Here's mt pilot E using the recommended Tamiya Japanese Gray (I forgot the color number) And here's my series E using Tamiya light ghost gray:
I'm sure he painted over the primer. Priming can serve two major purposes in plastic modeling, gives a good surface for the actual finish coat to hold on to and also provides a means to check your filling and sanding work before trying to apply that final coat. As to the color @Forbin used on the Pilot TOS E, I suspect that would have been Tamiya AS-2 IJN Light Gray. I think that has the slight greenish tint.
Question about mixing acrylic paints by parts. I used an online tool to convert the hex colors of the colors I need for the enterprise into recipes that list how much of each color I should mix to get the correct color (1 part blue 1part yellow etc), my question is how should I measure/pour the paint to get consistant amounts, for some colors I could probably eyeball it , but for others that require over 100 parts of a color, I would like to have some simple way of pouring the paint in a consistant manor so I can count how many parts of a color I am mixing. another question, why is a krylon primer a bad thing? I ordered Tamiya primer, so I will use that, but why shouldn’t I use Krylon?
Krylon is ... okay for some things. It's not really meant for models though. It's mainly used on "projects" (interior/exterior odds and ends). Tamiya's primer (and some other brands in the hobby/gaming arena) is meant for use on plastic models and has a very fine finish to it.
For krylon, The size of the pigment , in model paint its a finer grain of pigment. So better. I use krylon primer sometimes to fill seams on bigger models. It lays it on thick. You can use a pipette to do drops or use a disposable cup, even those katsup cups from Wendy's and measure say it's 2 to 1 ,2 mini cups to 1 mini cup .
Tamiya is my go to for airbrushing, but for me its crap at brush painting, even with the retarder. But do see others work quite well with it. So as before, its up to the person and there ability to use stuff.
Update: painting the 1:1000 model, anyone recommend an affordable air brush? The brush strokes are visible in the paint, know that this is a sign that I need to thin it more, and I think that an airbrush would give me an even coat of paint.
This is why several of us were recommending Tamiya's "Rattle cans" (spray paint). They have such a wonderful nozzle design that you can get an airbrush finish straight from the can. If you do want to get an airbrush - keep in mind that it's going to be an airbrush 'system', not just an airbrush. You'll need the airbrush, plus a compressor, filter, moisture trap, possibly a regulator etc... This adds up very quickly. Since you are just getting started with modeling, I'm going to guess that you've never used an airbrush before and there is most definitely a learning curve, in addition to the cost. Anywho... Badger airbrushes have been around for decades and some are decent, some are actually quite good and some are crap for model work. Paasche has also been around forever and are generally better than Badger (though it varies by model/age etc.). Tamiya has it's own line of airbrushes as well, and I have never used one so...? Iwata has quite a reputation for it's airbrushes but, they aren't cheap. Whether you use a Tamiya spray can or an airbrush, keep in mind that you do NOT linger on the model to get more paint on in one coat. You move across the kit starting -before- the leading edge of the model, start spraying just as you reach the model and keep spraying while moving at a modest speed across the surface to the other end and then stop spraying. Multiple light coats get a better overall effect than one overly heavy coat of paint. In most cases, you want to hold the can or airbrush about a foot or so from the model while spraying, not too far, not too close. You may want to grab a piece of the empty sprue from the kit and run a few practice passes on it before actually painting the model, just to get the hang of it. There are MANY videos on Youtube (and probably elsewhere) that can give you a good head start on the hows and whys:
I recommend Iwata as well ( or there clones, SparMax, others are made in the same factory), Paache is meh, Badger is okay, there return policy is excellent. The chinese specials on amazon are crap, but are cheap, up to you. Single action is just press a button and it sprays, a Double action is the kind you get fine lines out of. With Trek kits, Single action will work for the overall hull spraying well. As said, will need a whole kit to use an airbrush, the airbrush itself ( good one is 60+ Iwata Neo is a great starter, and cheap..ish) and an air compressor, which can get expensive, if your handy you can convert an air compressor for tires from wal-mart, Harbor Frieght. Just need some parts and a moisture trap. I'd recommend one with a tank, doesn't have to be big, 1 gallon is plenty. But thats up to you. Thats minimum $50, more fancy ones get up north of $100. Quite a big chunk of change to get started, but it'll last for years. So if your going to build models for awhile, I'd recommend the investment. If not, stick to the rattle cans. There are kits on amazon, as said, your budget is the king of what you get. Now don't forget that you also need a Spray Booth if your painting inside, or just spray outside. any kind of paint is toxic, even the non toxic acrylics, so wear a resperator or have some good ventilation, or outside.
Lots of good information here already. I'll just say that a cheap airbrush can do fine. Mine is an off-brand kit I got several years ago at a local hobby shop that came with a small compressor and double-action airbrush and it has served me well. I'm sure it sucks for, say, painting a van mural or something like a Boris Vallejo painting, but for spraying custom colors on models in a controlled way, it's great. --Alex
The Amazon specials arnt that bad, but there not built as well as the more expensive ones. Just be prepared for it to crap out after a year or so. I've had a couple cheapys myself. If that's all you can afford right now, there's nothing wrong with getting a kit. Learning how to work and clean them, etc. Just save up for a better one in the future, there worth the price.
Cheap is not bad to start with provided it works correctly. Air brush is not for everyone. If you are just starting get single action, that was the advice given me.
Orne Montgomery had a 1/350 of his own https://modelermagic.com/year-5-enterprise-by-rebellion-creations-orne-montgomery/ https://www.facebook.com/RebellionCreations/ I think someone of the same name passed away in Nevada recently--and sadly it looks like Modeler Magic is shutting down to an archive... His infinity reach site is down. I really liked his Charger concept...
Update: decided not to invest in an air brush, money is tight and the last thing I need is another skill to learn in order to complete this. I remember why I hate the 1/1000 scale model so much, with the amount of sanding and cutting I had to do, I hope the 1/350 will be better because I will have more space to work and get into the areas that I need to file down. I got it painted,sealed, and put on decals. Tried to glue the engines, but the gap is too big. This lead me to learning why it is recommended to fill in cracks before painting: the putty removes everything down to the plastic, I am thankful I learned this before moving onto the 1/350 scale. TLDR: almost completed 1/1000 model, just need to glue engines on, and learned that the filler removes paint.