Hello Friends

I've always had problems with the 'wash' both in understanding it and applying it. I'm a fairly good builder but this technique for me has always had mixed results in the past.

The model is Olive Drab It was also sprayed with a coat of Future before the start of the wash stage so it looks glossy in places.. I have started by just doing the upper engine deck as a test and I think I got decent results but thought I'd put up a post to see what everyone thinks.. the wash is a dark brown (raw umber oil paint thinned with turpinoid)





Thanks :-)

I give it a thumbs up. The star looks sufficiently dirty/faded but not overly so.

It certainly looks decent for now but i guess before suggesting how else to do the wash, are you intended on applying any more layers of paint / filter or matt clear coats?

If so, i would try making the wash a little darker. Reason being is the filters and subsequent coats will diminish the effect of the wash.

If you dont really have any subsequent paint layers to apply, i think it looks good enough.

I cant remember the article thats up here on armorama somewhere but as i recalled, the recommendation for washes on OD coloured kits is actually black while sand coloured kits should use raw umber washes.

Looks good to me Delbert. Funny thing is I was doing exactly the same thing last night. I used Vallejo paint though but same colour. You just reminded me I forgot to put my star on first

Tony

Looks good but IMO needs some dark areas, only here and there a darker wash should do the job.....

Anastasios.

Thanks for the Feedback guys.. So far I think this is my best attempt at the "wash". I have always tried black on the Olive drab before and it always seemed to me to come out to dark and overdone.. not suble enough.

I think I will try a little black on the engine screen area's and maybe elsewhere for some variation.

The model is in the final stages.. will finish the wash, maybe some pigment dust and dry mud effects finished off with some work on the tools and gear then a final Matt Coat to flatten the paint color.

and thanks for that reminder Jazza.. I've read that article and many others trying to figure out this techinque.. and I think I'm getting close

Delbert,

Looks good so far. I was going to recommend a black wash on the screens to add a little depth, but you beat me to it!

Hi Delbert,

If it's around intake grills I always use matt black enamel and raw umber oil paints tthinned down in a Humbrol thinners wash .

It doesn't attack the paint as turps does .

I know your near completion just keep in mind for future projects .

Cheers
Michael

Its looking pretty good to my amateur eye mate. Keep it up and keep us posted on your progress.

Des

Delbert, looks good to me. I have used this same method for years and love the results. A black wash on the screens will help define them. The Raw Umber looks better to my eye for the hull areas etc. As you said, the black is too much of a contrast. Something else for your build, if you want to give it a try.... Once you have your flat coat applied you can use some more of that Raw Umber wash mix for fuel/oil splatters/drips. Load your brush up with the mix, hold it slightly above the rear deck and then using your free hand flick the handle. It knocks the wash free and creates some rather realistic looking splatter effects. Just don't go overboard. I was amazed at how much fuel and oil we used to spill on our vehicles while working on them and refueling. The got pretty nasty over a lengthy field problem. I won't even comment on what they looked like in Iraq. Once again, good work so far."Q"

Do you have a "before" pic????

The wash around the detail parts is nicely restrained, and that is always better than too much. The engine grills should get a black wash if you don't intend to replace them, as they are really open space beneath (it's a straight shot down to the engine on a real M18). If the screening gets too dark from the wash, you can dry brush it afterward with Olive Drab.
Don't know if you want to fiddle with it now, but the grill on the Academy kit is the wrong pattern (should be square, not diamond pattern, and made from heavy rod, not screen), and the narrow rectangular areas in the outer two sections should be open, as they are the exhausts (the mufflers are directly below). And Academy's designers must have thought they were designing a German tank, as they have given the tools rectangular release clamps, when the real thing just uses straps and buckles. This is an easier fix, if you want to dress the model up a bit. There are online photos of preserved M18s which will give you a better ideas of how it looked in reality.