brokeneagle
12-28-2005, 12:55 AM
A lot of modellers tend to have trouble with making their bases look as good as their vehicles and so steer away from creating a small base for their latest work. A base can be as much fun to create as the model and if done properly, will allow the model to come to life without overpowering it.
The next stage up is the vignette diorama which then expands the scene to a small story. The diffrerence being, a display is just that and does not try to do anything but place the model in a setting and enhance it.
The following is a step by step guide that can be used as a ref. for anyone frustrated with their display bases and wish's to set their model in an urban setting. The principles are the same for any setting.
STEP 1 - BARE BONES
No paint, no nothing. plaster ,glue and bricks etc. The base is ready to go. The creation stage can make or break the look to the whole piece so get into it and get a feel for the scene, this is the only way you will be successful with this part. You know what you want from the display and this is where you get to portray as much detail as is fitting. Forget about everything else and just think about texture. Once the base color is put down it will all pop out. The hard part here is balance and an eye for natural chaos - experience will bring you this part.
The buildings here have been cast up or scrounged from bits. The inner wall has had a run with Mr Surfacer to give it a nice plaster texture. Don't be afraid to bust up a VP building. I have a lot of these and I hardly ever use them as a whole piece. There are always small parts or even walls that can be shortened or reshaped quite easily and used in a different way. Other bits used are crushed brick[real], small stones, accessory bricks [I find VP the best]and some plastic slate Tile scribed sheet from a railway shop. All this is glued down with a mix of white glue and water .
Tip - add a touch of Detergent to break up the water tension over the rubble [most important] this will allow the mixture to flow easily. Also make sure the base you chose is a hard wood or has been made water resistent with a sealent otherwise when this all dries the base will warp!
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/1.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/1side.jpg
STEP2 - BASE COAT
Acrylic base coat, I use Tamiya and for this scene it was Dark Earth [xf - 52] plus a touch of Black. Make sure that you mask off your wooden edge and spray the base from every angle. Airbrush's are a must for base painting but one of the traps is sides of rubble that do not get paint. The base is multi-faceted and can easily leave you with unpainted sides. It is very important that the base is totally covered at this stage so that it will allow you to miss areas at the later stages.
Tip- try picking one side of the square and paint out everything, then move in a clockwise direction around the base until you get back where you started.
Also, I do not put the finishing touches on the wood until the end, I find it better to leave this as the final touch in case of accidents - you might need to do some sanding.
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/2.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/2side.jpg
STEP 3 - TOUCH UPS ON GROUND WORK.
At this point you will be able to see any areas of your base that do not look right, much like you would after the base coat on your model.On the picture I have fixed the areas where the edges of the slate sheet were still showing as sharp, as well as some areas that I felt needed to be a bit more ' built -up'. Add the desired amount of rubble to cover the sunken area/ sharp edge and apply the W.Glue mix as above.
Tip - I use a eye dropper, it gives the most control.
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/3.jpg
STEP 4 - AIRBRUSHED BASE COLORS.
Now we go about adding the various shades to the base with the airbrush. The colors you choose depend on what you wish to depict . This relies on experience so I can't tell you that much here. This is were the whole color theme is won or lost so think about your tank/ vehicle and its setting , go to your ref's and decide on your ultimate colors.
The main thing to do here, once you have chosen colors, is to lay down darker shades of what the end colors will be. Just like a good paint job on a tank you need to build from this point. These will be the last solid colors you will need to spray. Pick out the base color subjects and carefully spray them, trying to get as little overspray as possible.
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/4.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/4side.jpg
There is still a bit to go at this point and I don't wish to bore everyone to death so I will stop here and take a poll. Please let me know if there is some interest and if so I will add Part 2 as soon as I am able. :)
Thanks for reading.
Brokeneagle
The next stage up is the vignette diorama which then expands the scene to a small story. The diffrerence being, a display is just that and does not try to do anything but place the model in a setting and enhance it.
The following is a step by step guide that can be used as a ref. for anyone frustrated with their display bases and wish's to set their model in an urban setting. The principles are the same for any setting.
STEP 1 - BARE BONES
No paint, no nothing. plaster ,glue and bricks etc. The base is ready to go. The creation stage can make or break the look to the whole piece so get into it and get a feel for the scene, this is the only way you will be successful with this part. You know what you want from the display and this is where you get to portray as much detail as is fitting. Forget about everything else and just think about texture. Once the base color is put down it will all pop out. The hard part here is balance and an eye for natural chaos - experience will bring you this part.
The buildings here have been cast up or scrounged from bits. The inner wall has had a run with Mr Surfacer to give it a nice plaster texture. Don't be afraid to bust up a VP building. I have a lot of these and I hardly ever use them as a whole piece. There are always small parts or even walls that can be shortened or reshaped quite easily and used in a different way. Other bits used are crushed brick[real], small stones, accessory bricks [I find VP the best]and some plastic slate Tile scribed sheet from a railway shop. All this is glued down with a mix of white glue and water .
Tip - add a touch of Detergent to break up the water tension over the rubble [most important] this will allow the mixture to flow easily. Also make sure the base you chose is a hard wood or has been made water resistent with a sealent otherwise when this all dries the base will warp!
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/1.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/1side.jpg
STEP2 - BASE COAT
Acrylic base coat, I use Tamiya and for this scene it was Dark Earth [xf - 52] plus a touch of Black. Make sure that you mask off your wooden edge and spray the base from every angle. Airbrush's are a must for base painting but one of the traps is sides of rubble that do not get paint. The base is multi-faceted and can easily leave you with unpainted sides. It is very important that the base is totally covered at this stage so that it will allow you to miss areas at the later stages.
Tip- try picking one side of the square and paint out everything, then move in a clockwise direction around the base until you get back where you started.
Also, I do not put the finishing touches on the wood until the end, I find it better to leave this as the final touch in case of accidents - you might need to do some sanding.
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/2.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/2side.jpg
STEP 3 - TOUCH UPS ON GROUND WORK.
At this point you will be able to see any areas of your base that do not look right, much like you would after the base coat on your model.On the picture I have fixed the areas where the edges of the slate sheet were still showing as sharp, as well as some areas that I felt needed to be a bit more ' built -up'. Add the desired amount of rubble to cover the sunken area/ sharp edge and apply the W.Glue mix as above.
Tip - I use a eye dropper, it gives the most control.
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/3.jpg
STEP 4 - AIRBRUSHED BASE COLORS.
Now we go about adding the various shades to the base with the airbrush. The colors you choose depend on what you wish to depict . This relies on experience so I can't tell you that much here. This is were the whole color theme is won or lost so think about your tank/ vehicle and its setting , go to your ref's and decide on your ultimate colors.
The main thing to do here, once you have chosen colors, is to lay down darker shades of what the end colors will be. Just like a good paint job on a tank you need to build from this point. These will be the last solid colors you will need to spray. Pick out the base color subjects and carefully spray them, trying to get as little overspray as possible.
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/4.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/3dbattleart/how%20to%20pak%2040/4side.jpg
There is still a bit to go at this point and I don't wish to bore everyone to death so I will stop here and take a poll. Please let me know if there is some interest and if so I will add Part 2 as soon as I am able. :)
Thanks for reading.
Brokeneagle