Black Wash

[Surprise]

I would like to know how and what is the best way to black wash a grill? I have never tryed to do it before and would like to give it a shot.

[weasel]

thin down some acrylic[water based] flat black, very runny, and just 'paint' the grill...when dry, wipe the 'highlights' and the chrome has a nice dark backing... make sense??

they even make a product for this, but, if you don't have any...

[Harry P.]

Please post questions in the question section. It's not rocket science, people.

[Speedfreak]

I thought this was the question section?

[MikeyB08]

lol Gene. He probably posted in the wrong section to begin with and Harry had to move it to here.

There are a couple of ways to do a black wash on grilles, wheels, etc.

1) Thinning down Flat Black Acrylic with water like mentioned above. Once dry, you a Q-Tip or Cotton Ball to rub the black away from areas where its not needed. You can even dip the end of a Q-Tip in Alcohol for instant removal. DO NOT SOAK THE Q-TIP!! Alcohol will eat the plastic. If you use is scarcely, it will be fine. Doesn't take much trust me.

2) Depending on the size of the grill, I will sometimes spray it flat black and before it has a chance to fully dry, wipe away the areas you don't want covered using a Q-Tip or Cotton Ball.

[Skip]

India ink, cut it with water until you get the effect you want. Dries true flat, can be cleared or Future'd over. Can be removed with a Q-tip and plain old water if you don't like the effect.

[W-409]

The easiest way is to buy The Detailer's stuff that is meant for Black Washing. You can get it in different colors, it's water based and you just brush paint it over the grille and the liquid will go between the grille bars. Very easy and simple, and it has given me the best results yet, basically I've never went wrong with that stuff.

[Funkster]

I've seen that stuff ( The Detailer) at a Hobby store in Milwaukee, but would you use the other colors for?

[W-409]

I've never tried the other colors, so I have no experience from them. But at least the black stuff is top notch, makes black washing very easy. This Grille was Black Washed with Detailer's stuff.

[Tom Geiger]

I've always used Testors flat black from the spray can. I spray a little bit into a small paper cup, then brush it onto the grille. I wait a few minutes for it to become tacky, then I wipe the grille off with a Q-tip with a little turpentine on it, for the above result. Note that the red lettering was done the same way.

[Harry P.]

lol Gene. He probably posted in the wrong section to begin with and Harry had to move it to here.

Exactly.

[Surprise]

Thanks everyone, I will give them all a shot. I'm sorry that I posted in the wrong spot,I havent posted much on here.

[Tom Geiger]

Thanks everyone, I will give them all a shot. I'm sorry that I posted in the wrong spot,I havent posted much on here.

Me thinks the moderators need to cut the newbies some slack. This board can be perplexing until you figure it all out.

[Speedfreak]

Niko, So with 'The Detailer' stuff you don't even have to wipe off the areas you don't want covered? Nice looking Plymouth by the way.

[W-409]

Yes that's true. The liquid goes in all of those grooves and areas between the grille bars automatically, so there is no need to wipe off excess paint. Thanks for the compliment regarding the Plymouth!

[Bigjeff]

1) Thinning down Flat Black Acrylic with water like mentioned above. Once dry, you a Q-Tip or Cotton Ball to rub the black away from areas where its not needed. You can even dip the end of a Q-Tip in Alcohol for instant removal. DO NOT SOAK THE Q-TIP!! Alcohol will eat the plastic. If you use is scarcely, it will be fine. Doesn't take much trust me.

You can also use white spirit wich wont hurt the plastic, just make sure it's mineral as the other ones tend to dry yellow

The other colors can be used in rust effects for one thing, you can spot different colors in a different spot over the rust color to create a color variation

[cchapman195]

The other color's can also be used on the door and trunk panel lines. Mix them to darken or lighten. An orange painted car take the orange detail color add a little black to darken the orange color and paint it on all the door and trunk lines wipe off excess and it will make the lines stand out. Also the detailer products dry glossy. For door and trunk you want them to be a flat as it is supposed to show shading in recessed areas. Never seen a shiny shadow myself but I never know.

[ToyLvr]

"The Detailer" in black is what I use. Great stuff; no need to fiddle around with mixing it up, etc.

In addition to using it on grilles or panel lines, it can give great results on dozens of surfaces to help accentuate the texture of various parts.

I often use it on seats and interior panels, engines, wheels, etc.

However, I *do* wipe it off after a minute or so. The trick is to let it seep into the crevasses of the parts to bring out the details, but not leave it on the part such that it overwhelms the original color (or chrome plating).

Just my 2-cents worth....

[scalenut]

acrylic ink and future mix... the dark flows great into the crevases and the future component makes the chrome all shiney