Panel line accents on Sci-Fi models?

Not just for spaceships, but I find pencils---both colored, and good ol' #2s---very useful for weathering and wear. A regular pencil is great for panel lines, either ones that are already molded, or adding one here and there with a minimum of fuss. Also great for adding a metallic sheen/highlights over black or dark-gray painted "gunmetal" items, and metallic surfaces in general.

For colored pencils, silver is probably most useful for doing "worn" edges on painted surfaces, handles, hatch edges, etc. I also use a brown one frequently for fluid leaks, burn marks, a stray shadow or a little extra grime.

The best thing with pencils is that you can vary the effect quite a bit simply by varying the pressure. Plus they're fast and great for touch-ups and afterthoughts.

Depending on the look you want, yes they can be.

Something like the Millennium Falcon would certainly have more accent than a clean Enterprise.

I'm not as good with washes, they never turn out for me like they do for other people. I prefer to use pre-shading and if that's not enough I'll ad some artists chalk for shadow/highlights.

I did the cyclone raider as I would a WWII fighter so I did accent panel lines

jvtroyen

I was wondering if panel lines are also accentuated in sci-fi? Spaceships aren't supposed to get "dirty" and the Enterprise-C I'm building is supposed to be very light (grey-ish white and blue-ish white). I was wondering if I should use (for instance) Tamiya's grey panel line accent?

Spaceships being depicted as "dirty" began with Star Wars.  The main time that it would fit is in the cases of craft that enter planetary atmospheres, and the reality of the visible wear on the shuttles supports the idea.

Even some ships that stay out of atmospheres could be understandably shown as weathered. After enough time exposed to micrometeoroids and space dust while traveling at high velocities, I would expect that a ship would likely show at least some visible effects.

Even if you skip weathering effects, panel lines would also seem likely to me, and shading differences ( like the "aztec" patterns on many Star Trek ships ) can be used to add detail and a sense of scale.

wow!   that is a good qustion.  I think it depends on what for look you are going for. I have been doing star trek models for years and I only did one where I pre shades some of the lines. As far as damge or wear and tear, whith trek models the deflector shield is supposed to block or deflect all of those micro -meteoriods and depris. So that wouldnt aplly to them. But battle damage is a different story.  I did this voyager with some pre shading. You can see it in the lines that come toward you. Now I didnt with this close up of Ent-A refit, but after looking at it, I think that maybe it would look ok. But with the Aztec pattern i dont think you miss it. I really think it is a personal preferance. All i can say is try it. You can always repaint it!  

Doing the panel lines isn't necessarily dirtying up a kit.  It brings out the detail that otherwise would remain invisible with a single color.  They also bring shadows, complexity, and depth to your kits.  If it comes out looking like crap then repaint or dry brush over it with the base coat to blend the shaded panels line in and make them look more natural.

I couldnt agree more!!  

Those starships look great! As others have said, it is up to you and the effect you want to achieve. Pnel linning or pre or post shading have their uses in Sci-Fi model building for sure. They will often time lend a more "realistic" tone to a fantasy subject.

If you have aztecing maybe panel lines aren't necessary,

but if it's shading, as in your Voyager, the  panel lines are GREAT!

Well done.

Do products such as the Tamiya Panel Line Accent serve the same purpose as pre-shading or they done in addition to the pre-shading?