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Post by Rayloke on Oct 24, 2013 11:04:18 GMT 8
Seriously, the hase ceramic compound is no joke......
Thnks for the info n sharing!
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toon
Lurker
Posts: 15
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Post by toon on Oct 24, 2013 12:02:22 GMT 8
Always wonder how Alclad would be like after top coat (haven't tried it myself hehe), would be tuning in......undeniably a very detailed & informative WIP
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Post by beckylaw on Oct 24, 2013 12:04:14 GMT 8
Thanks for the input, need to get that ceramic compound, since i building cars as well, it really irritate me when the tamiya compound stuck in the paneline.
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Post by banzai on Oct 24, 2013 12:14:30 GMT 8
Ahh Becky you will love this stuff. Its very impressive. If you find a good source tell me because I want to get some more for the future.
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Post by banzai on Oct 26, 2013 1:32:33 GMT 8
Alrighty, pretty much sure what I knew before about which solution for metal I'd be picking... The spoon painting was just for fun. I have a quick update now on the topcoat and how Alclad deals with it. Alclad has their own topcoat solution, its an aqueous (water based) clear that they sell. They do mention that even with their water based clear, Alclad chrome would probably dull a little. Everywhere online I read most sources say Alclad II clouds a little when you clear coat it. I've never really seen a comparison done so I thought I'd do one. Since Alclad II is supposed to be this really delicate paint I tried a different approach rather than airbrushing the clear on. Instead I tried dipping, VERY quickly in undiluted Future which is also an aqueous clear. Figured that if it works for them it works for me EXCEPT... I won't be distressing the metal particles with an airbrush. Here's the results - Sorry I had to get in real close with the light so you can see the demarcation line. If you look you can see a slight cloudiness and shift in clarity of reflection in the surface where the clear is covering the tip of the spoon. Now that's with a strong light shining for clarity... Here's a shot with just the room lights and the glow off my monitor. You can still see the demarcation where it starts to get cloudier, but you can more clearly see the effect it has on the reflectivity. So Alclad DOES cloud up a little with clear but it still remains quite reflective. Not as reflective as before, but still pretty damn shiny. Reason I'm doing this is to determine how much shine I'd lose if I wanted to tint the clear with another colour. I hope this has been useful. I'll be proceeding with the other colour tests next. H'ray more spoons!
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Post by banzai on Oct 27, 2013 22:37:58 GMT 8
Not much to show really at this point. Waiting for more topcoat tests to dry. I did get started on priming the kit though. Forgive the arty-farty high shot. Mr. Finishing surfacer again... This stuff is really nice. Didn't even lose the smallest of the small details (even the 1mm in width piece) and covers nicely and uniformly. I've come to the conclusion that priming is my favourite part of the entire modelling process. I like the building but when you lay down primer you get to see if your months of cleaning and repair work paid off. Its that stage when you can almost see the finished result in your head. There's a certain satisfaction from seeing an ugly puttied piece turn clean uniform gray. Mmm. Decided to prime and paint according to the construction in the manual. Don't want to mess up the order in case I forget to paint something before gluing it!
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Post by banzai on Nov 3, 2013 23:25:09 GMT 8
Started painting the main armor parts for the upper body today. First did some tests with a spoon. I've been playing with pearl powders recently so I figured why not? Here's what I decided on. The last picture was taken with less light. It seems to be easier to see the effect of the pearl pigments in lower light conditions. Either that or I just don't know how to light them or take pictures of them very well. The original colour without the pearl is quite dark since from experience I realized pearl pigments light up the colour quite significantly! Regardless... I'm happy with the results and shall be painting the outer armour parts this colour. I think its really quite a beautiful colour.
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Post by rennyd on Nov 7, 2013 11:17:04 GMT 8
wow, that's a lot of info, great effort!!!
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Post by banzai on Dec 9, 2013 0:36:16 GMT 8
So its been awhile since I last posted... I'm afraid I've been busy. Busy painting! Thing is with the weather the way it is its been difficult for me to paint since its been raining so much. Regardless, I've managed to get SOME painting done, which I will gladly share now! This part was particularly nerve wracking. The eyeball is the part I'm painting red, masked with masking fluid. Usually I'm really nervous masking... Only know the result when you remove the masking. This time it was a success! This was a real confidence booster for me... Masking is by far my weakest discipline in scale modelling. Here were some parts I modified earlier. Happy that it worked out! With my newfound confidence with masking I think I went a little crazy and masked more... And more... And even more! I thought I'd try to capture the nature of the pearl finish for you guys to see in this shot. It really is a beautiful effect in my opinion. I'd also managed to paint and polish the weapons. (Actually I was thinking of using Alclad for these... I decided not to though. The gloss black swords are accurate to the source material, and I have reason to keep with the concept, which I will reveal later at the end of the build!) I do so love it when things start coming together! Okay, that's it for now! I think I'm nearing the home stretch here... 1 leg and the main body painted, just 2 arms and a leg to go! I'll try to update more often... Not good to dump a ton of photos at once all the time. I do so wish I could capture the pearl effect better, but I shall save the lighting setups for when the kit is complete! As always, thanks for viewing and I welcome your comments and criticism.
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Post by Phoon on Dec 9, 2013 9:35:19 GMT 8
I bet that the blue tone are really interesting finishing where the photos doesn't justify your hard-work at all. Would be the best if able to see it in person. Awesome works bro!
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Post by banzai on Dec 9, 2013 11:51:36 GMT 8
Thanks sifu, yes its a very interesting colour, like blue steel. So difficult to catch the effect with a camera. Can't show the reflectivity of the parts. Aaahhhh... I will try with a better lighting setup when the build is done.
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Post by gollum3 on Dec 9, 2013 14:45:19 GMT 8
nice work! do pearl colors reflect rainbow colors? or reflect white rays of light?
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Post by banzai on Dec 9, 2013 21:50:46 GMT 8
Ahh okay I can understand your confusion gollum because I too was confused about this when I first started using the pearl pigments. They simulate the silky looking colour gradients of pearl, but NOT the iridescent quality of the reflection. I've been hunting around for iridescent paint without much success unfortunately. So sadly, no... It doesn't not 100% simulate the properties of a real pearl. Real pearl scatters light in its unique way because of the varying layers of density and reflection in each layer. This is a process called "Sub-Surface scattering." The same effect happens in human skin, which is why skin has the "reflective" properties that it does. Its actually light selectively reflecting your blood vessels and melamine based on the various density of each layer of epidermis. Sorry I nerded out for awhile. I've been hunting for paint that produces a clear iridescent sheen for awhile now without success. Something like this. Unfortunately I haven't been very successful. If anyone knows I'd be most interested in getting some.
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Post by gollum3 on Dec 9, 2013 23:35:17 GMT 8
I See, i understand ur technical answer. So what if u apply multiple layers of ur pearl paint on the spoon?
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Post by banzai on Dec 9, 2013 23:58:19 GMT 8
Heh I thought as you do and I tried it. Multiple layers of pearl SHOULD produce the same effect but unfortunately it does not. That's because of the way pearl pigments are structured. They aren't really made of pearl or mother of pearl you see... They are simulated to create a particular surface effect. More akin to that of metallic paint, with a very distinct sheen. When a REAL pearl or mother of pearl is formed, each layer varies in density. This creates microscopic variance in the surface, interrupting the reflection and overlapping with that of another layer. This effect is similar to what you'd see with a soap bubble, but repeated many times over until the density of a pearl is produced. See a pearl is made of multiple layers of semi-transparent material. It is the differences between each layer that traps the light between each layer, scattering and phase shifting the light to produce a prism like effect. A pearl is like a multi-layered micro-structured prism. Imagine if you would billions of microscopic prisms on each layer of paint and you would begin to understand why I cannot reproduce the effect so easily. I would need to have a paint that can modulate colour based on reflection, and that would be expensive paint indeed! There IS paint which can produce real iridescence, but it is quite expensive and mostly used for cars. Chromaflair, or marketed in Japan and Maziora paint is structured in a similar manner using prismatic pigments. It is my good fortune to have actually acquired a bottle of Mr.Colour Maziora paint, but I have yet to try it out. Something to try for another project! Iridescent paint is kind of an obsession of mine. *Sigh*... I should do cars not mecha with this kind of interest... But I love mecha!
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Post by beckylaw on Dec 10, 2013 7:04:05 GMT 8
wow, that is a complicated colors, can try some luck with nail polish. Cheaper hehehe.
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Post by banzai on Dec 10, 2013 10:54:03 GMT 8
There's iridescent nail polish?! I must try!
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Post by beckylaw on Dec 10, 2013 12:08:14 GMT 8
Hey, girl like bling bling you know?? hahaha. After seeing ur WIP guess i will get some iridescent nail polish to try. hehehe
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Post by banzai on Dec 10, 2013 12:21:13 GMT 8
Okay I must ask Becky... What thinner would you use for nail polish? Its a lacquer I'm guessing so you'd probably use regular acetone based hobby thinner right?
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Post by beckylaw on Dec 10, 2013 12:34:37 GMT 8
Yes, Acetone work nicely, last time i use nail polish remover. Its long time i din use them, i don't wear nail polish often.
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