Panel line wash

[neil_1821]

I’ve searched google, the forums and read countless topics and YouTube videos on making your own panel line washes but I’m struggling slightly and I’m after some advice. 

 

Im currently trying to panel line the cockpit and make it slightly more grubby. I’ve mixed some XF-01 with some water and a bit of fairy liquid to break the surface tension. It spreads and lines ok but I struggle to remove the excess after a short drying period. 

 

Should i I be using enamel instead of acrylic paint? Maybe not leave it so long to dry? Would it be a good idea to gloss the paint in the cockpit prior to panel lining it so it wipes away easier?

 

any pointers would be great! 

[Gorby]

To start with we need to know what paint you use, because if you use acrylic paint, you don't want an acrylic wash.

 

My Method:

As I use acrylic paint, so for the wash I buy cheap oil paints, thin them down enormously in 'low odour oil thinner' until it's as thin as water. After I've sealed the decals with another gloss coat I use a fine brush to let the wash run unto the panel lines, don't worry if it looks a mess. Then after a few minutes I use a piece of kitchen roll dipped lightly in thinners, to wipe off the wash (in the direction of the airflow on the exterior of course). If you think you've taken off enough, the odds are that you will need to take off some more. Leave to dry.

 

It is much cheaper to mix your own washes and dead simple to do. It also allows you to mix up a batch for particular subjects – for desert areas, use sandy yellowy browns and for very dark colours I use a lighter dirty greyish wash. I wouldn't use just black, that can look very stark and false.

 

I'm not saying that this is the correct method, it's the method I find that works for me.

[JackG]

Going by the paint number you have given, you are using Tamiya paint as your wash.  Thing is that brand is actually a lacquer acrylic, so not a true acrylic which is probably the easiest to use when it comes to wiping off.  Essentially you want to use a different paint type for your wash than what the surface has been painted with.  You definitely want a gloss surface underneath the wash, and make sure the surface has cured completely before applying a wash.

 

regards,

Jack

[neil_1821]

Ahhhhh it makes sense now!

I do use Tamiya acrylics, I find them nicer and easier to clean the airbrush with, plus the little glass pots are great for storing small items and mixing up paint with. 

 

I may may try making a wash with enamel as I have lots of different colours and some thinner somewhere (I’m assuming I still need a drop of washing detergent?)

 

i would try oil oil paint but there are absolutely no hobby shops around me, they’ve all since closed. I might have a browse on amazon as it seems oil paints are good for panel lines and as an entire plane wash. They certainly seem the easiest to wipe off. 

 

Thanks guys

Edited September 22, 2018 by neil_1821

[John Laidlaw]

Alternatively, you can try Roy Sutherland's wash recipe. It's 50:50 Future:distilled water, tinted with whichever Tamiya acrylic colour you need. The beauty of it is that it works best over a matte finish, collects in corners all by itself, and subsequent re-applications (to build up the wash colour) fuse to the previous coat. He describes the process on the following page:

 

http://barracudacals.blogspot.com/2015/12/how-to-paint-resin-seat-with-molded-in.html

[Dave Swindell]

Good quality water colours, works over any type of paint and can be removed completely if you don't like the end result.

Apply over a gloss coat and you can get very clean sharp panel line effects.

Apply over a matt finish and you can  do wear and tear, shadow shading, staining etc.

Allow to dry and wipe off with a damp tissue or Q tip.

The more damp your tissue, the quicker you remove the wash.

Barely damp and you can gradually knock back the effect until it's what you want.

Don't like it? paint brush with warm soapy water and you can wash it all off, let the model dry and start again.

Got it right? seal it in with a light spray of your preferred varnish.

[neil_1821]

That's interesting Dave, I've not really come across people using watercolours to panel line and wash their aircraft, although it is appealing especially to me being inexperienced!

 

It seems a lot of people prefer to go either enamel and thiners or oil paint and white spirit but after having a google some people have been using watercolours for years. I think this might be the best route for me as my local WHSmiths do a pack of 24 for £10, seems ideal!

 

I've also got some chalk which I'm sure can add to the effect of watercolours and then a final matt clear once i'm happy.

[Bonhoff]

You can get sets of cheap oil paints from "The Works" or proper art supplies from "The Range" in Leicester.

 

HTH

 

IanJ

[Mitch K]

I use oil paints thinned with lighter fluid. The lighter fluid flashes off quickly which means it doesn't take too long to get to the stage of rubbing back the wash until it's just right. Burnt umber, burnt sienna, ultramarine (to mix with the fist two to make black), yellow ochre, Payne's grey and white are the only colours I ever use.

[neil_1821]

I think i'll nip to the works and buy these:

 

https://www.theworks.co.uk/p/oil-paint/boldmere-oil-colours---set-of-12/5052089215757

 

I have read that you can't use normal hardware white spirits, is this true? I hear in videos people using mineral spirits but the closest thing I can find in the UK is white spirit. I have plenty of lighter fluid I could use and i'm not paying £5 for a 75ml bottle of turpentine. 

I may experiment with lighter fluid, it seems far cheaper to use that.

Edited September 22, 2018 by neil_1821

[Gorby]

That looks like a very good oil paint set for the price. I usually pick them up in Hobbycraft when they are reduced to about a pound each, but they look even better value.

 

In my non modelling experience, normal household/DIY white spirit is the go to stuff to remove almost anything – including stains on clothes than noting else can shift. So I would be very concerned that it would play havoc with paintwork. I could be wrong (it has been known) but I wouldn't touch it for modelling. The main reason I wouldn't use it is because it stinks very badly and the smell hangs around for a loooooong time. I'm also wary of turps from the DIY shop as I assume it would be stronger than the artists stuff.

Although the odourless artists turps is quite expensive, you don't need much each time and so it lasts ages. The first 75ml bottle I bought lasted about a year. The last time I wandered into Hobbycraft they had reduced some turps, so I got a 500ml bottle for £11, I hope that will last me about five or six years. But be careful to screw the lid on well as it evaporates quite quickly.

[MDriskill]

17 hours ago, neil_1821 said:

That's interesting Dave, I've not really come across people using watercolours to panel line and wash their aircraft, although it is appealing especially to me being inexperienced!

 

It seems a lot of people prefer to go either enamel and thiners or oil paint and white spirit but after having a google some people have been using watercolours for years. I think this might be the best route for me as my local WHSmiths do a pack of 24 for £10, seems ideal!

 

I've also got some chalk which I'm sure can add to the effect of watercolours and then a final matt clear once i'm happy.

On my most recent models, I’ve been learning to use oil paint washes, which does allow some subtle shading etc. I haven’t achieved with other media.

 

BUT...for many years, my main weathering materials were a simple cheap set of kid’s watercolor paints (washes), a small box of artist’s oil pastels I found in a trash can many years ago (exhausts and similar effects), and Prismacolor colored pencils (paint chipping and such). I got fine results with those. I especially recommend the watercolors for someone who’s never tried washes before, as it’s easy and can easily be removed if you goof.

 

Oil pastels (not cheap chalk, which is much coarser and “dusty,” doesn’t cling very well) are an interesting material. The technique is to scrape them into a fine powder and apply with a small brush. The powder can even be mixed like paint to get different colors.

[woody37]

I find the technique used by Gorby works well using thinned oil paints and those water colour pencils are great, particularly for adding silver chipping. I find acrylic silver drys to quickly for chipping, so alternative I use silver enamel.

 

The oil pastels are actually called soft pastel and can be picked up from Hobbycraft. I just simply drag the brush across the surface to pick up the colour then brush it on to the surface. They do have a chalky texture but can be rubbed off or backwards in the direction of the airflow. This is a good technique to use after a panel wash to build up further grime effects around key areas such as the engines.

 

This is an example of using as mix of panel wash and soft pastel

 

[Whitewolf]

I highly recommend the washes by Florey models. They are clay based and wipe easily!

[neil_1821]

Lots of good advise!

 

I went and picked up that pack of oil paint, they actually sold a lot of pencils and water colour paints too. Was very tempting to buy them all.

 

I've mixed a bit of black with lighter fluid and stained the gear bay area and inside the cockpit. It does have to be very thin in order to flow into the panel lines but it certainly adds a bit of grubby texture. I'm looking forward to playing with the washes and adding weathering to a fully painted model with a gloss coat so i don't damage the paint work, then a final flat coat once i'm happy. For me a nicely painted model just doesn't seem quite realistic. Hopefully when it's done I shall post pictures and follow any further advise given to improve my quality. 👍

[longweight]

On 9/23/2018 at 1:52 AM, neil_1821 said:

Ahhhhh it makes sense now!

I do use Tamiya acrylics, I find them nicer and easier to clean the airbrush with, plus the little glass pots are great for storing small items and mixing up paint with. 

 

I may may try making a wash with enamel as I have lots of different colours and some thinner somewhere (I’m assuming I still need a drop of washing detergent?)

 

i would try oil oil paint but there are absolutely no hobby shops around me, they’ve all since closed. I might have a browse on amazon as it seems oil paints are good for panel lines and as an entire plane wash. They certainly seem the easiest to wipe off. 

 

Thanks guys

Hi, I use both Tamiya acrylics etc and enamels. I keep a few tubes of ordinary el cheapo water colour paint handy. Dk brown, black and so on. I mix with a drop of dishwashing liquid and dilute with water to suit. The water colour fairly neutral with either medium and I use it on both flat and gloss finishes. Gloss would be better if all you want is a panel line, the tinting effect is better on matt. I recently used a dk brown mix on the fuselage of a Roden 1/72 Sopwith Camel and all 3 main colours came up nicely.

HTH John H.