All -
Thought I pass this one along. Most of the time we build model cars that look better than real ones off the show room floors. Real cars get dirty, especially the engines. Here’s a trick that, IMHO, gives the right “grimmy” look to muscle car engines and others.
After assembling the block, tranny, heads, intake manifold, and water pump, anything that will be the engine color, paint (air brush, spray or brush) the assembly gloss black. When it’s completely dry, brush paint the actual engine color, ie Chevy/Mopar Orange, etc. First coat won’t cover completely and may pull away from edges. That’s exactly what you want. By painting in the right direction, the “streaks” that are formed look annoyinging like a real engine after it’s been “Gunked”. Clean, but not completely! You can vary the amount of grim by adding additional color coats. I use MM Acryls, but should work with enamals, but you might have to thin down the color coat abit.
I usually paint the tranny silver, and the black undercoat really seems to act as reverse high-lighting.
Has any one else tried this?
Archer out.
Have not tried that specific method but I have used gunmetal to pain the engine and then dry brushed with some steel and rust on a 40 Ford I built as a race car. Will have to try out you way one of these days and see how it works for me. I’m not the typical car modeler when I do build them cause i throw weathering in tothe mix as well. Something I came to love from doing armor I reckon.
Yeppo, I’ve used that method. I’m gonna call it the “Archer Method” for now on (never had a name for it before). And I also use heavy washes. I sometimes go as far as use fine dirt. A lot harder to look right though. But for the very messy oily motors I use the Archer method.
Enzo -
“Archer Method”, huh? I like that, thanks!!!
Kinda stumbled on it, when trying to do a quick restore on an old model a while back. It really did look like the real 440’s I worked on, in my younger days. They never did really come clean, no matter what you did. The gloss of the black, and a gloss top coat really does look like you “really tried to clean it” !!!
lizard - Mostly do/have done modern aircraft, so weathering is an old friend. Did a few cars recently, and restored some I did as a kid. Really feels good getting back in to the drivers seat, pun intended!
Archer out.