Grumman F4F-4

[Old Wombat]

 

[strobez]

Ok, so this build has taken a bit of a backseat (out of necessity) to the 1-week build G.91 I'm working against the deadline on.  As luck would have it, I needed to paint some parts on the Gina in aluminium, so he F4F-4 got back in the game for a bit.

I think she looks quite smart in gleaming metal... but she's a ways from done yet.

[kerick]

Now is the time for some yellow wings!

[Dizzyfugu]

The aluminum paint looks a bit strange in the picture? Are the metal pigments relatively coarse? It appears as if the surface has a kind of sand paper structure? Or is it just a trick of the pic/light/resolution? 

[strobez]

Good eye! The aluminium paint is Tamiya acrylic and it seems more coarse than some of the other gleaming options.  I've never tried any other paints, so I'm not sure though.  That being said, taking pictures late at night under the gleam of the desk lamp leaves weird shiny spots that tend to make the pics look a bit worse than real life.

Regardless, most of that aluminium will be covered up.  I'm going to try the hairspray chipping technique again.  This time though, after the aluminium, I gave it a coat of future that will be left to dry for a month while I'm travelling. Hopefully it'll work this time.

[NARSES2]

Knowing what you started with this is a terrific build

[DogfighterZen]

  Been missing out on this, it's looking pretty good!
I've been using only Tamiya acrylics, and i've had that happen to me. I used the XF-16 flat aluminium, same color, right?
I figured it was because i sprayed it too far away from the model and the paint particles started to dry before they reached the surface of the model. I did a few tests afterwards and the results were different but not as much as i first thought... XF-16 is flat aluminium so it shouldn't shine but i agree that the metal flakes are a bit too coarse. I have tried to buff it and you get it to shine but i think you have to own your polishing and buffing techniques much better than i own mine...

[NARSES2]

In the real world Aluminium exposed to the elements with no protective coat can quickly turn an almost grey colour with no hint of shine because of oxidation. But then of course it's protected against the same elements that caused the oxidation. I really can't speak for Aluminium alloys however.

[DogfighterZen]

In the real world Aluminium exposed to the elements with no protective coat can quickly turn an almost grey colour with no hint of shine because of oxidation. But then of course it's protected against the same elements that caused the oxidation. I really can't speak for Aluminium alloys however.

Yup, very true. From my experience, aluminium doesn't really shine unless it's polished. When i was more involved with bmx riding, in the 90s chrome finish and shiny bikes were the thing, so i once had a bunch of aluminium parts polished at the local metal workshop. Parts were the wheel hubs, stem, crank arms, sprocket, seat post clamp, brake calipers and levers. Even though the polishing was very well done, polished parts would not hold their shine for very long, like Chris said, oxidation took care of that... and i admit that my bike wasn't very clean most of the time, it was made to ride, not to spend the wole day cleaning it, so my bike was always very scratched and banged up from multiple crashes almost everyday, specially because of street riding, grinding ledges and handrails...

[Dizzyfugu]

Thank you for the feedback/background. I know Tamiya's Aluminum - I assume you applied it with an airbrush? Then I could understand the result well.

[DogfighterZen]

I've applied a few of Tamiya's metal colors with both the airbrush and hand brush and the only time i got a grainy finish was because of the paint probably being a bit too thick and being sprayed at a further distance from the model, didn't happen with the hand brush, but the paint on Strobez's model looks to me like it was sprayed on.
None of Tamiya's metal acrylics have a real mirror shine to them, not even the X-11 Silver, which is the closest to a shiny finish. I think that when i want to really achieve something like polished aluminium finish, i think i'll have a go at the AK metal paint range, seen some very good results with it and people say it's not as nasty as the Alclad paints are.

[NARSES2]

Being a brush painter I find the Humbrol enamel metalcote range very good for metallic finishes. Very limited range unfortunately but good 

Acrylic wise I've had some fair results with Games Workshop's range. Need to be thinned well but are ok

[PR19_Kit]

Acrylic wise I've had some fair results with Games Workshop's range. Need to be thinned well but are ok

What do you thin them with please Chris?

I have a few of their metallics too, and they paint on well (brush painted of course) but go thicker with time and I've not found anything that thins them and still retains the metallic sheen.

[strobez]

Yes, it was indeed the XF-16 Flat Aluminium acrylic. I've been experimenting with the thinning mix lately.  At first I tried what seems to be the generally recommended 2/3 paint 1/3 thinner ratio in the airbrush, but I've had a lot of trouble with jamming, splattering and sputtering, so I've been upping the thinner.  Now most of them are 1:1 ratios and I'm getting better painting results, but still struggling a bit.

The distance of the brush is an interesting question though.  I have a lot of trouble to adjust the line thickness as well, so I've been trying to vary the distance, speed and ratio to find out what I can work with.

It's still a real challenge.

[zenrat]

We never stop learning.

I have found that additional things that affect my paintjobs can include the phase of the moon, state of the tide and colour of my underpants.