Starship Modeler Discussion Forums

Tamiya's tape is pretty sticky, but it HAS to for a clean edge and on bulged ground. However, in your case you might have simply pulled a certain acrylic layer off, or the clear coat was not thoroughly dry, so that the masking tape's sticky surface (which is not flat) imprinted itself into the varn...

Hello, I have to ask the experts for help. I’m building two ERTL Naboo N-1s and airbrushed the yellow base coat on (mix of Tamiya acrylics over slightly polished Tamiya Fine Surface Primer). My plan was to apply a good shiny clear coat of my trusted Vallejo (acrylic) gloss varnish from the spray can...

I looked online about Tamiya acrylics and the lacquer thinner, and there were some people who also used the Mr. Color Leveling Thinner with similar effect. If I could find it around, I'd give it a shot, too. But for now, the Tamiya stuff will be my go-to! Just a month ago, I used Mr. Leveling Thinn...

Thanks for the advice, I did already search for a regulator some weeks ago but find it not so easy to find a good one with integrated manometer and ideally, at a decent price too. I first have to find out what kind of thread my compressor has... I´ not that familiar with threads in inches. This won´...

Hi all you airbrush experts :D , I need your help. I´ve used a Badger 360 for years and was mostly happy with it, but on the last model I reached a limit where I would have liked to paint thinner lines but couldn´ do so. So the question is, would a different airbrush help or is the Badger 360 good f...

Yes it´s not so easy for me to get either, I first ordered it from the German online shop http://www.fantasy-in.de , but found it to be slightly cheaper here: http://www.modellbau-universe.de/produkt;vallejo-premium-varnish-spray-matte-400ml;VAL~VA28531;66;1;1;1.htm A local model shop also carries V...

I can just advise you NOT to use the Revell stuff. I used to use it years ago, but after handling my models just a few times the coat started to get slightly sticky and dirty, with dirt accumulating in corners, on edges and panel lines. I´ll never use that again. I cannot say anything about Humbrol ...

Kylwell wrote:It's not tedious, this is tedious.

Not more tedious than this. (Masking on the underside still not finished... )


Thanks for all your suggestions, that blue tac method seems interesting, I´ll have to look if I can find it somewhere or something similar.

Hi, I want to paint a SW model in the same colors as the typical Su-27 camouflage scheme, light grey, light blue and medium blue. I don´t want to just paint it on freehand with the airbrush because the color patches seem to have defined edges, not being continuous transitions from one color to anoth...

Hi everyone, I´m rebuilding/modifying sections of the Burns/Broz 1/24 B-Wing kit and would need some photo etch parts, made from drawings (haven´t done the drawings yet). It´s the large vents on each side of the engine housings, which are too simplified and soft on the kit for my taste. Is there any...

Thanks a lot for your replies. As for Dymo, I need to know what the tape itself looks like, so i can find a substitute for it. My previous attempts failed miserably, with too low adhesion, so the blade pushed away the tape, or the tape was not thick enough, so the scribing tool ran over the edge of ...

Hi all, I´m in search for a grooved, bendable hose for the neck of my RoG At-At. It must have an outer diameter of 3cm, and needs to be bendable as I´m building my At-At in fallen down position, an in this position the neck is bent. I know the Blue Moon At-At came with such a hose, maybe a 3cm hose ...

Thanks for the comments, really helpful! So what do you think of this didea, I might try Aves then...

Hello all, I´ve wondered for quite some time now if there is a putty that can be scribed on. I want to fill up the old scribing of my first scratchbuild and rescribe all the lines as the old ones are about 2 times wider and deeper than they should be. :oops: So far I`ve used Revell and Italeri putty...

Thanks for the replies. :) My brother is using Tamiya acrylics. I already assumed the previous paint layers might not be cured sufficiently, though he waited a week between each coat. :? Maybe the airbrush is to be blamed, as it´s a very basic Revell airbrush. For some reason he wants to use this on...

Hi everyone, my brother is building a 1/24 Tamiya Porsche 911 GT2 kit and is becoming more and more frustrated as he can´t manage to achieve a satisfying paint job on the car´s body, while the rest of the car is pretty much finished. Some dark dots came out of the airbrush while spraying the clear c...

Thanks, I´ll try Mr. Top Coat on my next model. I just ordered the Vallejo stuff. The worst thing to happen is a ruined model, right?

I found a shop in Germany (next to my country - Austria) which carries all the Vallejo products, so I won´t have any import taxes to pay. I´ll try their spray can as well. I guess I´ll also better use 192 Model Color, because both Model Color and Model Air contain 17ml, so by thinning, I´ll get more...

I decided to get the Vallejo varnish, I read it´s made for table top games, so I guess it´s made for models that get a lot of handling. Could somebody please tell me the differences between the various products I´ve linked to above? Is "Vallejo Model Air" the same as "Vallejo Model Co...

Thanks for all the replies. I think I will try misting my models with Micro Flat first. Should this again produce a shiny finish, could someone tell me the differences between the following Vallejo products? Vallejo Model Color: 192 Matte Varnish Vallejo Model Air: 059 Matte Varnish Vallejo Premium ...

Thanks everybody for your replies! That´s really helpful. Another spray can that I like, and what gives me consistent matte finishes, the best IMO, is Gunze Mr. Top Coat Flat (not to be confused with Mr Super Clear). It's also acrylic based, so it won't harm decals. I used it on my own Y that's in t...

Hey all you extremely helpful people :D , I need a tough flat clear coat. I´ve got 3 bottles of Microscale Micro Flat, but it´s not really flat once applied to a surface, more of a semi-gloss. I´ve read though that it will protect models for 20 years, so I used it under and on top of the decals and ...

I just used Microscale´s Micro Set for the yellow decals on my FM Ys, and the stuff really smells like vinegar. I first applied the fluid under the decal, which prevented it from setting and ruined the decal. Then I used it only on top, which worked quite well but I had to remove it shortly after ap...

Will a microscale gloss clear coat work as well?

Hey everyone, I´ve got the following problem: I painted my 3 FM Y-Wings with Tamiya acrylic paint on acrylic primer, and next will follow a glossy clear coat to seal everything and prepare the cockpit section for the decals (I´ll only use the yellow decals on the head, everything else is paint). W...

Thanks for the help everyone!

Hi guys, I´m sure someone´s asked this before but my search didn´t show any useful results. What can I use to thin Mr. Surfacer? From what i´ve read there´s Mr. Thinner or something like that, but can I use alcohol or lacquer thinner? Is this stuff alcohol based? Many thanks in advance for an a...

Wow thanks guys! You´re great. That´s a huge load of advice! Gotta try it out soon.

Hi, could anyone please explain to me how wet sanding works and why it is done? Will it produce smoother surfaces? Do I simply apply water to the surface I want to sand? And why does it give different results? Thanks for any help! :) (P.S.: I think someone mentioned it regarding the surface preps he...

Have you seen this thread? I don´t know if it is helpful to you but have a look.