Revell BA A380 newbie

[jono1122]

Hello

 

I decided to give the BA A380 a go and want to ask about the Revell colour paint pots. 
 

Out of Aqua and Email, I think Email will be a better choice for look and durability. Would you agree?

 

The guide uses a fair few different colours, for this build would 1 pot of email colour be enough? If not should I buy more or is it safe to thin it out?

 

Thanks from a n00b 🙂

[Skodadriver]

If you want your model to be accurate it's not usually a good idea to rely on kit painting instructions. I've never seen the A380 instructions but I'd guess that Revell recommend 54 or some mix based on it for the BA blue. Revell are simply pushing their own paint range and 54 isn't really a good match for the current BA blue.

 

In conventional model paints the correct match is Xtracolor X322 BA World Scheme Blue. It is an enamel but I'm not sure if it's currently available.

 

The best alternative BA blue is Halfords Fiat Capri Blue available as an aerosol "rattle can" from your friendly local branch of that automotive chain. Halfords also sell excellent white and grey primers as well as Appliance Gloss White (self explanatory) and Racking Grey which many of us use as "Boeing" grey and which makes an excellent all-purpose light aircraft grey. Here is a BA model I finished using Halfords paint to give you an idea of the result.

 

To answer your original question, the choice between Revell Aqua and enamel is really a matter of personal preference. I like Aqua but I normally airbrush my models and I don't know how good it is for brush painting. You can thin Aqua with water and clean your paintbrushes in water. I just find it easier to use. On the other hand Revell enamel is good quality and shouldn't give you any problems.

 

Whatever type of paint you decide to use it's always worth trying a new or unfamiliar technique on a scrap model, a cheap kit or even something like a plastic cup before tackling your masterpiece. That would be particularly important if you decided to use "rattle can" paint for the first time.

 

Hope that's some help

 

Dave G 🇺🇦 

 

Edit: I forgot to say that there is a whole section of the Britmodeller Forum on the subject of paint and painting. It's under "Tools and Tips". Here is the link.

 

 

[Adam Poultney]

For painting gloss white, there is nothing better than Halfords Appliance Gloss White. I'd recommend getting a spray can of that.

I use it on my B Bombers, just yesterday in fact I painted a Victor with it. 

[Timo]

Hi mate

I've given up trying to get an exact paint match and instead have gone back to school art classes and attempt to mix my own special colours from what is readily available. It saves money as well as the effort of trying to source a non-standard paint colour.

I agree with Dave that Revell 54 would be too dark for BA Blue - so I would probably do what the kit instructions say and try mixing Revell 54 with the lighter Revell 51 until you get about the right shade of blue. I always try mixing a little amount first and paint it onto scrap plastic to see if it is likely to be right when dry - a bit of trial and error needed here.

I still prefer to use E-mail enamels because from my experience they airbrush better than Aqua paints (although it might be I'm doing something wrong!)

I've built a Revell BA A380 (the Technic version with flashing lights) and I can assure you it will look impressive when done - I hope you enjoy your build.

Best of luck
Tim

p.s. forgot to answer your question about amount of paint - even though its an A380 one pot of paint will be more than enough as it has to be thinned for airbrushing. 

One important point about Revell E-mail paints - Gloss White will not stay white forever, it yellows with time. I would therefore use acrylic (Aqua) Gloss White - one pot with Aqua thinners will be sufficient even for an A380.

Edited April 12, 2022 by Timo
Postscript (p.s.) added

[FortyEighter]

I'll second @Skodadriver for the use of Halfords Appliance White and Fiat Capri Blue rattle cans, both produce a really smooth glossy finish - I don't find any need to use a coat of gloss varnish on these paints prior to applying decals.  Personally I use Racking Grey for Boeing aircraft and for Airbuses use Holts HLGREY01 (from Wilco Motor Save).

 

Don't be put off by the size of the kit, this build was only my second foray into the world of airliners.  Unfortunately the Gallery photos were on Photobucket rather than Flickr so are no longer available.

 

Mike

 

[neilg]

For Revell 54, it's more of a purple-blue.  I used it on the engines and belly of this 787, and you can see the mismatch in hues between the engine and the blue part of the tail:

 

 

After reading many posts of this forum, I started to use Halfords Fiat Capri Blue spray paint for subsequent builds.  It's a much closer match to the blue on the decals:

 

 

 

On something the size of the A380, I found it much more practical to use the spray paint, and I'm really happy with the even, glossy finish it gives, and doesn't require mixing with other colours.

 

I've just dug out the A380 instructions and saw that it calls for Revell 54 + 51, ultramarine + night blue.  My mixing skills are probably not up to scratch, but as long as the resulting blue matches the blue on the decals, it should look all right.

 

I agree with the above posts as well on the Halfords grey primer and gloss appliance white - they're what I used on the A380 and A319 above.  Even on my builds from over 10 years ago, there is no sign of ageing or yellowing, which I've unfortunately found with Humbrol gloss white (I haven't used Revell gloss white).