I read in an article that a pencil can be used to easily simulate weathering on panel lines. Does this technique look good? I've been aprehensive to test it because I like to pick up and touch my models a lot and figured it would make smudges forever. Am I right to assume that the graphite will never settle and always smudge as long as the model is touched?

Hi... Unamed! :-)

Welcome to Aeroscale!

Martin Ramsden (Brandydoguk) wrote an article about that. You can find it here.
I never tried that technique but I think the pencil's graphite must be protected in some way or another. With Future or varnish I would say. But the latter products will have an "impact" on the graphite and probably wash it away a little (especially Future). It can produce a nice effect, or a bad one! I think you should test it first if you want to give it a try. It's like pastels I think.
I hope someone else can help you more than I did...

Jean-Luc

Yeah the article pretty much tells you how it works. I used this as a sort of reluctance to doing a wash. Its not hard. The only problem comes when you draw outside the panel line. Sometimes an eraser works, sometimes you get that smudge from smeared lead. I usually use a damp cloth though be careful especially if the paint below is acrylic.

I also use a drawing pencil (something like a mechanical pencil with much thicker pieces of graphite) and use the leftover graphite from sharpening as a kind of drybrushing to simulate worn dark metal and other dark stains. This takes a bit of skill and a lot of graphite. I use a standard small tip paintbrush, lightly dip it in the shavings and "paint" the armea, blowing away the excess and repeat until I get the desired effect.

Jeff

Also, I was looking at my at my p-40 i did a few years ago and I noticed that the panel lines are raised instead of recessed (I was actually surprised with how well it looks, i did it when i ws like 14, lol, the canapy, camo look great and i painted all with acrylic, brushes and no masking. Hahahahaha). Anyway its a revell kit and im wondering if the riased lines are an indication of a cheap model company? What are some good quality kit companies that won't break the bank?

o, and Im not from Alabama, i just cant get it to change,lol

Hi,

quote]o, and Im not from Alabama, i just cant get it to change,lol[/quote]

Go to 'my account', there you could easily change the info at your profile.


HTH

You have to take into account the age of the kit design. Way back when, raised panel lines are the norm. Companies just re-release old kits with maybe small moderations, not becuase it is cheap, but because it is cost effective (BTW the two are the same, but with a less devilish, money-pocketing connotation ). Just because it is older doesn't mean that you can't make a great kit out of it.

Something that you could try is using a pencil to show the panel lines. However, I recommending staying to one side. By this I mean, if you are looking at the plane from top down, only run the pencil along the aft side of a horizontal panel line, and only to either the left or right of any vertical panel line. That way, it looks like one panel line rather than two at distance.

And I forgot one very important thing, WELCOME TO THE BIG-A AND AEROSCALE!

Jeff

Hi again... UNAMED!

To change that, just go to the "my account" link near the letter (PM icon) above. From there you will be forwarded to your personal page where you will be able to change all your account settings... except for your callsign! :-) But you can choose a nice avatar. :-)8

About the raised panel lines, well they don't necessarily mean it's a bad kit, but since recessed panel lines are the norm nowadays, they usually mean it's an old kit! You can expect them to have been produced more than 30 years ago!
The best is to read reviews of kits before buying something. Sometimes, older kits are reboxed. You have a nice new artwork on the cover but inside there is a real dog of a kit. I bought the Revell P-40E as I began to build kits again. Bad choice! Today you have a better one produced by Hasegawa and I wouldn't recommend the Revell kit.
But sometimes, old kit with raised panel lines are the only solution to model your favorite aircraft. If you're into 1/48 scale and you like the B-17, B-24, B-26, B-29, P-61, Hs 123 etc... you will have to deal with relief details. You can keep them or... rescribe them! That's what I do... because I HATE raised panel lines! :-)




This really depends on the model of plane which you want to build. Axis or Allied? Fighter or Bomber? 1/72 or 1/48? WW1 or WW2?
But currently Eduard do some really nice and (often) very cheap kits!

Jean-Luc

I also have a revell p-51d (that i turned into a piece of crap) that has raised lines and i just opened a revell me 262 and that has raised lines too. All kits were purchased in the last four years so i find it hard to beleive that they are all more that 30 years old. I just suspect revell is crap.

Believe me they are! In fact the molds are old. The plastic used to make them, the box, the instructions and the decals may be new. Are these 1/48 or 1/72 kits?




Not always! Revell have a huge range of kits. Some of them are reissues of older kits (the ones you have), others are modern kits made by other manufacturers (Hasegawa, Dragon, Monogram etc...) but sold under the Revell brand. The latter are sometimes very good and modern kits wich are also cheap. Finally, Revell do design their own kits sometimes but these represent only a minor percentage of their full range.

Let me give you an example:



You may think these are four different kits of the same subjcet (weird isn't it?). But in fact it's the same old ESCI kit reboxed by Italeri, Revell and Tamiya! And there is one more by AMTech (wich I have ). The Italeri and Revell kits are the cheapest, the Tamiya one comes with additional ground accessories (cost more) and the AMTech one has resin detail parts. But the kit parts are the same.

That's why I said you should read reviews before buying something or... you can ask on Aeroscale first!

Jean-Luc

i usually build 1/48 but i'll just stick with that 262 i have, it doesn't matter that much because i'm not that good, as i only have time for maybe 1 or 2 a year and never really invested in some goodies like an airbrush.

Hi again!

Is the Me 262 also 1/48?

Anyway, even with paintbrush, there are ways to improve your skills. Just start with your model, post some pics here and ask for help. After two or three builds you will see the difference!
There are guys here who achieve great results without an airbrush... but once you get one, you will always use it!
if you want a good and cheap kit from Revell, try their 1/48 Bf 109 G-10 kit. Easy to assemble, good detail and recessed panel lines. it costs almost nothing so it's a good kit to make first attempts... you can buy three! :-)

Jean-Luc

Ok you have been a lot of help so i think i will post my best model so people can give me some pointers for the future and i will start a diary for my 262.

Got you!