I used to have that anxiety, when I was relying on an Aztek. Now painting/decaling are my favorite parts after I got my Iwata. I’m starting to get annoyed that I have to glue things.
Boy, is that a fact! Last Christmas, my little brother got me one of those airbrush starter sets from Testors with a single action, external mix airbrush and a can of compressed air. Shorty thereafter, I went on-line and did some research. I posted here and at a couple of other modeling-type boards. I got a few people saying that the brush was too cheap and wouldn’t give good results, but the vast majority of responses were encouraging and I got some great tips for using the brush.
I’m just about done painting my first airbrushed model and I’m so glad I got that little brush as a gift. I’m already on my second can of compressed air, and I’m saving for a compressor. But, the airbrush has helped me create a really nice paint job on the plane I’m building, and it’s taken far less effort than a brush painted finish would have.
Here are some things I keep in mind that help me get over my anxiety about using the airbrush, and painting in general:
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I’m going to screw up. I accept that. Sometimes, the mess-up is so minor that I’m the only one who notices, so I’ll let it go. Sometimes, I need to do some touch up with a fine brush, and that’s not hard to do. Twice with this model, I had to take a fair amount of paint off the nose and repaint it. That wasn’t that hard either.
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The more care I take in masking, the less anxiety I feel. Late last week, I spent 30 minutes or so masking off the area around my F-4 Phantom’s tail that needed to be painted bare metal. Then I spent another five minutes setting up my airbrush, stirring and shaking the paint, and otherwise getting ready to paint. Then I spent about two minutes painting. Another minute with a hair dryer set on the cool setting to quicken the paint drying time. Then, in another minute or so, I took off the masking tape that I had spent half an hour applying. [:I] I was very happy with the section I painted. There was no overspray on the model, and the bare metal area looks good.
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Have fun and manage you expectations. I didn’t expect a finish on the plane like the ones I see in the magazines. In fact, I didn’t quite know what to expect. In the end, the plane looks really darned good, and I already have some ideas on how I can do better with the next model.
These are just things that have helped me. YMMV.
Regards,
-Drew
Drew has the right philosophy I believe!
Evil you say? hehe… [;)] check out shermie’s pic
ROFL…Oh my side hurts!!! That was too funny!
Chris
David, painting is the bit I like the least in modeling… So easy to mess it up. I’m not helped by the fact I have little patience… I ofen go too fast and end up with a sub-standard finish that detracts from the hours and hours I may have spent in building, detailing a model. Well to my eyes in any case. Because that’s where the problem is. I’m way too hard on myself too, and a lot of people just do not see the mistakes I may have done and give me the thumbs up.
I’d say go for it…! You can only get better as time passes. Start with figures and models that are maybe not worth that much money, or not worth much to you, just to give you a idea of what you have to beat next time. As for the airbrush, if you can get one, do so, but one can do great things with cans and the old brushes you know. And I know many modelers that are virtuoso with an airbrush but can’t use a brush properly.
Looking forward to seeing your figures, David.
YES!!!..Outstanding…EXTREMELY intimidating…Fits shermy like a glove!![:D][:D][:D][;)]
Dave, I have the perfect solution for you especially since you do mostly figures. Buy some Vellejo paint. It’s absolutely awesome for brush painting. I’ll put a couple drops on a pallet and thin it maybe a 1/3 with tap water and it brushes beautifully and dries fast. I’m talking in few minutes you can handle the parts carefully. Moses of great repute on the site and of recent scarcity (due to a new baby fixin to come along I’m sure [;)] ) put me on to the Vellejo so I can’t take credit for it. If you saw the pictures of my Marder, I brush painted the spare tracks on it with vellejo grey black for the base coat to try it out. I was going to strip and spray them if I needed to but it came out perfect, no brush marks, beautiful. If you try it on your figures, all you need to do is have a steady hand!! I always hated brushing details before I used the Vellejo btw, because it was hard to get a smooth coat. With the Vellejo thinned a little it self levels.
IF you have small slips of the brush, start doing some washes on the figures and some drybrushing and besides covering up small oopses, it’ll bring them to life!! Again on my Marder, that was my first armor kit and my frst time going all out on washes, drybrushing, pastels and it came out great. I surprised myself on the finish. It’s very easy to do if you just jump in and do it. And of course holler if you have any questions!
If you’re going to get into kits, get an airbrush. It’s then just a matter of practice with it.
Eric
Hey Eric (and everyone else too), thanks for the advice. I’m think I’m going to give the Vallejo paints a try. I know switching paints isn’t going to magically make me a great painter, but I think they are worth looking into. I don’t mind brush painting at all. Granted the small details can be a challenge, but it’s fun.
BTW – should we tell Shermie 'bout the picture or see how long it is until he notices? [:)]
ROFL Dave!!! [(-D] I missed that pic the first time through! Don’t tell him, let him find it (while we all snicker behind his back [:-^] [:D] ).
Ain’t being an admin fun??? [bow] [:-,] [;)]
Eric
Why thank you David. You do such lovely work.
I bet the girls at the PSP Group were mighty impressed when you shared this one with them. [;)]