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Another experiment on cardboard.
The display stand for the Enterprise-C calls for a gold coat. My question was whether to prime it first with a light or a dark undercoat. Black primer has the disadvantage of requiring more layers of topcoat to get complete coverage, but it covers the model a lot faster.
I coated a piece of cardboard one half with white primer and the other half with black. Using the airbrush without pulling the trigger helps you dry the paint a lot faster, so you don't have to wait several hours for the coat to dry. After thinning the gold paint to the right consistency for spraying, I sprayed both the white and the black part.
The result on the white part was a very white-ish gold sheen. On the black part it was a deep-dark gold cover which - for me - is the more desirable effect.
More experimenting with different colours will teach me which colours are best supported by black primer instead of white or grey. I might even learn it doesn't make any difference, although I do suspect that painting a white Enterprise will be difficult on a black undercoat ...
Thursday, 22 November 2012
Clearcoating
Time for another experiment : clearcoating.
The Vallejo Air color range contains 3 kinds of "clear" : matte, satin and gloss. This basically is a kind of varnish. The gloss one will give your model a nice shiny finish (like a brand new car), the matte will reflect less light and give a more realistic finish for vehicles "out in the field". Satin is somewhere in between those.
The reason for doing this is putting a protective layer around your model. It will protect all underlying paint and (especially!) decals against moisture, handling with bare hands and the effects of time in general.
If you plan to add weathering effects to your model, like a black oil wash to create an "ageing" affect, add a clearcoat first. It will make it easier to clean up mistakes if you overdo it.
I started by loading some gloss clear in the airbrush. As it did not seem to be liquid enough, I thinned it about 50%. It sprays very easily and covers very fast. I probably didn't have to thin it this far, if at all. I'll find out next time, when I'll try it straight from the bottle.
The interior of the Puma is now coated with gloss, ready for some weathering with a black wash. I slightly overdid the gloss, so it pooled up in some spots, but - being in the inside - this will hardly be noticed.
I sprayed a display stand (for the Starfury) as well, but added a few drops of black paint to the clear, thus creating a very gloss black paint. Not sure if the difference will be noticeable.
The Vallejo Air color range contains 3 kinds of "clear" : matte, satin and gloss. This basically is a kind of varnish. The gloss one will give your model a nice shiny finish (like a brand new car), the matte will reflect less light and give a more realistic finish for vehicles "out in the field". Satin is somewhere in between those.
The reason for doing this is putting a protective layer around your model. It will protect all underlying paint and (especially!) decals against moisture, handling with bare hands and the effects of time in general.
If you plan to add weathering effects to your model, like a black oil wash to create an "ageing" affect, add a clearcoat first. It will make it easier to clean up mistakes if you overdo it.
I started by loading some gloss clear in the airbrush. As it did not seem to be liquid enough, I thinned it about 50%. It sprays very easily and covers very fast. I probably didn't have to thin it this far, if at all. I'll find out next time, when I'll try it straight from the bottle.
The interior of the Puma is now coated with gloss, ready for some weathering with a black wash. I slightly overdid the gloss, so it pooled up in some spots, but - being in the inside - this will hardly be noticed.
I sprayed a display stand (for the Starfury) as well, but added a few drops of black paint to the clear, thus creating a very gloss black paint. Not sure if the difference will be noticeable.
Tuesday, 20 November 2012
No steady hands
Time for some brushpainting. I haven't done this in over 10 years and my hands aren't really steady for doing the tiny details. Nonetheless, I painted the details on the inside of the Puma (just the seats, steering wheels and some kind of grille on the dashboard), so I can close it up soon and continue building on the outside.
(I must remember to try some weathering on the floor, before actually closing it up)
I painted with the Vallejo air black, which is a little too runny for brushpainting, but for inside details it's good enough. It's clear though, I will need two versions of several paints (black and white for starters) because the "model air" version has better ground pigments for airbrushing, but is too runny for handbrushing, requiring the normal "model color" for the small details or touchups.
It's still necessary to thin the normal paint, because it's very thick straight from the bottle. All this means is you'll be getting more paint for your money in the 17ml bottles. :-)
I picked up the above painter's palette at Dille & Kamille. Not sure if it's meant for painting, or serving snacks, but it's very handy, easily washable and cheap. It's easier than a flat wooden palette (suitable for thick oil paints) because the recesses are better for very fluid paint.
All the submarine parts are dry, so I assembled the propellor cap and attached the entire housing to the back of the model. I think the photo-etch propellor looks really nice.
(I must remember to try some weathering on the floor, before actually closing it up)
I painted with the Vallejo air black, which is a little too runny for brushpainting, but for inside details it's good enough. It's clear though, I will need two versions of several paints (black and white for starters) because the "model air" version has better ground pigments for airbrushing, but is too runny for handbrushing, requiring the normal "model color" for the small details or touchups.
It's still necessary to thin the normal paint, because it's very thick straight from the bottle. All this means is you'll be getting more paint for your money in the 17ml bottles. :-)
All the submarine parts are dry, so I assembled the propellor cap and attached the entire housing to the back of the model. I think the photo-etch propellor looks really nice.
Monday, 19 November 2012
Short session
Put a third and final layer of white primer on the inside of the Puma. No issues with the white paint again.
Cut off all the blades of the plastic propellor, since the photo-etch propellor installed nicely. Since I had to load black primer in the airbrush to paint it anyway, I lightly sanded the nose of the submarine (where dust had gotten on the model while painting) and touched up the entire nose. It looks a lot better now.
Needle-tip went dry again, but at least we're having results. Practice, practice, practice.
Next time, I'll be experimenting with clear varnish (gloss or matt, yet to be decided) for the Puma as well as the submarine.
Cut off all the blades of the plastic propellor, since the photo-etch propellor installed nicely. Since I had to load black primer in the airbrush to paint it anyway, I lightly sanded the nose of the submarine (where dust had gotten on the model while painting) and touched up the entire nose. It looks a lot better now.
Needle-tip went dry again, but at least we're having results. Practice, practice, practice.
Next time, I'll be experimenting with clear varnish (gloss or matt, yet to be decided) for the Puma as well as the submarine.
Sunday, 18 November 2012
Photo-etch
Photo-etch (or "PE" for ease of typing) parts are small frames with tiny little parts made from metal. The term "photo-etch" refers to the process that makes these frames, but no need to go into detail about that. They are generally used to create extremely small or thin parts, which would be too delicate in plastic - or simply impossible to make.
You often find PE parts in aftermarket kits to add superdetails to existing models : railings, grab handles, antenna's, ... which aren't always in scale when made in plastic.
I intended to experiment with PE later in my "modelling career", but was surprised to find a small photo-etch frame in the submarine kit. It consists of the propeller, some antenna-blades and the nameplate for the display stand.
The PE version of the propellor is optional, since the kit contains a plastic version. (seen below, the rightmost part), but I want to grab this chance to work with it for the first time. It would be a waste not to try it.
The building instructions tell you to cut off the plastic propellor, but best to wait with that until you've successfully removed the PE one and folded it into shape.
This is one of the things about PE : you have to fold them into the right shape. Not all parts, but more often than not, folding is necessary and you need to do this really carefully. (special tools can be found for it)
The PE frame is usually packed in (self-adhesive) plastic. Do not remove this! It will help you when cutting off the part, to prevent it from flying off your desk onto the floor, where it will be eaten by the carpet monster. (Tip: keep your workbench away from carpet, if possible)
Cut through the plastic wrapping to remove the part. Use a sharp hobby knife and avoid using sprue cutters, as these are not intended for cutting metal.
I removed the propellor, peeled off the protecting plastic and gently bent the propellor blades. It's extremely thin, but feels stronger than I had feared. Handle with extreme care though.
Below you see the part in it's place, inside the propellor housing. It's still missing it's cap, since I decided to play safe and not remove the propellor blades until the PE one was in place. The cap is now painted black and drying. Although the plastic one, once painted gold, would probably have looked okay, the PE result will always look extra sharp.
You often find PE parts in aftermarket kits to add superdetails to existing models : railings, grab handles, antenna's, ... which aren't always in scale when made in plastic.
I intended to experiment with PE later in my "modelling career", but was surprised to find a small photo-etch frame in the submarine kit. It consists of the propeller, some antenna-blades and the nameplate for the display stand.
The PE version of the propellor is optional, since the kit contains a plastic version. (seen below, the rightmost part), but I want to grab this chance to work with it for the first time. It would be a waste not to try it.
The building instructions tell you to cut off the plastic propellor, but best to wait with that until you've successfully removed the PE one and folded it into shape.
This is one of the things about PE : you have to fold them into the right shape. Not all parts, but more often than not, folding is necessary and you need to do this really carefully. (special tools can be found for it)
The PE frame is usually packed in (self-adhesive) plastic. Do not remove this! It will help you when cutting off the part, to prevent it from flying off your desk onto the floor, where it will be eaten by the carpet monster. (Tip: keep your workbench away from carpet, if possible)
Cut through the plastic wrapping to remove the part. Use a sharp hobby knife and avoid using sprue cutters, as these are not intended for cutting metal.
I removed the propellor, peeled off the protecting plastic and gently bent the propellor blades. It's extremely thin, but feels stronger than I had feared. Handle with extreme care though.
(Sorry for the picture quality, I seem unable to get my camera to focus on small parts)
Below you see the part in it's place, inside the propellor housing. It's still missing it's cap, since I decided to play safe and not remove the propellor blades until the PE one was in place. The cap is now painted black and drying. Although the plastic one, once painted gold, would probably have looked okay, the PE result will always look extra sharp.
2nd layer of primer
Added a second layer of white primer on the Puma. Thinned 1:1, it does not seem to be too runny, but we'll verify that tomorrow. Painted for about 2 minutes and did NOT have to clean the tip. Looks like the white primer will be easier to handle than the grey. Weird ...
It's still not covering 100%, but I wasn't expecting it to. I will add a 3rd and final layer later, then start handpainting the steering wheel and seat cushions, then have a go at weathering the floor with a very thin black wash to make it appear dirty.
But first : a visit to the hobby shop for more paint. Some colours will probably last a lifetime, but when painting your first model, all you seem to do is buy more different colours.
My old paint collection has mostly dried out after 10+ years in the cupboard. It's Humbrol enamel anyway, which I no longer wish to use. Below an impression of the colours I collected over the years. I'm sure, my Vallejo acrylic collection will resemble this very soon.
It's still not covering 100%, but I wasn't expecting it to. I will add a 3rd and final layer later, then start handpainting the steering wheel and seat cushions, then have a go at weathering the floor with a very thin black wash to make it appear dirty.
But first : a visit to the hobby shop for more paint. Some colours will probably last a lifetime, but when painting your first model, all you seem to do is buy more different colours.
My old paint collection has mostly dried out after 10+ years in the cupboard. It's Humbrol enamel anyway, which I no longer wish to use. Below an impression of the colours I collected over the years. I'm sure, my Vallejo acrylic collection will resemble this very soon.
Thursday, 15 November 2012
Submarine - priming finished
The submarine is now completely primed in black. Since the primer covers nicely, I don't think I'll need to add anymore paint to it, except a layer of gloss before I apply the decals.
The paint covers nicely, without obscuring any details. There are a few places where a nitpicky modeller would start over, but for my first model, I'm not going to bother to reach perfection.
It's still trial and error on the airbrush: sometimes it flows nicely, sometimes it sputters, sometimes nothing comes out at all. With the black paint, it's easy to see what you're doing and what's happening (or not). This will be a lot harder if I'm spraying - for instance - gloss clear, since it'll be difficult to see on the model if you're actually delivering something to the surface or if nothing's happening.
More practice will make this easier, I suppose.
(I may need a stronger desklamp to better see which part becomes wet, indicating at least something has reached the model)
I did another try with the white primer as well. I assumed it would be as bad as the grey, so I thinned it 1:2 (1 part paint, 2 parts thinner) which actually turned out to be too much. It sprayed really nicely, but you can see - in the photo below - that the paint has run down from the vertical surfaces, pooling up in the corners, indicating it was thinned TOO heavily. Not to worry, it was the first layer and it's on the inside of the Puma, so no real harm done. I'll try the second layer with less thinner and see how it goes.
The paint covers nicely, without obscuring any details. There are a few places where a nitpicky modeller would start over, but for my first model, I'm not going to bother to reach perfection.
More practice will make this easier, I suppose.
(I may need a stronger desklamp to better see which part becomes wet, indicating at least something has reached the model)
I did another try with the white primer as well. I assumed it would be as bad as the grey, so I thinned it 1:2 (1 part paint, 2 parts thinner) which actually turned out to be too much. It sprayed really nicely, but you can see - in the photo below - that the paint has run down from the vertical surfaces, pooling up in the corners, indicating it was thinned TOO heavily. Not to worry, it was the first layer and it's on the inside of the Puma, so no real harm done. I'll try the second layer with less thinner and see how it goes.
Monday, 12 November 2012
Airbrush - some success!
Armed with some new confirmation about airbrush behaviour, I decided to give it another go.
1 - 0 (my first victory).
The main reason I started building the submarine is because it needs to be painted black. I thinned the Vallejo black primer about 1:1 with Vallejo thinner (stick to the same brand, just for safety).
I started out with the 8 wheels for the Puma (seen below on toothpicks) to test the flow, which came out fine. I had to clean the needle after 4 wheels, then the rest went ok.
A little overzealous, I immediately started painting the sub, which went rather well actually. I did have to clean the tip 4 or 5 times, but it becomes a habit and isn't really that much work. I managed to do 3/4 of the sub before the needle had to be removed for more throrough cleaning. I ran out of place to hold it anyway, so better quit while I'm ahead. A few spots will need a second layer, but better wait and add more later, then spray too much at once and cause runs, which are harder to clean up.
2 - 0 (we're on a roll!)
Feeling good about my first success, I cleaned the brush for a colour change and filled with grey primer. The Jaguar is now also completely primed, but still this paint is fighting me for every inch. I can barely paint the top of this mini-model before it stops doing anything, cleaning the tip or not (compare this to at least half of the submarine in one go)
2 - 1 (time to call it quits and maybe call the shop for more ideas)
Is the difference between paints really THIS much? If the lighter paints are such a hassle, I am NOT looking forward to completely painting the Enterprise with white primer. To be continued ....
(The paintcup on this Revell airbrush is rather small, so painting a complete kit will take several refills)
- Air will bubble in the cup if the nozzle is not fitting well in the airbrush body.
1 - 0 (my first victory).
- The main reason for no paint coming out is "tip-dry".
(Another reason might be the paint not being thinned enough)
- Dark paints appear to be a lot easier to paint than lighter ones.
The main reason I started building the submarine is because it needs to be painted black. I thinned the Vallejo black primer about 1:1 with Vallejo thinner (stick to the same brand, just for safety).
I started out with the 8 wheels for the Puma (seen below on toothpicks) to test the flow, which came out fine. I had to clean the needle after 4 wheels, then the rest went ok.
A little overzealous, I immediately started painting the sub, which went rather well actually. I did have to clean the tip 4 or 5 times, but it becomes a habit and isn't really that much work. I managed to do 3/4 of the sub before the needle had to be removed for more throrough cleaning. I ran out of place to hold it anyway, so better quit while I'm ahead. A few spots will need a second layer, but better wait and add more later, then spray too much at once and cause runs, which are harder to clean up.
2 - 0 (we're on a roll!)
Feeling good about my first success, I cleaned the brush for a colour change and filled with grey primer. The Jaguar is now also completely primed, but still this paint is fighting me for every inch. I can barely paint the top of this mini-model before it stops doing anything, cleaning the tip or not (compare this to at least half of the submarine in one go)
2 - 1 (time to call it quits and maybe call the shop for more ideas)
Is the difference between paints really THIS much? If the lighter paints are such a hassle, I am NOT looking forward to completely painting the Enterprise with white primer. To be continued ....
(The paintcup on this Revell airbrush is rather small, so painting a complete kit will take several refills)
Saturday, 10 November 2012
Project number ... I've lost track
I just can't help myself. I feel the need for modelling, but another airbrushing session requires a state of mind I can't bring myself to just yet (until it starts going better, I really need to mentally prepare myself before I start, just in case there's more bubble, bubbles, BUBBLES!)
Next up is an Italeri kit : "Sd.Kfz 234/2 Puma 1:48". Germans really love their abbreviations. This one stands for "Sonderkraftfahrzeug", which could be translated as "Special purpose vehicle". It's basically a tank with 8 wheels instead of tracks.
There's 4 sprues with 130 parts in total. Detail is nice, the fit so far is excellent. A 10-page booklet provides 13 steps for construction and 3 paint schemes. It's in black and white, but - luckily - the back of the box provides colored paintschemes as well.
As usual, I start with a washing in warm water with some detergent, then let airdry. I've started construction of the inside and the wheels, just to keep myself busy. The wheel halves only fit one way (there's a big and a smaller pin), make sure to take notice of this before applying glue.
Step 2 calls for the two hull halves to be glued together, but I'm gonna skip this until I've painted the inside. The turret is removable, so a little attention to the inside is required.
Next up is an Italeri kit : "Sd.Kfz 234/2 Puma 1:48". Germans really love their abbreviations. This one stands for "Sonderkraftfahrzeug", which could be translated as "Special purpose vehicle". It's basically a tank with 8 wheels instead of tracks.
There's 4 sprues with 130 parts in total. Detail is nice, the fit so far is excellent. A 10-page booklet provides 13 steps for construction and 3 paint schemes. It's in black and white, but - luckily - the back of the box provides colored paintschemes as well.
As usual, I start with a washing in warm water with some detergent, then let airdry. I've started construction of the inside and the wheels, just to keep myself busy. The wheel halves only fit one way (there's a big and a smaller pin), make sure to take notice of this before applying glue.
Step 2 calls for the two hull halves to be glued together, but I'm gonna skip this until I've painted the inside. The turret is removable, so a little attention to the inside is required.
Canopy masking
One reason to choose tanks and boats over airplanes is that you don't have to bother with canopies. They need to remain transparent, but you need to paint the tiny support frame.
You can choose to paint this by hand with a very fine brush, if you have a steady hand, which I do not. Or you can mask the transparent area and spray paint with the rest of the plane.
Some companies provide pre-cut masks that fit the canopy exactly. For the Jaguar however, I just mask the entire canopy with Tamiya masking tape, then cut away what needs to be painted with a very sharp hobby knife.
You need to find the balance between enough pressure to cut through the tape and not too much, so you do not damage the part. Better safe than sorry, apply light pressure and go over it a couple of times.
Below is the masked canopy. Bear in mind this part is about 1 cm long.
You can choose to paint this by hand with a very fine brush, if you have a steady hand, which I do not. Or you can mask the transparent area and spray paint with the rest of the plane.
Some companies provide pre-cut masks that fit the canopy exactly. For the Jaguar however, I just mask the entire canopy with Tamiya masking tape, then cut away what needs to be painted with a very sharp hobby knife.
You need to find the balance between enough pressure to cut through the tape and not too much, so you do not damage the part. Better safe than sorry, apply light pressure and go over it a couple of times.
Below is the masked canopy. Bear in mind this part is about 1 cm long.
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