Bandai Perfect Grade 1/72 《Star Wars》Millennium Falcon

[Mose Harper]

Was planning on hitting this with black primer at some point- but now I'm concerned about obscuring any of this ultra fine detail. Looks like I'm going to forego using a spray can at least and use the airbrush for pretty much everything.

I also thin I know where the broken piece on the upper hull is from- it looks like a guide piece for the center window/turret assembly. Hope that won't screw it up. I need to eyeball the rest of the bags for any other loose/broken pieces and then give a check to the lights. At least one person on RPF has found one of the bulbs out on his.

I'm really glad now that I bought the smaller kits. I'm going to be taking the falcon and SD slow, while I practice on and complete these other ones. Even painting them there is going to be a learning curve for me.

 

[Kamandi]

Was planning on hitting this with black primer at some point- but now I'm concerned about obscuring any of this ultra fine detail. Looks like I'm going to forego using a spray can at least and use the airbrush for pretty much everything.

I used two rattle can base coats - Tamiya Nato Black TS-63 and Insignia White AS-20. I do one coat of black and allow to dry fully and two thin coats of white. Allow drying between each coat - about 20 minutes. I leave a small amount of "shadowing" around detail and it gives some dimension to areas like the engine deck. The black undercoat also creates a distinctive ring around dremel cuts that's visible on the original SW models.
Lacquer paints dry quick, very thin and strong. Enamels like Testors bubble, run and sometimes have an "orange peel" texture. They suck and don't ever, ever, EVER, EVER use them. Testors is the walmart of hobby paint. There is nothing lower or sh-ttier.

 

[Mose Harper]

Doesn't nato black come in the small bottle sizes? I'm Leary of using any rattle cans at this point. Though I've heard several good things about Citadel's Chaos Black which I did pick up but was thinking of now returning.

At least with the small bottles I can thin them down and have a little more control over how they cover tiny areas of detail.

The other big concern/problem is that winter is coming up fast and I really have no good areas in the house to use the rattle cans- even the basement is a problem. Using the airbrush for priming would be more labor intensive, but I have some limited studio space already set up for that.

 

[Kamandi]

Nato Black does come in a jar but it's an Acrylic. Nothing wrong with that, just be aware it's a different formulation.

Badger's Stynylrez line is acrylic but very fine grain and formulated to be a surface primer. I have a bottle of black that I would consider for the MF PG but using but oils on top of acrylics is a Bad Thing.

 

[Mose Harper]

Nato Black does come in a jar but it's an Acrylic. Nothing wrong with that, just be aware it's a different formulation.

Badger's Stynylrez line is acrylic but very fine grain and formulated to be a surface primer. I have a bottle of black that I would consider for the MF PG but using but oils on top of acrylics is a Bad Thing.

? Anytime I used oils on canvas, the surface would be primed with gesso (white acrylic). I'd assumed the same fat over lean principle applies to models.
I was told something about enamels being a problem- but lacquers were OK in conjunction with acrylics- though in what step (under or overcoat) I can't recall.

So in other words, any oil wash is going to be out if I'm sticking mostly to Tamiya? Is is a workability issue with oils or is it that smooth gradients scale better when you use oils?

My plan was to paint it all up, attach the decals, do some Dremel work and and some airbrush weathering, with the last thing being the 'streaks'- using a dab of color and then pulling it across with a wet brush. And then maybe some light line washing before I clear coat.

 

[D.R.37]

Oil/enamel paint can go on top of acrylic/latex. Like you mentioned gesso is acrylic and it is used for priming before acrylic and oil painting.

 

[Kamandi]

Lacquer and enamel paints have solvents that can "eat" acrylic paint. This will cause unpredictable results such as running colors or disappearing paint. "Hot" on top of cold it's bad. Acrylic on top of enamel or oil is ok.

Some people use dull coats and sealers but they are solvent based. You might get away with it but it's a risk. Risky on a 40 dollar kit is one thing. On a 400 dollar kit... I'll avoid mixed media this time.

 

[Mad Old Lu]

Absolutely amazing work, Kamandi!

And thanks everyone for the painting discussion! It's very enlightening!

 

[D.R.37]

The only oils I've used on models was just for light weathering. I mainly stick to acrylics. But have been painting for years as an artist and when i use oils I always do acrylic gesso or acrylic under painting before finalizing details and final colors in oil. Modeling may be different in those aspects. But yeah don't want to have a $400 model crack or peel on you.

 

[FlyAndFight]

.

Kamandi, did a part fall out from the sidewall of the mandible, just above your pinky?

Looks like there's a flat spot with a notch to connect a small greeblie to.

By the way, beautiful finish on your kit. Well done!

 

[Kamandi]

No, I just left some greebles off while painting. I'm going to tailor the pipes so they are more like ANH.

 

[Mose Harper]

I think I'll be ordering a Neo from D*ck Blick later. I wasn't familiar with them, having stuck mainly to Eclipses. This doesn't look like a good brush for illustration or fine detail work, but for large coats of primer and masked areas it might work as an economical alternative to the more expensive ones.

I also don't want to risk gunking up any of my 'work' brushes- though they will likely get drafted for fine detail duty at some point.

In reference to some questions from a few months back- I've finally had some personal experience with the California Air compressors. The one we had drove 4 artists working outside 12 hours a day for a month straight with no problems whatsoever.
I was impressed. A smaller version will definitely be what I'll look for if my Jun Air ever craps out.

I'm dreading seeing next months cc bill.

 

[Kamandi]

So long to my first paint. I'm going to have it as a prototype as I paint the PG for trying colors out of the airbrush.

Into the dip...

I'll let it sit in there for a week and hit it with a soft brush. The paint will slide off.

 

[Mose Harper]

I'll let it sit in there for a week and hit it with a soft brush. The paint will slide off.

Speaking of which- I'm reading that you should wash the plastic first with mild dish detergent and let it dry thoroughly before painting. Has this been most people's experience that these kinds of kits need a wash?

One thing I want to make sure to do is to plan several removable panels around various points of the ship and in those interior spaces have some kind of supported system for attaching to mounts. I'm thinking that I'll need to run a rod somewhere inside basically criss-crossing the ship. My goal is to be able to mount this from the either side or below or above. That way I won't have to limit myself to one specific diorama.

I'm thinking maybe magnets for the removable panels and thick PVC for the connection to an exterior mounting arm. Need to browse Home Depots plumbing department tomorrow.

 

[Kamandi]

It is true that injection molding uses release agents that can discolor paint. A tub of dish soap and water is supposed to help. I'll wash the larger pieces of the hull for the Perfect Grade.

 

[noisyrobot]

My Bandai PG Falcon arrived today in Australia from the USA Gundam store!
Now I'm going to watch some of the RPF masters put theirs together first.

I have the 1/144 Falcon and the 1/72 X-Wing, TIE and Y-Wing as well as the 1/48 AT-ST.
Not sure which one to start on...

 

[TurdFurgusonsHat]

I received my Perfect Grade today too from Amazon. Arrived in great shape. I find it funny that the phrase "This carton is for delivery purposes only. An exchange request for a new carton due to any damage or stain cannot be accepted" is printed right on the shipper. Bandai shutting down the nitpickers immediately

 

[Kamandi]

My shipper went in the trash.

Clean 1:144 bird:

 

[ebor]

I saw this beast of a kit at the local Fan Expo this past weekend...I gotta admit my impulse to purchase this was mighty high. I just don't have the skills necessary to do this justice (painting skills) so I will live vicariously through you people posting your progress...

 

[earthdog]

I ended up canceling my order today when I saw the sales on the Deagostini.