[ARCHIVED THREAD] - ARFCOM Model Builders.... (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 12/21/2009 1:05:39 PM EDT
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What brand(s) of paint, airbrush, brushes, etc., do you use and why?
Also, do any of you use a VENTLESS paint/fume hood? |
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TAG for info from the modern era. When I used to build models, I used Humbrol, Floquil and Tamiya paint mostly for military stuff. Testors had some really neat colors for cars, so I'd use those a bit too. I started with a Binks SA gun, but ended up with Paashce DA guns. I've got hundreds of unbuilt kits here waiting for "the day" to come, but if I started today, I'd have to start from scratch as far as paint and tools goes. I built a vented spray booth in the last house where I did any building. The new ventless ones are suppsedly very nice, but look a little small to me. Last time I was at teh hobby shop, I saw run-of-the-mill car kits going for ~$20! I guess the days of the $1.99 AMT 3-in-1 kits are over, eh? |
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Models have gotten psychiatrically expensive, along with everything else.
Still, I hope to build this baby someday soon: 
Hasegawa 1:350 AKAGI 
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Back in the day (probably 10-15 years ago) I used Testors pretty much exclusively. I don't think I ever stuck with one specific brand of brush. I never really got around to using an airbrush.
As I recall, the silver, browns, and greens usually went on pretty well, covering the area completely with a very thin coat. Blues and grays could be hit or miss, but white, reds, yellows, and flesh tones were always a pain - to actually cover an area without any streaks, you had to put so much on that the detail of the surface was obscured. All of this, as I mentioned, was with brushes, done by the pre-teen and teenaged Polupharmakos. I have no knowledge of how things work with an airbrush, or how things might have gone with a more patient Polupharmakos. 
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Nice looking kit. I was working in a hobby shop in the early '80s when Tamiya came out with their first 1:350 ships - Tirpitz, Nimitz, Yamato, Missouri ... maybe some others. I'm sure the detail and accuracy has just exploded over the years thanks to laser-etched molds and so forth. Add to that the seemingly endless amount of photoetched stuff, and a guy can really go wild. I used to build a lot of 1:700 "waterline" ships for guys who were wargamers, along with tons of 1:72 armor. I'd spend a weekend building a ship for $20 or so, and built the little tanks for $5 each. I got to be pretty good at it, and made some gas money along the way. |
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Quoted: Brother, when you first try an airbrush and see the results, you'll NEVER go back to a brush for anything bigger than 1/4".  Your most useful tool when using an airbrush is a 3x5 note card. After a while, you find yourself not really masking anything - just spraying against a note card. I'd go through them by the ton. |
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Quoted:
Nice looking kit. I was working in a hobby shop in the early '80s when Tamiya came out with their first 1:350 ships - Tirpitz, Nimitz, Yamato, Missouri ... maybe some others. I'm sure the detail and accuracy has just exploded over the years thanks to laser-etched molds and so forth. Add to that the seemingly endless amount of photoetched stuff, and a guy can really go wild. BISMARCK and NEW JERSEY are awaiting assembly in my soon-to-be-completed shop. 
I once built a diorama of BISMARCK similar to this one: 
Came out nice, but not that nice. I hope to do a better job this time around. I also once had the YAMATO, but multiple moves proved too much for them. Gotta start over. |
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Depends on how artistic you want to be. Badger makes a decent starter set. Paashe is a step up.
I still build them and quite honestly don't like airbrushes. For my purposes, rattle can spray paint does all I need. Yes, I know, heresy. So be it. I do this for my own entertainment, I'm not making museum displays. My paint hood is the garage floor. |
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Depends on how artistic you want to be. Badger makes a decent starter set. Paashe is a step up. You are the second person who has said that about Paashe, my wife being the other. I have two Badgers, only one of which I like. The other (double-action) is too big and too much of a PITA to control. |
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I use Tamiya and model masters mainly, it just depends on what the LHS has. I have really become fond of the Tamiya paints though, they are easy to thin and spray paint with.
I use a Tamiya two stage airbrush, and a cheepo air compressor. My problem is that I love building them but get gun shy come painting time because I am afraid to fuck it up. I have three half built models. a heavily modified Jeep willys, a Dragon models M4A1E8 BOB sherman, and a 1:350 scale USS Emmons being built out of a Dragon destroyer kit. |
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If you're doing a lot of stuff that's single-color (cars, ships, simple armor) then a SA airbrush is fine. However, if you're spraying camoflage free-hand, you'll want to g oto a DA gun so you can control the air and color independently. The current hot set-up for airbrushes is Iwata, and they make everything from entry-level guns to some absurdly-priced jewels. |
| I never really used an airbrush when I built models ( stopped for a long period, but hope to start back after Christmas)..........I used transparent films and tape to mask my models and sprayed them..........it's tedious, but cheaper for me in the long run and you would be suprised at how well some camouflage patterns come out after this......... |
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Models have gotten psychiatrically expensive, along with everything else. Still, I hope to build this baby someday soon: http://www.modelwarships.com/reviews/ships/ijn/cv/akagi-350-hsg/BoxArt.jpg Hasegawa 1:350 AKAGI Is that supposed to be the stack coming out the side and curving down?!?!? I am unfamiliar with Japanese carrier design. So, I am not saying it is inaccurate to the real vessel, just asking if that IS what it is..... |
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Nice looking kit. I was working in a hobby shop in the early '80s when Tamiya came out with their first 1:350 ships - Tirpitz, Nimitz, Yamato, Missouri ... maybe some others. I'm sure the detail and accuracy has just exploded over the years thanks to laser-etched molds and so forth. Add to that the seemingly endless amount of photoetched stuff, and a guy can really go wild. BISMARCK and NEW JERSEY are awaiting assembly in my soon-to-be-completed shop.
I once built a diorama of BISMARCK similar to this one: http://www.modellversium.de/galerie/bilder/9/8/4/3984-3078666.jpg Came out nice, but not that nice. I hope to do a better job this time around. I also once had the YAMATO, but multiple moves proved too much for them. Gotta start over. Whoever did that one, the Tender passing off is a nice touch..... |
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Quoted: I used Testor, too. I mostly did like model planes, and some sci-fi stuff. I'd like to find some good sci-fi models if I ever get where I can get back into modeling. Most of my unbuilt pile is real space stuff. I have a few Sci-Fi things I'd like to build (Lost in Space Robot, Forbidden Planet C-57D) though. Lunar Models used to make a Discovery from 2001, but it's been out of production for a lot of years. |
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I use testors model master paints and a aztec double action airbrush. My compressor has a moisture trap and pressure regulator. I painted these last month after a 10 year break from model building. I love relaxing with a good model...  Dragon Panther G Late  ME163B |
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Is that supposed to be the stack coming out the side and curving down?!?!? I am unfamiliar with Japanese carrier design. So, I am not saying it is inaccurate to the real vessel, just asking if that IS what it is..... Yes, it's the stack, and it's accurate. Many Japanese carriers were actually converted cruisers or battleships. To put the hangars and flight decks in, they had to reroute some of what was already there. Ugly as sin, but effective.
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It's been quite a few years, and I don't know if it is still around, but my go to paint was Polly-S.
It was at the time the only acrillic base for models, they had great color, and being water sol was a real plus. Paasche airbrush, and no need for hood, as 90% was acrillic. Also had a Bager D/A, but it was a pain to clean. I think the D/A airbrushes are/were more popular with the guys shooting ink, ie artests, draftsmen...(I said "been quite a few years") Like I said, don't know what's still available, but I was a huge fan of acrillic, truer wet/dry tone, fast dry time, good and flat, water clean-up, low odor + Polly-S had a usable shade for 90% of what I modeled.....U.S. Armor, WW II, 1/72" , ETO & Pacific - diaromas mostly. It was also a real winner for making scale tarps, tentage - canvas stuff. when you use oil base paint, you need your "toilet paper" canvas to be compleatly dry - not so with an accrilic...As soon as you mist the "canvas" you can shoot it in place, to capture the wrinkles to your liking. this also bonds the "canvas" to the model, as the paint moves through the tissue, and onto the model. It fills the tissue pores at the same time, and gives it substance. But I degress..All that was a good 30 +years passed...Great hoby,only gave it up cuz I had cats around.. Named them Smith & Wesson.....And quit.. I should start again, got lots of kits.......? Wesson was a fine cat by the way!
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I'm a paint whore, but mostly I use Tamiya, Model Master, Humbrol, Gunze Sangyo, Vallejo Air and Lifecolor for airbrushing. For handbrushing Model Master, Humbrol,Vallejo Model and Game colors, Lifecolor, Coat d'Arms and Reaper For airbrushes I use Badgers, models 350, Anthem and 200D, air from a compressor. Brushes Sable or high end synthetic. ETA: Aztec/Model Master ABs are junk, pure and simple, the Bf109 should have ABed camo, but my 2nd Aztec went TU.               |
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Quoted: I just sold a unbuilt 1980 Monogram 1/8 scale Turbo Trans Am kit on eBay. I'm $175. closer to getting a Ruger LCR. http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq229/Sky_5/001-2.jpg I use Tamiya paint and I have a Badger Crescendo DA suction feed and a Airbrush City GD102 DA gravity feed. I remember that kit. I built 2 of them for other guys when they first came out. I painted them with PPG acrylic lacquer car paint, and rubbed them out like a full-size car. The fit on the body panels is just horrible. It's best if you leave the hood up. I was just looking at a kit review / build-up of this model yesterday afternoon. The reviewer put a shit-load of LEDs in it, but closed the hood. Methinks he's more of an electronics guy than a car guy. To each his own, I suppose. |
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In my scratchbuilding of ships I use medium super glue, epoxy, tenax, white glue, and 3m spray adheisive. Pictured USS Guam and USS St Louis, also USS Chenango . Soon to build CL-42 SAVANNAH, CL-43 NASHVILLE, and CL-48 HONOLULU. I use mostly pollyscale paints. I scratchbuild them from two view drawings in bass, balsa, cardstock, wire, stryne stock etc. Even coffee straws.
Anyone wanting to learn how needs to read these articles which I initially learned from. link 1 link 2 link 3 
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What brand(s) of paint, airbrush, brushes, etc., do you use and why? Also, do any of you use a VENTLESS paint/fume hood? PAINT: Model Masters (a product of Testors). I never use the acrylic version. Testors. Again, nothing acrylic. I just tried the Tamiya line of paint, and It is pretty good. More expensive than Model Masters though. AIRBRUSH: I haven't found a quality one that works properly, so I just use Model Masters spray cans. They are excellent. BRUSHES: I am a big fan of water painting brushes. I think they are nylon or something like that. I usually have fine and ultra fine brushed. nothing over 1/4" in width. MODELS: This is where I sink a lot of money. I stick mostly with Tamiya and Academy, as Ive found them to have a lot more detail than others like Revell. PASTELS: This is the biggest part to making an amazing model. I have tried Tamiya pastels only, and they are very fine powder. If you don't already have one, I would suggest a pin drill for your military models. They are good for drilling out gun barrels, and adding bullet holes to models. They really add realism. Also, I have a fine X-acto knife set with a big handle adapter. Buy some wire clippers as well to cut parts off the trees so they don't go flying across the room. If you build competitively like I do, I would suggest a resin casting kit as well. It lets you make resin copies of parts that way if you break a piece you can recast it, and start over. You can also use it to make duplicates. I make several casts of military figures for my models, that way I only have to buy one kit to have a small army. Ive won six model building championships, and placed second in four more. I also have received special merit (highest honor) in 5 State competitions. |
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I paint Warhammer figures. Lizardmen to be exact. Started last year but I was really busy this year and didn't have much time to paint :(. The time spent versus the quality and quantity of figures is pitiful, but I enjoy it.
I'm proud of my latest, though his highlighting isn't the best. |
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Gobs of kit reviews. Poke around for kit previews and other interesting links as well. |
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What brand(s) of paint, airbrush, brushes, etc., do you use and why? Also, do any of you use a VENTLESS paint/fume hood? For paint, mostly Model Master enamel paints for both brushing and spraying. Brushes - mostly Sable. Light - Lots of light. As much as you can afford. I model aircraft - Mostly I stick to Revell for trying out new techniques (cheap and I don't mind) but for detail and presentation - Tamiya, Hasegawa, Eduard. Different bits of wire are useful for adding brake lines, wires in cockpits, ignition harnesses, etc. Different gauges of wire as well. Pledge with Future Shine floor polish is good for sealing your paint and giving decals a good surface to adhere to.. Airbrushes - I have two Badger ABs. One single action external mix, and a double action internal mix. I use the SA for covering large areas, and the DA for fine spraying. Bits of pastels, charcoal, oil paints, pencils for weathering processes as well. If you have any questions about anything, feel free to PM me. Also, a good place for more information is FineScale. It seems like it's the ARFCOM of the modelling world. Mike |
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Also, a good place for more information is FineScale. It seems like it's the ARFCOM of the modelling world. Mike Already there as USNA91.
Zaphod was taken.
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Also, a good place for more information is FineScale. It seems like it's the ARFCOM of the modelling world. Mike Already there as USNA91.
Zaphod was taken. So then what are you building?? Request sent on FSM.. |
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Also, a good place for more information is FineScale. It seems like it's the ARFCOM of the modelling world. Mike Already there as USNA91.
Zaphod was taken. I am airtrans crash over there  been a member since 05
ETA: this new forum setup is a real bitch to navigate. how the hell do I send invites? |
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I just sold a unbuilt 1980 Monogram 1/8 scale Turbo Trans Am kit on eBay. I'm $175. closer to getting a Ruger LCR. http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/qq229/Sky_5/001-2.jpg . $175 ?!? 
I dunno how many of those kits I built as a kid .(all 1/24th scale MPC, Monogram,Ertl,AMT, ........and scads of Tamiya armor and soldiers in 1/35th) I had a pile of kits from the 60's that I found at a yard sale .........I have no idea what happened to any of that stuff. 
I did however find one last unbuilt kit , a Tamiya Ducati NCR , that I had from the mid-late 80's , in a box of stuff at my parents last year.........I wonder what it's worth (I'd like to build it) |
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Revell/Monogram F4U-4 Corsair, built two or three of those over the years, still have one in the stash. Quoted: Sorry for the crap cam.. http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2595/4206499345_e5b20c24d1.jpg http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2680/4207257840_0eae8070fd.jpg More later. |
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Also, a good place for more information is FineScale. It seems like it's the ARFCOM of the modelling world. Mike Already there as USNA91.
Zaphod was taken. So then what are you building?? Request sent on FSM.. Right now? My workshop/office!
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Revell/Monogram F4U-4 Corsair, built two or three of those over the years, still have one in the stash. Quoted:
Sorry for the crap cam.. http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2595/4206499345_e5b20c24d1.jpg http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2680/4207257840_0eae8070fd.jpg More later. One of the few plane models I ever built was MPC's (IIRC) Pappy Boyington Corsair from the Black Sheep series. |
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Paints - Citadel, Reaper, Vallejo, P3. Acrylics almost exclusively. Enamels are beyond my skill/patience level. They can give AMAZING results, but they're more expensive, harder to work with, take forever to dry, and require solvents/thinners.
Brushes - cheap nylon craft-store brushes for basecoating, Army Painter & Citadel (the new line of Citadel brushes are REALLY nice, actually) for finer work & washing, Winsor & Newton Series 7 brushes for the superfine details. I've just started to get into airbrushing - my only previous experience was using a cheap Testors single-action airbrush & canned propellant to basecoat RC models years ago. I recently picked up a Badger 100 and a Badger 360 Universal, as well as a compressor. Haven't really even had a chance to practice with them yet, though. No experience with paint hoods, since I'm using acrylics. You can get some great deals on Badger stuff at their Garage Sale page. |
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There are some acrylic paints made by Vallejo that are very good for modelling. Used by brush or they have an airbrush blend that both deliver very nice results. Useful for both armor,aircraft and figures. http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b238/sd0324/LRRP1.jpg http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b238/sd0324/020.jpg http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b238/sd0324/Massoud3.jpg whats the scale on those? 1/18"? standard bust on the bottom one? |
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There are some acrylic paints made by Vallejo that are very good for modelling. Used by brush or they have an airbrush blend that both deliver very nice results. Useful for both armor,aircraft and figures. http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b238/sd0324/LRRP1.jpg http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b238/sd0324/020.jpg http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b238/sd0324/Massoud3.jpg Is that your work? Very , very nice. |