M1A1 tank help!

The sand you see on my M1A1 is held in place with Mig Pigment Fixer. There are two ways to do this. On my tank I put the fixer on first with a brush and then added the sand pigments.  The other way is to first put on the pigments and then the fixer but that causes them to look different. It's more suited for wheels and tracks as well as under the fenders.

The dark lines you see is made with the Dark Brown pin wash. I do that before I put the sand on but I also went back and put more on later to look better.

I'm not telling you to buy this but if you really want to get down into the AFV weathering and painting in a serious way then get Mig Jimenez's new book, "FAQ 2".  you could say this new book is the "bible" of weathering. It explains it all in a step by step way where anybody can understand. Mig is the guy who's name in on the Mig braqnd but he left the company and started another one that sell GREAT weathering prodects, I'm just now learning to use them and they make everything so much easier and better, I'll look up the US web link. The book sells for $75 and it's worth twice that price.

Found it.

http://www.ak-interactive-usa.com/

Sprue Brothers, Mega Hobbies and other's sell both Mig and AK.

Youy can do a search on the YouTube on weathering model ATV's, they show some good work.

I'll take a look at the powder suggestion.

I am in the US so that is why the UK sites were not working for me.

Also for the filter that you used (gulf sand) how do you apply that? Is that what gives the darker color in the crevices because it pools in them? For the wash you simply coat the entire tank in it right?

tyhe314

On a separate note regarding previous recommendations, are there any decent brands out there other than MiG washes? The only place I could find them were either on European sites or asking a ridiculous price. I used a "Sand" color from Model Makers Acrylics for the coat.  Thanks for all the inputs btw.

Oh one last thing awesome abram tank. Kinda looks like the m1a2 tamiya tank I should have bought. Oh well the academy kit cost me a whopping $15 and it keeps me occupied. 

i use weathering powders from Vallejo Acrylics, both as powders and put them in water to do washes. when you mix them with water (about 10 parts water to 1-2 parts powder) and use them as a wash it actually looks pretty good, especially with dust and mud colors. it also allows you to change the tone and opacity of the wash by simply moving the brush further towards the bottom of the jar. I shake mine and let it settle for a few minutes (one to two is plenty) and wait for some of the pigment to settle and start washing. works alot faster than a paint wash because you dont have to have multiple washes in various stages of dilution. it actually adds a bit of color change (darker and lighter) on the big flat armor panel like on the Abrams. The only drawback is that it makes the finish a little more fragile, be careful where you touch the model if you use this method without a clearcoat.

Not spending alot of money on a complex superdetailed kit was actually probably a pretty good idea for your first foray into armor. my first 1/35 armor kit was Academy's Tiger 1 with a full interior...bad idea. im finishing the exterior and am leaving the interior for later. over 800 pieces was not a great choice for my first armoe kit, i stated it in june and im still plugging away at it.

Hope this helps!

tyhe314

Yeah I'm doing the army version and I am aware that there are couple major flaws with this kit. What you mentioned as well as the barrel. Unfortunately I didn't look into this before I bought the kit or I would have stuck with my gutt and went with a tamiya or DML model. First academy kit so I thought I give it a try probably would not purchase another (unfortunate since the Blackhawks by them look pretty cool). This was my first model kit outside of cars which I am currently waiting for tamiya paint to arrive so I figure I try military kits. 

On a separate note regarding previous recommendations, are there any decent brands out there other than MiG washes? The only place I could find them were either on European sites or asking a ridiculous price. I used a "Sand" color from Model Makers Acrylics for the coat.  Thanks for all the inputs btw.

Oh one last thing awesome abram tank. Kinda looks like the m1a2 tamiya tank I should have bought. Oh well the academy kit cost me a whopping $15 and it keeps me occupied. 

There are several brands out there and some of them are cheaper. You can make your own wash with paint and thinner.

If you used Acrylic paint on the tank then you must use enamel wash. I just buy the washes and be done with it.

I got my Mig stuiff from here.

http://migproductions-usa.com/

But you can find them from most model online sites here in the US. Are you here in the US or Europe?

My Abrams was a Tamiya M1A2 kit but I had to buy a new rack and a couple other things to make it into a USMC M!A1HA Heavy Common.

tyhe314 dont be down on academy just because there are a few issues/inaccuarate areas. I am yet to see a single kit by any manufacturer the nails something 100%, be it Revellogram, Tamiya, Dragon or Hasegawa thats part of modelling. Sure Dragon, Tamiya and friends may have a reputation for quality but that doesnt mean they are the best kit for that subject or they dont need after market parts to make the dream model.

To be honest the biggest issue I have with academy kits are their decals (they are very thick and this causes lots of problems). Second, using an academy tiger as doner parts (internal details) for a dragon tiger I am doing the only difference is often the academy details may not be as fine as on the dragon kit but is sometimes more accuarate (and this is dragons top of the line initial tiger smart kit).

my 2c

Andrew

Yeah I'm doing the army version and I am aware that there are couple major flaws with this kit. What you mentioned as well as the barrel. Unfortunately I didn't look into this before I bought the kit or I would have stuck with my gutt and went with a tamiya or DML model. First academy kit so I thought I give it a try probably would not purchase another (unfortunate since the Blackhawks by them look pretty cool). This was my first model kit outside of cars which I am currently waiting for tamiya paint to arrive so I figure I try military kits. 

On a separate note regarding previous recommendations, are there any decent brands out there other than MiG washes? The only place I could find them were either on European sites or asking a ridiculous price. I used a "Sand" color from Model Makers Acrylics for the coat.  Thanks for all the inputs btw.

Oh one last thing awesome abram tank. Kinda looks like the m1a2 tamiya tank I should have bought. Oh well the academy kit cost me a whopping $15 and it keeps me occupied. 

BTW are you going to depict the M1A1 you have as a Army or Marine M1A1? because the Bustle rack extension is wrong for the Army Version your best bet for a quick fix is to get the DML M1A1HA Iraq kit which has markings for a Marine M1A1 but has the Bustle Rack extension for a US Army M1A1. Just simply switch them out for one another and you'll have another Abrams kit to work on. Just don't forget to paint the hub caps on the road wheels black though.

tyhe314

Hey all so I am currently working on a M1A1 Abrams Iraq 2003 by Academy and  I was wondering how people got the fine darker brown/black outline?

When you spray paint the tank the solid flat color makes the tank look dull after completion since everything is the same color. To achieve a more realistic look it looks like people outline the crevices in between the plates on the tank with a darker color. Would I have to tediously mask next to these crevices and go over it with a brush?

ok thanks! pretty sweet lookin abrams too!

I got them from Real Model in the Czech Republic. I found them on the internet.

did you makethe boxes on you abrams or buy them? saw one build that had cases of coke but idk where to find them...kinda cool to see non-military rations and supplies on vehicles in my opinion.

I used Mig Brown wash and Mig Gulf War Sand on mine.

try a wash. thin either some black, dark grey, or dark tan. then run it into the crevices. im not sure what wour skill level is but if you are just starting out in modeling take a look at the "How To" videos, thats how i learned to do washes that actually work. welcome to the forums!