Lost Weathering

[TxAg94]

I need some help with weathering using pastel chalks. I use the small artist stick pastels. They're very fine and I shave them to a powder with the edge of a razor balde. I have always had good luck but I am having some trouble. I'm actually working on an armor project but it's a general question.

I painted the chassis a weathered black as a base coat. I applied the pastels in varying shades and had everything looking really nice. I then applied a light coat of sealer, Testors DullCote from the can. I like the stuff because it's easy and always goes on nice and smooth. This time, however, the pastel shading all but disappeared. I wish I had taken a photo before applying it to give a sense of the loss of detail. I'm pretty upset because I spent quite a while achieving the effect I wanted. What am I doing wrong? I feel like I have to seal it or I'll eventually get fingerprints and smudges. ANy suggestions?

[Fly-n-hi]

You didn't really do anything wrong with the pastels but you can't cover the pastel powders with any kind of clear coat. You have to do the powders after your final clear coat. Or you could try to do some of the weathering with an airbrush.

[ThatJeffGuy]

As mentioned that is a fact of life when using chalk and I was aware of the problem. But when I did my first tank in

30 years a few months back I was watching a MIG pigments demo on You-Tube and the guy was always wetting the area

he applied the pigments to with alcohol before laying them down. Apparently this is known as 'fixing' them. This

method works well on armor but I have not tried it on aircraft yet. I have a feeling it might make them a bit too muddy :)

But try it with a fixer and then lightly brush over the top and you should have a thin layer that will stick and stand up to

a final matt coat

Doh! I just re-read your post after typing all that and see you're doing armour....use a fixer then (iso alcohol works well)!! :lol:

[DutyCat]

My how we all learn the same things when we get the chance.

Testors Dullcote is in my opinion a wonderful product. As you said, it goes down smooth as silk. You can't see any "grain" in the finish. Some people claim it will yellow over time, but I have not witnessed that and I have been at this a long time.

However, as you have discovered, it "hides" weathering somehow. I am not sure how it does it, but it does. The solution is to wait until after the dullcote step to use your chalks. It is as simple as that. Don't worry so much about getting the chalk on your fingers afterwards when handling, leaving fingerprints, etc. Once the chalk is there and settled in it isn't going to go anywhere.

Here is a link to a pic(the board would not let me link directly to my website's image file so it would display) of a Mig-31 I built several years ago with pastel chalk over dullcote. This weathering job had to be done twice because the first time I experienced exactly what you experienced.

Weathered Mig-31

[TxAg94]

Thanks to all. I guess this has been happening to me all along except to a lesser extent. Seems like the particular base coat color is the worst I've experienced. I will definitely try the "fixing" suggestion and see how that goes.

Thanks again.

[Netz]

There is no problem with doing it the way you did, I use that technique all the time, you just need to remember to over exaggerate it, as you will lose a percentage of the affect, put it on heavy then hit it with the Dull coat.

Curt

[Expat Tomcat]

You didn't really do anything wrong with the pastels but you can't cover the pastel powders with any kind of clear coat. You have to do the powders after your final clear coat. Or you could try to do some of the weathering with an airbrush.

I keep saying this and it seems to fall on deaf ears, but here I'll say it again. The product you need to use with pastels or any other dry media is a Krylon product called " Workable Fixativ". It is specifically for dry artists media like pastel, conte crayon, and charcoal. These dry media are refered to by artists as " volitile media" because they rub off if touched or rubbed. A "fixatve" is used to fix the dry media to the paper or "ground" so it no longer rubs off and becomes a part of the ground. These products dry fast, clear and flat, they retain a " tooth" so other media can be applied over it. There is also a "finish fixative" that dries with a gloss finish, these are not what you need, as there are other gloss finish products more appropriate for that purpose. But the "workable fixative" products are specifically for this particular purpose. A couple of light coats will best serve the purpose and without the running or severe darkening from other products. These products have served me well for many purposes for years without mishap.

[DutyCat]

Good to know. I'll have to try it!