Having, thus far, only constructed WWII vehicles that were painted a single solid color, namely either olive drab or USMC green, (with other colors applied to seat covers, shifter knobs, and other individual items with a brush) I have no experience applying a camouflage paint scheme.

Now, however, with the busy Holiday season winding to a close, I’m hoping to start work on a 1:72 M1977 CBT (based on an Academy M977 model) that will subsequently be placed upon a 1:64th scale (S-scale) model of OTTX 90603.

https://armorama.kitmaker.net/forums/149013&page=1

As you can see from the picture in the included link, the M1977 CBT that sits upon OTTX 90603 has a camouflage paint scheme and I hope to apply a similar scheme to my model.

I was wondering if any of you could give me some tips on how I could create the best possible paint scheme on this model.

I’m asking this question before I begin work on the model so that I can take any necessary steps during construction (for example, when I’m constructing a model with a solid paint scheme, I commonly paint “hard to reach places” during construction when they are more accessible. How would this be done on a model that is getting a camouflage scheme?).

Thank you in advance. Any tips/help will be greatly appreciated.

Here's an example of the paint scheme I aspire to create;

http://www.diener.co.kr/data/board/diener10/file/1/f9b44cfc_m977.jpg

I don’t think I can use the “sticky tack” method I attempted on my (yet unfinished) Iwo Jima DUKW since, unlike the DUKW, the camouflage on the M1977 CBT seems to “blend” into one another…

PS. If the mercury rises above 33 this weekend, I’ll hopefully be able to prime this model…

All the camo I've painted has been freehand with an airbrush. It may not be the most accurate or the neatest, but it looks good enough for me (being the antithesis of the rivet counter). Just take it slow with a fine tip and low pressure until you get your pattern laid out, then fill it in. I've seen some people do a rough layout with light pencil marks, but I think graphite might repel some paint? and if you're not careful it might show though. Having never tried, I could be just making that up.

This is all of course assuming you own an air brush. There are people far more knowledgeable around here to help with brush work stuff (airbrush too for that matter )

Don

I agree with Donald, I've done a few camo schemes recently, one was a simple two tone and the most recent has been a more complex three tone (quite similar actually to what your planning).

In both cases I've used the airbrush freehand marking out the outline first with the brush and then filling in. You might get a little over spray but actually if you've got a good double action brush that will be minimal, also you can go back and tidy this up with a regular brush later.

You could also use tape to mask areas. I have a great article in Xtreme modelling magazine where they mask a complex three toe camo on a 1:48 KV1. I've also masked with tape in the past for camo, gives great sharp lines and edges but will require a bit of thought and planning before hand, especially in terms of the stages for colour application.

If you want a "hard" edge camo, similar to MERDOC patterns then you can use tape and silly putty. If you want a soft edge similar to factory 3 color NATO, that would be with just the AB.

Rounds Complete!!

Freehand is the way I go with softedge camo. Sometimes I use a pencil to get the layout. What I have done on my M1A1 was to use tape and silly putty first to make a hard edge camo and then go over it again along the edges without the tape.

A method I've seen used in aircraft modelling is to use paper as a template and mount it slightly above the surfece (maybe a millimetre) with bluetack. That way there will be some "underspray" under the paper template. But this would probably be quite hard to use on the usually very irregular surfaces of a vehicle.

Cheerio!