Hey gang! This is my first post and I hope it's a decent one. I'd like to get into aircraft modelling. I'm an aircraft electrician for the Air Force. I'd like to start with something simple and easy to see if I can even do this. Any recommendations for a beginner's kit would be very much appreciated! Thanks!

Welcome twytch, while I'm not an aircraft modeler myself, you've definitly come to the right place. Some of these guys are phenominal, I'm sure they can help. Don't be shy, post any questions or ideas you have, and pictures when you're done are always welcome.

Al

Welcome. What are your thoughts on painting? Are you going to be a rattle-can guy, or are you going to invest in an airbrush?

What kind of paints are you thinking of? Are you going enamel, or acrylic? These are core questions for any new modeler.

My first model I will probably use a rattle can, just to see if I'm any good at this stuff! As for types of paint...I'm not sure. I don't know much about the benefits of each. Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated!

It's all about the painting. Check out the 'finishing' section of the Starship modeler forum:

http://www.starshipmodeler.net/talk/viewforum.php?f=16

Buy a cheap kit, as big as you can. Something in the bargain bins. Doesn't matter what it is. Soak it in water with dish soap for an hour and then scrub it with a toothbrush and soap. Rinse it off and let it dry. You now have a clean piece to practice painting on. Google 'spray can technique' and read all you can about using rattle cans.

Ask the folks at your local hobby shop who there uses rattle cans and take their advice. Then give it a shot! My advice - don't even try to build your first model until you've had a couple of hours painting practice and are getting some good results. Do not be discouraged if your results are not perfect right away. Think about what you are doing and try to experiment with different techniques.

You can go far with spray cans, but when you move into the airbrush arena it's a whole new world. That's a more complicated subject for another time. PS: Don't forget to use a good mask and plastic gloves!

My first model I will probably use a rattle can, just to see if I'm any good at this stuff! As for types of paint...I'm not sure. I don't know much about the benefits of each. Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated!

First there's the 'jack of all trades'. These are guys who've been modeling forever and have used every kind of paint known to man. They have great big workshops and all kinds of tools. They can make a great looking kit with shoe-polish and kool-aid. I suspect John Payne is one of these guys.

Then there's the specialist. This is the guy who tries a lot of stuff and narrows it down to what he gets good, consistent results with.

I'm more of a specialist. My deal is tamiya rattle-can laquer primer first. Then I airbrush on acrylics. Usually testors, or sometimes tamiya. The acrylics are easier to use and WAY easier to clean. Less dangerous, less smelly. However, they don't 'bite' into the plastic as well as enamels, hence the laquer primer.

There are two techniques you need to learn. One is 'dry-brushing', the other is 'washing'. Dry-brushing is far and away one of the easiest and most effective techniques you can use. Washes can get kind of complicated. It helps to practice and get down a 'method' that works for you.

When I do a wash I use artists oils sometimes, but usually enamels. Particularly little jars of testors enamels like you bought when you were a kid.

When you see someone post a picture here you like, ask them ' how did you get that effect'? 99% of the time it will either be lighter colors dry-brushed over darker colors, or a dark wash put over lighter colors.

I hope this helps..

hey thanks for all the help! I'm going out this afternoon and will pick up a cheap model and a rattle can and see if I can get this stuff figured out. I'm still not quite sure what you mean by a "wash" or "dry-brushing". I tried this stuff as a kid, but I didn't have the patience for it. Now that I'm much older I'm going to give it a shot again.

hey thanks for all the help! I'm going out this afternoon and will pick up a cheap model and a rattle can and see if I can get this stuff figured out. I'm still not quite sure what you mean by a "wash" or "dry-brushing". I tried this stuff as a kid, but I didn't have the patience for it. Now that I'm much older I'm going to give it a shot again.

Dry brushing is done when you want to put lighter highlights on a dark background.

First you put on your base coat. Then you dab your paint brush in your light paint color. Brush off most of the paint leaving just a bit on the brush. Then you lightly brush back and forth over the highlights of the kit. The higher parts will get lighter paint on them, the lower parts won't.

Washing is when you want the opposite effect. You have a lighter surface (like an aircraft fuselage, wing, etc) and you want darker paint in the crevices, panel-lines, etc. After you've got your light base color on you apply a glossy sealer. That's so the 'wash' will seep into the cracks of your model. Then you get a very watered down 'wash' (paint + some kind of thinner) and dab your very small brush into it. When you touch the brush to the model capillary action will draw the wash into the cracks of the model.

Know how you see a kit and go, 'that's amazing, how did he do that!'. He did that with dry-brushing and washes. Two techniques that will take you far. First, be able to get a good base coat on, then work on these techniques.

Modeling is great fun and very rewarding. There is a definate 'barrier to entry' though. You have to be able to fail and try again before your technique is rewarding.

I've uploaded a pic of someone dry-brushing a dinosaur fin. See the panel-line detail on the TIE-Fighter? That's a wash.

Well I wound up buying a Revell A320 airliner and all paints to complete it! I walked out of the store with the kit, Yellow, Light Grey, and White Tamiya spray paint, flat black, and silver/chrome tamiya acrylics, a good ol' fashioned tube of glue, and a set of decent brushes. Now to see if I can get this thing painted and put together! I figure if I mess up the gear, I can always model it gear up!

Hi twych38 and welcome to Hobbytalk! :wave:
Good choice for a first kit.:thumbsup:
Just a few basics mate-
Always cut the parts off the sprue (frame) with a hobbyknife.
Use only as much glue as you need. It melts the plastic together and if it gets anywhere on the parts it will damage the surface of the part.
Always read the instructions at least once before you build your kit. Get familiar with the parts and look at where they are located on the sprue.
Follow the order of assembly on your instructions at least for your first few kits. As you get experience with building kits you'll possibly deviate from them every now and then, but for now it's better to follow the plans.
As the addiction takes hold you'll find yourself looking for tips and techniques to hone your developing skills. Read everything you can find!! There's heaps of books and plenty of info on our great hobby.
Most importantly- ENJOY!!!

Chris.:)

And paint sub-assemblies as separate entities, before gluing them into the rest of the kit. In other words, don't glue the pilot to the seat and then paint him, as you'll get paint from the pilot on the seat, and paint from the seat on the pilot. Similarly, don't glue the seat into the cockpit and then paint it, as you'll get paint from the seat in the cockpit, and paint from the cockpit on the seat, and so on.