Anyone have any tips on how to weather a rally car?

[dantewallace]

I have searched high and low for tutorials or right ups on this and found nothing. I would like to learn methods of applying realistic mud and dirt along with suggested colors.

[randx0]

weathering is a process that uses many different methods there's airbrushing, chalks , even just adjusting the sheen of your paint. Most is trial and error and practicing . I'm sure weathering has been covered somewhere on this board several times. research is your best friend when weathering a rally car you want to find pictures of the specific car so you can see where the dirt ends up its always different some cars end up with dirt just behind the wheels some have dirt all the way back up to the belt line.use google to search for tips instead of the search feature here.

[Pete J.]

Pictures of the real deal! First of all, rally cars run in everything from dust and dirt to mud, snow and all combinations in between. You really have to decide what you are doing to start with. Then collect photos. Then go to a military web site. These guys use every type of weathering you can think of especially the armor guys. There are washes and pastels, powders and paints galore. In general, car guys are not the ones to talk to about this (except Dr. Cranky).

[dantewallace]

I came across a few different ways to do the process so I'm good in that aspect. Now is the time for me to choose colors

[Chillyb1]

Here are links to some rally cars I've weathered. I use a variety of media to achieve these effects. The most useful, I find, are Tamiya acrylics shot through the airbrush. I usually keep it at higher than normal pressure so the paint is really flying past the model. I hold or pose the model so the paint passes by in the same way as dust or dirt or mud or snow would in real life. I also sometimes set up a fan as though the model were in a wind tunnel and then shoot paint into the airstream. Anyway, experimentation is the best teacher when it comes to weathering. I'd also recommend Tamiya's weathering sets and weathering pens. They are easy to use and give great results.

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/ChillyB1/library/Tamiya%20Peugeot%20206%202002?sort=3&page=1

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/ChillyB1/library/Tamiya%20Peugeot%20206%201999?sort=3&page=1

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/ChillyB1/library/Tamiya%20Peugeot%20206?sort=3&page=1

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/ChillyB1/library/Tamiya%20Peugeot%20205%20T16%20Tour%20de%20Corse?sort=3&page=1

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/ChillyB1/library/Peugeot%20405?sort=3&page=1

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/ChillyB1/library/Tamiya%20Alpine%20A110%20Monte%20Carlo?sort=3&page=1

[dantewallace]

Here are links to some rally cars I've weathered. I use a variety of media to achieve these effects. The most useful, I find, are Tamiya acrylics shot through the airbrush. I usually keep it at higher than normal pressure so the paint is really flying past the model. I hold or pose the model so the paint passes by in the same way as dust or dirt or mud or snow would in real life. I also sometimes set up a fan as though the model were in a wind tunnel and then shoot paint into the airstream. Anyway, experimentation is the best teacher when it comes to weathering. I'd also recommend Tamiya's weathering sets and weathering pens. They are easy to use and give great results.

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/ChillyB1/library/Tamiya%20Peugeot%20206%202002?sort=3&page=1

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/ChillyB1/library/Tamiya%20Peugeot%20206%201999?sort=3&page=1

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/ChillyB1/library/Tamiya%20Peugeot%20206?sort=3&page=1

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/ChillyB1/library/Tamiya%20Peugeot%20205%20T16%20Tour%20de%20Corse?sort=3&page=1

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/ChillyB1/library/Peugeot%20405?sort=3&page=1

http://smg.photobucket.com/user/ChillyB1/library/Tamiya%20Alpine%20A110%20Monte%20Carlo?sort=3&page=1

Beautiful builds Curtis!! Thank you for the tips. May I ask what color you used as dirt for those builds? I am actually in the process of purchasing Tamiya's A and D weathering sets

[Chillyb1]

I usually use six or so colors when I go for this kind of weathering. What colors I use depends on what look I'm going for. I have a bunch of grays, tans, and browns that do the job. My method is to select the colors I want and then shoot them in sequence from light to dark. If I don't like something I can always shoot more paint or remove it. I use Tamiya acrylics exclusively for this sort of thing.

Here's a short list of essential colors, all are Tamiya XF: 14, JA Gray; 12, JN Gray; 19, Sky Gray; 80, Royal Light Gray; 55, Deck Tan; 59 Desert Yellow; 64, Red Brown; 49, Khaki; 52, Flat Earth. Add any other browns and tans and grays and whatever that you want.