Dave, a minefeild , this… Its is a case of buying different laquers and trying on scraps of paint samples…

However I have found "household" acrylic varnish does not appear to affect and paint finish I have used so far. You may be able to spray it. Blackfriars or Rustins, from homebase etc. Although marked as for internal use, it is has not been affected (so far) by a few hours in the drink.

Do you need to apply varnish on this? I try not to as it makes touching up later on very difficult.

Ashley

I use the quick drying variety of varnish and have had no probs.. Is perfectly waterproof for several hours boating and does not yellow..?

I have used car spray only on my large warships, they are grey all over so it is easy to get a nice flat finish. I didnt fancy trying to get a nice even, flat run and hair free surface on the carrier with ordinary paint.. but 15 mins on a hot day and the job was done!

Ashley

I must say that I only ever varnish matt surfaces, to seal them as they scuff and pick up marks very easily. The matt varnish doesnt tend to give a good matt.more of a dull satin, but thats ok for me usually.

I have not experienced the peeling..perhaps I have been lucky in my choice of initial paint.

Ashley

Any cellulose based paint will act as a good paint stripper for any oil based paint if it is applied wet enough for the solvent to still be active. The solvent in wet oil base paint is not active enough to have an effect on dried cellulose paint. The word "solvent" is a clue – it indicates a fluid that dissolves other substances. Different solvents dissolve different substances. Acetone (the usual one in cellulose) will attack many plastics (don't paint your plastic kit with it) and the residue that oil based paints leave when dry.

The issue is now confused because modern acrylics are a category of their own (water plus alcohol plus summat), and anyway, paint manufacturers are reluctant to tell anybody what is actually in there, so a lacquer that is perfectly good over a selection of automotive colourings, acrylic or cellulose, might, or might not, react with enamel. Depending on the enamel, and what is in the lacquer and if spraying, just how dry it is when it lands on the painted surface.

To avoid brush marks, go to a proper art supplier and get a set of good soft brushes. I like the flat type for large area and round for smaller details. And clean them after use. Stiff bristled brushes are good for artists artistically putting texture into their efforts. Texture is the one thing that we really don't want, so soft bristles.