It has been several decades since I last assembled and painted an armour model. The current techniques have been challenging to grasp primarily because I am uncertain as to each ones objective.. I hope you can correct my understanding. This how I understand the sequence.
1/ Base Coat- to act as the basic colour and foundation colour
2/ Colour Modulation- to mimic the diiferencies that the same light source will have on diffferently angled surfaces and to provide very subtle shadow bases.
3/ Filter- to provide WITHIN each colour modulated area a further subtle variation in colour due to weather and age and use.
4/ Wash- to help unify the colours to one basic tone and to provide some shadowing effect.
5/ Pin Wash to enhance the differential in colour for details such as bolt heads,panel lines, etc
I have by passed the rusting and chipping salt and hairspray effects in order to get to the basics and their objectives.
Thanks
Will

That's correct. Ssgtoms has a painting and weathering article that may be of some help.

You are off to a good start. The only things I add into that are drybrushing, so I can pick up some extra detail, and for washes, I tend to do multiple layers of washes to achieve different effects.

As for chipping and rust, I used grey and silver pencil crayons, and a very fine brush to add chips and rust. You can also add the hint of rust through a selective wash.

But in all is sounds like you are trying to master the basics, and that is a very good start. If you have any questions, you can PM me directly.

Kevin

William;
see this thread

https://armorama.kitmaker.net/forums/140764&page=1

read through it all, do not skip ANY posts and almost all of your questions will be answered. Any questions you have after that post and most likely Ssg Toms or one of the other GURU's here will be able to help you. I recently got back in to the hobby myself and found the same issues. I am currently finishing 2 kits and the boards and that thread specifically has helped me greatly. Good luck and post photos when you can. Cheers.

Hey William,

All good advice that the guys have given you... SSGTom's sticky that Damon has linked you to is a great start.

Another way to look at what you're doing, though, is from the "desired effect" point of view rather than the "technique - sequence" point of view.

As you're working through the list (in sequence), try to conceptually isolate what you're doing at each stage. Although in the end, you want a continuity in your finish, that is, the model's finish looks like a single whole and not like a jig saw puzzle, you still need to keep some of the effects accomplished at each stage looking distinct.

Also, the effects accomplished need to appear logically and make visual "sense" on the model. Many modelers get caught up in following "the list," and in their efforts to not leave out a step that finishing orthodoxy says is essential, they forget the reason and effects that they should be trying to achieve for each step.

So, for example, we see models that have filters applied evenly over the entire model - All that does is to change the color over everything. Why not first just start with that color? The filter hasn't accomplished anything that the airbrush couldn't have done, and done easier at that.

Another example is chipping - We see models where the builder has applied chipping all over the entire model. In effect, he has used the contrasting chipping colors to highlight the edges and corners, but doing so is usually illogical since wear and tear doesn't occur like that. Better to have used some chipping in logical places, some dry-brushing in others, and pin-washes yet in others, combining several effects to accomplish the effects of wear and tear, weathering and scale lighting.

Another example is oil-dot color modulation - If the modeler applies all of the oil colors evenly over the entire surface and at the same time, and then blends them all out at once, all he has done is to apply a "muddy" colored general wash to the entire model. To see this, take a small "dot" of each of the oil colors that you're planning to use, blend them all together on your pallet, and see what the result is - a "muddy" color probably in the raw or burnt umber range. In oil dot modulation, each color should be selected based on how it will change the underlying base color and then it should be applied individually, and not over the entire surface (or why not then just start with that altered base color to begin with?). Different colors are then used, individually, in other areas. Oil colors can be layered over each other, but this should be deliberately and not indiscriminately.

Yet another example is pigments - Pigments shouldn't be a last final step applied almost as an after thought. Many modelers wait until they've finished all of their other painting and final assembly and then mix up a slurry of pigments and slop this on the lower suspension and tracks and call 'er done! This generally leaves most of the dirt and mud on the top surfaces of these areas with the spots that really get dirty un-touched. The application of pigments should be planned from the very beginning, and often times it needs to be incorporated into earlier finishing and assembly steps in order to get it where it needs to be - down in the nooks and crannies.

In the end, you really should start devising your own "list" of steps and techniques that work for you and fit your building and finishing style.

The time to visualize how you want you model to look is when you're opening the box and studying the instructions (or even before!). Plan your finish as part of the "whole" build and not as some separate event that comes after the last part is glued on. The techniques you use and the sequence you use them in should work in an integrated manner towards your "vision" for the completed model.

A sequenced list of finishing techniques is not a bad place to start, especially if you're just getting back into the game, but keep in mind as you progress through it what effects each step is achieving FOR YOU. Don't be afraid to deviate from "the list" just like you deviate from the kit instructions to suit yourself. Once you understand how each technique works for you, then you can modify them and incorporate them into your own, unique style or finishing system based on your own "desired effects" for each future modeling subject.

Thank you all for your help. I have found the quoted sources and am reading them. Thanks again
Cheers
Will

Thanks Mike. It is exactly for the reasons you give that I was trying to understand the objective or goal of each step. What exactly is to be accomplished by this step? If I understood the objective I might disagree with orthodoxy about the how , when or even why bother.
Thanks again.
Cheers from the Heart of North America
Will