Better Tires

[RiderFan]

Well, the subject pretty much covers it.

When I paint my tires they turn out to be flat black circles. But I've seen some tires, even mostly black ones, that look really good.

What are some ways people are getting realistic looking tires?

thanks

David

[Old Blind Dog]

Weather them! Look at photos of real 1:1 a/c; often times what you see is a patima of dust or sand; some spots may be dirtier than others, lighter or darker. A small effort achieves a subtle effect, and the overall appearance of the model is improved greatly.

Instead of basic "flat black;" start with something that has more gray in it. I like Polly Scale Grimy Black as a base. A light dusting of PS Dust can also add depth.

cheers

Old Blind Dog

[Phantom ordie]

I use Testor's rubber,let it dry good then I take charcol eye shaddow and useing the eye shadow brush go around the tire, turns out pretty nice.

[toadwbg]

I use Tamiya xf 69 NATO Black as a base coat. I will use chalks to dust them up and than a wash to fill in the recesses

[RichardL]

Gunze Tire Black is pretty good.

[Rick in Maine]

I use the NATO black as well. But I have to real careful about weathering. After I discovered a bunch of "nifty" ways to weather tires I overdid it. Further research (i.e. airliners.net, various books, et al) revealed that tires on paved runways actually stay pretty clean. Dirt/coral strips form WW2 left a lot of mud and dust on the tires. I think my models look more realistic when the tires are weathered less than the pictures appear to show.

Rick in Maine

[Llarry]

To further what Rick said, go out (right now, I'll wait) and look at your car tires. The rubber that touches the road is actually pretty clean (since it's constantly being worn down) and the dirt gets into the tread and on the sidewalls. Start with an almost-black. I've used PollyScale Grimy black (also available as one of their Railroad colors so it will stay available) and currently Vallejo Dark Rubber. Then you can wash the treads (in 1/72 and smaller it may not be worth it) and dust up the sidewalls.

Now that's just birds that spend their lives on tarmac. For grass/dirt/coral strips, the rolling surface will get pretty messy too.

Edited September 1, 2010 by Llarry

[stalal]

Gunze Tire black has an excellent shade of rubber but Tamiya Nato Black will also do. Then, depending on the terrain, you can either spray earth colors like buff, deck tan or dry brush with a shade of gray to highlight.

The other way, which i find interesting and give a better finish is paint the tyres in earth colors and then use black charcoal powder and lightly rub on the prominent surface of the tire. it gives a broken, shadowy look which is quite natural.

[mkimages]

If the wheels are non-rotating on your model, you can use the same shading/highlighting technique used by figure painters on folds of cloth. Start with your base rubber color, then mix some black in and paint the areas of the tire that would be in shadow (look at pics). Do the same thing with a lighter tint to represent the areas getting more light. Keep it subtle. Then do your weathering and you should have some nicely realistic-looking tires.

[mlicari]

I start with PS Grimy Black and then dry brush as appropriate (dust, dirt, mud, snow...whatever effect you're trying to get).

The main trick, as all before me have noted, is to NOT use flat black!

:D

Mike

[CorsairMan]

paint the hub and weather it (wash, drybrush, etc). Put a mask over the hub. Paint the tire Nato Black or some other very dark, flat grey. Get a thin mix of brown (1-3 parts paint to 9-7 parts thinner) and with LOW pressure airbrush the edge of the mask. Build up the 'brown' gradually and keep it subtle.

Drybrush the treads of the tire in a lighter shade of nato black (lighten it up with white)

Gloss the tire and then do a dark wash in the treads and along the rim of the hub.

Done

[IRONDOC]

I found that after using very coarse sandpaper over the tread with help of cordless drill and bit's as a lathe, inflict many gashes with a knife i:e chevron cutting on the treads in many places, not the groove's then painting the tires flat black, find the most heavily traveled carpet (or a throw rug) in the house, usually at a doorway near the garage, and spin the sidewall's only by hand on the carpet , this part shines up real nice and removes excess (flat paint) bumps off just the sidewall's and leaves the scuffed up tread flat.

[Phantom ordie]

Remember that all tires are not created equal. A Spit's tires are not going to look the same as a Viper's.

[Britaholic]

I always use Humbrol H67 Matt Tank Grey for my tyres, it looks so much better than black.

Cheers

Den

[Skyraider Maniac]

Those are a bunch of neat ideas! I'll certainly have to make note of these... here's a question: where does one find Polly Scale, as I've only heard of it on ARC and have never actually seen it? Thanks :D

[RichardL]

here's a question: where does one find Polly Scale, as I've only heard of it on ARC and have never actually seen it?

You can find Polly Scale from Tower Hobbies: Polly Scale Link

[Old Blind Dog]

The Polly Scale Military Colors line is available from Roll Models and Squadron (where they are listed as "Testors Acrylic" so it helps to know the PS stock number--fortunately you can print out the complete list from the "Catalog" on the Roll Models website).

The Railroad Colors line is available from Micro Mark and Walthers Train Supply.

cheers

Old Blind Dog