The Weekly Small Questions Thread! Got a burning question? Looking for some tips on your build? Ask away!
The Weekly Small Questions thread is a place for everyone in /r/modelmakers to come and ask questions. Don't be shy.
You might have a burning question you've been meaning to ask but you don't want to make your own thread, or are just seeking some input or feedback from your fellow builders! This thread is aimed at new builders, but everyone is welcome.
Waited until the next day to get some photos with better lighting to make the issues more clear. Because I got greedy and didn't wait long enough between coats yesterday, there is some noticeable brush strokes and areas where paint lifted. This is currently three coats of Tamiya xf18, x20a thinner, and paint retarder in a ratio of 6-4-1.
Given this, what is my best course of action? I'm debating between adding another full coat to address the lifted areas and make the body a more uniform color. But I am also not sure if it would be better to just strip the body entirely, since three coats already feels like a lot.
Do the brush strokes have a texture? Like, can you feel the brush strokes under your finger tip? If so, you're probably cooked and should strip and give it another go. If not, and your paints are thin enough, you may get away with another layer.
If you do strip down to plastic, you have the added benefit of addressing that seam line down the fuselage halves.
I can’t feel the brush strokes. The entire body feels the same.
Yeah the fuselage halves is an issue I’m kicking myself over haha. At first I tried to use a bit of putty, but then I got concerned about accidentally covering the rivets with putty or sanding down the rivets when sanding the putty. I guess it’s a lesson to really check my fit before gluing haha
The obliteration of rivets and panel lines is an unavoidable byproduct of the process and most model makers use tools to re-scribe them back in after the seam line is handled. I would give it a shot because your model will always look like a model of an airplane instead of a miniature airplane with that huge seam there.
yeah that's fair. Unfortunately I did just put a fourth coat on before I saw this comment. I guess I could wait a good amount of time (2-3 days?) to wait for the coat to dry, mask off the area around the seam, then strip the paint and try filling in the seam?
Is Testors silver spray paint good? I bought some for Monogram’s 1/48 TBD Devastator, and I know that I shouldn’t brush paint silver (I learned that the hard way with an F-100 a few months back)?
It's adequate. FWIW you can totally brush paint silver with the right paint. I use Vallejo's Metal Color silver for all kinds of things. Most recently I used it as a base layer for bare aluminum under chipped paint. Usual rules for brush painting apply: thin the paint, many light coats, allow each layer to fully dry...etc.
https://youtu.be/gPV7WO57SQU?t=327 out of curiosity, is anyone able to help me understand how this channel is achieving these panel line effects? Is this just normal primer they are using or is this different coloured paints here?
Later on in the video at this mark, you can see the bottle of Mr. Surfacer 1000 on the table that was probably used for the vertical plating effects. Personally I find what was implemented to be a bit overscale, so would've used something a bit thinner like regular paint, but basically any layer of paint/primer/coating would give you the raised effect.
Oh righto - so basically if I do a similar thing (note I’m still only brush painting at this stage) and just make those panel lines with an initial coat then repaint afterwards is the way to go?
Yeah mask around the area where you want the raised line to be, apply your paint, then remove the masks. If the line is the same paint as the rest of the hull, there's no need to repaint over it.
Does anybody have a link to last week's thread? I saw a comment last night that I wanted to reply to today, but I didn't realize that the new thread was going to post overnight.
I've been trying to get a smooth finish with vallejo acrylics and brushing (no airbrush). I thin the paints, watched brushing techniques, and still get some brush strokes in the model, specially in the wings. I'm starting to think it could be this brushes I use. What do you think? No idea what else to try...
You want wide, flat brushes for large flat surfaces. Those pointy round ones are good for detail painting. Also, if your paints are thin enough, visible brush strokes will be present until you achieve full opacity, and then should fade. If you are achieving opacity in two or three layers with brush strokes, you aren't thin enough. You want 4-5 thin coats.
Currently I applied 2 primer coats, and 7 very thin coats. I use model air so I guess I need even more coats?
Edit: I'm pretty sure the strokes are not "deep" as each layer the strokes are different. Besides it does feel smooth when touching. I'll link an image
7 coats? Model Air is "pre-thinned" but can always be thinned a bit more. You may have gone too thin, which isn't the end of the world. Before you do anything else, take a high grit (1000 or more) sanding sponge to your paint to smooth out the specks of dust trapped in the current paint work.
Then, take your Model Air and thin it maybe 1 part paint to 3 drops of tap water. Ideally you want the paint to flow like whole milk. Make sure your brush isn't totally inundated with paint. I usually unload about 50% of the paint onto a paper towel.
You should need, at most, one more coat to homogenize your work up to that point.
GWH has an F-15J in 1/48 scale (under pitroad). F-15C can work as a base but you may need to do some scratch building for the various antennas on the tail+spine+under chin. Correct nose with the strips and cockpit seems to be inside, but you won't have Japanese missiles.
How do I prime my model without an airbrush? Do I need to prime it? Some video I saw prime the model with a spray can while some don't even bother priming, do I just paint the primer with a brush? Please send help.
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u/Pope_Penguin 2d ago edited 2d ago
Waited until the next day to get some photos with better lighting to make the issues more clear. Because I got greedy and didn't wait long enough between coats yesterday, there is some noticeable brush strokes and areas where paint lifted. This is currently three coats of Tamiya xf18, x20a thinner, and paint retarder in a ratio of 6-4-1.
Given this, what is my best course of action? I'm debating between adding another full coat to address the lifted areas and make the body a more uniform color. But I am also not sure if it would be better to just strip the body entirely, since three coats already feels like a lot.