Last Man Standing, bruised Ammoknight patched up, 1/20

[DocRob]

13 hours ago, harv said:

Excellent ❗.......harv

 

12 hours ago, Kaireckstadt said:

This looks really awesome and thanks for the description of your technique!

 

6 hours ago, Peterpools said:

the weathering is brilliant and the leather effect - fantastic

 

1 hour ago, GazzaS said:

The effects you did with those pencils look pretty awesome, Rob!

 

47 minutes ago, JeroenPeters said:

Really digging this build!

Thanks Gentlemen and I appreciate your interest into this build, which is a bit off the trotten path. This is what makes LSM the place to be, open minded, friendly and competent amigos all over the world .

When I received the AK weathering pencils last year, I was first very dissapointed with them, while using them dry. They are to waxy, to get a good highlighting job out of them. Soon, I dicovered, where they really shine. It's when you apply some irregular dots of one or (better) different matching colours to the kits surfaces on appropriate places and blend them with a brush or cotton swab. You can steer the effect this way and its perfect for highlighting risen details with organic contours. The way to work with them, is similar to oil colours. Put some on and then reduce by using different grades of dampness on the colour. When you dab the wetted brush onto the penciled surface, you get irregular partly translucent residues of the pencil's colour on to flat areas, which is great for breaking the monotony.
They are also very usefull for replicating liquid spills. I did that on the tubes leading down from the blue tank in the cockpit. I applied the wetted pencil dots around the joint and used a damp brush to pull the colour down, like poured liquid or condensation residues, which accumulated over time.
The wetted brush allows you to pull the pencil colour, wherever you want it. This way, you can use it as a wash and for highlighting (with different colours of course) in one go.
Is you don't like the effect, you can remove the pencil colour, with a brush or swab.
Another benefit of the method is, that you can work with these pencils on matte surfaces. As there is no gloss coat necessary, you reduce the amount of layers and you work direct onto the colour, which to my eye gives a more consistent result, without the risk of damaging lower layers with aggressive weathering substances.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

I prepared all the parts for receiving the base layer of randomly stippled rust, before the second colour layer will be added.

This is the completed front side interior with visor (for now, I may add some loose wires and debris later)

With the posable arms and legs, you can go for a bowling dio, or even break dance 

Cheers Rob

 

[Kaireckstadt]

35 minutes ago, DocRob said:

I prepared all the parts for receiving the base layer of randomly stippled rust, before the second colour layer will be added.

This is the completed front side interior with visor (for now, I may add some loose wires and debris later)

With the posable arms and legs, you can go for a bowling dio, or even break dance 

Cheers Rob

 

Funny ideas Rob how to pose it and really an awesome build! 
Maybe you can put it in a flying-pose?

 
Do you have some pictures of the welding lady too? 

[DocRob]

Thanks Kai, flying is no option here, the power suit has no jets, so stumbling would be a possibility .
The welding lady will be shown later, while painting her. Always good, to have some late attraction, when interest lowers .

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

Let's see, how fast this thing corrodes. First of all, I used an AK rust colour set, which generally was up to the job with the exception of the two darkest shades, which literally hardened in separated components and were beyond stirring up. I've never encountered something like this, with the other four colours being completely usable.

First layer of rust dabbed on with the darkest shade, using a stiff old brush. The legs already received their second coat, a tad lighter. This base coat was a bit more liquid, to cover larger areas of the suit.

As ugly as it is, I used the second colour, with slightly less area to randomly cover. I turned the brush permanently between my fingers, for hindering repeating patterns.

With the third and fourth shade, always using a lighter colour, I covered even less area and used it more dryly, while dabbing on. I also emphasized the contours of the powersuit a little, unnecessary but fun.

Cheers Rob

 

[Kaireckstadt]

22 minutes ago, DocRob said:

Let's see, how fast this thing corrodes. First of all, I used an AK rust colour set, which generally was up to the job with the exception of the two darkest shades, which literally hardened in separated components and were beyond stirring up. I've never encountered something like this, with the other four colours being completely usable.

First layer of rust dabbed on with the darkest shade, using a stiff old brush. The legs already received their second coat, a tad lighter. This base coat was a bit more liquid, to cover larger areas of the suit.

As ugly as it is, I used the second colour, with slightly less area to randomly cover. I turned the brush permanently between my fingers, for hindering repeating patterns.

With the third and fourth shade, always using a lighter colour, I covered even less area and used it more dryly, while dabbing on. I also emphasized the contours of the powersuit a little, unnecessary but fun.

Cheers Rob

 

Awesome Rob! Well described technique which is easy to use. Thanks for sharing it here! 

[Jackster]

A Masterclass Rob, excellent!

Cheers

Kev

[DocRob]

1 hour ago, Kaireckstadt said:

Awesome Rob! Well described technique which is easy to use. Thanks for sharing it here! 

 

1 hour ago, Jackster said:

A Masterclass Rob, excellent!

Thank you Kai and Kev, this is a pure fun project for me and I like to be able to go a little over board, because the used techniques will help in other cases, used a little more restrained.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

With most kits, I apply the base colours on a coat of primer and then add the effects like rust and others onto it. The only exception in my builds is the use of the hairspray method, which I really like for heavy weathering exactly for the fact, that it is right, building up the layers like on real subjects and erase layer(s) above.
With the Ammoknight, I try something different. I build the layers of paint and rust up from the lowest layer, being primer, corrosion being the second layer and the base colour being the upmost. 
It's an experiment and the powersuit with it's organic shape and the 1/20 scale seems to be the perfect canvas.
The difficulty I see for the next step of painting is, that there is no room for mistakes, because it's essentiell, that the colouration must be coherent on the hole body and there is no taking back. I'm not sure, if I can master that, but will try.

Meanwhile, there are some pictures of my stomp footed friend, who looks, like he had a great time somewhere in a lake .

Cheers Rob

[Kaireckstadt]

1 hour ago, DocRob said:

With most kits, I apply the base colours on a coat of primer and then add the effects like rust and others onto it. The only exception in my builds is the use of the hairspray method, which I really like for heavy weathering exactly for the fact, that it is right, building up the layers like on real subjects and erase layer(s) above.
With the Ammoknight, I try something different. I build the layers of paint and rust up from the lowest layer, being primer, corrosion being the second layer and the base colour being the upmost. 
It's an experiment and the powersuit with it's organic shape and the 1/20 scale seems to be the perfect canvas.
The difficulty I see for the next step of painting is, that there is no room for mistakes, because it's essentiell, that the colouration must be coherent on the hole body and there is no taking back. I'm not sure, if I can master that, but will try.

Meanwhile, there are some pictures of my stomp footed friend, who looks, like he had a great time somewhere in a lake .

Cheers Rob

This is absolutely awesome work Rob!

If I didn’t read that you still have to finish the paintjob I thought it would be ready now. Would also be a nice look when finished. There is no original to compare to...

I‘m sure you will also manage the last step! Can’t wait to see the result!

[GazzaS]

Rob,

    That is an absolutely attractive pattern.  It'll be interesting to see once you've done the chipping. 

[BlrwestSiR]

Fantastic work Rob and the step by step has been very informative. 

Carl

[DocRob]

13 hours ago, Kaireckstadt said:

This is absolutely awesome work Rob!

If I didn’t read that you still have to finish the paintjob I thought it would be ready now. Would also be a nice look when finished. There is no original to compare to...

I‘m sure you will also manage the last step! Can’t wait to see the result!

Thanks for the encouragement Kai. Yesterday, when I was taking the photos, I thought about a powersuit left to rot in a muddy lake, replicated by acrylic water with lots of algae and other vegetation around. Let's wait and see, there is a second Ammoknight in the box, ...

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

13 hours ago, GazzaS said:

That is an absolutely attractive pattern.  It'll be interesting to see once you've done the chipping. 

Thanks Gaz, but what you see is the chipping . The idea is, to apply the colour onto the rust and leave it partly uncovered, where the corrosion won the battle. I will use a fine brush, applying the paint in little strokes and dots and build the colour up this way, at least, that's the plan.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

12 hours ago, BlrwestSiR said:

Fantastic work Rob and the step by step has been very informative. 

Gracias Carl, as this paintjob requires a thorough plan, it's easy to do a step by step. Until now, everything was easy and redoable, now comes the make or brake part .

Cheers Rob

[harv]

Wow, this pops. Great job do far......harv

[DocRob]

The madness continues with primarily dotting on Scale 75's Slimer Green onto the rust. I never stroke with the brush, just dotted with the color thinned with water from a wet palette, to have a slight translucency. I dotted with different brushes all not the newest in two to three layers, to build up the colour. Psychological the hardest part, is to stay away from the left out rust chips from the first layer with the following layers. I'm so used, to fill in, that I had really to concentrate not to .
The same tape of application was used for Tiamat Orange.
In all, I'm pleased, how this worked out and when everything dried properly, I will think about the next steps.

Cheers Rob

[harv]

Oh wow! Amazing ❗......harv

[Landlubber Mike]

Holy cow, this is really cool.  Nice job!

[Kaireckstadt]

1 hour ago, DocRob said:

The madness continues with primarily dotting on Scale 75's Slimer Green onto the rust. I never stroke with the brush, just dotted with the color thinned with water from a wet palette, to have a slight translucency. I dotted with different brushes all not the newest in two to three layers, to build up the colour. Psychological the hardest part, is to stay away from the left out rust chips from the first layer with the following layers. I'm so used, to fill in, that I had really to concentrate not to .
The same tape of application was used for Tiamat Orange.
In all, I'm pleased, how this worked out and when everything dried properly, I will think about the next steps.

Cheers Rob

This is simply stunning Rob! 

[GazzaS]

That is stunning, Rob!  Might be an interesting technique to try.

[DocRob]

15 hours ago, harv said:

Oh wow! Amazing ❗......harv

 

15 hours ago, Landlubber Mike said:

Holy cow, this is really cool.  Nice job!

 

13 hours ago, Kaireckstadt said:

This is simply stunning Rob!

 

9 hours ago, GazzaS said:

That is stunning, Rob!  Might be an interesting technique to try

Muchas Gracias Señhores, until now, everything worked to plan, but now; I'm a bit in the open. I want to add some decals, unit signs and stencils, but I'm not sure, how to integrate them into the worn look. I even thought about hand painting the emblems. I will try a decal onto some Pledge brushed on a minor part and then will soft it with a decal solvent and then it's toothpicks and tweezers. Let's see how this blends.

@Gaz: I don't see to many opportunities for this technique on our normal subjects in our preferred scales, but there are some, like derelict objects or some crudely cast tanks. I will try, how this will adopt to figure painting in larger scales and on other projects, I have planned.
With the Ammoknight, I had a picture in my head of the finished power suit, for which I tried to create the appropriate workflow.

Cheers Rob

[DocRob]

Not much done today with the Ammoknight, than turning it around and try to decide about decals and stencils. The conclusion, there will only be a few and near to no stencils. I love the different matte shining of rust and green and don't want to destroy the look, by using varnish.
The decals will almost exclusively applied to the orange parts, which received a coat of Pledge, brushed on.

This is my test armor plate with the scratched decal. Not the final result, but not too bad, but the chipped colour / rust effect gets a little affected by the varnish, like I feared. That's ok for these orange parts, but I would have bitten my a***, losing the fine finish on the hole suit.

Additional, I painted some details like the gas bottles. They were sprayed in blue and yellow and then were dabbed with brushes, using slight tonal variations of the base colour. It's not so good t see on the pic, but it resembles a rough casted texture nicely and after some scratches and detail painting, they will look good

Cheers Rob

 

[harv]

Love the worn look on the smaller pieces ! Man, your work here is amazing.....harv

[Kaireckstadt]

1 hour ago, DocRob said:

Not much done today with the Ammoknight, than turning it around and try to decide about decals and stencils. The conclusion, there will only be a few and near to no stencils. I love the different matte shining of rust and green and don't want to destroy the look, by using varnish.
The decals will almost exclusively applied to the orange parts, which received a coat of Pledge, brushed on.

This is my test armor plate with the scratched decal. Not the final result, but not too bad, but the chipped colour / rust effect gets a little affected by the varnish, like I feared. That's ok for these orange parts, but I would have bitten my a***, losing the fine finish on the hole suit.

Additional, I painted some details like the gas bottles. They were sprayed in blue and yellow and then were dabbed with brushes, using slight tonal variations of the base colour. It's not so good t see on the pic, but it resembles a rough casted texture nicely and after some scratches and detail painting, they will look good

Cheers Rob

 

Good decision to keep decaling to a minimum! Looks so nice as it is! 
Also beautiful work on the accessories! 
Love the gas-bottles. Interesting technique how to apply the tonal variations of the base color!