Panel line washes and accents etc etc

[Awins]

Guys, I've now watched an awful lot of YouTube videos regarding these products. I've also tried several too.
I have come to the conclusion that in my opinion all these products are simply a very diluted down paint. I've can achieve the same effects with basically any model paint roughly diluted 90/10 or 80/20

Am I missing something with the proprietary banded products?

 

[stona]

Am I missing something with the proprietary banded products?

Nope. There are a lot of 'branded products' that can easily and cheaply be replicated from materials that most modellers have in their cupboards. That doesn't make the branded stuff bad, in fact it can be very useful and certainly convenient. I hardly use them at all, I have some of Flory's washes and that's about it. On the other hand I have a draw full of oil paints, pastels, silver pencils etc. which is much more fun
Cheers
Steve

 

[dubster72]

What Steve said!

 

[eddiesolo]

I have a few 'off the shelve products' but as Steve points out, mainly use thinned oil paints, pastels, pencils, pens, fag ash you name it all are useful and cheaper.

 

[BarryW]

Steve is spot on, excellent results can be obtained from just paint and pastels, but the branded products do take a lot of the work out of it for you and can provide some subtle differences.

I would suggest that if you are using acrylic paint/varnish then you are better off using oil based washes and weathering effects or visa versa.

Some effects such as panel line washes are best applied over a gloss coat, others such as pigment over a matt coat.

Last night I was working on the weathering for my F4U Birdcage (hopefully I will post it later this week when complete)

I used AKI weathering products:

Panel wash for grey/green aircraft (the F4U is blue/grey-blue
Dark Brown wash (inside and some outside streaking and effects)
Dust effects wash
European Earth pigment (to enhance the dust effects working with the wash as well)
Dark Earth pigment
Kerosene Leaks
Oil Leaks
Smoke pigment

I have also used the Ushi Chrome powder and some MIG Oil Brushers, Blue and Basic Flesh (latter for some paint wear to show the pink primer while the former was to show some tonal variation in worn areas)

Using these also helps getting some depth and texture in the appearance. Some, like the panel line and basic washes plus some pigments were used before the final matt coat. After the matt coat I used some pigments (for an enhanced dusty appearance) and the metal powder to get a metallic sheen in worn places, plus the kerosene and oil washes to make sure there was the right 'sheen' on spills and leaks. The latter are particularly good as these two washes really do look like oil spills or kerosene leaks which is not just about colour.

The Corsair I am building was quite a tired and well worn aircraft so it gives me plenty of weathering scope.

The best thing to do is try out different things and experiment to see what suits you best. You do nto have to spend a fortune and you can get good results with just oil paint and pastil chalks.

 

[stona]

Barry makes a good point about fuel and oil spills. The staining from fuel or oil over flows is quite easy to accomplish, but for larger spills getting an oily sheen is quite tricky. It's a good example of where a ready made product that does the job for you may be the best and easiest option.
Cheers
Steve

 

[Ian M]

I use oil paint for the most washes but have a few Vallejo ready washes and powder pigments.
I like the sound of the oil and kerosene ones though. It could save me a lot of playing with oil paint to get the right effect.

 

[Richy C]

I`m getting into aircraft lately so quite inexperienced with panel lines , but do like the clay based washes ie flory or ultimate washes which I find very forgiving , if your not happy with an area even if its dry you just wipe it off with a damp tissue and go again with no blemishes or staining to the paint work .

for engine and oil stains I do like the Mig products but have used the watered down paint method before , also got various Mig pigments Vallejo washes etc , but again have thinned down paints and got similar results .

I`m in both camps if I`ve got it I will use it if not I make do and mix something up.

Richy

 

[colin m]

It is actually amazing what you can buy, if you want to, these days. I actually find the selection a bit bewildering, but sometimes think I might be missing out on some amazing trick.