Are there any of you out there? Paint brush modelers?

I'm now working on my 2nd model and dare I say it, all is so far going well! It's a definite improvement on my first and most importantly, I'm enjoying it.

There are some things I have come across I would like to solve:

1) I was putting another coat of enamel on a model and as brushing, noticed my brush was lifting off the first coat and breaking it off in tiny pieces (similar to the mess an eraser makes). It was only a small portion luckily and I'll be able to correct it. But, what caused this? Did I not let the previous coat dry enough? I'm guessing I left it 14 hours and not 24, but it was dry to the touch.........

2) I pre-shaded the panel lines using an acrylic mix of black. Even though building up the paint in thin coats, my preshading work has mostly been lost. Any ideas to improve the next kit?

3) I've noticed that the 1/72 scale of my Academy P-39 seems out of scale (too small) compared to a Tamiya P-47 of the same scale. I know the 'Jug' was a big ship, but it really dwarfs the P-39. I'm guessing others have found the same?

4) Finally, do other brush modelers take the required volume of paint from the tinlets and put it into a seperate container to use? If so, what do you use to get the enamel paint out cleanly?

Thanks in advance

Alex

I stick to brushes too - sometimes in more ways than one ...

1) Most likely the first coat isn't dry. Most enamels should be safe to recoat after about six hours but the longer you wait, the safer you'll be.

2) I don't pre-shade but my guess would be too much paint on top. By the look of it, pre-shading without an airbrush is very difficult - while you can get a thin coat, it's much harder to get a feathered coat that gets thinner towards the edge. This is why I post-shade with pastels instead.

3) The P-47 was absolutely vast compared with the aircraft in service at the start of the war. Just to give you an idea, the P-39 was 34ft span by 30ft long (10.3m by 9.2m in new money) while the P-47 was about 41ft by 36ft (12.4m by 11m). In 1/72, small errors in scale shouldn't show up too badly, so it's probably for real.

4) I don't, which is probably why I use the top third of each tin and chuck out the rest. I'd be fascinated to find out the answer.

I'm sure everybody uses a brush still every now and again...

The paint hadn't cured enough before you started putting on the second coat. Since you say tinlet, I presume you mean Humbrol? I might being going out on a limb, but Humbrol is rather strong IMO so you will want to make sure the paint cures thoroughly. Something you might want to try is making a curing box . I don't know anything about your situation, but it doesn't take up too much room and is worth every penny.

We have a bunch of plastic storage boxes (with snap tight lids) that have been moving from place to place in the garage, so I took one and drilled a hole in the middle of the lid for an E14 lamp holder. I even drilled six other holes for ventilation. The idea is to hang a 15W or 25W lamp from the center hole. This cures any enamel easily over night and when you are not curing anything you can still store things in it... You get enough heat from such a small lightbulb to do the job without it being too much.

Pre-shading is all about thin coats. I found myself in the same predicament and was wondering where the pre-shading went.... When I went over to using thinner paints I got better results but using an airbrush though.

I've seen the Jug and an Airacobra close to each other at the Pima Air Museum in Tucson AZ and there is quite the difference in size... It was then I understood why the Jug was referred to as the flying brick.

I use a cut off drinking straw to pull the paint out of Humbrol tinlet...

Sean and Brian, thanks for your replies.

Yes, it's the Humbrol tinlets I'm using. I use them direct from the tin right now, but will try using a straw to remove a small quantity of paint. I assume you thin down the small paint removed?

Cheers

Yeah, I thin the paint down with Humbrol thinner. The reason I use Humbrol thinner is that I think they most likely will have the best thinner for their own paints. I could use something cheaper, but have had adverse problems with that. In general I try to thin with the manufacturer's thinner, yeah that means I have several kinds on hand but I haven't had any bad issues with paint since going over to my thinner-ideology...

I forgot to say that I cut the straw in several ca 2 inch pieces. I put the straw in the stirred paint, put my finger over the opening on the top of the straw, and lift to place the paint where ever I want by taking my finger off the opening. My wife asked me if I had ever sucked any paint up... hence my explanation.

My rough paint-thinner ratios are: brush painting 1 part paint to 1 part thinner; airbrushing 1 part paint to 2-3 parts thinner.

Cheers!

..Alex,

..can't answer your question directly ..but the one major advance I found when brush painting was undercoating before brushing your main colour ...get a rattle can of Halfords grey plastic primer and spray it on.....guarantees a beautiful finish with a couple of thin brush coats on top...

Thanks for that Brian.

Neil, thanks for the tip. I'm on my 2nd kit and both have been primed with plastic automotive primer and then painted with Humbrol enamels. I'm still struggling to get nice even coats but sure that will improve with time.

I have a NMF P-51 I'll be doing with a Tamiya rattle can. If anyone wants to give me any tips before I begin this, feel free to let me know. One thing I have found when spraying a final matt coat on the model after decaling is that the paint has specs in it. It's not dust, so I'm guessing I need to spray closer to the model?

Is it best to build of a fine mist or to keep the paint wet? And finally (phew), do others give a very fine sandpapering to smooth after all spraying /painting is complete?

Hi Alex . When I'm brush painting with enamel paint I thin the paint just a little bit , applying
thin coats . Before my second coat goes on I let that dry for a week . It can take up to 7 days for enamel paint to fully cure , when there is no more oder to it the paint is cured . Any preshading I do is always with a air brush . When I'm brushing acrylic I thin the paint down the same for enamel , but I will add a drop of dish soap as well this really helps on leveling the paint out . I found at the hobby shop clear sipon droppers .I have one for reds , blues , greens, and so on . Even though there might not be dust on the model , there is still dust in the air . I've had this happen before and lite sanding will take care of this . just retouch up after wards . if this is the problem . I don't use lacquers , future floor polish which you can brush on as well and for dull coat I useMicro Flat from microscale this you can brush paint as well . Both of this mediums you can thin with water , and clean up as well . hope this helps . Cheers

Judging from the artwork you do, we should be asking you questions!!!! Your work on your site is awesome! This might be a bit off-topic, but do you find you do better artwork by handling the models you draw/paint in 3-D? I'm sure it should also be vice versa, right?

As for rattle-cans... I hate them with a passion! Always too far away or too close!!! No happy medium... The only thing I really have to say about them is get an airbrush!

Terri, thanks for the tips. I didn't know the enamel took that long to cure completely.

Brian, thanks for the compliments regarding my art. I pretty much live and breathe warbirds! Definitely I would say is the answer; having a 3d model makes all the difference as long as it's accurate. In fact that's how I started modeling......Seeing all the kits not being built seemed a shame. I only use the models to see the curves of the fuselage, to produce a lighting plan and see where shadows fall, etc.

So, for me my models kills 2 birds with one stone

Yes, I will get an airbrush as some point, but for now, financial needs dictate brushes and rattle cans.

You are welcome . I sent you a PM about a airbrush