How do you simulate mud

Awasoda

Why not use the real stuff. Little white glue (elmers) mixed to thickness. Bam, mud ala mode. You can use a brush to apply the mix. That is what I used on the Hummer.


http://rongeorge.com/albums/armor/hummer4.thumb.jpg

Last time I put mud on a model, I used a mix of backing soda, and Tamiya’s Flat Earth color. When this was mixed, I threw in some cut up fibers from some twine I had lying around. I got a very nice muddy texture, mixed with what looked like dried grass.

I also have an article in which the author used brown paint, filler, and cut up brush bristles. This looks very good on his model.

One other technique I have tried is putting on filler before I start painting using a stiff bristled brush. I just tapped the filler on with the end of the bristles to give it texture. Then painting the mud over areas with filler on them once the model had been painted the base color. Dry brushing especially brings out the little chunks. BUT this method looks more like old dried on mud and dust rather than just wet mud.

Good luck with whatever method you use, and I look forward to seeing any other techniques used by modelers on this forum. Oh, yah, and please let us know what method you used, and how it worked for you.

The article that was recently out on muddying up armor worked very well for me-- paint, white glue, and flour-- looks great on my GMC....

So if i use the baking soda or the white glue, after i mix it together should it be like a paste, or is it just like a dry color look and then you paint it on. If you could clearify that, it would be great.

Thanks

I mix mine till it is the consistency of mud. It is still wet at that point, but very chunky. I use an old stiff bristled brush to apply it. I would say its less like painting at that point, and more like applying spackle with a brush.

now will this mud look like its chunks or will it look like its just dry dust... i am kinda looking for the dried on mud look cause i am making a half track

I would say that it depends on what color you use, and how you apply it. You may wasn’t to use two colors if your trying to model drying mud. Lighter brown for the dry mud, and darker, perhaps glossy for the wet mud.

I'm still a relative newcomer to armor models, but I've outlined a method I used to simulate dried mud on my first armor kit with a picture I posted of it. You can take a look at it and read the notations here:

http://rongeorge.com/modules/Gallery/armor/myfirstarmour

a few extra views of it are here:

http://rongeorge.com/modules/Gallery/armor/Challenger_1

http://rongeorge.com/modules/Gallery/armor/Challenger_2

http://rongeorge.com/modules/Gallery/armor/Challenger_3

I hope they're helpful, if you have anyquestions about my method, please feel free to ask.

For what it's worth-

I used to use tree fungus. Would come off and powder up nicely. Even the proper brown colour. Mix it with a little water, paint it on and it held perfectly, not to mention it looked great!

There was a recent article in the May 2003 FSM about muddying armor.