O.K. campers here goes…(please note: I have not built an aircraft…YET…this tutorial is focused on armor vehicles, but I hope the info provided will “cross-over to the darkside” and be applicable and helpful there too.
As we wait for Jan 1st to start our “Winter Warriors” GB whip-out those reference photos and ponder…will my vehicle have the freshly white-washed look, really worn-off look or somewhere in between. If you haven’t already done so, go see my post called "…more photos of my Stug III with winter camo’…). It has the really-worn off look. Regardless of what you choose, the weathering principles are the same. You will also need to determine the following
- Will there be any after market goodies added or will this be an out-of-the-box build?
- Will the hatches be open or closed?
- Any figures?
- Will the final product be displayed on a base? weathered? if so…see next item
- What are the road conditions the vehicle will be “driving on”? (I told you, whip out those reference photos)
I will be building a Russian SU122, with the “somewhere in between” camo’ scheme. I plan to add photo-etched grilles and Fruilmodel tracks (I did not use photo-etch or Fruilmodel tracks afterall). The hatches will be closed. 1-4 figures will be added. The base will be snow over wet mud on a wood base. I usually throw on a few extra items of interest, tarps, gas cans, etc…not critical…I’ll determine those later.
Spin the clock forward…the ball has dropped in Times Square…put down the champagne glasses, put away the party hats and head to the workbench!!! Build your project to the point where you would start painting. DO NOT glue on the road wheels, sprockets, etc…or anything else under fenders. DO NOT glue down tools if you are not confident you can do so later.
Dec.29th: Here are the reference photos I am using for this build. The winter camo’ in the top photo shows good coverage but enough wear to make it interesting. I included the picture of the T34 because I have some Tamiya Russian Infantry Figures that have similar poses that I want to add. They are not in white smocks but are definately dressed for winter. I will add additional wear on the back deck of the Su122, behind the turret, to show the soldiers use the tank as an escort. (see T34 in backround)
The last photo with the guy standing in the hatch is just another good photo to show the amount of camo’ I want to represent…that may be fresh snow…doesn’t matter.
This is what your model should look like before adding the winter camo’.
There is nothing applied over the color coat, except for the “future” (see below). In my case I HAD to add to the sprockets, idler wheels, road wheels and tracks (too long to explain). I recommend leaving these off to make it easier to weather. The shininess on the “turret” is where I brushed on “future” to add white decal numerals. After further review of the instructions, I found out that black numerals should be applied OVER the white camo’. This is NOT the case for most tanks, review your own research materials. If you need to add the decal markings first, then all you need to do is “mask” them by holding a piece of index card cut to the size of the marking and hold it above the surface of the vehicle as you “feather” the edges while adding the white “clouds” (next step)
Adding white “clouds”:
Using flat white thinned 30% paint, 70% thinner I airbrushed white to all the exterior of the tank:
The airbrush is set as if you were painting fine lines, you want to have maximum control to where the paint is being applied. Refer to your reference photos if you have them, if not, add more paint to where the crew would NOT wear the white off and focus on the center of each “panel” of the tank:
Don’t worry if the paint runs a bit because that would be what the whitewash would do in real life. Also don’t be afraid to hit those un-worn areas several times because the impact of the white will be toned down in the next step. Don’t forget to spray the road wheels too! Note: vary the amount of white as you move around the vehicle, you might even need to do a “dusting” of white to ensure ALL surfaces at least have a misting of white paint.
Horizontal Surface Drybrushing:
To show wear by the crew, I dry-brushed all the horizontal surfaces first. I used the base color applying it with a brush using a circular motion. Add heavier amounts at the areas that received less whitewash in the previous step. Also add more amounts where the crew would put their feet and hands…like hatches, fenders, etc…
Chips and scratches:
Now it’s time to simulate dings, bumps, flying rocks, schrapnel, gun fire, moving parts, hathes, etc… This is done by using the base color again. Thin it slightly and add random dots to all the surfaces. Then add scratches where they might occur…trees rubbing the sides, rocks scraping the hull, soldiers boots walking and climbing, dragging chains,etc…Add chips where the hatches meet the hull additional and other areas where parts move and cause the layers of paint to peel off. Beat up the idler wheels, sprockets and road wheels too. Remember they move in a circle so some sratches should be in the direction of travel. This is one of the hardest steps to explain and on of the most time consuming, but the effort is well worth it. Don’t worry if the contrast to the body color is really strong…it will be toned down later. Here’s what it should look like, (note, in my build summary I said I wanted this to be a tank that escorted troops into battle, that’s why I beat up the back deck and sides so much):
Highlights, metallic areas and first washes:
I dabbed on some lightened base color on the horizontal surfaces where the green was the most prominent…this depicts fading paint that would have occured prior to the tank being whitewashed for winter. Then I added metallic gray at areas prone to heavy wear and some strategically placed scrathes. After a heavy coat of dulcote, I find this helps the colors “sit down” better, I added two washes of 20% raw umber to 80% mineral spirits:
“Whitewash”:
The next step is “whitewashing”. This is to simulate the painting that would have been done to get the tank ready for winter. Figuring that airbrushes were hard to come by on the battlefront, the methods of application were probably pretty crude in most cases. To achieve this effect take flat white and thin it down to the point that you don’t see brush marks (test first) but NOT runny. Then…HAVE AT IT!!!. But ONLY paint the areas that were airbrushed white, Paint in random patterns…X’s, left to right, up and down, vary the look, be a little sloppy, but don’t let the paint run OR thicken. Keep a little thinner handy and dab the brush in it and your white paint now and then. Focus on the middle of each tank section, and areas that would NOT receive wear. I had my reference photos nearby and looked at them often to see where the white was the most prominent. DO NOT cover the whole tank evenly. Hit some areas twice or even a third time…again the areas wth the LEAST wear get the MOST paint. It’s the contrast of the base color to the whitewash, and the varying thickness that will help form the contrast you’ll need in the steps to follow.
Oil Washes:
I applied two coats (dry in between) of burnt umber oil wash, 20% oil to 80% thinner. (Note: I chose burnt umber because it is the complimentary color to green. Raw umber would be O.K. too) Be generous! I loaded up the brush often and dabbed, versus brushed, the mix on. I even added an extra helping under areas where rust would run down the tank, i.e. grab bars) This is NOT a wash to accent relief and detail (pin washes will be later). It is to reduce the chroma (brightness) of the colors and bring them to “neutral”. If you like the look of streaked washes, let the wash dry a bit and pull the brush down gently from top to bottom…DO NOT press too hard…keep a good layer on the model. LET IT DRY.
Next, I applied one wash of raw umber, same ratio (switch to burnt umber if you used raw umber in step above) Again, get a good amount on the tank, my horizontal surfaces were so wet they were practically running down the sides of the vehicle. LET IT DRY.
Finally I added a black oil wash, this was a little thicker mix than the previous ones. Again, get the brush wet, don’t be shy with the wash, but this time only apply it to areas that would have grease or oil on it or in the vicinity: top deck, hinges, hatches, grills, etc…LET IT DRY.
Color and White Accents:
O.K., this is the hardest step to do (and explain) effectively and requires flexing your most artistic muscle…but here goes!!! (bear with me if I throw out some art terminology…I have a bit of training…just enough to be dangerous)
With the washes in place the whitewash and the colors have now been “neutralized”, but there still will be areas where they appear more vibrant. Put on those opti-visors and under good lighting study the model closely and find these color variations…do the same at the “whitewashed” areas. The variations (accents) may be subtle but they ARE there. ESPECIALLY find the ones where the base color (green in my case) are right next to each other…I know, I know green and white are next to each other all over the place, find the BEST ones, write down the locations on a notepad to remember them if you have to (Will get back to these later). Now, dilute your base color 50% with thinner and whip out your best fine detail paintbrush. Also have a little clean thinner handy to dip brush if our mix starts to thicken. Keep those optivisors on, pick a side to start, put a small dab of paint on the brush and stipple one of your “best” accents. The dab of paint should be no bigger than 1/16". These dabs next to each other should look like little clouds…don’t over do it. After your first dozen or so dabs let it dry and take a close look…the paint should appear to have no thickness…the chroma will be strong compared to it’s surroundings that’s O.K. It’s the contrast of the colors and it’s subtleties that draw the eye of the viewer to it. If done right (not overdone) the composition is processed in the viewers mind as a whole…complete if you will (WOW, that’s deep) Keep going all the way around the model and hit all those “best” spots. You can even lighten the base color mix a bit and hit a few areas too, it’s best to keep these dabs next to the original base color dabs. I can’t express enough that more is NOT better in this step, too much and the model will be “cartoon” like, for lack of a better term. Now, take off the opti-visor…how does it look!? If it looks good, STOP…just wait til’ you see it again with the white oil paint you’ll be adding next!!! Not sure how it looks, or does it seem too subtle…don’t add any more color until after you see it after the next step(s).
In your paint tray squeeze out a little white oil, DO NOT DILUTE IT. In another tray add straight thinner. With the same brush as last step add small dots to the “best” white wash locations (vertical surfaces only). Add 8-10 dabs at a time in a horizontal (not straight) direction, right next to each other. Move the brush down a pinch and add a few more dabs. Do again until you have worked an area about 2" square. Clean the brush, get it damp and now come back and “pull” those dots down in a vertical direction, vary the length of the pull (the bigger the area of armor the longer the pulls can be. If there are a lot of horizontal pieces, like tools, grab bars, etc. next to where you’re working, lengthen the pulls, you want to juxtapose those horizontal elements. Work every dab until it has no “thickness”. Now study the streaks…there should be a variation in them, some will be more diluted and show the colors underneath it more. At the top of the brightest streaks add a small, and I do mean small fresh dab of oil. Don’t touch that dab, it’s done…think of that dab as a piece of base color paint that had heavy whitewash on it. The heavy whitewash is what is causing the “brightest” streak.
1/16/08: Now, find the “best” white accents (still on vertical surfaces) that are next to the color dabs you just added. Do the same thing with th white oil paint as described above, but this time it’s not mandatory to move horizontally, it’s more effective to follow the line where the contrast of white and color are most apparent. “Pull” the white oil dabs down as described above. DON’T complete any one side, it’s better to do this at a couple/few areas on each side of the model and then move back about 3’ (of course, without the opti-visors) and look at it. If the contrast is obvious but not overpowering you’re done on that side. If not, add a little more, review, add, review…
For the horizontal surfaces the technique for both the color and white accents are the same, except that the white oil should have a tad of thinner added and should be applied in small circular motions, do NOT “streak” it…better to feather the edges until it has no apparent thickness. Be even a more stingy on the white on these surfaces too. The elements, and the crew abuse would’ve worn the whitewash off fast.
1/17/08-The last part of this step are the rust streaks and rust dabs. If you applied the oil washes in the ealier step there are probably some vertical surfaces of your model that have rust running down it. Don’t confuse this application of rust in this step with a pin wash…we’ll get to that in a later step. The goal here is to accent the rust color variations already apparent. Now, find those areas that the burnt umber wash is “running”, there will be a spot where the “rust” is the brightest. Using the exact same technique as the white oil dabs that were placed on the vertical surface, using burnt umber oil (not thinned), add some vertical streaks, remember to moisten your brush a bit first, the wetness of the brush should NOT dilute the oil, it should be just moist enough to get the oil to streak. Do NOT move the brush horizontally very much…mainly, dab the oil and pull the streak. If you have areas of rust near where the base color accents, and the white accents, are next to each (again, described above)…SCORE!!!, DEFINATELY add a streak or two there. You will have the highest chroma of white, green (in my case) and rust paints next to each other…this is EXACTLY what you want. The green color of my model is an extra bonus because it is the complimentary color of orange. When I look at my model, my eye goes to the back deck sides first, and going WAY back to the beginning, if you recall, I described that this was a troop “escort” tank and since I plan to add troops leaping off the rear deck…I’ve got the viewer focused where I want. Now add some more streaks, same technique, at the BOTTOM side of parts that are “welded” to the tank…vertical surfaces only. In my case, I had three long grab bars to work with. I didn’t add a streak at each connection point, only a couple few, and I varied the length of the streaks. A few other rust streaks I added were at the accenuated weld seams I “burned” on the top of the “turret”. At the front of the hull where I added the styrene strip with “burned” weld seams, I added multiple rust streaks. You will also notice I added streaks above the drivers hatch, and at some bolts. A final touch may be to a dab of fresh oil “rust” next to that iddy-biddy dab of white oil you added above, and left untouched. Make the rust streak, don’t let the oil sit untouched this time. This will appear to be the base color paint, flaking off the tank due to the rust below it…hence the rust streak…the white dot makes sure it won’t go unnoticed by the judges…heck, this is tough to do, might as well show it off!
Don’t put away the burnt umber oil just yet…now, for the horizontal surfaces, I added fresh dabs, randomly, at the following: the accentuated weld seams on the top of the "turret"and front of the turret, at the corners of the supports of the fenders, and where the burnt oil wash “pooled”, and dried an the fenders. You may also want to add more where applicable to your build. Think where water would stand, and in our case, snow would melt and start eating the metal. Let the dabs dry for an hour or so and see if the oil looks like “cancerous” rust. Does it have some dimension, or is it flat? If it’s flat add some more, DON’T cover the same area completeley, use some discretion, focus on the area that “pops” most, “build” a small mound of rust
…Did you notice the repetition of this “accent” technique? Find the most vibrant colors, accent them, no matter hat color they are. What you are doing is capitolizing on the opportunities that the different colors and mediums give us!!!
Here’s how it looks after this step:
(text is a little out of order here, please bear with me…)
1/18/08 Fresh oil, grease & additional horizontal surface wear:
OK soldier, strap on those those combat boots and jump on your tank!!! Not literally, unless you messed something up earlier and need to vent some frustration. Of course, I mean figuratively because this step is when we want to show the wear from the crew walking, working on, and mounting the tank. With raw umber oil, not thinned, you will drybrush all these horizontal surfaces. When I say drybrush, I mean REALLY dry…Sahara, Mojave, Gobi, (insert your favorite desert here) dry. An acrylic paint drybrush application is different than oils…it’s the density of the medium. Anyway, I hope I made my point clear…I’ll try once more…when I wipe the brush with oil on a paper towel I brush until I see a very, very faint amount of paint, then I swipe it a couple more times. OK, I think we’re on the same page now…if not you’ll know real quick (keep those boots on, you made need ‘em). Starting with an area that you know will have extra heavy wear, next to the turret hatch, is a good spot, swirl the brush slightly…did you hear the bristles make a dry swish sound…no? back to the paper towel for additional wiping. If you did hear the dry swish, work it around all the, what us architects call, “path of travel”. Add more paint where there is more frequent use. The oil we’re using is representing the oil on the crews’ boots and hands, and where does it come from…bingo, the engine. We will be accenting this more next. You’re probably saying…“awww, I’m covering all that beautiful horizontal wear I worked on earlier”…quit your whining…in fact, drop and give me twenty! This step takes awhile and requires patience, so keep the coffee out of reach if it’s makes you hyper, keep it handy if you started on this step late at night. Apply and review often, optivisors may help. When you are done with this the model will REALLY come to life!!! The slight sheen of the oil does WONDERS! The graphite we will add later will be the crowning touch.
fresh oil: I used raw umber and black oils(4:1) 30% mixed with mineral spirits 70% and then 3-4 drops of Grumbacher artist’s oil medium, gloss varnish (typical small paint tray well). Do a wash around the engine compartment covers, and surrouding areas. Be generous, really let it race around those edges. If you have a spot where you want it to streak down the side, by now you should be an expert “streaker”, use what you learned before…“pull” the streaks (see furher description below). Now dab SMALL amounts on flat surfaces in some logical spots, it should disperse in a circle, if it goes too big, let the mix thicken and retry. These will be the oil stains. As the mix thickens (say overnight) re-dab the circle areas with even smaller dabs more towards the middle but don’t make a series of bulls-eyes. Vary the locations, add smaller drips next to the others. Picture how a can drips and how the drips decrease in size as the drips stop, or the person carrying it is moving. Keep letting the mix thicken and repeat/dry/repeat until, when dry, the “oil” has a slight sheen. You may need to add a drop or two more of the varnish as you go. The consistency of the mix works best when it has the same consistency as real motor oil. The oils on the vertical surfaces are done the same, just start the first application with the mix after it has sat overnight. It’s O.K. to be generous in some areas where the oil would naturally build-up. Keep dabbing in the same spot and let the “oil” run naturally where it will.
grease: Hopefully you still have some “motor oil” left. If not go make another batch…This “oil” is now grease. Take it and “lubricate” all the hinges…not just the engine, but all the hatches too. I added some to the lug nuts too (we’ll get to that later) Really goop it up on the engine compartment cover hinges. The artist gloss varnish is what gives these areas of “oil” and “grease” a little sheen. Put your shininess scale factor reduction skills to work here.
This is how all that should look:
Pin washes: Using burnt umber mixed 50% oil, 50% thinner add a drop to all bolts and connection points like grab bars, etc…There should already be some wash at these points we’re adding more. On the horizontal surfaces you may want to even add an extra drop, exaggerate this wash in comparison to one that you would do for a tank not exposed to winter weather. The snow, freeze/thaw cycle will accelerate the rusting process. DO NOT add any of this mix at the bolts that have oil (from oil and grease step above) exposure, oil protects it from rusting. Here’s an example of what it will look like:
Exhaust Pipes: Breath a little sigh of relief here, this is easy. With a small brush, paint the pipes with straight burnt umber oil, put in on kinda thick. Now, with a cleaned/moistened brush lightly “texture” the pipes. Use small streaks, swirls, whatever, if the oil globs, so what, in fact even better…it’s"cancerous" rust. Let this dry completely. Now sand down some CHALK pastels, pick some browns and oranges, you know, rust colors (see photo below) and black. Starting with the darkest color, “paint” on a little with an old dry brush, the more ragged and old the brush the better. Do the same with the next lightest color, and so on. Use light strokes, you don’t want to brush of the previous color. Decrease the amount as you move from darkest to lightest colors. Now come back and add some tiny fresh dots of the burnt umber oil, back to that “accent” thing again! A real small smear or two is OK too. With a larger ragged brush “dusted” up heavy with black pastel, zero in on the pipe opening…aim…fire! Hit it square- on, don’t brush, don’t smear. The handle of the brush should be perpindicular to the pipe and armor as you add the black. Add the “soot” under the pipes, more directly under the pipe opening and less as you mov away from it. Those miniscule flakes of chalk are what you want, don’t spread them around, and for the love of everything that is holy, DO NOT dullcote spray, or aim anything else that discharges air towards ANY pastels in place from this point on, until… well…FOREVER!!! I have read mixed opinions on this…I stand firm to my resolve. If you have vertical surfaces in “soot range” (see the fuel boxes in photo below) add a light dusting to them too. Again the closer to the exhaust pipe, the more soot should be added. One last tip, the heavier the the weathering, the heavier the soot…more combat action means more soot…DONE.
See, easy but effective!:
Idler, sprocket and road wheels:
1/25/08-Most of the work for this step has already been done way back in the chips & scratches portion of the tutorial so some of this will be redundant. The additional weathering techniques on the wheels are done pretty much like the rest of the tank. The only difference is that you need to remember that the wheels are moving in a circle so the wear needs to depict this motion. Some of the scratches should follow the curve of each wheel and hub. I find that varying the amount of weathering from one wheel to the next adds interest. I like to show one wheel with a lot of white camo’ while the one next to it will have more base color. Make sure to add the “rust” pin washes to the lugnuts, but always add the “grease” wash over it. I tend to be more “sloppy” on all the techiniques too. The motion of the wheel will throw the grease, oil, mud etc, all over the place. Picture the tank at a standstill too, the oil, grease, water would run down the rims, and if the tank sat for any duration, make stains where the wet materials “pooled”. It’s hard to gone wrong on this step, don’t try to be “perfect”
These photos show the technique, sorry I forgot to get a photo before the dirt went on, but if you scroll back up a bunch of pictures you’ll see the color variations I’m talking about.
Painting tools, wood handles:
**02/13/08-**Painting the tools is actually very easy. In this case, both a steel tool and wood handled shovel are right next to each other, so the photo presentation is simplified. For the steel bars and the shovel blade I started by painting them both flat black. The bar was then left alone and I focused on the wood handle. I started by painting it Tamiya buff. After it dried I used a small brush and applied a thin coat of straight raw omber oil. Don’t overwork the paint, just get it on there and don’t worry if it’s not on real evenly. I like the buff to show through a little because it’s what gives it the “grain” appearance. After the oil starts to dry a bit, take a small clean dry brush and “paint” wood grain. The oil will come off onto the brush, so clean it before each pass. Remember, tree rings are circular, so arcs and ovals, are better than straight strokes. Now, just “paint” in large sweeping motions…go grab a yard tool if you have too, and try to copy the grain pattern. Now leave it to dry completely. Be careful not to add any oil washes or you’ll be starting over. Once the oil dries, use the