Wendigo Posted June 18, 2011 Share Posted June 18, 2011 Recently treated myself to a new airbrush and compressor from Colours Art & Framing in Calgary, Alberta. Anyone curious about starting out with an airbrush will get something out of this project log. Army Name: Red Wolves (a.k.a. Armiger's Company) Background: Barbarian refugees from the Imperium's Eastern Fringes, turned mercenaries in Imperial service. Tragic Flaw: Berseker rage, treachery and in-fighting Strengths: Astartes-like genetic enhancement (all soldier types), looted Astartes wargear, warrior culture, weapons modifications, transatmospheric aircraft and piloting. Pics in a few minutes... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 The tools: First, my Paasche VG Talon airbrush. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 Second, my Paasche D3000R compressor. Third, Vallejo Acrylic-Polyurethane White Primer (used undiluted) Fourth, the test mini primed. Note: my actual army will be recent models with lots of conversions -- but this guy's only a test. I used the Vallejo primer undiluted. Pressure was 25 PSI. Drying time 3 hours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 Base coat: Liquitex Soft Body Alizarin Crimson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 Right after spraying. Liquitex Alizarin Crimson diluted 1:1 with Golden Airbrush Medium. Looks translucent before it dries... I may have to do another base coat. W. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retributis Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 Both the primer and the base coat seem to be far too thin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 Thanks for the comment, Retributis. I totally agree about the basecoat -- I used too much airbrush medium. Not sure about the primer coat, though -- I think it's just right. It's pretty much opaque and crisp white, but doesn't obscure detail. I'm sold on the white Vallejo airbrush primer. That was applied right out of the bottle. Wendigo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 One hour after airbrushing the basecoat: Looks like he's been dipped! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ignatia Mortis Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 Looks Good!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 Thanks, Ignatia Mortis. Well, bad news: I oversprayed the second basecoat layer. He's still drying, but I might have obscured detail. When he dries, I'll post a pic for you all to judge whether he's headed for a brake fluid bath. *Edit 19 June 2011: In retrospect, my big mistake was not thinning the second basecoat layer like I had the first layer. If I had thinned the second basecaoat layer, it might have looked a lot better. Wendigo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 Oversprayed and wrecked? Should I strip the paint and start again? W. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 A couple of things from the workbench... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brother-Chaplain Kage Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 The primer looks good. The basecoat does not. That's way too thin and airbrushed paint shouldn't pool on the figure like that, and since it's so translucent, more layers may not cover it up. *edit* D'oh, I had to go afk and you posted again before I did. Yeah, I'd say you should probably strip it down and start again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 Thanks for the feedback, Brother Chaplain Kage. I agree with you 100%. It's back to the drawing board for the basecoat. And back into the brake fluid bath for the little Devastator... Here are a few more pics of the Fenris Militia Thane: *Update: broke the curved heat pipe off the backpack. Need to pass length of wire through wide hole drilled horizontally and from side to side through the top of backpack, i.e. cross-wise under the "heat grill" at the top of the backpack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 I'll make a separate thread for my short stories about Varyags and the world of mercenaries in WH40K... W. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rod Hull Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 Your PSI is probably too high. Try somewhere between 15-20. It looks like both the undercoat and basecoat were applied too heavily and pooled. Spray from further away, or reduce pressure, keep the brush moving and do not give in to the temptation to focus it on an area until it is painted. Use multiple passes to build up smooth coats. Look into getting some proper air brush paints like Vallejo Model Air (unthinned or 1:1 with thinner). Or try GW paints (thinned 10 or 20 parts Vallejo thinner to 1 part Citadel paint). I have no idea what that Liquitex stuff is but it does not seem optimal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 Thanks, Rod Hull. I'll try what you suggest. I liked the color of that Liquitex paint, and wanted to practice diluting so that I can use any paints in my airbrush. But I guess I should get used to how the airbrush works before I start experimenting. I'll see what I can do about finding some easier-to-airbrush basecoat colors today. Wendigo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rod Hull Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 Also try looking on youtube, there are good tutorials on there for how to spray and maintain your brush. And stick with it, when you know what you're doing an airbrush is a dream to use, but to start out it can be a huge aching bollock to get used to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 Thanks, Rod Hull. I appreciate the encouragement. I have been going through YouTube, but I'll have another look. Thanks for the tip. I can tell already -- I'm gonna love using an airbrush once I work out a few beginner problems. Here is the final cured result of the over-heavy spray of Liquitex Alazarin Crimson over a Vallejo white primer. *Mistakes: 1) PSI too high (was 30-40; should have been 15-20) 2) did not thin second basecoat layer enough -- Liquitex Soft Body paints need heavy dilution 3) Primer layer too thick? 4) May have been spraying too close, or focusing on single areas too much and over-spraying Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Bleak Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 I suggest under-coating black, and then lowering your PSI for an even lighter spray and using one coat of slightly-less thinned basecoat. Also, I suggest using a new test model, that guy looks like he had a lot of details being worn right from the get-go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darklighter Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 Obviously your practicing you skills and your not quite there yet, but I wouldn't beat your self up to much as a gloss finish often looks like it's covered over more detail than it really has. Try some water based matt varnish (windsor gallaria is good and can be used in an air brush) and see if you still feel it needs striping after that. As for pooling I use some methods that need the paint to run and pool it's not always bad so keep in mind how you got that effect as you may want it later on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raving Bonkers Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 Hi, I have used my spray gun quite successfully on my tanks, although not got round to my marines as of yet. I to used around 20 to 25 PSI spraying around 10 to 15cm away from the model. Starting off the model and spraying side to side to get an even base coat, some sections done over 2 layers. Your primer looked very thin with a build up in the recesses. Or its spraying for to long on a surface. I used GW paints with roughly a 2:1 up to 3:1 mix of paint to water. Don't think I ever went close to a 1:1 mix. This even aloud me to spray for several seconds on a single section to apply my basic colour and give a deeper colour without any build up in the recesses. Have some pics but they are not clear enough to really see into the details. I look forward to following your project and seeing how spraying your marines works out. RB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retributis Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 Your primer looked very thin with a build up in the recesses. Or its spraying for to long on a surface. Aye that's exactly why I said it was too thin, if you start getting paint building up in the recesses then it's not giving a good overall coat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 26, 2011 Author Share Posted June 26, 2011 Mr. Bleak: Thanks for the advice. Totally agree about the test mini--am using some newer figures now. About black primer: I'm just not a fan of black undercoats -- I like the vividness of colors over a white primer, even if they're darker colors (like my red basecoat). About PSI: I started at 30-40, which didn't give me too many problems, then lowered it to 20-25, and had problems with over-spraying and obscuring details. Went back up to 30-40, and have been getting opaque but very thin white primer coats every time. Thanks, Wendigo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendigo Posted June 26, 2011 Author Share Posted June 26, 2011 Darklighter: That's a good thing to know -- thanks! I do have some Testor's Dullcote in cans, plus some brush-on matte varnish (Liquitex, I think). I plan to keep the finish very glossy until the end, for smoothness and clean finish. As one of my last steps I will spray of paint on matte varnish, then a the last step, I will re-gloss the glossy parts with gloss varnish or Future Floor Finish. W. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.