Handpainting MG Kits: Tips Please

[dean_zala]

Hi guys!

 I've finished prebuilding my 1/100  MG Strike and I'm all set to painting it. but then, I have a little problem, I don't have an airbrush. I use to handpaint my 1/144 kits,
buI'm not so sure if tha same idea of painting an HG model also works for an MG model.

So again. i'm asking you guys for any advice, tips or comments. thanks


P.S. The model I'm working on right now is called "PROJECT: HOKAGE STRIKE"
( I was inspired by the Shinodi Strike )

[zerobxu]

I'm not sure what your question is here. Are you asking if you can hand-paint MG's and achieve good results? The answer is "yes".

[dean_zala]

Thanks zerobxu!

 Just 1 more queation, how? Someone told me to add thinner in a 60:40 ratio with the paint. :

[zerobxu]

It honestly seems to vary from paint bottle to paint bottle. I find myself using up different ratios anywhere from 50:50 to 30:70. You want it to hit the consistency of somewhere around milk. When you brush it on, you'll know if you've got the right ratio on or not. If you have too much thinner, it's going to run and you're going to see the plastic shining through the paint. If you don't have enough thinner, it's going to "clump" on the model in teeny-tiny chunks.

Most importantly, I'm always adding more thinner as I'm painting. If I'm working on a large area--or using a lot of paint on a number of parts--I'll add another drop or two of thinner/alcohol every two minutes or so to keep the consistency right.

My personal weapons of choice for hand painting are Tamiya acrylics and 91% alcohol as a thinner.

[FichtenFoo]

Yeah, white Tamiya is especially thick while red is especially thin. Also painting red Tamiya over anything other than red or white is not an easy task. The undercoat always shows through.

[tetsujin]

My usual rule of thumb about thinning paint for handbrushing is that the brush, when you're applying paint with it, should glide quite smoothly.  If it offers any significant resistance then your paint is too thick.

Also, don't thin your paints in the bottle - don't know if you do that but it's bad for the longevity of the paint.  Get a separate container, pour out and thin what you need for a particular session.

Windex is another option for thinning Tamiya - better suited to hand-brushing than alcohol IMO.  It doesn't evaporate as quickly, it helps the paint to flow more smoothly, and it's not going to attack your lower layers of paint.

Also, use a primer, if you're able.  As Fichtenmayer says, certain colors won't seal out their background color well, so primer is useful there - and it also helps adhesion of course.

---GEC

[dean_zala]

Thanks and thank even more!

I'll post it once i'm finished! thanks