels a try since they were not only pre-thinned so there wouldn’t be any chance of different ratios giving me different shades but they also could possibly give me the best shine.

What I noticed first when I sprayed the Alclad silver base was just the lack of reflection, which basically made it look like a normal coat of Alclad aluminum. I was somewhat worried but at this point I came so far with this build and spent so much time on it I was going to use this silver no matter what.

Even though the Alclad chrome and Alclad silver base look similar the reflection on the silver is heavily blurred in comparison.

After 2 or so days had passed and I felt it was significantly dried I applied the Alclad candy red and the results were spectacular. When I first sprayed clears over Alclad chrome a month or so ago the instant they hit the chrome they fogged up the clarity, but with the candy red and the silver base it was the exact opposite. All the blurriness of the silver base vanished and instead there was a very deep reflective shine.

But possibly the best part was that with only one coat I was able to get full coverage with all of the red being uniform and the same shade. Painting the candy over Alcald chrome does get an equal level of shine as the silver but the silver gave every piece a smooth uniformed base that made all the surfaces come out the same.

I am just happy to know that if I ever do another reflective metallic model I know what paints to buy.