Questions about painting the driver figures

[Kingfisher 1175]

I've got the materials to paint the driver figures, and have read a few tutorials on how to paint them as far as brush technique. This will be my first time painting the driver figures. I will be painting the figure for the Holiday Buggy, and the race helmet figure for the Jimny Wheelie. I have the Tamiya XF Acrylic paints. My questions are about paint prep.

Do I need to thin the paint before using it? If so, how? Water, thinner, something else? If the paint should be thinned, do I thin it in the jar, or should I just thin the amount I intend to use?

What is the best way to clean the brushes when finished, or when switching from one color to the next? 

Also, how long should I wait for the paint to dry before adding another color with, or on top of it?

 

[Fuijo 943]

11 minutes ago, Kingfisher said:

 

Do I need to thin the paint before using it? If so, how? Water, thinner, something else? If the paint should be thinned, do I thin it in the jar, or should I just thin the amount I intend to use?

 

Stir the paint with a cocktail stick. Use the cocktail stick to drop some paint into a shallow plastic tub, or lid from something. Add more if you need more.

Dip your brush in it and see how it paints on a clean part of the tub. Thin it if it doesn't go on thinly and smoothly.

Thin with water if you want the paint to flow into recesses, like with shading or washing. Eg. The driver's face and clothes.

Thin with Tamiya thinner if you want the opposite where you want to paint neatly and accurately. Eg. Seatbelts, gloves, eyes, eyebrows etc.

 

17 minutes ago, Kingfisher said:

What is the best way to clean the brushes when finished, or when switching from one color to the next?

Water. Put a small amount of soap in the brush and smooth to a point when you're finished.

Wash whatever you were using as a palette in water as well. Basically just like washing dishes, with rinsing afterwards.

 

 

18 minutes ago, Kingfisher said:

Also, how long should I wait for the paint to dry before adding another color with, or on top of it?

 

Depends how thinly you're applying it. Anything from 5 minutes to a few hours with flat XF paints. Much, much longer for gloss X paints.

[GregM 1113]

I once wrote this tutorial, you might find it helpful:

I use synthetic brushes. For thinning and mixing paint, I use small 10ml jars (Tamiya 81043), this way I can store the thinned paint for later use and it won't dry out.

Another helpful thing for me are stainless steel agitator balls that you add to your paint jars and mixing jars. Shake well before use, just like a rattle can, and your paint is ready for brushing. This way, you don't lose precious paint on mixing sticks.

For cleaning brushes, I use first Methoxypropanol PM and then clean the brush once more with water. Water alone isn't able to remove all of the paint from the brush.

 

 

[Fuijo 943]

3 hours ago, GregM said:

Water alone isn't able to remove all of the paint from the brush.

Respectfully, as long as the paint isn't dry, then it is. If it is dry then a single drop of Tamiya thinner to soften, then rinse with water will do it.

I've even removed all the paint from a driver's face using a pan-pad with dishwashing liquid and warm water 20 minutes or so after painting.

[Kingfisher 1175]

Thanks a lot for the information. The posts above are extremely helpful. 

[Lee76 638]

I’d like t paint my Avante drive helmet with a chrome effect, can anyone recommend a paint they have used that gives a more even chrome like coating? Thanks.

[Falcon#5 596]

18 hours ago, Lee76 said:

I’d like t paint my Avante drive helmet with a chrome effect, can anyone recommend a paint they have used that gives a more even chrome like coating? Thanks.

Spaztix Real Chrome I think it's called.

Lay a base of black, then multiple coats of chrome (airbrushed), the lighter the coats the better.

I have seen mirror finishes using it, but something I haven't mastered yet

[Lee76 638]

Thanks @Falcon#5 i’ll Look into that!

[Lee76 638]

Ak477 chrome effect spray, comes out perfectly on well prepared objects (which my driver head was not...)

White gloss background, as tested on bare plastic Christmas cracker toy, looks more like mirror chrome, black gloss looks a little more steel chrome. I have a second head on order to get the prep right now I know what I’m doing.

 

[mr crispy 2297]

To be honest, I’ve always found Tamiya bottle paints an absolute knightmare to paint figures with as blending colours or overpainting another colour often pulls the original layer off, probably due to the high solvent content of the Tamiya acrylics. They are great for airbrushing though.

I prefer Humbrol or Games Workshop acrylics (mainly as they’re easily sourced in the UK) to lay out the base colours and then use artist oil paints thinned with white spirit to add shading and depth. 

Heres a driver ive painted with a mix of Tamiya white & yellow sprayed over the helmet to get the flat colour, Games Workshop paint for the skin. 

After an oil wash and a little blending and details picked out with GW acrylics. 

Or here’s another that’s had a bit more oil paint added. 

Whatever you use a light dusting of Matt varnish spray will help protect your work and kill the shiney look some paints & washed will leave.