This is the first model i have done using my new AB.
Note that the turret i have not touched with weathering yet (haven’t even gotten around to the decals) although it will get very little dust added, only one side is weathered and i have only added the visable dust color. This is also only a test model, if it turns out to be fit to look at then all the better.
The type of weathering i am trying to achieve is dust and a little mud from driving down a dry dirt road, and the tank in good condition.
As i am getting into more advanced painting techniques for the first time, any and all advice is welcome. Please do not be afarid to point out numerious falts, i welcome any comment on what is wrong.
Wow, that’s a lot of dust. IMO, it may be a little overdone. Dust is easy to apply, but you have to be careful. First, when you apply an overall dust coat, don’t do it in sections. Do it on the whole model. What you should do is use 10% paint, and 90% thinner. Mist the model (basially hold the AB pretty far away, and just let the paint particles settle on from top, and shoot from further away on the sides so you don’t get a lot of coverage). Apply one or two light coats to the entire vehicle. Then, start to focus more on the mid-section, perhaps add one more coat, then add one or two more coats to the running gear and absolute bottom only. In that way, you get a unified dust coat that ties in the whole vehicle, and at the same time is realistically layered on the vehicle.
thanks for that method of adding dust. I’ll try it on the other side.
here is a picture of the effect i am trying to go for. Now that i look at it, i need more dust on the lower half and a shorter fade into no dust. I’ll try hand brushing unthinned paint to produce mud marks, use a fine brush with a pointed tip to get the streaks of mud, and paint the base color over the dust is some spots and reapply a very light dust later over it.
[#ditto]-- but keep workin on it dude!-- you will get it and find the learning experience fun and rewarding-- post the results and let us know how it came out[:D]— treadwell
I think weathering is my bugaboo. It can make or break a build. Too much, it distracts from the build proper. I prefer more subtle, so the subject stands out, not the weathering. To each their own of course.
Dust layering can be very hard to replicate in a believable way.
I did something very similar on my first build since… early 90’s. [:O]
The intention was also to build a fairly “clean” vehicle with dust, but not a lot of mud, and I pretty much just used it to experiment with painting and weathering techniques.
The dust layering is 1 part Tamiya Buff, 1 part Tamiya Sky Grey to 10 parts denatured alcohol. I also scrubbed off some of the dust (after it had dried) using a Scotchbrite scourer to try to represent areas where it would have been worn off by normal activity.
I’m no expert, but I would recommend applying your decals and any other last minute touches before applying weathering. It looks odd to have perfectly painted unit numbers and war slogans on the side of a turret or fuselage when the rest of the subject is covered in dirt.
