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Dromedary Dilemma

Painting the Wheels

This was my first non-tracked vehicle and I was unsure as to how the wheels and tires should be painted. I developed this method on my own. After the obligatory primer coat, the wheels were painted with a slightly faded flat black, after which I covered the tire area with Micro Mask, a liquid masking medium. The colour of the wheels was airbrushed over this and the mask peeled off, leaving the tires flat black. This technique worked quite well, with only minor touch-ups being needed.
 

Painting the Exterior

The instructions suggest a Humbrol colour for painting, but I prefer Model Master enamels, so I had to find my own match. The overall colour of the vehicle didn’t matter to me that much, as long as it looked right. I tried to match the picture on the box and pictures in the aforementioned TMMI article as closely as possible, though. To accomplish this, I used Model Master Interior Green (FS34151). After a base coat of this colour straight from the bottle, I added a little flat white to the green and over-sprayed with this, giving the Topolino a somewhat faded look.
 

Chipped Paint

The usual weathering, using a wash and drybrushing was done to the Topolino before I decided to apply some paint chips. I had never tried this before and it took me a few attempts to get it right. The main problem was the colour. Burnt Umber, mixed with just a touch of steel to give it a slightly metallic sheen, gave me the look I wanted. The chips were painted on with a very fine brush. Small scratches were made using a toothpick, but I think a fine brush would work better for this as well. I made an effort not to overdo it, as a chipped up, dilapidated Topolino was not what I was looking for. Just a few chips were painted on the hood and fenders.
 

Pastel Dust

I had used pastel chalks on other models before, but they are so useful for weathering that I must mention them. At an art store, you can buy pastel chalks (not oil pastels) in a variety of colours. I purchased black, white, and various browns (these colours can be mixed to make different shades). To make pastel dust, you can either grind some of the chalk down on sandpaper, or scrape it away with an X-acto knife. I find the latter works better; plus you don’t have to waste any sandpaper, just scrape the dust onto an index card. For the Topolino, I made a light tan colour to represent all the dust that would accumulate from driving down a desert track. For other models, though, pastel dust can be used effectively for rust and exhaust streaks and powder traces around the muzzle of a gun. Some suggest applying the dust to the model with a stiff brush, but I find a soft one works better. I just brushed the dust on the area I wanted and then blew the excess off. The result is a realistically dusty appearance since it is real dust. The Topolino received a light coating of dust pretty well everywhere and then heavier coats in areas where dust would naturally accumulate more. I applied dust to the windshield, too, being careful to leave the area where the windshield wiper would travel clean. This seemed easier than spraying thin coats of sand coloured paint on to create a dust effect.

Copyright ©2002 - Text and Photos by Nicolas Virtue (folgore). All Rights Reserved.