Tamiya Douglas A-1j Skyraider 1/48 scale

Modeling Subjects Aircraft
1

Ok, how do you get the decals to look weathered, and how do you simulate soot coming from the exhaust? Im pretty decent with my airbrush (Badger 200) and cant figure it out.
Thanks

2

Hiya mem,
For me, when I go to weather my decals or the a/c for that matter, I use either pastel chalk or a washes.
For the exhaust I use a mixture of various blacks and dark grays(Pastel chalk) This also goes for any other details like dirt, dust or anything else that will be found on an a/c due to the surrounding grounds or just plain over all weathering.
This is one of the ways that I like to weather my a/c. I am sure there are more folks here that have their own ways or techniques.
Flaps up, Mike

3

and when he says pastel chalks make sure it is the dry kind and not the oil based pastels… made that mistake the first set I bought, ended up I have figured out how to do other things with them… like making the fabric surfaces look faded, but you want the chalk type pastels, not the oil ones to start out.

4

I have just used the “dry” brushing technique with good results. Only use the air brush for large areas then blend in the darker color dry brushing and sometimes a light “wash”.

5

This is the Monogram kit I airbrushed it with dark grey and brown then I dry brushed it with light grey.

6

thanks for the tips, Im doing soft masking right now on the cammo, seems to work out really good, I got rid of the canned air setup and got a cheap air compressor ( I modified the testors mighty mini compresoor, works really really good, paint control is soo much better now!) still trying to figure out how to get my badger to do pencil point lines though… oh well, practice makes perfect, when I get some more done, Ill through some pics up
Mem

7

Ok the models coming along fairly decently, Im not impressed with the cockpit all that much, but my problem right now lies in the undercarriage, IE is there any color photos of the wheel wells, and the landing gear. how is a good way to simulate oil and hydro. fluid spills, as well as JP-5 without screwing it up, or going overboard. I need to figure out what colors besides white are used in the wells, and the condition of most of the birds, Ill drop some pics in here tomorrow in my free time of the build as its coming along.
Thanks
mem