Can any good weathering guys out there tell me the steps in weathering this B-17. It is a gloss green, accidently painted it that. i have all the little stuff done, now how do I weather it? BTW, how do you think it looks now?
Good price on tomatoes, eh? LOL
What do yo want it to become?
Hmm, what do you mean?
I think what he means is do you have a particular aircraft in mind to model or are you doing something in the fantasy realm or what? Generally when you start a project of this scope you tend to have some idea of where you want to end up. Recently I did a Monogram 1/48 B-17F and converted it to an E. Perhaps that build review will help you with your weathering question … here is the link
http://www.swannysmodels.com/B17Ebuild.html
How did you "accidently " paint it gloss green? Just my curiosity at work. Most B-17’s were flat olive drab or bare metal.
Well, I grabbed the wrong spray paint can bottle…I have no idea how to weather, what the possibilties are, so thats what I’m asking, what are the step to weather it. Just everday use a B-17 would have gotten.
If you look at pictures of B-17’s you will get a general idea of the weathering that they acquire from use and combat. Try searching online for B-17 pics…or go to a big bookstore (like Barnes & Noble, etc.) and look for books there.
As far as actually weathering the model, I like dry brushing (believe it or not). I have built 2 1/48 B-17’s and dry brushed them both. They turned out great–just a lot of “scrubbing” with the brush and very time consuming. I wore my dry-brush to the nubs–literally! Also, radial engines are notorious for the amouts of oil that they spew (What’s the saying??? “If there ain’t oil on it, there ain’t oil in it!”). A good dark grey or black wash will help you achieve this effect–but DON"T OVER-DO IT!! (It is not hard to mess up, but if you are using acrylics…it’s not hard to correct, unless it has dried!)
Also, flak and just flying plus being exposed ot the elements really did a job on the paint–so exposed or chipped metal is/was very common. Leading edges of wings, props, etc all seemed to wear rather rapidly!
Hope this all helps, but if it doesn’t maybe look for Shep Paine’s “How to Build Dioramas” [or other related books by Kalmbach]–it really covers everything you need to know and breaks it down into understandable terms and methods!
Since your model already has a gloss finish, the first thing you should do is apply a wash to highlight the panel lines. There are many formulas for washes out there, but generally, mix dark gray (since the a/c is a dark color) acrylic paint, alcohol, and dishwashing liquid until you get the color and consistency you want. Experiment on a junker before you try it on the B-17, and I don’t mean a Junker-Ju. The wash should run freely into the crevices and, when it’s dry, you should be able to wipe off the excess with a Q-tip or a soft cloth. That’s what the dishwashing liquid helps with. Never apply a wash to a matte finish, because you won’t be able to remove the excess completely.
After you have done the panel lines, you should apply a flat clear coat to provide a rough base for any dry brushing or pastel chalk powder you wish to use for further weathering. Chalk dust won’t adhere to a gloss finish, and dry brushing is easier on a matte finish. When you are satisfied with the amount of grease and grime and exhaust stains, apply another coat of flat clear to seal and protect your weathering.
It might be a good idea to remask the windows before you apply the flat clear finish. If that is too much trouble, you can paint the windows with a clear gloss; and, that will make the “glass” transparent again. Future will work, too, but it takes too many coats to restore the transparency.
If you want to bring out the details in the engines and landing gear, mix up a thin wash with dark (maybe flat black) acrylic paint and alcohol only and brush it on over those parts. The wash will move to the recesses and create a shadow effect. If you apply an alchohol-base wash over acrylic paint, make sure that the acrylic paint has completely dried and cured, since alcohol is a thinner for acrylics, and even then be careful to not rub too hard. No problem if it’s applied over enamels.
Have fun, and show us some pictures when you’re done.