In Dec. 2006 FSM, Mike Kirchoff builds a KV-1. He is shown stippling Mr. Surfacer 500 onto the tanks hull and turret to give the texture of rolled armor. I am wanting to try this technique on Tamiya’s 1/25 T-34, but I don’t have any Mr. Surfacer 500 available. Am I correct in thinking that White-out could be used instead? Are there any other alternative products for the application I need? Thanks in advance!
Mike,
I would be cautious with this one. White Out tends to go on a little thick, and sometimes clumpy. I’ve never tried it, but I don’t think it would sand too well if you needed to.
But, there’s always the cheap model method! I’ve got a 1/72 B-24 that looks like it was thrown up by the model building monster. Try it out and let us know how it goes!
Thanks for the reply! The T-34 that I’m building is a cheap model that I wanted to try new techniques on, but at the same time I want it to come out looking great…Guess I can’t have it all. I also have on hand some Liquitex modeling paste, which is somewhat thin and sands well. I thought about possibly dabbing some of that on with a sponge. I think I’ll try both on some scrap sheet-plastic and see how they turn out. I’ll post pics of my results later this week.
I use white-out, since I can’t find any Mr. Surfacer, either. It works well, but not perfectly. You need to thin it out a bit before applying, and be prepared to use several applications, as it does tend to chip while sanding.
I was just going to say that I would think that Whiteout wouldn’t have anywhere near the “tack” --the adherence properties–of Mr Surfacer.
You can easily order it online. Try Internet Hobbies.
I haven’t tried it myself, but I’ve seen enough posts in forums from guys who do (see even Phantom Fan’s post further up in this thread) to think that it would be worth trying.
What do you use to thin it, apart from White-Out’s own thinner? Can you thin it with isopropyl, for example, or does it need mineral spirits or turpenoid?
Since getting two jars of Mr Surfacer (the 1000 and the 1200), I’m finding that it doesn’t replace all other media for filling. My homemade Mr Surfacer (Squadron white and a couple drops of acetone) still serves me well, for larger gaps or depressions, for example. I use Elmer’s wood putty, CA glue, and the sprue-and-glue method, too, all depending on the seam or gap to be filled or hidden.
Regards,
Brad
That’s what I would be afraid of, white-out not sticking and chipping off. I’ve tried some crazy things but white-out wouldn’t be one of them.
It took more than a month… But Greatmodels.com was able to get Mr. Surfacer 500 and 1000 for me.
Now for figuring out how to make it look nice and smooth.
I keep hearing rumors the stuff is out of production.