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Wash to lighten a base coat of Tamiya dark green?

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  • Member since
    December 2011
Wash to lighten a base coat of Tamiya dark green?
Posted by Chrisk-k on Thursday, August 1, 2013 2:28 AM

I painted an SU-100 with Tamiya Dark Green as instructed by the manual. It looks way too dark. I could repaint it with a mix of dark green + white, but I'd like to try a different approach. I remember reading about using some kind of wash to lighten a base coat color.  However, I don't remember the detail. Let's say I spray a mix of alcohol and an iota of white to the model. Will it lighten the dark color?  Other ideas?

Iwata HP-CS | Iwata HP-CR | Iwata HP-M2 | H&S Evolution | Iwata Smart Jet + Sparmax Tank

  • Member since
    August 2005
  • From: Sydney, Australia
Posted by Phil_H on Thursday, August 1, 2013 5:49 AM

I wouldn't attempt to lighten dark green with white, it'll turn a greyish colour.  A tan-based colour like buff or dark yellow would be a better option. Note that Tamiya Olive drab + Dark Yellow is a long favoured method of creating a faded OD.

Assuming the existing coat isn't overly heavy, I would just overpaint with the faded mix and use the base coat as a form of preshading.

  • Member since
    January 2007
Posted by the doog on Thursday, August 1, 2013 10:44 AM

Here's how I do mine---pretty radical, for some people, but look at the finished pics later in the thread and see how you can really make something of it if you go through the trouble.

http://cs.finescale.com/fsm/modeling_subjects/f/3/t/119436.aspx?sort=ASC&pi240=2

One thing---NEVER use alcohol over acrylic paint. It's a powerful chemical that can attack and frost paints.

  • Member since
    July 2004
  • From: Sonora Desert
Posted by stikpusher on Thursday, August 1, 2013 11:21 AM

Make up a "tint" coat- a little heavier than a wash, but still not opaque enough to cover the coat below, just enough color to alter the base. I have become a fan of Tamiya Deck Tan, a nice light grayish sand shade. Make a tint with Tamiya thinner, airbrush it on, and see how you like the results. It will deinitley lighten it up.

 

F is for FIRE, That burns down the whole town!

U is for URANIUM... BOMBS!

N is for NO SURVIVORS...

       - Plankton

LSM

 

  • Member since
    March 2013
  • From: Puebla, Mexico
Posted by garzonh on Thursday, August 1, 2013 11:48 AM

HI,

Yes, I would also not recommend doing a white wash, it wil kill the green, unless you want to make it look like dust, snow.

Better try thinning and lightening a green base more and more. At least thats what I would do.

  • Member since
    December 2011
Posted by Chrisk-k on Thursday, August 1, 2013 12:04 PM

Yeah, now I remember the article talked about using a tan-based color to lighten.up. I do have Tamiya Deck Tan. As for a tint, how much should I thin the paint? Something like 10:1?

Iwata HP-CS | Iwata HP-CR | Iwata HP-M2 | H&S Evolution | Iwata Smart Jet + Sparmax Tank

  • Member since
    July 2004
  • From: Sonora Desert
Posted by stikpusher on Thursday, August 1, 2013 1:18 PM

Yeah, 9:1 or 10:1 ratio of thinner to paint sounds good. You could even use a lighter green or green gray like RLM Gray for the tint. No reason that you can not experiment a little bit.

 

F is for FIRE, That burns down the whole town!

U is for URANIUM... BOMBS!

N is for NO SURVIVORS...

       - Plankton

LSM

 

  • Member since
    December 2011
Posted by Chrisk-k on Thursday, August 1, 2013 5:49 PM

I don't want to go through spraying a tint next time I build Russian armor. I do like Tamiya paints and don't want to siwtch to another brand. So I need to create my own mix of Russian green. Would mixing Dark Green and Japan Green work? Or can I simply add Flat White or Deck Tan to Dark Green?

Iwata HP-CS | Iwata HP-CR | Iwata HP-M2 | H&S Evolution | Iwata Smart Jet + Sparmax Tank

  • Member since
    July 2004
  • From: Sonora Desert
Posted by stikpusher on Thursday, August 1, 2013 6:57 PM

I would suggest a mix of Khaki Drab and Olive Green, or Olive Drab and Olive Green. The real Russian stuff that I have seen in person tends to lean towards those color mixes. Tamiya Dark Green is way too dark straight OOB.

 

F is for FIRE, That burns down the whole town!

U is for URANIUM... BOMBS!

N is for NO SURVIVORS...

       - Plankton

LSM

 

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