World War II Project - P107 (f)/U304 (f) 21st Pz Div Halftracks - Streaking

I was able to sit down and add some fairly extensive streaking to the halftracks. For this round I used the Ammo streaking effects; streaking grime and streaking rust. I tried to make the streaks a bit more obvious this time around by making sure that I kept the use of thinner to a minimum on the brush. I have definitely not mastered this technique yet but I am getting better at it. I think I have decided that I prefer using the Ammo Oilbrushers for this, the enamel streaking effects just seem to thin coming out of the bottle and I felt like I constantly needing to add a second "coat" to make sure there was enough paint to actually create the streak with. The tube oils work very nicely for this as well but at least two of the Abteilung tubes seemed to have completely separated in the tubes and I ended up with a huge mess on the palette which makes me lean even more towards using the Oilbrushers for just about everything that uses oil paints and supplement with tube oils.

NOTE: After looking at even more videos it seems that the best surface to do streaks on is a semi-gloss surface. A matte surface has to much texture making it difficult to work the streaking effect and a gloss surface (which is what I used on these) doesn't give the surface enough tooth for the paint to grab, which goes along way in explaining some of my frustrations with the technique. I will no better for the next batch test subjects.

World War II Project - Return to Normandy - The Gangs all Here - Weathering I

After the experiments with streaking I finally feel like I can start the weathering process. While a good portion of what I have finished would also be considered "weathering" for me weathering is the getting things muddy and dusty.

I started off with more streaking, in this case with a dust color (avoiding buff which was my first choice but I used that early in the process to fade the dunkelgelb). The technique is the same as the regular streaking just with a different color and this time I only used the make-up sponge as my brush. I did this streaking twice to intensify the effect yet tried not to go overboard.

I followed that up with a combination of pigments applied to the track bogies, drive and return wheels as well as the lower hull behind them (I'm not sure how much of the lower hull should really exist on the S307). I "fixed" the pigments, more or less, in place with white spirits. This allows me to adjust things a bit after the pigments have dried. I could have used a "fixer" that pretty much seals everything into place but good luck making any adjustments after that!

Of course I haven't done this in a while and as you can see, I may have gotten a tad over zealous with my application with the pigments. Fortunately pigments are easy to adjust with a brush or even with your finger if need be.

World War II Project - Return to Normandy - The Gangs all Here - Streaking II

I gave the streaking effects another shot. I used the oilbrushers and the enamel wash again, but I have decided that I'm not going to bother with the enamel wash, it doesn't cure fast enough for me and I tend to wash it completely away when I pull the streak down. Along with a regular chip brush I also pulled out a make-up sponge to try. I like the make up sponge quite a bit for streaking. I think this maybe my go to method for streaking at this point. We will see though. 

I think the streaks are more evident this time and didn't become a "filter" like the first attempt. Still need to practice with this effect but its looking better.

Not perfect by any means but better the second time around.

I think the S307 maybe the best of the lot.

Possibly my new favorite "brush" a make-up sponge. And no I didn't steal this one from my wife. I actually bought a whole package of these things about a year ago. I think that some of the sponge tips that I use with the pan pastels may work really well for this too.

And the a paints; Oilbrushers; grime, rust and dark earth. The jar is streaking grime (a bit on the brown side).

World War II Project - Return to Normandy - The Gangs all Here - Streaking

This is really my first attempt at trying to create streaks and I don't feel like this first session was particularly successfully. It feels like I ended up with more of a filter than streaks. Again gaming pieces so they are good for practice and will look fine on the table. I think I'm going to do a second round of this just to try out a different method.

All of these products are from Ammo by Mig. The Oilbrushers are oils, the jars are enamels. The basic technique doesn't change since they are all, essentially, oil paints. The Oilbrushers are "liquid" version of tube oils, just with a much thinner viscosity. The enamels are pretty thin as well which I found to be a bit frustrating to work with.

The streaking effect is really hard to see on the more heavily camouflaged S307.

World War II Project - Return to Normandy - The Gangs all Here - Fading

Next step trying to fade things a bit. In this instance I'm using the new Oilbrusher paints from Ammo as opposed to straight up oils. They are a little easier to use but I wasn't found of the green fade and I ended up mixing in a bit of the buff to lighten it a bit more. Its hard to see the photos though, the lights tend to wash things out a bit much.

Decide where to apply paint. The Oilbrusher has its own brush. On this first vehicle those dabs of buff paint are a little large. A drop of oil point goes a long way. If you choose to use straight up tube oils, you should put them on something (cardboard works) to pull out some of the excess oil.

All three faded. Most of it is on the upper surfaces. Clicking on the picture will give you a better idea of what's going on.

And on the Pak 40 S307(f)

And blended in. Blending done with some older brushes and clean. low odor, mineral spirits.

The three colors I tried. In the end the green wasn't a good choice and I added some buff to it to lighten it up.

All three camo colors blended. Next step is chipping but they need to dry for about 24 hours before I do that.

And the S307(f) finished up after the Lorraines.

It has  been an interesting process and its definitely going to take some practice to really pull it off effectively. Gaming models are the perfect test bed or this.

World War II Project - Return to Normandy - The Gangs all here

There has been a lot of building and not much painting for a while now. Here is the line up for the paint shop

15cm sFH 135/1 (Sf) auf Geschutzwagen Lorraine Schlepper (f), Pak 40 auf S307 (f) both from MadBob Miniatures

Pak 40 auf S307 (f), Unic P107 Halftrack (f) [Warlord Games]

First up; a filter to help bring the colors together a bit more.

Filter applied and lining started on one of the schleppers. The filter affect is hard to see in the photos, it is subtle but the colors are a bit more unified because of it. The lining on the first schlepper may be to dark a brown might have been a better choice. Further weathering may tone it down quite a bit. I'm going to try a different wash for lining on the next one, more of an umber brown I think.

Acquisition - Two Books from Ammo

Its hard for me to resist painting books, so when I put in a paint order to Ammo by Mig I grabbed a couple more for the collection and which I hoped would be useful guides.

I think I managed to hit 1 out of 2.

The book I was most excited about was the Solution Book; How to Paint WWII German Late. Its, in theory, a step by step guide to painting and weathering WWII late war German armor. What I was hoping for were complete step by steps, what you get is a tiny paragraph, a number of pictures and some symbols showing colors used and sort of how to apply them. Useful place to start for beginners but not enough information to suit by tastes. I would have preferred more explanation with the pictures. You would be much better served buying the Weathering Magazine, in particular the one that talks about filters, oils and washes.

The second book I had some reservations on but now I'm quite happy to have picked it up. It is, again, a step by step guide but it features a variety of different "objects"; diorama terrain, trains, planes, armor and figures. Seeing how to actually blend with the oils over different surfaces and with different techniques is very helpful. If you were to buy one of these two, I would definitely order this one. Since I like it I just need to hide it from the dog so it doesn't get eaten, like my Lance Mindheim book.