I conducted a small paint chipping experiment, which I hope proves useful for those of you who may wish to add rust, or patina to their car models. One the passenger side of the hood (left side in photo) I used water soluble white glue and on the driver side (right side in photo) I used salt as the medium for the chipping. Both were applied over Rustoleum red oxide enamel primer, which had small amounts of Testors raw sienna and orange randomly over sprayed in patches. In hindsight the sienna and orange could have been a bit heavier. Using a very small piece of sponge I lightly applied the white glue by daubing it on the hood. For the salt I tried to carefully sprinkle small amounts on the hood after it had been wetted down. After the white glue and salt had dried I airbrushed Tamiya X-2 acrylic paint over everything and once the white paint was dry I used a wet toothbrush to scrub off the paint to reveal the red oxide below. I found I had far control over the chipping medium using the white glue as opposed to the salt. I think the salt has its place if you want heavier chipping, but if you want subtle, I think the white glue is a better choice. The left side of the hood more closely resembles my hood before it was restored. I did experiment with the salt and white glue method on both Humbrol enamel and Tamiya Acrylic Lacquer and the method does not work as well with those paints. The black paint is the Tamiya TS-14, with white glue on the left and salt on the right. I had to scrub so hard to get both the glue and salt to release that I went through to bare plastic. Less than encouraging results. The yellow paint is Humbrol gloss enamel, again with white glue on the left and salt on the right. While the results were more promising than than the TS-14, they were still less than ideal and not near as nice as when I used Tamiya X-2 white acrylic paint. I hope this small experiment will be of some use to some of you. Down the road I will be illustrating a few areas of the Monogram GSX that need improvement if you want a better looking model. Cheers
Cool!. Thanks Randy. I don't weather my car builds (the odd 4x4 excepted) but this shows promise for WW2 aircraft.
I have been an aircraft modeller for 40 years, but I am now experimenting with cars. As a rule I don't like a weathered car that is overdone, but some subtle weathering looks good. I also don't like some of the car models that are too glossy, as it does not look right in scale. Same with chrome as it comes in the kit. far too much shine. There is a thing we call scale effect that we use in aircraft modeling. Meaning if you applied the same correct shade of paint on a model, as was applied to the real thing, the model would look too dark, and the smaller the model, the darker it would appear next to the real thing. Same holds true with gloss finishes on aircraft. It is my opinion that the same can be said for weathering. If one was to duplicate exactly the weathering, patina or rust as found on an actual car or aircraft, on a model of the same subject, it would appear over weathered. While the model may look nice from an artistic perspective, it would appear overdone from a realistic perspective. As I said, this is my opinion, so all this and a couple of Aussie dollars will get you a cup of coffee
Randy Very impressed! I weathered plane/ship/train models before I “discovered cars”/started building car models, briefly at age 18, before “life” imposed a long model building hiatus. While I can’t imagine “subjecting” a car model to such weathering, being reminded of “scale” is appreciated!!! (My model car building is a junction of “cars I’d like to own,” with being able to “own them” through some modeling skill… I’m not “emotionally prepared” to merge the “real life” fear of rust with the “art” of model building… LOL!!!) I recently joined the Fine Scale Modeler forum. While reasonably stock 60s-70s cars are few and far between on that site, I was exposed to the previously (to me) unthinkable idea of spraying clear flat on a chrome bumper! I’m more and more excited with each “modeler” I find here! (No disrespect intended to collectors of 1/18 or 1/64…) Looking forward to such! I am very much of similar mind. (I have “complained” a little in other recent threads…)
Hi Nicholas I built models as a kid, until I discovered cars and girls. Later in life after getting married, establishing my career and getting a house I got back into modelling. I got serious about it in 1992 and started competing at the U.S. IPMS Nationals, the UK IPMS Nationals and at the World Model Expo. Three years ago I got tired of the self imposed stress of making each model perfect for competition and sold everything (unbuilt kits, reference library, supplies, built models and awards). Now, I would like to dabble in car models, not with the intention of competing, but just for the joy that model building is supposed to provide. And if I can share any tips I have picked up over the years, then all the better. If you want a scale effect chrome, strip the kit chrome off your parts, clean up all the mould lines and attachment points and spray the parts with gloss black. Once dry, lightly spray the parts with Alclad 2 Chrome. A couple light coats will yield a nice chrome finish that looks in scale. Heavier coats will further diminish the chrome look. I saw your postings about the Monogram GSX and what you are proposing by using the Revell 71 442. That kit is light years ahead of the GSX and makes you realize how outdated the GSX really is. Cheers
