Hello from Edinburgh

[alanbeeb]

Hello..... just completed my first kit in nearly 40 years....  a week or so before Xmas I made a joke at dinner about the RAF being able to re-equip with Spitfires after Brexit,  and then under the tree appeared a box from my daughters..... 

Finally completed after a month of slow patience (so much more patient now than I was as a boy)  and easily £60-70 spent on paint and kit!   But really enjoyed it, despite annoyance from trying to hand-brush acrylic paints (is that even possible I'm now wondering?)

Will post photos in completed models section soon....

 

I will probably have lots of questions about acrylics - as I say, I've found them frustrating and difficult compared to the enamels I was used to as a kid - but not needing solvent thinners is a huge benefit not to be sniffed at (😆) so would like to find out if I'm just doing something wrong.

 

cheers for now,

Alan

 

[almac]

Welcome to Britmodeller Alan. Now you’ve got the first one completed what’s next? As to your question regarding brush painting acrylics, some acrylics are designed more for airbrushing and I find them hard to brush paint with. Tamiya acrylics are a real pain to use with a brush. The brands I found good for brush painting are Revell, Xtracrylic and Lifecolor. 
 

Cheers Allan

[Corsairfoxfouruncle]

Hello Alan...  from Chicago USA. Yes its possible to brush acrylics, though it takes patience and skill. Look around for some of @PlaStix builds. He only brush paints and I feel he's better than an Air brush. Ive got $500 in three airbrushes and can come close to what he achieves. 
 

Dennis

[Waynybob]

I'm in the same boat. I've even gone and bought an airbrush type thingy.

Best thing I did was to go on YouTube. There is so much stuff on there, from reviews to full videos on how to do, or give advice on things. You will soon be hooked, and gettting back into building. Also check out the Korean and Chinese kits. I think they a very good kits. 

[dogsbody]

Greetings from Western Canada.

 

 

 

Chris

[alanbeeb]

cheers folks!

Yes - been watching a lot on Youtube - gave me the confidence to experiment with weathering, and to use spray can paints. 

First build here:

 

Fancy an Eduard Mig-21 next - but will go for a plain metal or grey finish so can continue with spray cans for now!

 

[Col Walter E Kurtz]

15 hours ago, almac said:

Welcome to Britmodeller Alan. Now you’ve got the first one completed what’s next? As to your question regarding brush painting acrylics, some acrylics are designed more for airbrushing and I find them hard to brush paint with. Tamiya acrylics are a real pain to use with a brush. The brands I found good for brush painting are Revell, Xtracrylic and Lifecolor. 
 

Cheers Allan

....And Hataka Blue Line acrylics are optimised for brushing too..  They come in sets which are not too expensive. 

[Dr. Quack]

Hi, and Welcome! When brushing, I tend to use Vallejo Model Colour or Xtracrylix, both of which are acrylic and can be diluted safely with nice soft Edinburgh water, if need be. Both ranges are available on the doorstep at Wonderland when they reopen, and they still do online orders as well.  Feel free to ask any questions here, no matter how daft they may seem. You'll have noticed that there are specific sections here for questions & advice on tools & tips, paint, decals etc. Have a rummage through, and watch some of the work in progress threads for tips, especially if it's a kit you're planning on doing. Even start a WIP yourself - folk will soon chip in with suggestions and will answer any questions you ask.

Glad to have you on board.

Q

[alanbeeb]

Yes Wonderland have been getting my business. I was a regular there 40+ years ago and so good to see them still going strong, and I very much hope they keep going through Lockdown, even if they can no longer do click-and-collect.   I'd rather pay them a bit extra for delivery etc rather than put more money in Jeff Bezos pocket! 

 

I've been using Vallejo but wouldn't want to use it on large areas.... just about made their matt black work on the propeller blades.

 

Is there a discussion somewhere about "wheels up or down?".... I prefer my airplanes to be in-flight and will want to put them on stands, but it seems that "undercarriage down" is the default setting - and some kits can only be made that way without modifications.   

 

[Mike]

aboard Alan

[Corsairfoxfouruncle]

5 hours ago, alanbeeb said:

Is there a discussion somewhere about "wheels up or down?".... I prefer my airplanes to be in-flight and will want to put them on stands, but it seems that "undercarriage down" is the default setting - and some kits can only be made that way without modifications.

Here are couple of more recent conversations about the pros/cons. When trying to find anything on the Forum use your particular search engine and add the question after “Britmodeller/wheels up vs Wheels down”
 

 

Dennis

[Vlad]

Hello and welcome.

 

I'm a big fan of wheels up builds, either on stands or hanging on strings. I hang mine inside my cabinet, thus also effectively doubling my shelf space. Airfix and Zvezda kits tend to come with the wheels up option out of the box, as do some Revell. Zvezda and Airfix also sell stands separately. Zvezda's stands are large and solid plastic. Airfix sell a really nice set with a dozen transparent stands of different sizes. For a lot of kits, making them fit wheels up isn't that much extra work. Usually it's just a bit of sanding of the doors so they actually fit, and gluing them carefully so they sit flush. For things where the wheels are visible, you also need to cut/sand the wheel.

 

As for brush painting with acrylics, picking the right brand has already been covered. The rest is thinning and practice, but also some tools. Get some nice artists synthetic flat brushes. And get some acrylic flow enhancer (also an arts supply). Oh, and prime. Halford's grey acrylic spray primer is great.