Whats Lying on your Workbench MK IV

[wm cheng]

Speaking of decals, I have a question on that front:

My latest Frankentank project turned out way to bright and "contrasty," so I gave the whole thing some oil paint treatment.

It's black oil paint, comes in a tube, paint in on a spot and then rub/smear it for a dirtying effect (it takes hours to even seem tacky, so perfect for such applications).

I've only used this stuff before on roadwheels or engine decks, so I've never had to worry about effect on decals...

But here, I've oiled the beastie up, let it dry, gloss-coated it, and tonight I'll put on some decals. To maintain some consistency I'll want to treat the decals with the same finish, but I fear that even gentle rubbing prior to a dullcoat will tear or move the decal.

So, what do you do? Dullcoat, oil paint rub, then more dullcoat? Or is there a trick one of you more experienced can let me in on?

char grillon.jpg

I swear, I love to build and modify models, but I'm an idiot when it comes to painting. This little guy for example was an impressive conversion, build-wise. But once I start painting it gets instantly downgraded to amateur hour. I need a partner who just paints for me.

Hey that partner would be me! I hate puttying and sanding smooth all the seams, sanding is soooo tedious for me. Often I don't do enough of it and have to pay the price later once I start painting. I love painting though, that's when the whole thing takes shape and I can start to shade and weather it. I love decals too, I love the whole last half because I can then see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I would use another clear coat after the decals, not a dull coat, then oils over that, to blend the decls in with what came before them. then when you are happy with the way things look go with the dull coat flatten everything out.

The reason I would clear coat after the decals and before treating them with the oils is because the dull coat creates a rough finish and applying oils over this will, I suspect, highlight that rough surface and look 'wrong'. Test out both methods with some spare materials first and see which one works best for you.

Yes, exactly what Chas said, I'd do the same too.

[Phyrox]

Well, thanks Chas and WMChang.

I'll try a second coat of gloss prior to the oil. Many thanks.

I hate puttying and sanding smooth all the seams, sanding is soooo tedious for me. Often I don't do enough of it and have to pay the price later once I start painting. I love painting though, that's when the whole thing takes shape and I can start to shade and weather it. I love decals too, I love the whole last half because I can then see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Interesting. For me, I guess it's about the shape, the creation. When I set out on a project like this one for example, the impetus is, "I wonder if I can make a convincing assault gun out of a Char B1? What would that look like?" Once the cutting, sanding, puttying, drilling, and test-fitting is done, I pretty much know what it'll look like and I am pleased that I pulled the conversion off. The later stuff feels like a chore.

In fact, I have half a mind to start a new trend where you get a model to the primer stage, and just call in done. I'm usually happiest with them at that point.

I think it's cool how the hobby can reward modellers in different ways.

Edited December 2, 2014 by Phyrox

[electric indigo]

Polished & panel lined

[derex3592]

Looking good...as usual! Over here.....1st test fit of finished parts!

Edited December 3, 2014 by derex3592

[varitechs]

Very good Derex ! i like so much your work on this Monster !

[MechTech]

Nice save on the decals Derex, it looks great! This isn't the Macross-Star Trek cross-over thread is it? Just noticing your test in the background;-) -MT

[derex3592]

Haha, no...i was tyring out my homemade decals on something old with lots of surface details, and also experimenting around with Micro-Sol VS Micro-Set when used with Future.

[Phyrox]

Thanks for the advice guys.

Took your advice and it turned out great. Still not 100% satisfied with the level of matte I'm getting from the Testors dull cote, but it'll do.

Most places I've read say that Testors dull cote is one of the best matte finishes, but I'm finding that hard to believe. Any (non-airbrush) suggestions from the experts?

I would like to try this Floquil Dust I hear about, but with no airbrush I will live with what I've got for now.

Here's the completed Char with his brothers, the rest of the make-believe WWII tank destroyers.

[derex3592]

Monster is finished! Some pics taken with and without flash to show the weathering better. Enjoy!

[big F]

Very nice !!

You have set the bar.

[derex3592]

Thanks! But I think the bar will be set by someone when they complete the custom 1:72 resin kit over in another thread!

[varitechs]

very nice! remember me the manufacturer and the scale?

[derex3592]

My kit was the reissue of the 1:200 Ban Dai kit.

[MechTech]

It came out great Derex. Who says big can't be beautiful!-MT

[Dobber]

Great work Derex

Chris

[derex3592]

Yeh Yeh Yeh....WHERE'S the Yamato Dobber???!!!

[modelglue]

Polished & panel lined

Man that looks so tight. I just really botched a 1/72 Revell AG JU-88 so I am super jealous to see your harrier doing nicely. LOL. I get to switch gear though, my Dad has requested a built F6F Hellcat model for Christmas so I get to shove it aside and work on an Eduard kit for the first time.

[mickyg]

Looking forward to that one! I had it on my radar for awhile but my local online store didn't have them in stock. It took so long for them to get a restock that they interest had passed by then. I can live this out vicariously now.

[TMBounty_Hunter]

Trying to kick through a few kits as practice before attacking the Hasegawa valks.

So the color for this ended up being a lot stronger than I thought. The two lighter grays were supposed to be mostly white with some Neutral Grey, Dark Yellow and Dark Earth but my eyeballing seems to have been off and they came out somewhere between creamy and tan. What I thought I'd do was get the darkest grey also a lot darker and then I'll go over the whole thing with a very thinned out and light coat of white to lighten things up a bit. Now I'm thinking I better ask first if this plan is feasible before potentially ruining a paint job.

Alternatively it seems there's such a thing as Flat Clear Grey Tone (C183), would that be safer or would blasting it carefully with a thin coat of white sound alright?

[Hervé]

Hello,

trying to finish (before the end of the year) this X-47B from Platz :

Regards,

[electric indigo]

So the color for this ended up being a lot stronger than I thought. The two lighter grays were supposed to be mostly white with some Neutral Grey, Dark Yellow and Dark Earth but my eyeballing seems to have been off and they came out somewhere between creamy and tan. What I thought I'd do was get the darkest grey also a lot darker and then I'll go over the whole thing with a very thinned out and light coat of white to lighten things up a bit. Now I'm thinking I better ask first if this plan is feasible before potentially ruining a paint job.

Alternatively it seems there's such a thing as Flat Clear Grey Tone (C183), would that be safer or would blasting it carefully with a thin coat of white sound alright?

You have the perfect setup for an interesting weathering effect: Spray the lighter color only in the center of the hull panels in an irregular fashion. This will leave the panel lines slightly accentuated, looks great on aircraft models.

Optionally, if you want a cleaner look, you can choose the overspray method you described. I suggest mixing white or light gray with clear, it's easier to achieve a homogenous coverage this way.

[TMBounty_Hunter]

electric indigo, you mean something like this? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUFo-Pg3JAc#t=4m39s

That might actually work out since I have a lot of that dark grey mix left over

[electric indigo]

Looks like it. I used it on my 1/144 Falcon, and it works great giving life to those surfaces.

You should thin the paint a bit more than normal, and don't worry if you wander off the selected areas. Irregularity is wanted here.

Edited December 16, 2014 by electric indigo

[mickyg]

Fantastic Falcon Electric Indigo!

[electric indigo]

Decals are on:

Fantastic Falcon Electric Indigo!

Thank you. Fine Molds made a really great kit - on sale at HJL right now: http://www.hlj.com/product/FNMSW-11/Sci

You can see my finished work here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/romansland/sets/72157624704427434/

[wm cheng]

Beautiful! I can't believe how small that thing is until you have the Tamiya paint bottle beside it. Great job.

[EXO]

That falcon turned out great!

[derex3592]

I REALLLY hope Ban-Dai steps into the Star Wars game full on--Fine Molds kits were amazing --they just didn't release enough IMHO.

[TMBounty_Hunter]

After a few really foggy and wet days finally decided to try electric indigo's suggestion.

Too a bit to get it right, the first attempt ended up looking like I just sprayed the lighter color solid

Eventually I seemed to get the hang of it on the main body:

After the I decided to lighten the color yet again and have another pass now that things were starting to work:

I'm surprised that I managed not to completely mangle the project. This has turned into a very fun practice build

So after 2 lighter shades on the darkest grey how does it look?

[505thAirborne]

After a few really foggy and wet days finally decided to try electric indigo's suggestion.

Too a bit to get it right, the first attempt ended up looking like I just sprayed the lighter color solid

Eventually I seemed to get the hang of it on the main body:

After the I decided to lighten the color yet again and have another pass now that things were starting to work:

I'm surprised that I managed not to completely mangle the project. This has turned into a very fun practice build

So after 2 lighter shades on the darkest grey how does it look?

Looking great so far, is this one of the aircraft from Evangelion?

[TMBounty_Hunter]

Yep, it's the Kotobukiya plastic kit: http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10171720

[modelglue]

Some really nice work going on here. The NERV ship is so cool, and i'm floored that it got released as a kit. TMB_H where is your go-to hobby shop in Toronto?

That Harrier is looking nice EI!

[TMBounty_Hunter]

I shop where ever is cheapest for what I want. Since paint can't be shipped by individuals from Japan anymore that's mostly what I buy locally. Hobby King up in Markham has the full Mr. Color rack. AnimeXtreme downtown has half a rack but it's a dollar cheaper per bottle of paint and Mr. Thinner is $3 cheaper. Probably another dozen places or so around with Tamiya paint.

At this point kits all get bought online, but there is a new place that opened a few months ago out in Mississauga called ukato.ca and they're prices for Bandai kits are easily the best in the Greater Toronto Area, especially with the Christmas discount they have going now. If I need an emergency kit (unlikely given the tons I already have...) that's probably where I'll go.

EDIT: I occasionally forget to maintain this: http://www.hobbyfanatics.com/index.php?/topic/1859-greater-toronto-area-ontario-canada/

Edited December 20, 2014 by TMBounty_Hunter

[505thAirborne]

Yep, it's the Kotobukiya plastic kit: http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10171720

Awesome, have fun building it, the detail (rivets) on the kit is very impressive!

[derex3592]

King Crabulon parts cleaned up, puttied, sanded, and drilled. Ready for primer! However....the weather in Texas today is less than ideal/cooperative for primering, so we'll put this off till maybe tomorrow.