Acrylic Ink Opaque- Orange

Orange in liquid form

An opaque acrylic ink is something between a paint and an India ink. It has a very finely ground pigment and a thin acrylic base, so it flows wherever the brush leads it and still leaves a saturated trail of color behind. Unlike the transparent inks, which are used as a glaze, this type covers what is underneath, and it therefore suits anywhere the orange is meant to be seen at full strength.

Modelers reach for orange on warning surfaces and rescue equipment, on the stripes along the fuselages of trainers, on cones and markers on airfield aprons or on the heated places on exhausts. In fantasy work it is the color of fire, lava and magical glow, where it helps that it can be laid on thinly and still stay bright.

Application

The ink is liquid by nature, so it usually needs no thinning for an airbrush; with a brush, on the other hand, it pays to work with less on the bristles and to go over the trail again rather than fill it at once. The thin consistency holds a fine line very well, whether it separates two fields of color or is drawn by hand.

The pigment settles in a liquid base faster than in an ordinary paint, so shaking it before every session is in order. The inks can be mixed with other acrylic products and used to build a shade. A model that is handled often is best sealed with a protective varnish once finished. It pays to store this type of color upright and cool, because heat shortens the life of a liquid binder and sets it in the neck sooner.