"Best way to Camoflauge tanks w/out an airbrush " Topic

Looking for ideas on how to apply Camoflauge to German tanks without an airbrush. Want to get best look possible.
Any ideas?

I don't have an airbrush…
I make sure the base coat has a matte finish first. I get this by basecoating with Krylon Camo Tan, and then drybrushing with Vallejo Green (?) Ochre.

I apply the green and brown very carefully by diluting with water at the proper consistency.

From what I have seen from pictures, the Hun was not very consistent with its camo. A lot was applied in the field, so some was diffuse, artistically applied by the Division air brusher, and some slapped on with hard edges.

I use an old brush and dab the camo pattern on. This leaves the edges a little rough and it doesn't look like it's in lines painted with an oversized brush.

Cut a small irregular slit in a large piece of card and spray appropiate colored spray paint through that creating irregular patterns on the model. You would need to practice beforehand to see what sized slit and distance you need to hold it from model.

auction

I camouflaged the above using the following simple technique:

Step 1-Paint overall dark yellow-I used Vallejo Green Ochre.

Step 2-mix the base coat with whatever dark brown you'll be using. After loading up an old brush, wipe off much of the paint and apply in a 'stippling pattern' that leaves a feathered edge on the camo blotches or spots.

Step 3- Once you have used the yellow/brown mix to make your basic camouflage shapes, use the same technique but with the straight brown. Make sure you keep to the center of each blotch so that the effect is a dark brown center with a lighter feathered edge.

Step 5-repeat the above using green camo. I use relective green for this.

Here is anothehttp://www.ebay.com/itm/261162069807?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649r example:

I apply camo as a drybrush using artists flat brushes. I use the smaller sizes and I usually buy cheap brushes since drybrushing tears them up.

svsavory,

I concur with that. I always have a collection of ragged old brushes that I save. These end up being used for rough duty like applying camouflage or dry brushing.

I also like those cheap 'bag o' brushes' that are sometimes displayed near the granny paints at the craft store.

Generally speaking you would not see the soft edge at the distance you are viewing the vehicle.

I make it simple by placing an approproate sized leaf on the table. When my opponent askes me what its for, I reply,

"It's a PzIVD"

"But I don't see a tank model there," he declares.

"Then the camoflauge is doing its job well," I calmly respond.

During late Fall, I use a twig about 2" tall, or an evergreen tree. The only give aways are when the "piece of terrain" moves or when we use cotton balls to indicate which units have fired.

During Winter, I use a base covered in sand, painted white.

I use spray cans for quick jobs, even though I have airbrushes. The last panzers I did were PSC panthers in 15mm. I first sprayed the hulls red brown, then after drying placed snake like rolls of blutack approx 3 to 4mm thick across the hull, and then did a coat of dark yellow spray, making sure to keep the model at least eight to ten inches from the model.

This how it looks after I inked the details, sorry for the file being large.
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and
db.tt/aLBI8KOj

I then drybrush the model with a sand colour which helps to soften the edges further, though the blutack snake should achieve that. End result looks like this

db.tt/5LpAvdnf

and

db.tt/sLS0Lxix

Really sorry for the file size and links, doing this all on a smart phone.

You can do another colour, but beware that multiple coats can start obscuring details. There are plenty of examples right to the end of the war of panzers sporting just one camo tone on top of the dunkelgelb, though the tri colour scheme is a classic look.

Also make sure the snakes are not squished flat, that will make the camo edges more hard edged than you want, but the drybrushing will soften it all.

Chris Palmer was correct in his recommendation…cut patterns on an index card and practice a little with spraying brown and green on a afrika corps yellow base…I now use the Montana Gold Mustard for the German base…available at Jerry's Artarama…Liquidtex has an equivilent if all you have is Michaels. About $10 USD for a large can.

db

get an airbrush

read the post

Mmmh
It depents on the scale…. For my 6mm,15mm amd 20mm german tanks was a airbush not needed … But for 25 and bigger i bought one with compresor.

In reality was in the later years of the war a spraypistol provided to the crews. It was connected to the engine and the motor had to run inorder to use the spraypistol. That ment that precious gas has to be used to spraypaint the camo on the tank. Therefore a lot of tanks were painted with brushes even if spaypistols were available…. The majority of camo was aplied by a brom, some clothes or the bare hands…..

So you see every method from airbursh to painting with for fingers in historical.
:))))))

link

Some years ago was the buch printed which i consider the best on this topic… It covers the pructuction/ supply and wehrmaacht rules and regulation of all colours used.

I real eyeopener…. Just one teaser… The base dunkelgelb for introcuded in 1942 because it was expected that the wehrmacht would than be in the deserts beyond the ural!

Have fun

And dont forget, there are plenty of examples of German camo with a hard edge. Some of these were painted via brush but some were painted by airbrush equipment but still had a hard edge as any feathering was kept to a minimum. No airbursh needed to replicate.

I did, get an airbrush, save yourself all the bother..

The cammo was in a paste form and at times they thinned it with, water, or petrol or urine..I have always thought wargamers worry more about the camouflage than the actual people who fought and died in the tank ever did.

a good looking book there Rudi..
my attempt, actually I used washes amfd glazes and never even broke the airbrush out, well to weather and varnish it I did
link

I am doing 15mm and I don't want to buy an airbrush.

You could always do 1942?????

You would have to paint your leaf grey then, Justin. :o)

I am doing Stalingrad and some late war stuff.