Exhaust smoke/stains - what's an alternative to Tamiya Smoke?

[Skyhunter66]

Saturday afternoon and I have made good progress on my PCM 1:32 Tempest until now! I can't seem to get on with Tamiya X19 Smoke - it just doesn't look right. So my questions are:

1. How to I correct a 'cock up' with Tamiya Smoke. Should I let it dry for 24 hours then gently sand back and re-spray with the same or is there a better way of doing it?

2. How do I get a more matt or dull effect with Tamiya smoke as it has a glossy effect.

2. What is an alternative to Tamiya Smoke for doing exhaust stains for WW2 aircraft at 1:32 and 1:48 scale?

Any help would be appreciated

thanks

Chris

[davidelvy]

Not sure about getting rid of the Tamiya Smoke. Sanding back and re-spraying is probably best, though I suspect I'd be lazy and just spray over the top. As for an alternative to Tamiya Smoke, I always use pastels. Rub them on a piece of abrasive and apply the powder with a brush. Repeated applications will give a more pronounced effect and a bit of brown and/or grey will vary the colour.

[Calum]

If you used acrylic or lacquers as primary colours , or have a good acrylic clear coat then I'd suggest using an enamel mixture of brown and black for the exhaust staining.

Using the enamels over the acrylics base coat means you can use white sprits to remove the exhaust staining if you don't like it. I do this all the time, sometimes I have up to 2o attempts before I get the effect I'm happy with.

Alternately if you've used enamels you could use Tamiya Smoke, which should be able to remove with Windex/ IPA without damaging hte enamels. I've never tried this though, so I'd be careful , I find enamels a little more fragile than acrylics when using chemicals which shouldn't affect them.

As for removing the smoke, if you've applied it over a acrylic base coat then I think light sanding is probably you're best bet.

[chadders]

I'd use pastels, but if you want to stick with Tamiya Smoke, just add some Tamiya Flat Base to it to give a matt finish

[stevecombeboy]

I use a black eye-liner pencil! It's 'lead' is a waxy sort of substance, so you can gently spread it according to the airflow, using a bit of rag. I've also got a silver-grey one which is good for imitating hard-worked engines running on high-octane leaded petrol. Mind you, I did get some funny looks in Boots!! (Even with my wife with me!)

Steve

[Abacus]

Another vote for pastels. Easy to add subtle changes, also easy to remove mistakes. Box should last a lifetime. Some scrape with a knife but as mentioned, rub onto sandpaper. Finer the sandpaper, finer the "pigment" Cheap as chips too

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12-Earth-Coloured-Chalk-Pastel-Set-Jakar-NEW-/310254399151?pt=UK_Crafts_DrawingSupplies_EH&hash=item483c9a6eaf

[pigsty]

Tamiya Smoke is magical stuff if you want oily stains. But exhaust stains aren't generally oily, which is why I don't use it for that. Another reason is that it's one colour, whereas exhaust staining is often more than one. Any heavily-used US Navy aircraft in gloss dark sea blue is a fine example - the exhaust is black, brown, and even grey where the plume gets thinner towards the edges.

So I too use pastels. The slight difference is that I use a needle file to sand the dust onto smooth paper. This makes it much easier to pick it up with your dry pastel brush / cotton bud, and you get less wastage. The file does clog up a little, but it can be rescued with a little rinse and a scrub. A three-sided file means I can do all three colours before needing to wash it, without mixing them up - although you can of course mix colours to your heart's content before you apply them.

[Paul Bradley]

How do you apply your pastel dust - do you drag or dab it on?

[pigsty]

Well, me, I use an old paint brush to dab it on, then scrub it into the surface. It travels a small distance before running out of puff. A fair bit drops away as I do this, but if you catch it it's easy enough to re-use, and excess blows away cleanly. One small point is that, unlike paint, pastel dust works only with gravity - you can't apply it easily if the target is above the brush.

[Tim T]

Another one for pastels. I always dilute Tamiya smoke quite heavily when I use it and the Flat Base tip is a good one. (Chadders - Post 4)

[Pin]

Gunze Sangyo Smoke, MIG pigments

Edited September 16, 2013 by Pin

[tank152]

The first 2 colours I reach for when applying my exhaust staining are Gunze "soot" and Tamiya "red brown" mixed together until it looks right!

Using any gloss colour isn't really a good idea for exhaust staining as I've yet to see glossy stains. Adding flat base is a good idea but you have to be careful, if you add to much you end up with a finish that looks like chalk.

Edited September 17, 2013 by tank152

[Skyhunter66]

Update - thanks for all your suggestions guys and I have experimented somewhat and got the best result with a heavily diluted mix of black and red brown. Here are the before and after shots!

[ben_m]

I like doing exhaust stains with watercolours through an airbrush. Very quick, and if there are any mistakes, the whole lot comes off with water in one wipe with a cloth. Seal with matt varnish when you're happy.

[Skyhunter66]

Water colours - now that is a good idea - thanks for the tip

[gcn]

You could always in conjunction with flat base add either black or brown to the smoke to alter the colour

Edited October 18, 2013 by gcn

[Duncan B]

Obviously lots of different techniques that can be used and you can use more than one on the same kit of course. I usually use a very thin mix of red/brown and black acrylics and spray multiple thin coats starting with a wide pattern getting narrower as the colour builds up so that the density increases towards the centre of the "stain". I might add extra streaks with pastels to enhance it required.

I have found that pastels will disappear under a coat of varnish so would suggest applying them at the very end of your build to get the full effect.

Duncan B

[mixup_1]

Fantastic tips guys, just wish I had read this thread earlier as have just attempted my first exhaust staining on the 109 im working on, looks ok, but nowhere near as nice as some of those. Lesson learned, will know for next time

[Mike]

I still use Tamiya Smoke for my exhaust stains, but add a dot of NATO brown and other colours if required (check your refs for the correct colours). I start near the front with the airbrush close to the fuselage/nacelle, and move it further away as I go back. That helps to diffuse it and fade it out. If you can support your brush to get a nice straight line too, that's a bonus

Once it's dried, overcoat with a matt varnish and it looks fine.... hopefully. Exhibit A: