Revell 1/24 Land Rover Series III LWB - First WIP post for me!

[Natter]

18 hours ago, Lee1 said:

but for a basic representation of a Land Rover Series III, it'll do

Yep, it definitely will. It's not easy to see in to the cabin once the windows are in anyway. Don't criticise yourself for not doing any research, you'd expect a big manufacturer like Revell to get this sort of thing right. After all, it's not as though there is a shortage of examples out there for them to work from! So far it's looking really nice, and those seats look just like that lovely Land Rover vinyl.

[Lee1]

17 minutes ago, Natter said:

Yep, it definitely will. It's not easy to see in to the cabin once the windows are in anyway. Don't criticise yourself for not doing any research, you'd expect a big manufacturer like Revell to get this sort of thing right. After all, it's not as though there is a shortage of examples out there for them to work from! So far it's looking really nice, and those seats look just like that lovely Land Rover vinyl.

 

The seats coming out so well was definitely a happy accident. I didn't plan it that way and what would usually be a relatively poor brush paint - in this case it actually gives the right effect! 😅

 

Thanks for your comment!

[Lee1]

I've sprayed the Ammo Mig White Primer on everything that needed it today. After all my complaints about Airbrushing - this was a pleasure to do today. I tried to approach it with a new mindset. I read the instructions on the bottle carefully. Adjusted the PSI and some settings on the airbrush itself. Didn't thin the primer - which in the past I felt the need to do (even though it says not to) and it sprayed beautifully with no clogging or any of the usual issues! These need to dry now for 24 hours before being masked and then most of it being sprayed Light Blue and some parts being sprayed in White. Unfortunately it might now be a few days before I can spray again, which is a shame as I've been on a roll. Perhaps in the meantime I might be able to skip a few steps here and there and paint some small parts by hand - and then come back when I can spray again.

 

(Not the best photo, just taken on my phone for simplicities sake!)

[Lee1]

Decided to attempt some higher quality photos. Took a bunch of photos of all of my old complete models too. They came out really nice. Here's what I did: 

 

1. The biggest difference was to use my tripod, rather than be lazy and shoot handheld. This allowed me to not only get sharp images, but it also allowed me to bump down the shutter speed as much as I liked. Some of the photos were take at a 8 second exposure. This made up for the dark environment of my room.

2. I set the aperture at around f/16. I have a tendency to shoot at wide apertures - but having a nice narrow aperture allowed the model to be nice and sharp all over - unless I got really close to the camera. This was advice from someone and it gives the models a nicer and more realistic look and in my opinion a more professional look. This is also why my shutter speed was so slow.

3. I set the ISO to auto and adjusted the shutter speed for each photo to get around 100 ISO to get rid of as much noise as possible. Also the reason for the slow shutter speeds.

4. I put the models on my bed on top of a bunch of white paper. This worked well, although when I use this method again it might be worth doing it on my desk as some of the photos aren't nice and straight and because I wanted to get some really nice close up detail shots - it didn't leave me much room to crop and correct the issue. I think it would also be worth investing in some large pieces of white (and maybe other colour) card or paper. As using multiple pieces of paper meant I had to paint out the lines and shadows between pieces and in some instances this wasn't possible.

 

I'll definitely use these methods to take photos of my models in future. But only when a model is complete or perhaps also at major milestones along the build - as it's too much time and effort to use for every photo.

 

 

 

Some downsides are that these photos now show up every mistake in glaring detail and show every speck of dust! 😅

Edited January 18, 2023 by Lee1
Spaced out the photos

[Neddy]

Good set of photos!  I agree though, the better the photos the more imperfections they show up - so much so that I often take pics to inspect mine closely sooner than relying on the naked eye.

[Spiny]

6 hours ago, Lee1 said:

.... Unfortunately it might now be a few days before I can spray again...

 

This might not be a bad thing as it will give the primer plenty of time to outgas and set solid reducing the risk of a reaction with the layer on top. Personally I try to leave two weeks between spray coats, although I appreciate that this is being safer than safe and a few days seems to be good for pretty much everyone on here.

 

As for the photography, your pics look good. Your settings look very similar to mine, and unless I add specific lighting I often end up with long exposures - between 2 and 13 seconds is the norm. And I agree it's worth getting a larger sheet for the background - I got a black, a white and a grey from Hobbycraft at about £1 each so it's a cheap way to get a good background. And as you may have noticed in my build thread if you've looked, I only set up the backgrounds for the Ready For Inspection photos - for WIP it's fine to have all the background clutter as they're just progress rather than show shots.

[Lee1]

@Spiny I'm not sure where I got the number from, but I always thought around 24 hours was enough between spray coats! Two weeks is so long 😅 One of my problems, especially when I'm really in the scale modelling mood - is that I hate not being able to model because I'm waiting for paint to dry. I wonder what more experienced modellers do with this "problem". In the past I used to start on a new model, so I'd end up with multiple models on the go at once. This sometimes became a bit of a problem because things would start backing up. The other solution is to start working on other stages of the model that can be done now - I could glue together and brush paint certain smaller parts and leave them aside for later. I really want to chose the first option because it's literally been like 8 months since I had the joy of starting on a shiny new project (this build has sat dormant for most of that time for multiple reasons). I'd be interested on some advice on that front!

 

Regarding the photography, I think I'm going to do exactly what you do. Only take the higher quality photos for the Ready for Inspection photos, and I think I'll head to HobbyCraft and get a range of coloured paper too! Thank you!

[Spiny]

24 hours probably will be enough, especially once the weather warms up a bit. I just like to play safe. Halfords spray cans say 24 hours between coats then two weeks to harden before polishing, I just figured I'd let everything settle first. But then again, i tend so spray enough bodyshells over summer to see me though the winter (although I have fallen short this winter).

[Lee1]

Been delayed in getting back to this model as I had a car crash on Friday - which has been a nightmare. But it now means I've got a few solid days off work and so I should have some time to carry on and it's good to take my mind off things.

 

I masked off the areas that aren't going to be Light Blue, tried to be really careful with the masking. I've used a lot of it, so more is on the way. I was using the 10mm Tamiya tape, even though I have a 2mm unopened Tamiya tape I could have used. Next time.

 

I then sprayed everything that needed it with Revell 49 Light Blue. Had some problems with this - but again, trying to have a new mindset to it all - I thought through the process. The problem was that the paint from the pot was very thick, almost a paste. So no matter how much I thinned it in the airbrush, it was struggling. So I put some thinner in the pot and stirred it for quite a while until it was all a nice consistency. Then using this with extra thinner in the airbrush was lovely. Happy with the results.

 

 

 

The next step is to let this all dry until at least tomorrow. Then I need to remove the masking tape - reapply tape to the bottom half of the body, so I can spray the roof. Then spray the roof and then other parts that need it with White paint. 

 

Once all the spraying is done on this model, things should move along quickly and the end is definitely in sight!

 

Edited January 25, 2023 by Lee1

[Neddy]

Whatever struggles you're having with the airbrushing, the results look fine.  If I may, can I pass along a couple of tips that might help you?

 

1>  Remove the masking tape as early as you can, and

 

2>  Leave the model for a few days for the paint to fully harden before putting masking tape on it, both tips intended to avoid any possibility of the tape lifting it off.

 

Really looking good so far!

[Spiny]

Just as a heads up, if you're masking a large surface such as that roof in future you don't need to go over the whole area with masking tape - some tin foil or thickish paper (party political leaflets or indeed most other junk mail are good for this, and I can't think of a better use for them ) can be cut to slightly smaller, then put masking tape around the edge of the space you want to mask before putting your foil/party political bumf in the middle and using that wider masking tape to fill the gap.

 

The paint is looking good so far. And I hope you recover from the car crash before too long.

[Lee1]

Thank you both, really good advice and thank you for the kind words! 😊

[Lee1]

I finally got around to airbrushing today. A few days a go I masked up the main body, so that the roof could be sprayed. I took advice from here and used a lot of paper, to reduce the use of the Tamiya masking tape. Then today I sprayed the Revell White Gloss on the roof of the main body, the separate roof piece that goes on top and then the rim pieces. I then removed all of the masking tape 10-20mins later.

 

 

 

 

I'm starting to get to grips with the airbrushing now and the problems I was having. Finding myself much more able to diagnose and solve issues, or just avoid them in the first place. The next step is to allow this lot to dry and then give the main body, all of the panels and the rims some coats of X-22. In the meantime I can paint the same dark grey/black paint from the seats onto the door cards on the interior pieces - probably just going to do those by hand.

[Lee1]

Hello, it's been a while! Many reasons for that. But I've finally gotten back to modelling and I'm determined to finish this project over the next week or so, hopefully, less.

 

I airbrushed all of the interior and exterior metal painted panels with X-22. I went over with multiple coats to try to get a glossy, shiny finish. Not super happy with the results - the model still looks pretty matte and kind of "dry". The good thing with this model is that it shouldn't have a very glossy shiny reflective finish and a matte, slightly dusty look is probably more realistic (I think...). I will still give the model a bit of a polish as one of the last steps, so this may help.

 

Since the airbrushing, I've just been working away, painting small pieces by hand and glueing things together. There are a lot of small parts, in multiple colours now and so it's naturally time-consuming, but there really isn't too much left to do. Here are some photos (taken on my phone, so they're not the best)

 

 

I'm going to try to work on this some more tonight and hopefully I'll get some time over the coming days too.

Edited April 5, 2023 by Lee1

[Lee1]

Another solid few hours of work later. I'm happy with the results. 

 

Glued all of the glass windows in using Microscale Kristal Klear. I will need more practice with this in the future and any advice is appreciated. I used a toothpick to apply it, which isn't the most accurate tool. I cleared away as much residue as I could, but I'm still left with obvious residue around the edges of most of the windows. Again, with this subject, I think I can get away with stuff like that a little more, which helps.

 

I also painted the door handles and the rear bumper. Painted the black edging around the glass windows that go in the roof, I used Microscale Micro Mask to help me with that, as I had it sitting there unused. It worked out pretty well.

 

 

First time using rubber tyres on a model, and I really like how they look. I'm looking forward to seeing how it looks when all four main wheels are on!

 

 

The roof rack was very fiddly to put together and paint. Why is white paint so hard to use?! I managed to accidentally brush some paint onto the roof too, multiple times... luckily it's white on white, but it is still visible. 

 

Some great progress today. I'm hoping to have the model completed tomorrow, still, a good few hours of work left though, so we'll see how I get on!

 

 

 

[JeroenS]

Looking good. Brush painting white is a nightmare, it's better when airbrushing but just take your time and don't try to cover the plastic in one go. I use the X-22 as a gloss finish as well because it's not too shiny. It does help to wet sand your paint with low grit paper before applying the varnish, the gloss will look more even and less "dry". The other solution is to apply a good final wet coat, but not too thick! 

 

As for the PVA glue for the windows, you can thin that stuff with a bit of water, it will run better and it will still be very sticky.

[Lee1]

7 hours ago, JeroenS said:

Looking good. Brush painting white is a nightmare, it's better when airbrushing but just take your time and don't try to cover the plastic in one go. I use the X-22 as a gloss finish as well because it's not too shiny. It does help to wet sand your paint with low grit paper before applying the varnish, the gloss will look more even and less "dry". The other solution is to apply a good final wet coat, but not too thick! 

 

As for the PVA glue for the windows, you can thin that stuff with a bit of water, it will run better and it will still be very sticky.

 

Amazing advice @JeroenS! Thank you very much. I'll be using all of those techniques next time!

[Lee1]

So, I was determined today to finish the model, and it's finally complete! After nearly a year on the workbench, it's finally done! Although I made many mistakes along the way, and there are so many things I could have done better. I'm really happy with the results. It's by far the most complex model I've built and in my opinion, it's my best work yet! I'll create a ready-for-inspection post. But here's a photo, just to conclude:

 

 

 

[Spiny]

Good work.

 

For windows I tend to use UV setting clear resin - the advantage of that is if you get the application wrong you can wipe it off before setting it. It also gives you the chance to position your window first before you harden it with a UV torch which can be useful at times. But to stop the runs like you have I'm afraid the best advice I can give is to load up the toothpic a little less.

 

As for white, the pigments used in white paint (often titanium oxide) don't have very good coverage (similar story with many reds). I've pretty much given up with painting gloss white straight onto coloured plastic; instead I'll put a couple of coats of matt white on first to act as an undercoat then apply the clear after. It's still a pain to paint white on any surface which isn't white though.

 

[Vesa Jussila]

Nice work and nice to see it completed. Looks really good and I believe next one is even better.