Making Rusty Mufflers, etc...

Finally someone with my opinion panzerbob01 ! 

It is absolutely impossible that everything at a vehicle is totally FUBARed after only one year in service especially rust . It's something else when it gets damaged or shot down .

For example a late version of a tank in service from summer 1944 or even later had less than one year , including one winter with white camo applied , to collect wear marks on its surface .

So it is the most important thing for me to realise how long this vehicle could be out on the balllefield !

In addition to this rust and the heavy-crusty looking blistered variant come up when the vehicle is standing , and  not when it is used every day . All the dirt , sand walking around on it applying additional camo like branches , nets 'clean' it from rust by 'sanding' it of .

I'm sure that a lot of guys will hate me for this post but it's just reality , as panzerbob01 wrote just open your eyes when you are near a construction zone . Take a look at the equipment standing around in the dirt for many years as a inspiration ! Those workers do not always handle the machines delicate .

I prefer the more decent style of ageing any kind of military ordnance .

So please do not overdo things when you add some 'age' to your vehicle !

I paint the exhaust piece flat black. The make a mixture of MIG rust dust and alcohol, There are two tones so you can apply both as you see fit. It works well because it lets you build up coats.

I must say I find it ironic and bush league that you resort to the very thing that you ranted about in other threads. Grow up man.

If you want a similar effect to the baking soda tech, try this. Paint the exhaust a medium rust color, when dry apply a thick oil wash. Before the wash dries use an old brush to apply various shades of rust colored pigments. when dry you will have a textured exhaust with varying shades of rust.

Rob

Gino identified the soda technique, and it works OK, IMO.  But frankly I stay away from such heavily crusty-looking mufflers.  The real things simply don't typically look all lumpy and crusty in most pics - unless they are crusted with dried-on mud!  Take a look around at any sort of tractor or road-equipment mufflers, or at those on older cars, etc.  Even take a visit to a junk-yard!  (This way you get to see what the cheaper and soft-steel types look like after some years of use and exposure- many modern car mufflers do not rust...). Tank mufflers in WWII were typically soft steel and the heat burned the paint off and they did rust - but that rust was more "surface rusting" then the deep pitting seen on corroded iron bridges, etc. Tanks mostly did not get to live long enough to really rust out.  And those which did live a couple - 3 years probably more often enjoyed a repaint (even of the muffler) then not.  

More interesting than a crusty muffler are 2 things: dents (they get dented), and properly-thin edges to the visible pipe openings. Look at exhaust pipes... they mostly do NOT have 1/3 - 1/2 inch thick walls. The pipes are sheet metal, and should be more like ca 0.005 inch thick on your 1/35 kit! Also, add some dented flanges on those older "cans" (check pics to see your type and "style").

My approach is to start out by slightly roughening the smooth styrene parts - a little 320 grit sand paper works to create a slight rusting surface texture. This is much finer then is the baking soda crystal... I next paint it flat weathered black...  any paint left on a muffler first burns and blackens. I then fade or wash on various amounts of browns and reddish browns- I generally get some brightest rusting nearest to what I think are the hot-spots on the "can". I often also apply some gray washes- paint "ashing" and such.  And I dust on some pastel chalks to keep some ashing (and yes, adds just a tiny amount of texture).

For what it's worth, as a IPMS show judge and a guy who has won a few rocks with one or another armor build, I 'd say the better-looking builds are those without much crusting on the muffler - but that's only my perspective and opinion, of course!

Bob

The baking soda method works well for a heavily rusted muffler.  All you have to do is paint the muffler with a rusty color, then roll it around in baking soda while still whet.  Once dry, you can drybrush it with different rusty, brown and blacks to get a well rusted and burned effect.

To get a lighter rusting, you can just paint it the overall body color, then dryrush as above, without the baking soda.  It leaves a less-crusty rust effect.  More along the lines of surface rust.