Question?

[ellis995]

Hi guy's

how would i get the blotches ( stippling ) effect on a model fw 190 with paint brushes?

as i am thinking of getting a fw190 ( my favorite German plane of ww2 )

Keith

[Thorlifter]

You could use a brush that doesn't have too much paint loaded on it (dry brush) and just poke at it. If it doesn't give you the desired affect, load a little more paint on the brush until it looks the way you want it to.

[Airframes]

It would depend on the scale, but I'm guessing you won't be going smaller than 1/48th Keith.
You can do a mottle quite siccessfully by using cotton buds. Touch only the tip into the paint, then squeegee most of the paint off onto a piece of tissue or similar - don't squeeze the cooton bud, just stipple it onto the tissue. Then, lightly dab the tip against the mosel, building up the pattern. Try this on a peiece of scrap first, so that you can get used to how much paint is laid down, and how to get the best effect.
Once the mottle has dried, if you want to 'soften' it, you can very lightly dry-brush over the top with the base colour, to diffuse the appearance slightly.
It takes a bit of parctice, but it works, and, until you've had a lot of practice and experience of hand-painting a mottle, it's an easier and better way to achieve an acceptable result.
Somewhere here, there's pics of 1/48th and 1/32nd Bf109E's of mine done this way, I think in '30 Years of Airframes' Models'.

[ellis995]

Thanks Thorlifter and terry

i was thinking of chopping down a old paint brush to see if that would work

[Njaco]

In leu of an airbrush I have done what Terry said - the key is barely any paint on the brush. You may have to continue loading the brush with paint and then wiping it off to get the right look. It can be time consuming.

Another trick I use are spray cans. Usually I get a piece of cardboard and cut various holes in in - not together but spaced far apart (you don't want multiple holes in one area). Spray through the hole onto the model. PRACTICE first on something like newspaper using the spray through the hole. You may have to vary the distance from the model. DON'T spray immediate at the hole - usually about 6 -10 inches away works for me. remember the size of the hole will dictate the size of the mottle - a small hole will give you a larger mottle. Be careful and PRACTICE first until you are comfortable. Its tricky but can be done.

[ellis995]

Thanks Njaco

You guy's are good i never had so much feed back about things before

[Airframes]

That's what it's all about Keith, helping each other. Never be afraid to ask mate.

[Njaco]

And I'll tell ya, ellis, some of the help I've had on here has been better than all the 30 years of reading model magazines. For some reason, when explained, its crystal clear. Love it!

[109ROAMING]

The mottling on your Me-410 is perfectly done Chris -man I hope I can get that good oneday

[Njaco]

Thanks. That was done exactly as I described. Who needs an airbrush?!!

[Sweb]

Originally Posted by Njaco

Thanks. That was done exactly as I described. Who needs an airbrush?!!

You do, though I suspect you'd use it with a piece of card stock riddled with little holes. That technique is a good one. Using a piece of card stock with a wavy and/or straight edge to reproduce the soft line demarkation between colors is another one I used as well before I bought an airbrush. It wasn't that I needed an airbrush to paint, mind you, it was just that every time I started to spray the paint my nose began to itch. Now I can scratch it. I've got an extra Paasche 3-in-1 airbrush complete with air can fitting and hose. I'm using an Iwata exclusively these days. I should send the Paasche to you to borrow just to see how dangerous, er, outstanding you become.

[Airframes]

That's a very nice offer Joe. I think Chris would suddenly become unstoppable with an airbrush.