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Painting camouflage with a brush


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Good morning,

i have read several threads in other forums and watched a video but I would like to hear this forum’s take on this. Painting guides show perfect smooth lines at curves an I have yet to get that right. 
 

Stuart

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4 hours ago, StuartMont said:

Painting guides show perfect smooth lines at curves an I have yet to get that right.

Compare painting guides to photos of the actual subject whenever possible. Many times the guides look much neater than the real thing, depending upon the subject.

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To get those curves you can try using a good Liner brush.  Liner brushes have long bristles that are soft and hold more paint than a normal short paint brush.  

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Having done that very thing for more than twenty years before getting an airbrush, I can say it's not as effective as an airbrush with proper masking. Occasionally, I still use a brush for my 1/72 scale armor camouflage  However, I've found that having the softest brushes that have no loose bristles tend to do the best job. I also have slightly thinned the paint so it lays down better and use the tips of the brush to make the edges.  Sometimes a stray bristle makes a rough line, but then I turn the brush and re-do it.

 

Here's some examples of the results:

IMG_9981.JPG

IMG_9982.JPG

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Those are really cool looking. I’m going to have to stick to brushes for now. Just so I’m sure, you don’t bother with masking if you’re brushing, only if you’re using an airbrush. I’m always looking, much to my wife’s chagrin, to improve the tools I use. 

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True Stuart, I see no reason to mask if I'm brush painting as there's far more control over where paint goes. The exception is when I'm painting around clear parts: windscreens, windows, canopies etc. That way I can continue a pattern over the mask to the other side and when the masking is peeled off, the pattern looks more consistent. Otherwise, yeah: no masking when brush painting camo. For masking camo for airbrushing I find the Silly Putty to be the best masking agent for me.

 

So, as Rusty said: good quality brushes and slight thinning of paint and you'll be fooling people into believing you airbrushed the model!

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Thanks Mark. Now I understand the complicated masking for canopies 😀

We had dinner with an artist last night and he showed me a trick for making straight lines with a liner brush. 
 

Stuart

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Click on the link to our (IPMS/Mid-Carolina) monthly newsletter.  One of our club members paints exclusively with a brush and he wrote an article describing the process--it starts on page 28.

https://ipmsmidcarolina.files.wordpress.com/2021/05/may-2021.pdf

Of course, you are free to read the rest of the articles, too...  🙂

Cheers!
Ralph

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Thanks very much for posting the link. I’m reading the article now.  Looks like a mosquito with the same paint scheme as I picked. 
 

Stuart

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