Weathered King Tiger....comments please
 

hi here are some of my new photos after weathering my KT with the tamiya weathering kits.....i used all 3 kits (apart from the snow)

what do you think?

RE: Weathered King Tiger....comments please
 

Very Nice. I really like the damage detail above the right track. Keep up the good work [sm=shades_smile.gif][sm=thumbup.gif]

RE: Weathered King Tiger....comments please
 

Hey Madbadger, your King Tiger looks awesome! I expecialy like the mud on the track guards

RE: Weathered King Tiger....comments please
 

Looks like a winner to me!! Go man go!!!

RE: Weathered King Tiger....comments please
 

Well, I'm going to be honest. Its not meant to be mean but hopefully help you in making a good start even better. While I'm new to 1/16 RC Tanks, I'm not new to R/C or scale model armor. I've built many 1/35 scale tanks which included heavy modifications.

The weathering job is so-so....

Your dry-brushed areas looks too random. Unnaturally so. Not sure if aren't taking enough paint off or you aren't overlapping the drybushing enough or doing enough area. But it looks drybrushed. I think you need to take more paint off your brush and make it more even and consistent across the tank. You can clearly see the direction you were drybrushing. You shouldn't be able to see this.

Its also too heavy in some of "high wear" areas like corners where you'd expect to see faded paint or metal. It should be less....

I would also suggest you try an overall wash that will blend and soften your camo a bit. Then use a slightly darker color sepia-ish to highlight all the small details and sit in the zimmerit. Then drybrush the "high" areas. There are some good reference material from this tank thread that shows some really good techniques for weathering.

I suggest also either painting on your numbers or making sure the surface you are applying the decals to has a satin finish or a finish that the decal will adhere to without silvering. After that you can weather more.

I commend you on your attempt at adding some "mud" but this brings awhole different and complex technique. Its a huge task to make it look convincing and not just randomly applied. Although I can't see your roadwheels, They would have some mud on them as well as various place on the tank that would normally get splashed when running in those type of conditions....

I do think your spare tank treads are nicely done. I like the rust......

Again, I'm not flaming, but giving you my honest and hopefully helpful opinion...

RE: Weathered King Tiger....comments please
 

no problem Alpha, this is the sort of feedback i need, but don't forget this is my first attempt at anything like this. I do agree i should have painted the decals on and i have just removed them, i will practice trying to paint them on. As for the overall finish, how would you suggest i go about applying a wash to dampen down the camo? i have just wiped over the tank with a damp sponge which has removed 'high lights' as you call them. I was wondering if the mud was a on the light side? i have ordered some Dullcote to spray over the tank, would i be better applying this before attempting to weather it? i have put a little mud on the wheels, i am saving for a set of metal tracks, i will probably put some mud on them, even run it outside in some mud!!

Kev

RE: Weathered King Tiger....comments please
 

It is a good start. Here are a couple of things that I do that usually gets positive comments.

1. On the tracks dry brush the keels, the area where the road wheels ride on the inside of the tracks, and the cross bars with a bit of flat aluminum
2. Use a number 2 or an HB soft lead pencil and rub it on all the corners and protrusions that might normally be rubbed by wear and tear.. usually on the edges of the fenders, around the periscope edges, cupola edges, you get the idea.
3. Run the same pencil around all the cracks between the hatches and openings in the hull. This is all pretty harmless since you can rub it all off if you don't like it. You can also use the pencil to imitate paint scratches.
4. Make a wash of a sand or mud color and slop it around behind the road wheels and on the tracks.

5. The lesson that finally got pounded into my head is that paint fades from the top down so if you are going to lighten paint pretend you are the light source (sun) and just lighten anything exposed from that source. if the light can't get to it, then the factory color should be darker unless worn off by use.

6. Tale your time and just have fun doing it.

7. More rust on the exhaust pipes.

RE: Weathered King Tiger....comments please
 

thanks Ken, how do i make a wash???? is it something i spray on? i was wondering how would you make the paint fade? the only way i can think of is wait till summer and leave the KT in the greenhouse.....LOL.....but is there a way to do it?

cheers

Kev

RE: Weathered King Tiger....comments please
 

just found this recipe on a web site for a magic wash..........what colour should i mix with this to cover the tank in?



Magic Wash

Hello, fellow figure painters. I believe I have finally found the perfect "wash" for miniature figures. A few weeks ago I admired some Boxer war figures of local painter here in Southern California. "Dow the Programmer" told me how to make his "Magic Wash", and I have been trying it out recently. I am stoked by it. Magic Wash blows the doors off of every other wash technique I have ever used! And it is so inexpensive as to be negligible! And it is easier than most other wash techniques!

Here is the recipe:

Buy a bottle of "FUTURE acrylic floor finish for non-wax and regular floors" by Johnson & Son. In the U.S. it comes in big 800 ml (72 ounce) clear plastic squeeze bottles for about $7, and was available in both supermarkets I checked. This is more than I can probably use in a lifetime. The clear liquid inside is slightly more viscous than water. I imagine there are similar products in other countries, and I recommend that we identify them.

Pre-mix some of the FUTURE, one part of acrylic finish to four parts of water. This is the Magic Wash stock. I made mine up in a liter sealable milk bottle. Making a clear stock up ahead of time allows the small bubbles which can result when mixed with water to subside over time.

Devote one brush to be the Magic Wash brush. I don't know if this is really necessary, but it seems safer to me, since the formula of the FUTURE finish is different from those of our acrylic paints.

When you are ready to use it, mix a little of the Magic Wash stock with a small amount of your chosen pigment. Stir it with your brush, don't shake it. I have successfully used inks and acrylic paints as pigments.

Brush over your figures and allow to dry. It dries just about as quickly as acrylic paints.

It sucks the pigment right down into the crevasses and keeps it there. Doesn't let it "osmosis" back up. And the high areas remain remarkably clear ! I have used black, dark brown, and light tan (for white marble).

And Magic Wash even gives a hard protective coating !! It's not too shiny, but a final coat of dullcote often makes the figures look better to my eye.

What DON'T I like about it? Well, I've mentioned the little bubbles, with a method for avoiding them. The only other "problem" is that, if you tend to lick your brush while painting, the stuff tastes TERRIBLE !! So I have given up that habit when using Magic Wash.

Future is available only in the United States. However it is sold under other names, or there are similar products, available in other countries.

United Kingdom: Klear or Krystal Klear

Netherlands: Pronto Wax for Wood Floors or Parket Plus

France: Klir

Germany: Erdal Glanzer

Australia: Pledge One Go

Xtracolour, which makes military hobby paints, make "Acrylic Gloss Clear" which seams to be repackaged Future.



If your country is not listed, check your local supermarket for a clear, acrylic-based floor polish.

RE: Weathered King Tiger....comments please
 

a wash is just a highly diluted mix of paint and solvent. I use water based paints so alcohol works well with these. a typical was might be one part paint to 10-15 parts alcohol. I just brush of spray it on the tank from top side then let it dry. I recommend investing in a couple of modelers books for lots of different techniques. We also had a string running on painting sites a few days ago. http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_8303414/tm.htm.

Faded paint is usuall what ever color you are using diluted with white, sand or light yellows. They can be other mixes but these are common. Try a mix of 1 part base color to 10 parts light color (white, yellow, etc) make your self a test patch on a pice of cardboard or ol tank parts. put on your base color let it dry then put on the faded paint. JUst some in the center of your test pices so you will see the differences when it dries. let it dry and see if you like it. If not put on another coat to darken it, same procedure.

Weathering can take several days and should only be done in small stages until you get the feel for it.


1. Take your time
2. Have fun
3. Do not get discouraged f you don't like the results, just start again or make small mods.

RE: Weathered King Tiger....comments please
 

I buy several small bottles of testors paint thinner/solvent and add drops of paint to each, making a black wash, brown wash, dust wash, mud wash etc, etc, then I label them. Keep the posts comming, Im learning some stuff.:D