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Make your own panel washes?


Gav G

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So... I've been trying to find a stockist of Tamiya Panel Line Accents, both black and brown, and MIG Streaking Grime in the UK that doesn't charge mouth watering prices.  The prices abroad seem to be far cheaper (e.g. Passion132 do MIG streaking grime for just under 4 as opposed to over £7, but unfortunately you have to factor in shipping which then kills the saving).

 

Then I had a thought; can I not just buy a tin of Humbrol gloss enamel and thin down as required?  Are the panel line washes not just extremely thinned down ordinary enamel paints? 

 

If so, then I just need a tin of Humbrol gloss black 21 and gloss tan 9 for the two Tamiya panel line accent colours above?

 

Does anyone know how to make an equivalent of MIG Streaking Grime?

Edited by Gav G
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The usual way I do it (as I believe many millions of other modellers probably do as well) is to get a soft drink bottle top and pour some enamel thinners into it. I then add one or more drops of enamel paint in whatever shade I wish (usually dark grey or black) to the thinners. I then apply this to panel lines or to create oil streaks and other weathering.

 

I wouldn't dream of buying pre-made panel line washes as it's cheaper to make your own, very easy and because you choose the shade of paint added to the thinner and the quantity you can adjust the shade of wash and the strength and depth of colour of the wash.

 

HTH!

 

Tim

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Remember that you can also use acrylics with suitable thinners (alcohol, ammonia) as a means of reducing the opacity. The advantage is when you use them over enamels or lacquers if you stuff up you can use windex to take it off without risking the base coat. Of course, don't forget that windex removes Future.....

 

You can also buy pastel sticks, and by using it on very fine wet or dry, you can add the fine powder to the wash, which for soot, dirt and crappy deposits looks a bit better too

 

HTH

 

Les 

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Totally agree with Lesthegringo about pastels as well.

 

My usual weathering regimen is an enamel panel line and "sludge wash" on certain areas (for oil leaks, general dirt, etc), chalk pastels (exhaust and cordite stains, mud, etc) and various artist high quality coloured pencils (eg silver for paint chips).

 

But definitely don't buy those panel line washes as they are, as we've all been saying, TBH a complete ripoff.

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15 hours ago, lesthegringo said:

Remember that you can also use acrylics with suitable thinners (alcohol, ammonia) as a means of reducing the opacity. The advantage is when you use them over enamels or lacquers if you stuff up you can use windex to take it off without risking the base coat. Of course, don't forget that windex removes Future.....

 

You can also buy pastel sticks, and by using it on very fine wet or dry, you can add the fine powder to the wash, which for soot, dirt and crappy deposits looks a bit better too

 

HTH

 

Les 

 

Thanks, I didn't know about the opacity thing. The Windex we get here in the UK doesn't contain ammonia though AFAIK.

 

Pastel sticks: cheers, you've solved my next problem for me - how to make convincing rust and dust textures :D

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1 hour ago, Gav G said:

 

Thanks, I didn't know about the opacity thing. The Windex we get here in the UK doesn't contain ammonia though AFAIK.

 

Pastel sticks: cheers, you've solved my next problem for me - how to make convincing rust and dust textures :D

 

Hi Gav,

 

With the pastels, just make sure you get the chalk type and not the waxy/oil type. With the chalk type I use some 400 or 600 grit sandpaper on them to make a very fine powder which I then apply using a paint brush. It is an exceedingly convincing technique especially for exhaust and gun stains but you can use it to simulate rust and other dirtiness/staining. One last thing, I personally find it best to use the pastels on a matt surface as the coarseness to the finish helps adhesion, so I generally apply a gloss varnish after decalling, do a panel line wash, then apply a matt varnish, do the chalk pastel weathering and then seal with a final matt spray over the top - I should add this is for WWI and WWII combat aircraft modelling.

 

Cheers,

 

Tim

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A slightly different approach I've recently started using is to add Vallejo's Glaze Medium to the desired shade of Vallejo or other acrylic paint. This medium dilutes the pigments of the paint so that the resulting mix is a semi-transparent paint. The more medium added, the more transparent the paint.

I simply choose the paint I want based on the underlying colour, add the glaze medium, a couple drops of retardant for acrylics and I can then apply the wash on the panel lines using a small brush. Wipe away the excess and I have a nice wash with exactly the tone I desire.

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The other way to get powdered pastels to stay on is to use some diluted clear vatnish or future on the part using a brush, then dabbing on the pastels with another brush or cotton bud. It will stick to the varnish / future but stay matt. For rusted exhausts this gives the best texture, plus you can dab different colours to simulate the bloom you see with rusted parts. It's amazing but pink and white highlights make rust effects more realistic.

 

Les

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32 minutes ago, lesthegringo said:

The other way to get powdered pastels to stay on is to use some diluted clear vatnish or future on the part using a brush, then dabbing on the pastels with another brush or cotton bud. It will stick to the varnish / future but stay matt. For rusted exhausts this gives the best texture, plus you can dab different colours to simulate the bloom you see with rusted parts. It's amazing but pink and white highlights make rust effects more realistic.

 

Les

 

Thanks for the tip on the pink and white highlights for the rust effects Les. I have a Type VII-C U-boat on the go at the moment and it will obviously need a bit of rust weathering so that little suggestion is highly appreciated.

 

Tim

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Hi Gav,

 

You need the chalk pastels or otherwise ones called Conté - I just checked my ones and they're actually Conté. Here's the differences between the different types ( http://www.drawingsociety.com/faq/index.php?op=view&t=7 )

 

The soft ones  won't create a fine powder when you use sandpaper on them.

 

Here's a quick link about the technique:

 

http://www.onthewaymodels.com/articles/weathering_pastels.htm

 

For oil stains I use a wash the same as I use for panel lines, sometimes thicker or thinner depending on how extensive and thick the oil stain is - I like to use period photos of the aircraft in question to base all my weathering on. I apply it either with a brush or sometimes even one of those makeup sponges (that I've pinched from the better half).

 

HTH,

 

Tim

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Just a quick search on Amazon UK, and this is what I use:

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Conte-Crayon-Sketching-Set-4/dp/B0028D3ZOK/ref=sr_1_1?s=officeproduct&ie=UTF8&qid=1509566727&sr=1-1&keywords=conte

 

Here's a couple of pics of a couple of my builds weathered with the panel line wash technique and using the chalk pastels. Sorry the images aren't brilliant but they're the only ones I have on Imgur (another victim of the Photobucket debacle). I'm not a skilled modeller by a long chalk so I hope that they show that these techniques don't require huge amounts of skill. I should also add that I'm not a fan of the "Spanish School of weathering" and overdone weathering  in general as I don't think it looks realistic compared to photos but that's just me and so my weathering - at least on aircraft - is fairly subtle. First is 1/72, second is 1/48.

 

VZIVpDs.jpg

 

2BUmu9f.jpg 

Edited by Smithy
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