I am new at this and I could use some painting advice Academy Sopwith Camel

[PetworthPilot]

OK, I did this as a kid like many of us here. I have been building stick and tissue planes and buildings for my model trolley layout for the last 10 years so I am not a complete stranger. I bought Testors because that what we did in 1974 besides trying to get Topps baseball card #1 which portrayed the likeness of the new homerun king Henry Aaron.  Now the wing bottoms of my precious Academy Sopwith Camel look like a school bus. Would the Red Baron come to a complete stop when the bus did to let the school children out?

Serously, can I cover the Testors with some Acrylic?  The Testors is difficult to deal with if you are shooting it with a airbrush and difficult (and expensive) to clean up afterwards.  Can I use other thinners  besides the Testors? Should I use up my remaining supply of Testors never to return?  Should I responsibly dispose of them today and write them as a loss? 

Today was my first time using an airbrush and other than the fact that the wings I painted would make great bicycle reflectors due to their hue I am happy with the way they came out.  I now see some areas which I could take away with sanding and that I can add/repair with some putty.

Love reading about everyone's adventures.

[DaddyO]

Morning and welcome onboard 

I'm afraid I can't answer about Testors specifically since I've never used it, but in general 'oil base' paints these days are changing to polymers rather than true oils which makes them a different kettle of fish to those we used to use (As a signwriter by trade I still bemoan the loss of my beloved 1Shot enamels)
 
A few general hints might be helpful.

1) Wash everything before painting it (I always do this using washing up or hand soap and luke warm water) Rinse everything and then shake excess off and let dry naturally.

2) Use a primer. I use Tamiya extra fine or a car plastic primer, but there are plenty about (This will key the surface and make sure the paint sticks properly as well as showing any parts that need a bit more work)

Looking at your paint job I'd suggest that the paint is a bit thin and you've applied it a bit too heavily although that may just be the photo. Plenty of thin coats are much better (I've just given 6 to get a doped linen colour to cover a light grey primer although I use acrylic paint) Yellow is a difficult colour which doesn't cover very well at the best of times; an old signwriting trick is to add a tiny amount of silver to help with the opacity (Obviously this shouldn't be enough to change the colour it just gets more 'dense') It will also look cleaner over a white background.

Hope that helps. Keep plugging away and you'll get there 
(As an ex stick and tissue modeller I'm sure you remember your first tissue covered wing as fondly as I do . . . . )

Paul

[PetworthPilot]

My engine looks pretty good. I painted a few other parts and will hopefully assemble them in the next day or so.  The fuselage will need a bit of putty and sanding.  I made some progress on the Fokker D7 from papermodelers.com I have been working on.

Other than some buildings for a planned model trolley layout this is the first plastic plane kit I've done in about 50 years.

[PetworthPilot]

Another look at my engine paint job.

[Stuart Malone]

Unfortunately yellow is a notoriously difficult color to paint in any brand.  Paul is correct, lots of thin coats will eventually get the result you're looking for.  Washing the kit beforehand is always I good practice, one I often forget to do.  I also agree with him on priming.  I do it on all my models.  I use Stynylrez though.  Just a personal preference, Tamiya Fine or Mr. Surfacer 1500 are excellent choices.  I do know some very good modelers in my club who do not prime their models at all, but they are using full on Mr. Paint lacquers.  That stuff really bites into plastic!

Testors is an enamel paint and is a good all around paint for airbrushing and hand painting.  It is very limited in its color range and unless you start mixing it, you will have a hard time coming close to the colors you see on most models here.  If that's one of your considerations. 

As far as other brands, it seems like there's a new paint line every 6 months these days.  It can be quite confusing.  I would recommend going to your local hobby store and talking to someone about the lines they carry and how to use each.  Some are better for airbrushing than hand painting, and vice-versa.

I have tried a number of brands for both airbrushing and hand painting: PollyS (discontinued), Pactra (discontinued), Aeromaster (discontinued), Testors Model Master (discontinued), Mr. Color (lacquer, formerly called Gunze-Sangyo), Mr. Hobby (acrylic, formerly called Gunze-Sangyo Aqueous), Testors, Mission Models, Tamiya, Mr. Paint Acrylic, AKAN, AK 3rd gen acrylic, the new Humbrol acrylics, Tru-Color, Citadel, Reaper, Lifecolor, Scale Colors, and Vallejo.  Personally, I have gone with Vallejo Model Color due to its low odor, local availability, and ease of brush painting, and Scale Colors for their color accuracy in WWII and newer subjects.  I accepted the extreme difficulty of airbrushing VMC and that Scale Colors is formulated specifically for airbrushing (although you can brush paint it with patience and effort).

But if I were to recommend one to a beginner, I'd say Tamiya.  It is quite common in my area and can be thinned with their acrylic thinner X-20A, their lacquer thinner X-20, water, alcohol, Mr. Leveling Thinner, or straight lacquer thinner.  It's probably the best balanced paint between airbrushing and hand brushing.  The different colors are very consistent in their viscosity.  This makes thinning them much easier.  If you have adequate ventilation and protection, Tamiya paint with Mr. Leveling Thinner which is a mild lacquer thinner with retarder, is a very good combination for both airbrushing and hand painting.


Stuart

[torbiorn]

Yellow is, I believe, the most difficult of all, at least post lead paints. A tip is to prime with white base coat first, if you want pure yellow. With the Vallejo paints I use, that means I can get away with 2 or 3 layers of yellow with the airbrush. Without priming with a light colour I’d need, and I’m not kidding, as many as 10 layers.

[Allan31]

As has been said, yellow as well as red are the worst for coverage.

I prime with Tamiya fine white as my base for everything else to follow. I have made the change over to acrylics from enamels, (kicking and screaming for a couple of years,)
But now have a happy place with the Valejo line. Low oder, good adhesion, good coverage and lots of out of the bottle colors for those not inclined to mix their own colors.



This red was first covered with white, then the red cowling was shot with my finished red but cut with a few drops of white for better opacity and then shot with my finished red color.

The linen color is close to yellow so best over white.



The base of tan below was shot over the white primer.







Good luck !!

[PetworthPilot]

The more I am learning the more I realize there is to learn. Thanks for sharing your tips guys. Just picked up the Revell Camel in 1/28 and the Roden SE5a in 1/72 so I have over 30 kits now including the paper and stick and tissue variety.  We are entering a time here in the Mid Atlantic where it is advisable to spend great deal of times indoors so it's time to get busy.

[Allan31]

HA !!

You'll have fun wit those, I have them as well on the short list...

[Tim Mixon]

Petworth,
Your engine looks nice.  A real easy way to enhance the details is to dip a brush in black or very dark brown paint. Wipe it on a surface then dip the brush into whatever appropriate thinning agent. Apply this to the black and make a very watery thin color. Wipe the brush clean then dip into the thinned black wash. Apply this lightly to the engine and allow the wash to settle into all the cracks and crevices. 
Next, after the wash is dry, dip a brush in silver or aluminum paint.  Wipe the brush until it appears clean. Gently brush over the surface details and it will highlight all the surface engine parts such as push rods, nuts and bolts, etc. 
This will help differentiate the engine cowl color from the engine as well. 

[PetworthPilot]

Petworth,
Your engine looks nice.  A real easy way to enhance the details is to dip a brush in black or very dark brown paint. Wipe it on a surface then dip the brush into whatever appropriate thinning agent. Apply this to the black and make a very watery thin color. Wipe the brush clean then dip into the thinned black wash. Apply this lightly to the engine and allow the wash to settle into all the cracks and crevices. 
Next, after the wash is dry, dip a brush in silver or aluminum paint.  Wipe the brush until it appears clean. Gently brush over the surface details and it will highlight all the surface engine parts such as push rods, nuts and bolts, etc. 
This will help differentiate the engine cowl color from the engine as well.

Tim, I will give that a shot. I was thinking that I might dry brush the engine a bit. Allen, looks like you have a lot of work in front of you. Better get cracking!

[PetworthPilot]

I think I may be getting the hang of this air brushing thing.

[PetworthPilot]

I'll be putting the model together in a few days.

[Mike Norris]

Hi Petworthpilot,
As the others have said, painting models is something modelers learn through experience.
Each of us find our particular style and techniques, using brushes and/or airbrushes.
We find our happy place with paints, be they enamel, acrylic, lacquers and oil paints.
Most stick with what they've learnt and know, yet others will experiment and change.

If it's of any help, you can always view or download my build logs for the 40 WW1 aircraft I've built thus far.
Each detail fully and with photographs/illustrations my construction, modification, painting and rigging techniques for each model.
Included are all of the materials used, including the specific paints applied.
Also creating wood effects using oil paints.
Each build log is in Adobe PDF format and all are book marked for easier navigation.
Just go to my site (click on my signature below) and find the model in the gallery pages.
Click that model and you'll be taken to a slide show.
Click the PDF icon to view or download that build log.

Mike

[macsporran]

Petworth, you're doing great. We all have learning curves - it took me ages to feel comfortable with an airbrush after years of brush painting and I'm currently learning how to use a new filler product.
You certainly tried to start off with the worst colour of all as I learnt to my cost recently.

I stupidly rubbed some paint off the front valence of my (yellow) weekend fun car against a tree stump. No problem thought I, I have some factory paint and a selection of airbrushes and some years of experience using them. I'll just feather the mark and give it a quick touch-up spray. Oh my God! I could not cover with the yellow paint. I cleaned it off and added a white undercoat and then added layer after layer of yellow with little effect. Finally, after about twenty coats I thought I'd got it covered sufficiently to let it cure, rub down and wax. Sheesh, never again. I specifically wanted a yellow 987 coz I think it looks great, but I'll be incredibly careful around tree stumps in future!
Sandy