Happy New Year to all! I have just joined this forum and have been a model builder of all types since the fifties, more scratch balsa r/c stuff than plastic. I am intimidated by the super quality of the models these days–so much so that I have been afraid to build lately for fear of ending up with a pile of junk! At any rate, I am currently working on a Revell 1/72 Sikorsky H-19 helicopter with the Eduard photoetch fret. My question is, when do you paint? The etched parts of course add another dimension, and I’m sort of hung up. For example, I have unpainted seats with the four parts of the etched belts and harness already superglued. If I had painted the seats first (which I probably should have done), then I’d be scratching around trying to attach the belt parts. It’s like this for the whole interior. I’d like to finish this thing before I die, but I see no light at the end of the tunnel. What sequence do you guys use and how are you able to build something like this without making a career out of it?
Bunzo [#welcome] to FSM! I can only tell you that I apply photo etch before and after painting. It’s really a judgement call when to add PE and when to paint. If your working on cockpit detail with PE then you may want to paint after you apply it, with seats you may want to paint before you apply PE. It’s really up to you and what you think is best. Keep seeking out advice and use it to develope your way of doing it. Everyone here is really helpfull on subjects like this.
And again Welcome to our corner of the Institution! [:D]
Air Master
First off [#welcome]to the forum, second ive heard guys useing metal etching primer on the PE so the paint doesnt chip so answer your question to the best of my abilaty paint your PE first with the etching primer and then paint the parts. Hope this helps.
Thanks, AirMaster, for the advice. I need to stop being so anal about it and “get after it”. I’ll take your advice! I could have saved myself some time if I had purchased some of the 1/72 Zoom-type (already painted) seat belts!
Thank you, smokinguns3! I did soak the pe in vinegar (I had read somewhere to do that) and hopefully I’ll be okay. But I like your advice about the etching primer better. I don’t want the model to smell like a salad! Thanks again!
welcome to the forums! I don’t really have a set sequence of painting stuff, but I usually pick out the smaller pieces first and then paint the base color around it.
for example, I would just paint the seatbelts their colors w/o worrying about getting it onto the seat. after that, take a fine brush, and then clean up the outline of the seatbelt by painting the seat color around it.
sometimes, its revers, like for the instruments panels and the buttons and doo-dads and gee-gaws. paint the base first and then pick out the individual things. this generally goes with figures too. paint them like you were dressing them. you wouldn’t put your parachute on before you even pulled up your flight pants [:D]
its just basically a good use in judgment. as for the seatbelts, I would use the method I described in my second paragraph. if you are using superglue, then there is no need to scrape paint, because only styrene liquid glue needs direct contact with the plastic, as it welds the two styrene parts together. since superglue is adherence through chemical bonding, think of it like the superglue bonding brass to paint.
good luck! hope to see some pics soon [:D]
Thank you for taking the time and lending some great advice. I appreciate the help!
Hi Bunzo & welcome [;)]
A couple of things to add to the fray. Firstly, if you use Superglue on a painted surface, the join is only as strong as the weakest part of the equation - namely the paint adhering to the plastic, so be wary, and treat the parts delicately if you use this method.
When I’m painting a cockpit, I often start off with an overall sprayed coat of black, which I then “highlight” by carefully spraying the interior color on the “high points”. I then give the whole cockpit a harmonising overspray of interior color, usually from slightly above, so it retains a little shadow under overhanging parts.
Try to assemble as many parts as practical before painting, particularly if they’re all going to be the same color. I’m just starting a Tamiya Spit Mk1, and have the resin cockpit sidewalls installed, a sub-assembly of the seat with framing, another of the instrument panel & footwell, and another of the cockpit floor. These have all been treated as above, and are now waiting for me to give them their first dry-brushing of a lightened coat of the interior color. After that, they’ll be sealed with future & a when dry I’ll apply a wash of watercolor paint to accentuate the shadows, then some more dry brushing to make the detail pop, the additional detail colors such as O2 bottles, radios, and instrument panels, and finally a coat of matt varnish to dull it all down. After that, just a couple of small dabs of future to make the instrument faces shine, and I’ll be ready to close up the fuselage.
HTH [;)]