Sorry for the late reply! It is best to put some sort of clear coat between your paint and weathering. It helps protect what you have done as well as it does make application of weathering a bit easier to apply. Typically, I go with a semi gloss but you can use flat or gloss. If there is anything too shiny after you're done, you can dust a light coat of flat over the washes/filters. Try and add dry pigments after the clear coats of any kind as they will darken and not look quite like what you might have been looking for with regards to a finish. Pigment fixers work great to secure heavy pigments and will not change the dry look after the fixer dries. I have also uses a couple drops of clear flat mixed with airbrush thinner and pigments and will give you a dry dusty look....but best to has some fun and experiment beforehand.

I know. Bloody awful racket...

Thank you David.

But with shit 'music'

Спасибо, мой друг! Позвольте мне извиниться за мой "русский язык", поскольку мне нужен переводчик Google, чтобы это произошло! лол Когда дело доходит до моделирования, есть много способов завершить проекты. Попытка подобрать и точный цвет для определенного времени, места и если машина пережила тяжелые бои или погодные условия - это небольшой список вариантов, которые необходимо сделать моделисту. Мне нравится использовать тени и блики, чтобы придать визуальную форму износу или возрасту. Хотя это не всегда абсолютно точно, это может вызвать некоторое визуальное возбуждение .... LOL

Sorry for the late reply...it has been a busy few days! Typically, some sort of clear coat should be applied before the weathering process. In this case, yes, I did use Vallejo's Satin Varnish. I have used Matt as well. I do not use Gloss too often as it gives a shine I have to eliminate somewhere along the line....but you can use that as well. But, any clear coat will work...it is just a barrier to protect your work.

Oh, I am confident you can do it!! Shading, whether it is pre or post, modulation, black bashing, black and white or any combination, is actually a simple process when you think in terms of layers. I do a lot of pre shading with different primers followed with a few lightly built up coat of my base color. This is more of a pre-shading process. the dark and light tones show through the translucent lighter top coats. IDF is an amazing subject to pay with when it comes to shading. Al of their equipment gets heavily used and their climates range from snow/cold to blazing desert sun and sand. If you tend to paint a base color and shade and/or highlight after...like with modulation or straight panel fading, the process is somewhat similar...in that the base color is more to your darker range and lightly layer the fading using either lighter color tones or as I do, where I add a drop or two of off white/antique white to the base color. I think about 40 to 50% and turn the pressure down so it will give me more control and eliminate over spray. Lightly dust on the lighter colors in the center area of the panels...avoid lightening the panel lines and structure edges.....as you work, you will see areas (typically the ones the see the sun...tops of side panels and flat horizontal panels.) you want to lighten more. Modulation is more of a directional light trick in that the points of highlighting come in basically one direction...lets say 45 degrees up from the nose of the vehicle. Using a card (like in the video) to prevent spraying on adjacent panels the light contrast is added to the direction of the light. I know Mig Jimenez, Rick Lawler and Iain Hamilton have some great examples on how this technique is done. It may look strange once you done painting, but filters, washes and effects are designed to tone down the contrasts. Find and old model and use it as a test bed...prime, paint and have fun. If you screw up...prime again and have at it! I don't even strip the test models...LOL Just keep adding more layers!! LOL I paint very lightly, so the buildup is very small at best. In fact, I use a Merkava turret for some of it...I think I have painted it around 45 to 50 times.

While I use a variety of airbrushes with different sized needles, for the most part, the most used size is 0.2mm.....which is installed in the Badger Krome airbrush I used in this video.

Hello, my friend! When it comes to mixing ratios, there is no exact science to making washes. 50/50 is the best place to start...so mixing equal parts of acrylic paint to water gives a mid range wash. To break some of the surface tension of the paint, I will add a drop or two of airbrush thinner (or cleaner) to the mix. The thinner the mix, sometimes the easier it is to control the results. If the mix it too thick and it is a dark color, you may over darken the area you are working on...this is why I will use lighter washes and build them up over a few applications. This is another reason why I like using acrylic washes, they dry very quickly allowing me to keep going. With oils and enamels...which are excellent choices for washes by the way...you do need them to cure a bit before going over them as any solvent thinner will cut right through what you put down. With acrylics...once they dry, they are more difficult to manipulate. Another reason I will tell people to start out using enamel washes...like AMMO for Mig as they are forgiving! Once the mechanics of applying the washes are down, using acrylics become a lot easier.

Hi Bento! I appreciate you giving the vid a watch....and the kind words on the painting. As for the music...I would apologize for it, but it was just some tunes that were free to use when I made the video a number of years ago.

@@5150TRM ok I understand. I just prefer no music, just the speech or if with music, something light that does not disturb the attention

Who cares

Sorry...none of the tanks are for sale. They are all currently exhibits in the American Heritage Museum in Stow, Massachusetts.

@@5150TRM alright thank you!

That you for your service, brother!!! Ok...first things first: I always tell people it is best to add some sort of clear coat between your finished paint work and any weathering. It helps protect the work you have done. I do not always do this...LOL (personally), but a quick semi gloss coat will do just fine. It helps protect, as I mentioned...and it also allows a little ease in manipulating the weathering effects when applying. Okay...second part! LOL I am not sure if you trolled my YT page, the latest videos on there is some quick videos of some work(FUN) restoring some 1:1 tanks with USABOT (United States Brotherhood Of Tankers) USABOT is made up of Tankers and Wrenches, as well as some associate members, spread out over 13 Bn's in the US. If you watch a couple of the videos...you will understand the comradery, fun and rewarding experiences...let me know if you ight be interested in joining....if you're not a member already!! I am not sure where you're located...but you can join at USABOT.com and I can help track down a Bn and CO near you!!

@@5150TRM Thank you for the info, much appreciated. I'm looking for my next build. Hopefully I can manage, the biggest issue thus far is washing and weathering. But, I'm sure it is normal for a newbie such as myself. Again, thank you.

You're welcome. Good luck on finding the next build! There are some amazing models out there now...Tamiya, Rye Field Models...TAKOM, to mention 3. It all comes down to just doing it. The more you do, the easier it gets. If you run into an issues, or have any questions, feel free to drop me a note...I will help out where I can.

Hi Doc...thank you. If, I recall correctly...LOL..as this was a few years ago, 054 was about 1/4 shade off from one of the other colors in the set...and personally, I did not see a need to use it as there was very little difference in contrast...especially in the grey tones. Since color is so subjective, someone may feel that color is more of a contrast or better suited for the application. Most of what I do, personally, is done by eye and not following numbering systems like with set like these or with FS, RLM, RAL, etc. After writing all of this...LOL...I simply left it out as I didn't see a need for that color at the time.

You're welcome. Glad to hear this helped some.

@@5150TRM Hey Todd, I got a problem here, when I trying to apply the stain vanish, my airbursh is unable to push the stain vaniah out. There only gas keep coming out but no stain vanish, i shaked it well before you use the vanish. What should I do?

@@Aaron-fl3fx, by "Stain Varnish"....do you mean "Satin Varnish"? Assuming you mean the Satin Varnish, I thin it one drop of thinner to every 3 or 4 drops of varnish. The only other thing that might cause only air to come out and not paint, could be there is some residue stuck in the tip. Try putting some water or thinner in the cup and spraying it. If it acts normally, then try to thin the varnish...add a drop or two of thinner to the cup first, then add the varnish....mix it up with a small paint brush or tooth pick.

@@5150TRM Thanks I will add some thinner, sorry wrong spelling.

No worries...I just wanted to make sure we were talking about the same product....LOL Best of luck...please let me know how you make out!

Hi John, Well...welcome back to the hobby my friend!! Sounds like you have a pile of goodies to play with too! LOL As for the finishing touches...my standard answer when asked about applying washes, is to protect the work you have done with some sort of clear coat. In addition, a clear coat will help you manipulate the washes (effects) easier since there is a clean smooth layer above the paint. With that said...sometime I forgo the clear coat. This depends on the model I suppose. But not to get too off track, yes, you should probably apply one. Personally I have not noticed a difference in the applications, between flat and semi gloss; however, semi gloss will give you a smoother finish to work over. After your washes, if you want a flat finish, I would take the Matt Varnish and thin it with Vallejo airbrush thinner about 50%...1:1 drop ratio. Apply this in light dusting coats further away from the surface than you paint. Typically I paint about 3 or 4 inches form the surface...I apply a flat coat like this anywhere from 8 to 10 inches away at about 15 to 20 psi. Light dusting....it will dry quickly, you can apply another coat in a minute or two and repeat as necessary. This should flatten out the surface nicely. Remember, when working with acrylic washes...premixed or if you make your own from the paint, try not to get too far ahead of yourself when working. Work smaller areas rather than try and flood coat the entire model. Acrylics, to me, can be the best product to work with when weathering, but the quick drying nature and the natural characteristics of acrylics to cure hard as nails can bite any of us in the butt...LOL While I advocate using acrylic washes (effects) there is a slight "learning curve" to application so as to not get yourself "painted into a corner"...so to speak. If you are using water, as I do in the video, to remove excess and the washes have sat a little too long and do not come off...try adding a 50/50 mix with the airbrush thinner to help break the cure. More heavily weathered vehicles (or wrecks) you can take some liberty and use full thinner to help if the mix does not work....but be careful not to excessively rub the area with thinner as it can sometimes work through a clear coat and paint...depending on the length of time you let the other layer cure. I have had some success...when "bad things happen"...like cured tide marks and such...where I will even use rubbing alcohol. But this is in extreme cases. On quick tip...and I am not trying to sway you from acrylics...or sell you on other products...but some of the enamel washes are excellent as well....if the smell does not bother you, as they are oil based and smell like paint thinner. The enamel washes are very forgiving for people just getting into the weathering process or for those who like to jump back and forth between acrylics and enamels...as one will not affect the other once one layer is dry. Just some food for thought. Once the mechanics are back up to speed, leaning back to acrylics will increase the color palette, drying time and the amount of different effect you have to choose from. Sorry if I rambbled on....LOL Let me know f you run into any issues and I will do what I can to help you through it! Cheers, T

Glad to know it helped....one more thing to make the hobby more enjoyable!!!

While I have not had to add retarder to the washes, yes, you can add some if you are finding that it is drying too fast. If you have any glaze medium, you can use that as well...that, I have used a lot when using and making washes.

Todd Michalak Thanks

You're never too old...or young, to get interest! I have been building scale models for a long, long time...and only started working on these 1:1 scale tanks a couple years ago. It is hard work some days....tiring and whatnot, but unbelievably rewarding!

@@5150TRM very cool, I got into machining and fabrication as a side hobby. It must be really rewarding to work on these amazing pieces of machinery. I can't wait to get down to the museum to check them out!

You will love it! We have been volunteering on the weekends as docents even with all the "work" related things we do from time to time. If you're local, and have the time, you can join in. There is a shop inside the museum...lathes...Bridgport and whathaveyou. Always something going on down there. The biggest payoff is getting to actually get all over and inside these things...perks of the volunteer! LOL We have been down there since the June before last...still does not get old seeing these things! Plus, there is more stuff coming.