Well, just finished my little AT-ST and weathered it with pastels, a first. I can tell I have been out of modeling far too long. My airbrushing technique is in the toilet and my eye for weathering is all but gone!
Boy, is this gonna be a hard road back! 
And to think, all I did was just glue the few pieces there were together and then paint it!
Hey, donât be too critical on yourself.
Thats a pretty good ST. Remember dirt and grime must be in scale with the model. Pastels especially - a little goes a long way. Maybe mix up a wash to make the little details pop out. Good job tho âŚ
White is always a pain to deal withâŚIt takes a special breed to tackle it becuase it can turn muddy on you quick. The way I have dealt with white on my miniatures is to start with a very light grey then build up from there to whatever shade of white I am looking to finish with. Nothing more than layering. Probably work the same with and airbrush, start out with a grey or dirtier shade of the white than layer up to the color you are looking for.
I dont think it is too bad for a first time back after a few years absence though. I am struggling with the same thing, just got back into the modeling hobby after a very extensive leave period. Good luck. [;)]
Thanks. I am gonna keep trying at least for the next 50 years. Iâll be almost a hundred by then.
I second Wolfpâs comments about White. It is very toufh to work with. If this is your first kit back into the hobby donât dispair. From a construction perspective you look like you did well, if you are unhappy with the finish you could always repaint it and try agian⌠practice, practice, practiceâŚ
Instead of white use either a camoflage gray or light ghost gray on this subject, then try the pastels againâŚ
Again it does look goodâŚ
Practice, practice, practice. I am not gonna give up on white, no way, no how. Iâll master that beasty!
First off, the AT-St looks great. I really like the weathering. When you guys were talking about the difficulties of white, which make a lot of sense, I started thinking about what an AT-ST looks like, and 'm pretty sur in Return of the Jedi, theyâre light-medium grey. Donât give up on the white thing though. Itâll be another model technique under your belt. Good luck,
Kev
The model looks good man donât put yourself down. Can I ask which kit u used and were you got it from?
I used the amt/ertl kit and got it from HobbyTown USA in Wichita, KS several years ago when I started collecting kits.
I wasnât sure if they were greay or white, I figured all the idiot storm troopers were dressed out in white so why not.
White is a pain as it doesnât cover like other colors, the base coat greatly affects its hue, etc. I did try again on my Saturn V which I am using as another comeback model to teach myself it doesnât have to be perfect or even good except to me. There when I painted the white it got all sandy on me as well. I then thinned down the acrylic white to about 2:1, almost like water but not quite, and started spraying. I got better results still got the sandy coating but not as bad. Next I am going to try a true 1:1 at 20 psi and take my time covering the model in sections. Quite big and bulky to paint all at once.
I think the key is to be close to the model, push the trigger down all the way (full air pressure) and then pull back till I get the spray pattern I want. Once I figure this out I will use the set screw so I can return to this thorughout the painting session. I am using the Badger Anthem to paint this one and used it on the AT-ST.
Iâll keep posting my results and eventually some pics as well.
Nice job, great weatheringâŚ
x
Thanks
I agree that a spot wash around the hatches and moving parts may give just a tad bit more realism to the kit, overall, I think you did a bang up job!
I think I agree as well. Time to dirty it up a bit more!
itâs not nearly as bad as you seem to think!
Iâve spotted a couple things that could be fixed up, though.
AT-STs are a darker shade of gray, especially with the legs, and where they attach to the âbodyâ of the vehicle.
The viewports need to be painted a gloss black, and remember that there are only two windows, the bump in between them should remain the color of the body.
Also, you might want to try a wash, probably with an even darker gray, and maybe some brown near the feet.
You might want to do a google image search for âatstâ to find reference pictures.
Also, white is a pain in the butt, ainât it? [:)]
Yeah, white is a b(*&^. I could try a wash. Hadnât really thought about painting the windows. I really wasnât sure what the actual color would be, I decided on white cause the storm trooper clones where white. About as bad as the British in the Revolutionary War. Wore all red, marched down the middle of the road in a straight line storm trooper style!
Thanks for the observations.