As a new kid in starting to paint models. My first challenge is the 1/72 ACADEMY P-40 N/M “Warhawk” I hope to make it look good. So I need some pointers.
First of all, I want to state out that I have no other equipment besides paint, thinner, and some brushes. That’s all and should be enough.
When you paint by hand, is there any “Special way” that you have to paint your plane so that it doesn’t look as if it was hand brushed? ( like obvious signs of paint in a direction etc) And how thin does the paint have to be? Like water, or gloopy?
When you finish painting one color and want to change color or just let it go to dry (the model, I mean) How do you makew sure that your paint doesn’t freeze onto your brush? I’m using enamel paints, and the last thing I need is a wasted brush. Use thinner? Soap with water? Detergent? Or what?
These questions are clealry very amateur to you guys, but I’ve brought my first model kit to work seriously on. That P-40 . I wanna make the best of it.
P.S What do you guys think of different scales of p[lanes? 1/72 1/32 1/48 …which one do you guys think are best?
This is like asking “Which is better, a sports car, a station wagon or a full size pickup truck?” To some degree it depends on how much space you have to display your stuff and how much you want to spend. The larger the scale, the more visible the detail.
There is so much more about paints and painting than anyone could put in one post. I advise searching through the posts using keywords such as “thinner”, “brushes”, “acrylic”, “enamel”, etc. While a lot of it will be about airbrushing the same type thinners/solvents will be used whether airbrushing or using regular brushes.
tamiya has a thinner for its paints that is probably alcohol based since they are acrylic. That will do nothing for your enamels. Soap and water eill do nothing for your enamels. I get my thinner at the hardware store for a buck or two a gallon and it’ll last me several years. I use it to thin artists oils. to make washes, clean brushes of oil, laquer or enamel paints and to thin enamels for the airbrush. and
Ay men Panzer, I hear ya, but to make large scale models, don’t use paint brush, use airbrush or the cheaper btu more affective way, spay can.
Since the paint is spread out rader that going one direction of the stoke the paint make appears much better that brush, only paint small part like buttons or detail parts of the model with brush, I used to paint only with brush too but the results are never excellent, remeber that.
Just a warning, spay paint the models in a wooden or carboard box so that the paint dosen’t ruine anything else, and more importantly, No doing inside, even if its vetelated, the paint smells like toxic waste.