Tank painting advice

[Tro_lee boy]

I have a land raider and a stormraven lying around unpainted and that needs to change. I have been looking around the internet and seen a lot of good press for the army painter spray and it does look good. The problem is that here in Australia it costs $25 per can and I can't afford that.

The other ways I can think to paint them include just brushing on the mechrite red (will take a while and might look streaky) or buy an airbrush (doesn't help the cost problem).

 

So I'm asking for any ideas to paint my vehicles quickly and effectively on the cheap.

[Morollan]

I love Army Painter Pure Red for BA. I'd suggest ordering a few cans from someone like Wayland Games and have them shipped over to you. The actual cost of the cans isn't too bad and if you order a few at a time you can cut down on shipping.

[IronKobra]

Agreed!

 

The Army Painter is great for vehicles! I first tried mechrite red on a very old black tank with a big brush and it looked horrible! Streaky and un even. Painting tanks this way isn't ideal since the surfaces are so big and flat brush strokes will be so visible!

 

I got a can of the Dragon Red and sprayed that over a black undercoat on my new Baal Pred and it looks fantastic, it's actually very close to mechrite in its tone :rolleyes:

 

The other way to go it if you can't find it anywhere is to get hold of an airbrush/the GW spray gun. It's expensive initially but will save money in the long run. The spray gun isn't ideal as its control is naff, but for basecoating a big model like a tank it will do fine.

[Tro_lee boy]

Oops forgot to mention I'm a minor and can't buy spray paints online. :rolleyes:

[Enzephalon]

Oops forgot to mention I'm a minor and can't buy spray paints online. B)

Let your parents buy them. What's the big issue?

[Tro_lee boy]

Not a big problem just saying buying spray paint online is a little harder for me.

[ulllyssies0110]

As cash is a problem for you I suggest a 3-1 paint water mix. Keep you're brushes damp this should help w/ you're streaking issue and don't over load you're brush w/ paint

[Red Fury]

Here in the States we have a retailer that sells cheap Chinese tools, called Harbor Freight. You may have a store similar nearby that will sell you an airbrush or GW spraygun equivilent for about $8 usd. Heck, I'd imagine it should be even cheaper considering your proximity to the source, doubtful though ;)

 

Like this: http://www.harborfreight.com/catalogsearch..._CategoryExpand

 

Nothing they sell is going to get you detailed results, but plenty good enough for basecoats, especially on tanks. The more expensive problem you'll have is the air supply. Hopefully your dad already has a compressor in the garage, or you can buy a cheap airbrush compressor, canned air, or even the refillable tanks or inner tubes work on the cheap.

 

For the short run though, a can of Army Painter will do nicely and is pretty failsafe too, even if for 25 bucks.

[calgaryBA]

It's a pretty simple solution if you can't buy spray cans. Don't buy cheap and crappy brushes!

 

I've done all my tanks and SR's with a brush, and they look fantastic. Everybody takes a closer look, or asks if I sprayed them.

 

Now that i think about it, I do spray on the white base before i start painting the reds.

[The Crimson Cartel]

You would also be surprised what plain red spray paint will do when applied properly. I've used a direct to plastic candy red that should be available at any hardware store. And its usually less than 8 bucks a can. It usually comes out gloss or semi gloss, but matte varnish takes care of that. Quick ,cheap,effective .

 

-CC

[AustonT]

An airbrush even a cheap one is worth investing in, maybe not today or even soon but it's a good idea. In the US Sears sells a 2 gal pancake compressor for 70 USD and Hobby Lobby Sells Iwata HP-CS kits with a filter and hose for 140 USD. for 210 USD which is what 10% of the cost most of us sink into an army? It's totally worth it. There are cheaper, and even better ways to set up an airbrush too. But tanks are a breeze, hard colors like white and yellow can get smooth clean coats. I bought my set in response to GWs canceling the Blood Red spray...which if you hold it next to the paint pot sure isn't the same color.

+1 for hardware store red, it works great as a base coat.