After paint is dry what are the next steps?

[Guest]

So after all my paint is dry and painted all small detail. Do I go straight for decals? Do i need another other coats, before decals.

In what order do other "finishes" get added after paint dry in such as, weathering, decals, wash est...

[Guest]

The usual steps are these :

Primer, paint, gloss coat, decals, gloss over decals, wash, matt/satin coat. Some might do their weathering before the matt coat, others after.

Hope this helps

Cheers

Patrick

[peterairfix]

Me i just decel weather and a matt or gloss coat witch ever is needed.

Peter t

[stona]

So after all my paint is dry and painted all small detail. Do I go straight for decals?

It depends on the paint. For he best results it is important to apply decals over a gloss surface which is smooth. Matt (flat) finishes, which many model paints give, are in fact not smooth but rather rough at an almost microscopic level. This causes air to become trapped under the decals and this is what leads to 'silvering' of the decal film, causing it to become visible. To avoid this most apply a gloss varnish over the painted surface before applying decals. This has the added bonus of offering some protection to the paint too. After the decals are applied another gloss coat will seal and protect them and prepare the model for any weathering. A final coat of varnish may be required to give the desired finish to the completed model, be it satin, matt or whatever.

If the model has been finished in gloss paints then that initial gloss varnish, to provide a suitable base for the decals, might not be required.

Cheers

Steve

[Guest]

It depends on the paint. For he best results it is important to apply decals over a gloss surface which is smooth. Matt (flat) finishes, which many model paints give, are in fact not smooth but rather rough at an almost microscopic level. This causes air to become trapped under the decals and this is what leads to 'silvering' of the decal film, causing it to become visible. To avoid this most apply a gloss varnish over the painted surface before applying decals. This has the added bonus of offering some protection to the paint too. After the decals are applied another gloss coat will seal and protect them and prepare the model for any weathering. A final coat of varnish may be required to give the desired finish to the completed model, be it satin, matt or whatever.If the model has been finished in gloss paints then that initial gloss varnish, to provide a suitable base for the decals, might not be required.

Cheers

Steve

Thank you steve, I live state side in a small town in Alaska and local shop sells Tamiya and Model master only. I'm not sure what you mean by varnishers. Do you mean laquer or gloss?

[BBdave]

What is used for the gloss/Matt coat i presume this gets rid of the clear bit of the decal?

Dave

[stona]

Thank you steve, I live state side in a small town in Alaska and local shop sells Tamiya and Model master only. I'm not sure what you mean by varnishers. Do you mean laquer or gloss?

I'm not very familiar with those brands as I hardly use them but I'm sure they will both have a matt/flat varnish, a semi-gloss/satin varnish and a gloss varnish in their ranges. They may call them something like clear coast.

There's bound to be someone who uses Tamiya products who will know more

Cheers

Steve

[stona]

What is used for the gloss/Matt coat i presume this gets rid of the clear bit of the decal?Dave

Yes Dave, a gloss coat applied BEFORE decaling will provide a smooth surface for the decal to adhere to. This will minimise the chance of 'silvering' which causes the decal film to become visible.

A matt coat might be applied later if a flat finish is what is wanted on the model. It will effectively mask the glossy coat applied before the decals.

Here is a model, very glossy, with the decals applied, not yet matted down.



And the same model finished.



Cheers

Steve

[BBdave]

Thanks all becomes clear now.

Dave

[Guest]

Hi just curious after you gloss coat and are about to apply decals, can you use micro sol and set whilst the gloss is still wet or should you wait a bit.

[aaron]

Hi just curious after you gloss coat and are about to apply decals, can you use micro sol and set whilst the gloss is still wet or should you wait a bit.

Definitely let every coat of everything dry well.

[takeslousyphotos]

Thank you steve, I live state side in a small town in Alaska and local shop sells Tamiya and Model master only. I'm not sure what you mean by varnishers. Do you mean laquer or gloss?

.............. I use Tamiya Acrylics ........... for "Varnish" an acrylic laquer gloss or matt whatever finish you want is good ........ for the wash, thin down some oil based paint, I use the stuff you find in a tube in art / craft shops ...... Thin it down with turps you get it like "dirty turps" ........brush it on not too much, then wipe off with cotton balls (the things women use to wipe makeup off)........ But practice on some painted card first. "It's easy to screw it up" ............ You'll find a few threads on here about washes..........

Peter