Assistance Needed - Leman Russ Whitewash Snow Camo

[IVIilitarus]

I am currently painting a Leman Russ in a snow camouflage pattern. I want to achieve the look of badly applied whitewash camouflage in the style of WWII era fighting vehicles. The whitewash was lime and water slopped onto a tank that stained the surface more-or-less white and was used when paint was unavailable. It was low quality and wore off somewhat quickly, which was both a good and bad thing. It gave tanks a fairly distinct look - uneven, ugly white paint, worn in many places and colours shining through underneath.

 

I was painting my Leman Russ Vanquisher in these using a technique I found online which was to paint it in factory colours of choice, then literally wash it in in white - use a thinned white paint and apply many layers to it to allow some of the factory colours to shine through, but retain the messy, slightly translucent white look. As I paint, I find I have a problem where the thin, white wash flows and dries in droplets. While it certainly looks like it was haphazardly applied, my Leman Russ currently looks like a model tank that was badly painted, rather than a war-worn, white-washed tank.

 

http://imgur.com/a/BodGq#0

 

This link shows the kind of look I am aiming for. I prefer the style shown in the first picture, where the underside paint is shining through: http://cs.finescale.com/fsm/tools_techniques_and_reference_materials/f/18/t/142436.aspx

 

The above album shows photos of my current progress. I want to know how to lose the flowing drops of paint effect.

 

Alternately I also require feedback on the tank itself - does the current progress reflect the look I am looking for in your opinion? Is touching up the white paint even that necessary?

 

Additionally, I would also like tips on weathering and painting the tank's name onto the turret side. I would like tips, tutorials or resources on weathering, adding mud to tracks, creating mud and paint scratches on the tank. I also want to paint the tank's name onto the turret side. Normally I'd paint that in white, but that's impossible with a white colour scheme. What other colours would work for that and not clash with the tank or stand out too much?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Edit: I unfortunately do not have access to an airbrush

 

EDIT 2. FOR FUTURE PEOPLE WHO MIGHT READ THIS FROM GOOGLING LEMAN RUSS AND SNOW CAMO AND FOUND THIS PAGE, HELLO PEOPLE OF THE FUTURE. YOUR SEARCH WAS NOT IN VAIN.

 

The method I used to paint this tank and get it to the state you see a few posts down was pretty simple.

 

1. Basecoat in a very dark grey

2. Make a near-wash consistency of white paint by thinning it and painting it onto everything that calls for white camo. Apply a not insignificant number of layers of this until you have a consistency you like and the amount of the under-armour you want shines through.

3. Treads, guns, commander, accessories in the colours of your choice.

4. Highlights, added rust effects around nuts and rivets and edges with Agrax Earthshade wash. Drybrush with Leadbelcher.

5. More layers of white to cover up the rust and drybrush to make it look a bit more subtle.

6. Realise the white looks screwed up and messy and sloppy and panic.

7. Go to Bolter and Chainsword. Receive advice.

8. Use a simple detail brush to paint un-thinned white straight onto the blemished and splotchy areas. This made the tank significantly whiter, but cleaned up the white camo.

9. Use basic sponge weathering technique with household sponge and Leadbelcher to add paint chip effects around tank on and on edges.

10. Admire results. Thank people.

 

The method I used above did not produce an effect like WWII tanks where the factory paint was shining through the extremely messy white a lot. Instead, it produced a crisp, white camouflage that was being worn and chipped away a fair but, but was still distinctly white camouflage. This is a more balanced approach and I feel it looks perfectly fine.

[hendrik]

this topic can be off relevence to your army! I myself love the whitewash as well, but have not risked my hand at it (yet?) on my WWII german inspired colour sheme.

http://www.militarymodelling.com/forums/postings.asp?th=36184

to save your mode, how about sponging soem of the underlying colours on it? add weathering such as oilstreaks and than touch up again with some white sponging?

 

alternatively, you could try to remove the paint, and start all over again,athough i think some simple sponging could make it look a lot better!

[Father Mehman]

Hendrik ninja'd me . I'd sponge some factory paint back on the white and then sponge some watered down white over the newly sponged factory paint. That way is doesn't look like you've applied green (or whatever colour) over the white. I do hope that made sense.

On to the topic of mud, to which I know a few things about. Mix some PVA glue (the white kind), fine sand or fine ballast, and your desired choice of dark brown paint together. Apply, with an old brush, to the front of the tracks, the side of the tracks, about a 1/4 of the way up on the side of the track wheels, the back of the tracks, around the underside of the armour where the track disappears into, and also around the underside of where the tracks come out from under the armour. For added realism, put some of your mixture on the front of the tank going under the chassis and also put some on the rear of the tank.

Now that the mixture has been applied, paint some gloss varnish onto all of the mud. You heard me. Glop that stuff on there! When that is complete, get a drybrush and drybrush a lighter brown than you used for the mud onto the glossy mud. Add another layer of even lighter brown onto the mud if you so desire. That's it. It'll look great and people won't want to pick it up. Oh, seal it all together if you wish with some kind of sealant. The beauty of this mixture is that you don't really need to seal it.

For paint scratches, it's all about that sponge. Apply a dirty coloured grey (Stormvermin Fur from the Citadel range or the like) with a sponge and then apply a darker steel (Leadbelcher, again, from the Citadel range or whatever you prefer) over that still using a sponge. Keep a light hand whilst doing this because a little goes a long way.

I would use black paint for the name on the tank and then sponge some watered down white paint over it.

Hope that helps

[hendrik]

I just did some experimenting on a spare tank for you, and you should be able to remove a lot of the white paint by using isopropylalcohol (relatively inexpensive, and widely available!). it'll leave soem of the white remaining, which is no problem since that's the looks you're after anyway... will post some pics ASAP!

[hendrik]

alreayd, so here's my results of my little experiment for you:

Required materials:

-brush/sponge

-white/grey paint

-isopropylalcohol

-distilled water, although normal tap water should work fine

-a well ventilated room (IPA fumes)

-safety gloves, though you can do without them, it's my job as a chemist to refer to the dangers of working with solvents without proper safety measures

Now the actuall work itself:

first it involved sponging the standard coloured painted tank with a mixture of grey and white paint (just to dirty up the white a bit). this was allowed to dry.

I then took my 50/50 Isopropylacohol/distilled water mixture (everyone should have this, it's great to clean your laptops/cellphone/TV screen!) and applied this to a sponge/Qtip and started rubbing the white paint off. instant whitewash!

here are some pictures:

dirtied up white version (pre IPA treatment, used my fingertips to streak out the white paint as it'll create a more even, natural spread imo, while other parts were just sponged white (such as the barrel)

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb281/amorfatipictures/20150627_205033_zps39jc5jsl.jpg

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb281/amorfatipictures/20150627_205039_zpsugxieglk.jpg

After IPA treatment with IPA on Qtips

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb281/amorfatipictures/20150627_210659_zpsmbdav5kh.jpg

this side even became a bit too clean when i started using IPA on the sponge. i think using Qtips gave the best results

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb281/amorfatipictures/20150627_210639_zpsodmpkmpy.jpg

and a short video of the IPA treatment itself. neglect my comments (poor audio)

http://vid210.photobucket.com/albums/bb281/amorfatipictures/20150627_205456_zpsqr8dpdag.mp4

[Ulrik_Ironfist]

I have achieved a similar effect by a drybrush of a different color over the edges. 

 

[IVIilitarus]

Thanks to everyone who replied! I'll definitely be trying the suggested mud effect and sponging. Thanks a lot, to henrik for replying so quickly with so many details. I've never had such a comprehensive response that quickly!

[hendrik]

to be honest it's something i've been musing over a while, your question just gave me an excuse to try it ;) since your model has an alternate colour sheme underneath all the white the isopropylalcohol should work fine for your model, just don't rush it and take your time, especially if you've given it multiple coats.

The best part about my tutorial is actually not the paint removal, but the slightly more usefull application of 10/90 -50/50 IPA/water mixtures, which are excellent to remove any greasy fingerprints from your cellphone screen, latop,tv screen etc and is harmless to the device. really, in my 12 years of chemistry this has been THE most usefull thing i've learned about chemicals :p

[IVIilitarus]

http://i.imgur.com/mu0KkHM.jpg

 

http://i.imgur.com/bWFhD1W.jpg

 

Work continues and thanks to your feedback, I've achieved this. I am actually quite proud. Thank you all for your assistance! It's not the faded-paint-shining-through effect I was aiming for, but I love this just as much and it looks like a solid style I can achieve with brush alone.

[Ulrik_Ironfist]

How did you do it? The Isopropyl alcohol trick?

[vampyrerodent]

That looks sufficiently cold!

 

V

[hendrik]

I think its sponged on black and greys,as IPA would remove more of the paint. It's looking great!now please,if you plan to add snow,don't overdo it,as the vehicle is more likely to look muddy,than completely covered in mud...

[WarriorFish]

That was a quick turn around, great work it looks very nice :tu:

[IVIilitarus]

How did you do it? The Isopropyl alcohol trick?

It was late here and I didn't feel like driving around tomorrow digging up alcohol, so I experimented a bit. What I ended up doing was simply painting over the mistakes and streaks and blemishes with white on a brush as I normally would. No thinning of the white paint, either. Basically, this was not the original intention of getting a look where the factory paint was shining through the white and I ended up with what looks like crisp, white camouflage that's been chipped and eroded slightly. They're both good, but different looks. I painted all the blemishes over in white and then added a sponge chipping effect in leadbelcher and that's what you see there. Not thinning the white was actually pretty good, because it gives the paint a slightly caked, chalky look that would be consistent with sloppily applied camo.

That looks sufficiently cold!

V

Yep. Not the original intent, but I'm as happy with this, if not happier, so a win win!

I think its sponged on black and greys,as IPA would remove more of the paint. It's looking great!now please,if you plan to add snow,don't overdo it,as the vehicle is more likely to look muddy,than completely covered in mud...

Yep, you're right. IPA to strip away paint would have worked for the original look, but I felt it was a tiny bit risky. If I messed up some more.

That was a quick turn around, great work it looks very nice

Thanks!

[hendrik]

get some IPA anyway (to clean the laptop etc), and test in on a piece of palsticard you've painted up, should you want to go for a less wintered look (note that IPA does not dammage your plastic if that's what your worried about. in the worst case scenario you scrape off all paint in a single area and have to touch it up a bit. on your following vehicles, are you planning on using decals? as those can really help to make a tank look even better!

[IVIilitarus]

I plan on applying decals to it once my varnish arrives in future. I'll probably grab some IPA at some point, just as a useful household product, thanks.

[elmo]

An often used method is hairspray. Basically, once the factory finish is done, spray with hairspray then apply the whitewash over the top. Once dry use a damp cloth to rub off patches.

 

You can find "how to" with an internet search.

 

 

Yours looks good though :)