Humbrol Weathering Washes

[cravensdmufan]

London Southwark those all look great, fair play to you.

 

Could you tell us a bit more please?

 

Did the wash take ages to fully dry?  And did it leave a shiny finish, though looking at your photos it appears not. 

 

And did you stir the contents of the jar before application?

 

I'm thinking of doing the other side of my VGA with the Humbrol grey wash as opposed to the brown which I used last week.

 

Thanks.

[London Southwark]

Yeah I shook the jar well before hand. It does dry quite fast so I used thinners on a cotton bud. It also doesn't dry glossy its quite a matt finish I also finished it off with humbrol matt varnish to 

[cravensdmufan]

On 09/05/2020 at 19:06, Mick Bonwick said:

 

White spirit on a cotton bud. After 4 days you may find you have to work for quite a while, but it will come off.

Thanks for that information Mick.  I used the white spirit on a cotton bud and it lifted the Humbrol wash off easily.

 

So having cleaned the panels but leaving the dried wash in the crevices, I lightly applied Humbrol weathering powder (Smoke) to the panels.  Also I worked Humbrol Dark Earth powder into the underframe area.  All sealed with a couple of huffs of warm breath!  In the past I've found that with careful handling the powders stay on models quite well, with only very occasional need for topping them up.

 

I was determined to weather this wagon with purely Humbrol products to see what could be achieved, and I'm now pleased with the results.

 

I now have another four VGAs to do!

 

Thanks everyone for your help.

[cravensdmufan]

Final photo from me - I did another wagon but this time used Humbrol Dark Grey wash around the panel ribs which, thankfully, dried overnight.   Humbrol powders for everything else.

[westernviscount]

On 10/05/2020 at 15:12, London Southwark said:

Hi @London Southwark.

 

I am impressed with these. As a non-airbrush weatherer i am always interested in alternatives. 

 

Great stuff. 

Dave

[westernviscount]

On 11/05/2020 at 21:19, cravensdmufan said:

Final photo from me - I did another wagon but this time used Humbrol Dark Grey wash around the panel ribs which, thankfully, dried overnight.   Humbrol powders for everything else.

 

I like this cravens. Have you watched the humbrol tutorials on using their products? I say this not because i think you need it btw!!! I just find them really informative and the guy who does them is a really talented scale modeller. 

 

Here's the wash one..

And a technique i really enjoy doing, mixing weathering powder with decalfix. This can also leave a glossy sheen but dries way faster and can be dulled afterwards...

 

 

Cheers for now,

Dave

 

Edited May 16, 2020 by westernviscount

[cravensdmufan]

1 hour ago, westernviscount said:

 

Have you watched the humbrol tutorials on using their products?

Yes Dave, I did actually watch those a while back.  But I can't get the stuff to flow from the brush into the crevices by capillary action.  I found these washes a bit of a strange product actually.  If you use it without shaking or stirring then it flows a little bit but is colourless!  So then I tried stirring it and it's better colour but quite thick and won't flow.  And the brown one stayed sticky for days, as per above posts.

 

So it's not my number one product for weathering, but quite useful if used in conjunction with other products or methods IMO.

 

Like you, I haven't ventured to using an airbrush - I'm pleased with the results I get from my powders, acrylics, etc.

 

Cheers.

 

PS  It's sometimes difficult to remove the child proof click tops from these washes after the products have been previously opened.  Same with the older Railmatch jars.  You have to clean them scrupulously before you screw the lids back down otherwise they just click, click, click..... despite downward pressure grrrr!  I hate those types of jars!

[westernviscount]

28 minutes ago, cravensdmufan said:

Yes Dave, I did actually watch those a while back.  But I can't get the stuff to flow from the brush into the crevices by capillary action.  I found these washes a bit of a strange product actually.  If you use it without shaking or stirring then it flows a little bit but is colourless!  So then I tried stirring it and it's better colour but quite thick and won't flow.  And the brown one stayed sticky for days, as per above posts.

 

So it's not my number one product for weathering, but quite useful if used in conjunction with other products or methods IMO.

 

Like you, I haven't ventured to using an airbrush - I'm pleased with the results I get from my powders, acrylics, etc.

 

Cheers.

 

PS  It's sometimes difficult to remove the child proof click tops from these washes after the products have been previously opened.  Same with the older Railmatch jars.  You have to clean them scrupulously before you screw the lids back down otherwise they just click, click, click..... despite downward pressure grrrr!  I hate those types of jars!

I must say i have never used them. I mix my own from enamel paint and thinners and to be honest, they can have the same odd results as you report. I had a very shiny model the other night as the result of using a home made wash. For me, it seems purely down to the amount i applied. To get the wash flowimg well, scale modellers use a gloss varnish first then use a wash. This enables the wash to be removed easier and to protect the paint should the worst happen. It is very hard to remove weathering from matt finishes. 

 

I swear by powders + decalfixor powders alone. I feel i get good results and the likelihood of me ever getting an airbrush is slim!! 

 

As for railmatch jars!!! Don't get me started. I had one in a bench vice, squeezed until the lid fractured and the still wouldnt budge!! I tend to stick to humbrol and phoenix. Phoenix give a particularly smooth finish with a brush. 

 

Dave

 

 

 

Edited May 16, 2020 by westernviscount

[TRAILRAGE]

I like the Humbrol zwashes and have used several different Washes o  my MBA & MCA Wagons. Took a couple of days to dry completely, but just assumed it was down the amount of coats as I was going over when Slightly tacky to mix them up. 

 

Cheers Trailrage