1/18 scale Tervamaki Engineering JT-9T autogyro

Hello Nick!

Nice job, I really like it! How about the F-16, did You get tired? I hope not, have a nice day

Pawel

Incredible! That engine is mind blowing!

The heat staining on the exhaust is simply stellar, and really sets that engine off. It actually looks like it is still glowing.

I, for one, am humbled by your work here.

WOW, you are of to a good start for your scratchbuild!

Teonguyen wrote:

Thank Nick for posting this ..i alway wonder how many types of wash do modelers really have? what i know so far is sludge wash or enamel.By reading your post, i like the idea of using chalk pastel to do weathering for engines or machines...May i have you a question? Are these pastels you used can be easily purchased at any supply stores?? I saw HobbyLobby also has a set of inexpensive chalk pastel. Would that one work..Thanks

As I wrote, you can find these hard chalk pastels in a variety of colors, into your local art store or else. Don't expect them to cost more than 0.50 - 0.75£ each. Possibly, these chalk pastels you found into HobbyLobby, are just right for the job. Be sure that they are NOT the oil soft pastels used by artists to draw on paper. The hard chalk pastels sticks, look like the white chalk sticks a teacher would use on the blackboard in school. Here is a picture of the Faber Castell sticks, found in EU market.

You can also use these chalk pastels, to simulate weathering, color fading, smoke effects etc by applying carefully the chalk powder on the desired surface, with cotton batons, hard or soft brushes, or other stuff depending what you have in mind.

Nick,

This really is incredible stuff to watch.  Your use of unconventional techniques, different mediums, and such are incredible!  I am learning much from watching you work.  Thank you for the detailed explanations and incredible photography.

CHAPTER II - Diesel engine building & painting

Setting as a task to build the model in a way that airframe look like cutaway side opened with cockpit and engine bay details visible, I should also leave the engine's cover opened. that offcourse means that a diesel engine building from scratch is something I couldn't easily avoid. Using plastic card, sprue, metal wire and unidentified parts found in the sparebox, here is my effort to build a realistic 1/18 scale engine.





















After connecting with superglue the main elements, the electric cables and oil or diesel lines etc on engine's shape, I airbrushed it with enamel mat white color as a base coat, using high air pressure and spraying from distance to develop a pore surface and help silver & aluminum paint establish easier on plastic or metal engine's parts. As soon as the enamel mat white color seemed dry enough, a mixture of silver and aluminum paint sprayed on the engine and let about 24hrs to dry before trying to wash it with darker colors.









As I personally believe that following simple techniques and sometimes unconventional methods, result in superior effects, I usually do not use enamel or acrylic paint to wash, because I feel risky when applying the paint mixture and let it run. I prefer an easier technique that can be undone if the results are poor - that makes it the perfect technique. I use hard chalk pastels to wash (NOT oil pastels). The hard chalk pastels, look like a teacher would use on the blackboard in school. Do not use the soft oil pastels that artist use to draw on paper. The hard chalk pastels are easy to find in a variety of colours into your local art store or maybe Wal-Mart if in US or ASDA if in UK.

To do the wash, I use an X-acto knife, a small metal or plastic container, an old brush, dish washing soap and a bit of water. Begin by scraping some chalk powder from the side of the chalk pastel stick, carefully put this chalk powder into the small container and add a tiny amount of water and stir. It is important to add a tiny amount of water in order to make the mixture look like mud - not like soup! For this reason, I use a syringe to add just few drops on the hard chalk pastel powder and I stir using the old brush. Because the chalk powder doesn't mix well with the water, a drop of dish washing soap is needed to break the surface tension of the water and also acts as a "glue" to help the chalk powder stick to the model.











Once the chalk is fully dissolved into the water/soap mixture it is time to "paint" this mixture onto the model's engine. "Painting" the mixture is simple - just apply it anywhere it is needed to darken recessed detail. The mixture can be applied carelessly, because any mistakes can be completely removed and redone. Once the chalk wash dried, I rubbed off the high spots with a slightly damp dry (not wet) Q-Tip cotton swab (Kleenex papers can be also used) and I wiped the dark color from the areas should be light & shinny. The high spots were cleaned to the SNJ bare metal finish and the low spots were left black. I did the chalk wash on the engine in under 30 minutes which makes it a very quick and effective technique. You can also read about this into Steve Bamford's article, by clicking HERE.













Some of the wash mixture is re-applied and the wash being wiped completely out of the narrow points. If you follow this method, it is adviced to not rinse out the wash container till you are finished this job. You will probably be touching up certain spots a few times, so it helps if you're not mixing up a new chalk mixture each time because you kept cleaning out your container of the chalk wash mixture. As soon as I paint the electric cables, the oil or diesel lines etc, I repeated the the wash process with lighter colors where needed. Using micro cotton batons found into cosmetic shop for less than 1£, I applied some red, orange, purple & brown chalk pastel powder on the engine's chrome excaust, to make it look overheated. I repeated the weathering process until it satisfied me and finally I sprayed a clear coat to seal the chalk powder on the engine.

The scale model building, cost me almost nothing and took about 2 evenings work so far. I also send some pictures of my secret hideout / hobby room while scratchbuilding the 1/18 scale JT-9T autogyro model. Click on the first image to enlarge hi-res 180 degrees panoramic picture.