M
m1ks
Guest
I have entered the scary world of Alcladding, (pause for dramatic effect)
Tried Alclad Chrome and stainless steel the other night for the first time on a pair of Fork stanchions for a model bike i'm building, experimented first on a part of the sprue, both parts i'd pre-painted using Humbrol black enamel, let dry over 48 hours and buffed gently.
The painting was surprisingly easy, letting the coats build up in mist layers, initially nothing seems to happen, (which is where I guess most are tempted to lay it on thicker), but I persisted having read much about the application and pointers from Graham too.
after about three thin coats you start to see the shine, it's quite magical.
I did a half / half panel in Humbrol Metalcote polished aluminium and Chrome and the backside in the stainless steel, all applied over gloss black.
After spraying I took of the filter mask to admire the end result and suddenly noticed the sparkling twinkly fairy glitter which was magically suspended all around me, soon thereafter I could see rainbows and all manner of pretty colours as I floated gently through the room watching the cartoon animals frolick and play around me.
After two days of recovering from a tremendous hangover style headache to write this I decided that keeping the mask on a little while after spraying may be beneficial.
:lala::grinball2:
So, a quick sum up for anyone still fancying a shot but a bit wary, have a bash, get some cellulose thinners for cleanup, make sure your brush has a teflon seal not rubber, use a mask and a well ventilated room and go and do it.
I used my cheap Chinese airbrush with 0.3mm nozzle, needle and tip, (which I stripped recently to discover it does have a teflon seal), and removed the tiny rubber 'O' ring from the screw in nozzle, (thanks for that tip Graham) and checked it still seals, (which it did, not all nozzles / brushes do though), in theory the 'O' ring shouldn't contact the paint / thinners but it may, at the worst case scenario you'll destroy a few pennies worth of 'O' ring.
I used 12PSI, (indicated on the dial of my mini compressor) and found it a little low, next time i'll use 15PSI and hopefully that should give me a bit more flexibility with paint flow at low openings.
So you don't need an expensive fancy brush, though i'm sure the Iwata's and such are a world apart.
Piccies of the Alcladded parts, unfortunately the images don't really get across how impressive this stuff is and cost wise, to be frank given the typically small quantity useage per project I think it's quite reasonable, (fair enough if you were alcladding an entire 1/24 aircraft it'd be a bit pricey).
Left=Gumbrol polished aluminium, buffed
Right= Alclad II Chrome
Alclad II Stainless Steel
Chrome reflection
Stainless Steel reflection
Fork Stanchions
I also chromed the interior of the headlight bowl too so the should look good once assembled.
Tried Alclad Chrome and stainless steel the other night for the first time on a pair of Fork stanchions for a model bike i'm building, experimented first on a part of the sprue, both parts i'd pre-painted using Humbrol black enamel, let dry over 48 hours and buffed gently.
The painting was surprisingly easy, letting the coats build up in mist layers, initially nothing seems to happen, (which is where I guess most are tempted to lay it on thicker), but I persisted having read much about the application and pointers from Graham too.
after about three thin coats you start to see the shine, it's quite magical.
I did a half / half panel in Humbrol Metalcote polished aluminium and Chrome and the backside in the stainless steel, all applied over gloss black.
After spraying I took of the filter mask to admire the end result and suddenly noticed the sparkling twinkly fairy glitter which was magically suspended all around me, soon thereafter I could see rainbows and all manner of pretty colours as I floated gently through the room watching the cartoon animals frolick and play around me.
After two days of recovering from a tremendous hangover style headache to write this I decided that keeping the mask on a little while after spraying may be beneficial.
:lala::grinball2:
So, a quick sum up for anyone still fancying a shot but a bit wary, have a bash, get some cellulose thinners for cleanup, make sure your brush has a teflon seal not rubber, use a mask and a well ventilated room and go and do it.
I used my cheap Chinese airbrush with 0.3mm nozzle, needle and tip, (which I stripped recently to discover it does have a teflon seal), and removed the tiny rubber 'O' ring from the screw in nozzle, (thanks for that tip Graham) and checked it still seals, (which it did, not all nozzles / brushes do though), in theory the 'O' ring shouldn't contact the paint / thinners but it may, at the worst case scenario you'll destroy a few pennies worth of 'O' ring.
I used 12PSI, (indicated on the dial of my mini compressor) and found it a little low, next time i'll use 15PSI and hopefully that should give me a bit more flexibility with paint flow at low openings.
So you don't need an expensive fancy brush, though i'm sure the Iwata's and such are a world apart.
Piccies of the Alcladded parts, unfortunately the images don't really get across how impressive this stuff is and cost wise, to be frank given the typically small quantity useage per project I think it's quite reasonable, (fair enough if you were alcladding an entire 1/24 aircraft it'd be a bit pricey).
Left=Gumbrol polished aluminium, buffed
Right= Alclad II Chrome
Alclad II Stainless Steel
Chrome reflection
Stainless Steel reflection
Fork Stanchions
I also chromed the interior of the headlight bowl too so the should look good once assembled.
