49 Merc

[Helper Monkey]

First off I want to state this is the first model I have done since I was a Kid. Back then I basically painted and stuck them together. This time I wanted to put a little more detail into one. I have been working on this one for close to 3 weeks if not a month. Mostly just experimenting with my airbrush and paints. I am currently using mostly tamiya paints.  However since I work at an art store and get an awesome discount I am also going to try the New Golden High Flow acrylics (mostly on the body).

This is the kit i am working on. 

I have a lot of it put together already. I sadly did not do a whole lot of detailing on the motor. I am already learning a whole lot on what to do for my next model.  

I decided to try lots of techniques to see which ones suit me.  Here I was trying flocking. I discovered that I liked it  a lot. Next time I will make sure that when I add flocking, it will be the same color or near the  same color  as the paint underneath.  I  used white flocking on blue paint and it made the mats seems kinda dull.  I may try to get some blue flocking in the future and redo the mats.

As  you can see below I have started to paint the body but I had a few flaws in the paint so I had to sand down those areas so I can reblast them with my airbrush. I am using The High Flow Iridescent (fine) thinned with a little High Flow airbrush extender. Once I finish the touch ups here I am gonna blast the whole thing with High Flow Transparent Phthalo Blue (green shade). I am hoping the pearl will show thru and  give a nice rich deep color. We will see when I finish it. 

Things I have learned this build but many of you more than likely know. 

1) Make sure to sand everything to get rid of injection points. (there are a few places I  did  not do this at. Especially on the floor boards as they showed through even through the flocking.  

2) Flocking is Awesome! Just make sure to use one that is close to the color of the paint under it. 

3) Sand the primer too. I had too many uneven spots that showed up when I painted the pearl on.

4) Clean the parts with a good soap and kitchen scrubbie. and then clean them again with rubbing alcohol and do not touch them afterwards. (I found this out  the hard  way when my masking  tape peeled off some of my paint.

5) Mix Golden's GAC-200 into my acrylics and my primer to promote adhesion. 

6) Next time, spray the base boards and such the same color as the body. It will make it easier for the under carriage, firewall and the engine bay to stand out from the engine.

 

Despite all the little problems I had a lot of fun building this. I went slow and took my time despite my wanting to finish it as fast as possible. 

[socal76]

Not to disagree with you, but I think the flocking looks quite good with the color of the inserts on your seats. It kind of breaks up the monochrome look. It would be hard to beat IMHO. With the scheme you have going on in the interior, the flocking could not be better!

Edited September 10, 2015 by socal76

[espo]

I have to agree with Steve in the floor treatment. I think it gives a more natural look to the mats. Sometimes what you think is a mistake turns out better than if you planned it.  

[stavanzer]

Add me to the list on the Floor Mats.

They have the exact shades of slightly different colour, that makes them seem more real.

So Much So, that I'll be using the White Flocking on Coloured Paint trick on one of my next builds. Far from an Error, you've showed me a better way to get the look I wanted!

Thank You.

[Helper Monkey]

I did not think anyone would like them that much.

thanks for the feedback. 

[Junkman]

I think you are a bit harsh on yourself criticwise.
This is neat.

[Helper Monkey]

They always say "You are your own worse critic"

[Helper Monkey]

I have hit a bit of a wall now. i kept touching up places and re-sanding them. I realized that I was starting to build up too much paint. So I ended up stripping the body. Lucky for me I used only acrylics and my acrylic brush cleaner loosened up the paint enough that some scrubbing with a stiff bristle brush was all I needed to remove the paint. Which was a good idea cause originally I painted the a Metallic blue for FW Pealescent acrylic ink. This removed all that old blue paint build up. 

I have then re-primed it with AK interactive White Acrylic Primer which I modified with Golden GAC-200 and Golden's Airbrush Medium.

I also ended up stripping the paint off the door panels cause when I pulled the tape away the first time it pulled the paint and primer right off. This time I hope my better prep and my mixture of AK , GAC 200 make it stick better to the plastic. I then blasted them with Tamiya Flat white. I re-masked them and used liquid masking on part of the dash. When it stops raining and I have free time, I will paint the panels blue and then blast the body with High Flow Pearl Shimmer as a base coat. For now I am gonna finish masking the dash and work on my next model. 

[Helper Monkey]

Some updates. I have put off working on this for a while cause I was waiting to be able to paint it. 

I finally got the dash, steering wheel and the side panels repainted and installed.

I am a a little unhappy with the way the blue paint turned out on the dash. It has a lot of flaws in my opinion. A few stray particles and the paint did not come out even like it did on the seats and doors. I decided to just go with it other wise I will never get this one done. 

I had decals on the gauges but but they kept falling off. They were also inaccurate. I decided to recreate them and print them myself. Only problem now is finding a printer capable of the high resolution I need.

I repainted the body in Golden's High Flow colors Iridescent Pearl Fine. I also noticed a few blemishes, uneven and pooling spots, so I sanded the areas out with a 1500 sand paper. I am gonna spray a second coat in a few days weather permitting. 

The first time I painted the body I had problems with my primer choice and ill body prep. This time It was technique. I will get it down one of these days. What I really need is a spray booth. As it stands I have to paint outside or bring the parts into work and do it there. Working in an art store has its advantages, no one cares if there is paint all over the studio.

After I finish the touch up of the pearl I will paint the whole thing with Golden's High Flow Transparent Phthalo Blue. I hope the shimmer will show through the blue and make it pop.

Once I get the blue done, It will install the chrome items and trim. I plan on trying a leafing technique using faux silver leaf to see how it works out. 

Edited October 16, 2015 by Helper Monkey

[Helper Monkey]

Blah. My plan of painting blue on top of the pearl just failed. I got so many fish eyes on the body. I assume its cause I didn't properly prep it. I think I need to make sure I wash it properly next time. but once again I need to strip it and start over. The only part that came out good were the rear wheel skirts. the color looks amazing. Instead of trying to spray the pearl and then the blue on top I am going to just mix them together and do it that way. It should work just fine. I sprayed a spoon with it. It looked good. I am learning, no more multi layer paint jobs. At least until I learn how to use them properly paint models. Using an air brush for fine art is a whole lot different than painting model bodies. 

I am in the process of stripping the paint here. Most of the blue is gone. the pearl is being a little stubborn. Good thing my acrylic paint cleaner attacks only the acrylic and not the tamiya fine spray primer underneath. If i had to take it all back to bare plastic I think I would lose my mind.

 

As you can see here the blue is very beatiful. I love the color pity its so hard to paint. Its golden's Iridescent Pearl (fine) with transparent Phthalo Blue (green shade). 

[Ridge Rider]

That is a bummer about the paint, that is a nice color.  Keep at it.