Inspired by James May
Discussion
Having watched the first episode of James May on iPlayer I became inspired to try this Airfix lark (I know from reading here there are probably better kit makers). Last Christmas my ex-girlfriend (now wife) gave me a lovely starter kit of a Spitfire MkVb 1/72 scale, so last night I went straight home and got it out of the box and made it.
The box did say Easy and it will take 2 hours - so 5 hours later at about 1am I finished it
Despite growing up heavily into RC, model trains etc I never had done an airfix kit to the end (some poor attempts at Red Arrows Hawks when around 8), I did rather enjoy it.
Not the best attempt (plus lacking yellow paint), nor brilliant photo, on iPhone late:
Now looking at some of the other models on this forum (and wanting to do a few more models) it is obvious my technique is about 1/10, so questions are:
1) The paint work is amazing on some of the models with blended colours, what methods do you use to paint the models?
2) How do you paint the really fiddly bit, presume there are custom tools out there for holding the parts, anywhere good to look?
3) I would like to keep going with 1/72 scale at the moment so are there any good kits or paths of improvement people recommend?
The box did say Easy and it will take 2 hours - so 5 hours later at about 1am I finished it
Despite growing up heavily into RC, model trains etc I never had done an airfix kit to the end (some poor attempts at Red Arrows Hawks when around 8), I did rather enjoy it.
Not the best attempt (plus lacking yellow paint), nor brilliant photo, on iPhone late:
Now looking at some of the other models on this forum (and wanting to do a few more models) it is obvious my technique is about 1/10, so questions are:
1) The paint work is amazing on some of the models with blended colours, what methods do you use to paint the models?
2) How do you paint the really fiddly bit, presume there are custom tools out there for holding the parts, anywhere good to look?
3) I would like to keep going with 1/72 scale at the moment so are there any good kits or paths of improvement people recommend?
Not really inspired by James, as I was going to build one on these
http://www.bigwing.biz/cusPic11.html
Last year, but it's definitely on top of my wish list this year.
What is it about the Spitfire that stirs the blood?
http://www.bigwing.biz/cusPic11.html
Last year, but it's definitely on top of my wish list this year.
What is it about the Spitfire that stirs the blood?
I'd be interested in paint techniques too, I'm tempted back into modelling but when I last did it I used oil based Humbrol enamels but I see it's all water based acrylics now. Are they any good, like the old git I am I'm sceptical about paint that doesn't smell and doesn't need turps to clean up afterwards 
Do you need an air-brush too? What's a good starter one? Oh and OP - I used to paint the really little bits while they are still on the sprue, wait for them to dry before breaking them off and then touching them up afterwards if necessary.
Do you need an air-brush too? What's a good starter one? Oh and OP - I used to paint the really little bits while they are still on the sprue, wait for them to dry before breaking them off and then touching them up afterwards if necessary. The power of TV
Good on James for inspiring the returnees - or even complete beginners.
Acrylics are growing in popularity but traditional enamels are still readilly available if you want to use them both Humbrol and Revell enamels are available in any model shop and quite a few toy shops as well.
Regarding "blending", I presume you are talking about the soft demarcation you get between some camouflage patterns?
You get this on real aircraft when paints are sprayed using an airgun and masks. The only way to replicate this on models is to use an airbrush.
However, in 1/72, soft demarcations are not that obvious so for someone getting into models (especially in 1/72) I would stick with the old fashioned paint brush for the moment before splashing out on airbrushes etc. I've been making models for 40 years and have only (finally) got into the use of airbrushes properly within the last year or so.
I posted these pictures in other sections of PH but I thought I'd show them here again to explain some points.
Fairey Fulmar 1/72 Vista/Airfix
The Fulmar was spray painted using an Aztek airbrush. The colours used are Xtracrylic authentic paints - which means that the paint is closely matched to official colours.
Xtracrylic paints are really only available directly from Hannants but they are nice and thin, work pretty well brush painted but airbrush beautifully. The soft demarcation was obtained with the help of masks made using the Blue-Tac "sausage" technique.
The canopy of the Fulmar was heavilly framed so each clear panel was blanked out using Tamiya tape cut with a sharp scalpel blade. Once the canopy was attached (using white PVA glue), the entire model was airbrushed in the camouflage scheme.
I bought this model 16 years ago when it was produced by Vista. The moulds have since been around the houses a bit and are currently in the hands of Airfix - so it is easy to pick up.
De Havilland Mosquito NF.XIX Airfix 1/72
Similar techniques to the above. The big difference here is teh D-Day stripes. Although Airfix supply these as decals, I chose to paint the stripes directly as was done in real life.
If you want some painting practice - with less time on construction - I would go for one of the Hobby Boss Easybuild kits. They are pretty neat little models which almost click together.
This is the HobbyBoss Hawker Hurricane II
Good on James for inspiring the returnees - or even complete beginners.
Acrylics are growing in popularity but traditional enamels are still readilly available if you want to use them both Humbrol and Revell enamels are available in any model shop and quite a few toy shops as well.
Regarding "blending", I presume you are talking about the soft demarcation you get between some camouflage patterns?
You get this on real aircraft when paints are sprayed using an airgun and masks. The only way to replicate this on models is to use an airbrush.
However, in 1/72, soft demarcations are not that obvious so for someone getting into models (especially in 1/72) I would stick with the old fashioned paint brush for the moment before splashing out on airbrushes etc. I've been making models for 40 years and have only (finally) got into the use of airbrushes properly within the last year or so.
I posted these pictures in other sections of PH but I thought I'd show them here again to explain some points.
Fairey Fulmar 1/72 Vista/Airfix
The Fulmar was spray painted using an Aztek airbrush. The colours used are Xtracrylic authentic paints - which means that the paint is closely matched to official colours.
Xtracrylic paints are really only available directly from Hannants but they are nice and thin, work pretty well brush painted but airbrush beautifully. The soft demarcation was obtained with the help of masks made using the Blue-Tac "sausage" technique.
The canopy of the Fulmar was heavilly framed so each clear panel was blanked out using Tamiya tape cut with a sharp scalpel blade. Once the canopy was attached (using white PVA glue), the entire model was airbrushed in the camouflage scheme.
I bought this model 16 years ago when it was produced by Vista. The moulds have since been around the houses a bit and are currently in the hands of Airfix - so it is easy to pick up.
De Havilland Mosquito NF.XIX Airfix 1/72
Similar techniques to the above. The big difference here is teh D-Day stripes. Although Airfix supply these as decals, I chose to paint the stripes directly as was done in real life.
If you want some painting practice - with less time on construction - I would go for one of the Hobby Boss Easybuild kits. They are pretty neat little models which almost click together.
This is the HobbyBoss Hawker Hurricane II
Edited by Eric Mc on Wednesday 4th November 19:10
As mentioned before I found my old Technik Lego a couple of weeks ago but waching james may last week actually pushed me to have a play with it. forgotten how fecking fun it is. Just finished my model of a Churchill tank.
I also have a Tamiya 1/48th Spitfire kit that I might get round to building.
I also have a Tamiya 1/48th Spitfire kit that I might get round to building.
RichB said:
Oh and OP - I used to paint the really little bits while they are still on the sprue, wait for them to dry before breaking them off and then touching them up afterwards if necessary.
I started doing that to the end of the build, but the little pilot meant that the brush with paint was stickier than the surface of the table and proved a complete arse. The blighter took me over an hour alone and you can't even see the details on his boots I did (but at least I know they are there).Eric Mc said:
Fairey Fulmar 1/72 Vista/Airfix
The Fulmar was spray painted using an Aztek airbrush. The colours used are Xtracrylic authentic paints - which means that the paint is closely matched to official colours.
Xtracrylic paints are really only available directly from Hannants but they are nice and thin, work pretty well brush painted but airbrush beautifully. The soft demarcation was obtained with the help of masks made using the Blue-Tac "sausage" technique.
Eric, that is the type of painting I was talking about. I would like to get into weathering the models too, so maybe I need to do some more research into the Blue-Tac "sausage" technique. Is there any good airbrush kits that are good far starters?The Fulmar was spray painted using an Aztek airbrush. The colours used are Xtracrylic authentic paints - which means that the paint is closely matched to official colours.
Xtracrylic paints are really only available directly from Hannants but they are nice and thin, work pretty well brush painted but airbrush beautifully. The soft demarcation was obtained with the help of masks made using the Blue-Tac "sausage" technique.
Airbrushes cover a wide range of sophistication and price.
Having tried at least 5 different types over the years I THINK I've finally settled on one that works well for me. Hazing tried an Aztek for a while, In decided that it was just too fragile. Azteks are very different to traditional airbrushes and, to my mind, a bit frail.
I have an old single-action Badger 200 which I have finally taught myself to use properly and I have a cheap Chinese double-action brush which works surpringly well.
Badger 200 are now around £60 each (I paid £64 for mine back in 1994) and the Chinese effort was only £32 a few months ago(amazing).
The REALLY good airbrushes such as Iwata and VeVilbiss are closer to the £200 mark. I've heard great things about Iwatas and I may treat myself to one some day.
I would shy away from the external mix "air gun" type airbrushes which retail for less than £10. My first ever airbrush was one of these and I NEVER managed to get it to work properly.
With the advent of the Chinese into the market, they are more affordable now than at any time. I think also the expansion of airbrush useage through "nail painting" etc has brought prices down too.
The problem with airbrushes is that the choice is overwhelming.
I use an Aldi compressor which was less than £60 and works really well.
Having tried at least 5 different types over the years I THINK I've finally settled on one that works well for me. Hazing tried an Aztek for a while, In decided that it was just too fragile. Azteks are very different to traditional airbrushes and, to my mind, a bit frail.
I have an old single-action Badger 200 which I have finally taught myself to use properly and I have a cheap Chinese double-action brush which works surpringly well.
Badger 200 are now around £60 each (I paid £64 for mine back in 1994) and the Chinese effort was only £32 a few months ago(amazing).
The REALLY good airbrushes such as Iwata and VeVilbiss are closer to the £200 mark. I've heard great things about Iwatas and I may treat myself to one some day.
I would shy away from the external mix "air gun" type airbrushes which retail for less than £10. My first ever airbrush was one of these and I NEVER managed to get it to work properly.
With the advent of the Chinese into the market, they are more affordable now than at any time. I think also the expansion of airbrush useage through "nail painting" etc has brought prices down too.
The problem with airbrushes is that the choice is overwhelming.
I use an Aldi compressor which was less than £60 and works really well.
Eric Mc said:
airbrushes
Eric, can you please explain what an "external mix" airbrush is?I'm looking at this cheap airbursh pictured below, is it one of the aforementioned external mix brushes and should therefore be avoided?
It is Tamiya branded, so you would expect it to be fairly decent for the price, but it is only 30 USD as a complete kit(from a local retailer in Hong Kong). Also, is it in the same line as the Badger 200 you mention, because it is listed on the website as "Tamiya Spray-Work System T-Badger 250II Airbrush"
That is definitely an external mix brush. Technically, they are more akin to air guns than to airbrushes. You can see from the picture that the airflow from the "gun" section flows across a vent in the top of the paint bottle. The low pressure zone created above the vent draws the paint fromn the bottle into the airflow where it is atomised and becomes a mist.
External mix brushes do work - but they are fairly crude and it is harder to adjust the spray pattern for the various desired paint effects you might want to use. German mottle camouflage patterns are virtually impossible without resorting to masks, for instance.
An internal mix brush is more refined. In these, the paint is drawn up into the body of the brush where the air and paint mix internally and then gets blown out through a fine nozzle at the tip. The width of the spray pattern is controlled by an adjustable needle.
Shown below is the Badger 200 - which is a good, basic and robust internal mix airbrush. I've had one for 15 years and, despite me doing my best to abuse and break it over the years, still works well.
Internal mix brushes fall into two categories - single action and double action. The Badger 200 is a single action brush. By pressing the button on the top, both airflow and paint draw begins instantly. The width of the spray pattern is set by totating the furled knob at the end of the brush. This moves the needle backwards and forwards in the brush - varying the size of the aperture in the nozzle through which the spaying mist is exiting the brush and thereby adjusting the width of the spray pattern.
Double action brushes are more refined and generally more expensive than single action brushes. The difference is that, when the button on the top is pressed, the air starts to flow WITHOUT any paint emerging from the tip. The paint only starts to flow when the button is drawn back. As the button is drawn further back, the paint flow increases, giving the modeller much better control over the spray pattern and density.
I really think that mottle camouflage can only be executed effectively with a double action brush.
Badger do double action brushes but the king of double action seems to be the Japanese Iwata range
They are pretty expensioeve though.
You can pick up generic Chinese double action brushes for around £30.00 or so. I have one and it seems to work pretty well. I have to say though, those Iwatas are awfully tempting.
The final point I would add is that there are two ways the paint can be drawn into the brush - by siphoning from an underslung bottle or by gravity from a top or side mounted cup.
I much prefer gravity feed as you can use the brush at much lower air pressures. With a siphon bottle, you need fairly fast flowing air to ensure the paint is drawn up into the air flow. Also, with gravity feed, you can use much lower quantities of paint - which is less wasteful.
Hope that helps.
External mix brushes do work - but they are fairly crude and it is harder to adjust the spray pattern for the various desired paint effects you might want to use. German mottle camouflage patterns are virtually impossible without resorting to masks, for instance.
An internal mix brush is more refined. In these, the paint is drawn up into the body of the brush where the air and paint mix internally and then gets blown out through a fine nozzle at the tip. The width of the spray pattern is controlled by an adjustable needle.
Shown below is the Badger 200 - which is a good, basic and robust internal mix airbrush. I've had one for 15 years and, despite me doing my best to abuse and break it over the years, still works well.
Internal mix brushes fall into two categories - single action and double action. The Badger 200 is a single action brush. By pressing the button on the top, both airflow and paint draw begins instantly. The width of the spray pattern is set by totating the furled knob at the end of the brush. This moves the needle backwards and forwards in the brush - varying the size of the aperture in the nozzle through which the spaying mist is exiting the brush and thereby adjusting the width of the spray pattern.
Double action brushes are more refined and generally more expensive than single action brushes. The difference is that, when the button on the top is pressed, the air starts to flow WITHOUT any paint emerging from the tip. The paint only starts to flow when the button is drawn back. As the button is drawn further back, the paint flow increases, giving the modeller much better control over the spray pattern and density.
I really think that mottle camouflage can only be executed effectively with a double action brush.
Badger do double action brushes but the king of double action seems to be the Japanese Iwata range
They are pretty expensioeve though.
You can pick up generic Chinese double action brushes for around £30.00 or so. I have one and it seems to work pretty well. I have to say though, those Iwatas are awfully tempting.
The final point I would add is that there are two ways the paint can be drawn into the brush - by siphoning from an underslung bottle or by gravity from a top or side mounted cup.
I much prefer gravity feed as you can use the brush at much lower air pressures. With a siphon bottle, you need fairly fast flowing air to ensure the paint is drawn up into the air flow. Also, with gravity feed, you can use much lower quantities of paint - which is less wasteful.
Hope that helps.
Edited by Eric Mc on Thursday 5th November 09:39
hman said:
de vilbiss, its the way forward.
I think it's not fair just to make a throw away comment like this in when people are asking basic questions and want advice. De Vilbiss make very good brushes and for many years were considered the best. However, in recent years a few new manufacturers have entered the fray and De Vilbiss have faded from the modelling scene. You NEVER see ads for De Vilbiss products in modelling magazines.
In fact, only last month De Vilbiss announced that they were re-entering the modelling fray with a new range of brushes optimised for modellers. It shows that they had neglected this area for ages and are now planning on staging a comeback.
hman said:
Eric, hence my comment, De Vilbiss are making a return and will be the way forward - I still use my DV airbrushes, they out perform most of the stuff you see for sale in the modelling mags, their precision is pretty much un-surpassable.
Have you tried an Iwata yet - a genuine question as I may buy one at some point.hman said:
I havent experienced an Iwata first hand but I have seen them demo'd and they look good.
Unfortunatley there was no side by side demo of the two!
As I said, De Vilbiss have for years abandoned model makers as a target market. I think they have realised the error of their ways and want back in.Unfortunatley there was no side by side demo of the two!
I wonder if they'll have any sort of prescence at Scale Modelworld this weekend?
I was in Halfords last week picking up some primer and noticed that they had the Badger 200 starter kit for £19.99. It comes with the compressed air can that you would probably want to swap for a compressor fairly soon, but these are cheap enough off Ebay.
Edit: A quick glance at there website suggest that they had it labeled up wrong in store and it should be £49.50 see here which is still cheaper than most places.
Edit: A quick glance at there website suggest that they had it labeled up wrong in store and it should be £49.50 see here which is still cheaper than most places.
Edited by jpringle819 on Thursday 5th November 11:34
I'd go for it. That is amazingly good value.
Edited - I've just looked at the Halford's website. The Starter Kit contains the rather basic external mix Badger 250 - similar to the one shown in pokethepope's (good name, by the way) post.
Do not confuse the Badger 250 with the Badger 200. The 250 is external mix, the 200 is internal mix.
Halford's are advertising the Badger 200 at £49.99 - which is not bad (as I said, I paid £64 for a 200 back in 1994).
Edited - I've just looked at the Halford's website. The Starter Kit contains the rather basic external mix Badger 250 - similar to the one shown in pokethepope's (good name, by the way
) post.Do not confuse the Badger 250 with the Badger 200. The 250 is external mix, the 200 is internal mix.
Halford's are advertising the Badger 200 at £49.99 - which is not bad (as I said, I paid £64 for a 200 back in 1994).
Edited by Eric Mc on Thursday 5th November 11:40
To be fair the market for model making has reduced (even James May says so- so it must be true).
Meanwhile the market for custom bikes and cars has stayed healthy.
Its not suprising that they have focussed on the market which brings them the greatest return.
Perhaps the car and bikes market is slowing and so they have re-focussed on modelling? who knows.
Meanwhile the market for custom bikes and cars has stayed healthy.
Its not suprising that they have focussed on the market which brings them the greatest return.
Perhaps the car and bikes market is slowing and so they have re-focussed on modelling? who knows.
hman said:
To be fair the market for model making has reduced (even James May says so- so it must be true).
Meanwhile the market for custom bikes and cars has stayed healthy.
Its not suprising that they have focussed on the market which brings them the greatest return.
Perhaps the car and bikes market is slowing and so they have re-focussed on modelling? who knows.
In actual fact, the market for model building has been steadilly INCREASING over the past ten years. Meanwhile the market for custom bikes and cars has stayed healthy.
Its not suprising that they have focussed on the market which brings them the greatest return.
Perhaps the car and bikes market is slowing and so they have re-focussed on modelling? who knows.
It's not that the market has shrunk - it's that it has changed. When you think of all the Chinese, Indian and Eastern European modellers there are now and how affluent they are compared to a few decades ago, you can see that the GLOBAL market must be quite a bit bigger than it was in the 70s and 80s. De Vilbiss are just waking up to this.
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