well, i can't see much fr the picture...so not sure which part u're tryin to flat coat.

yeah, he said middle...but he oso mentioned the triangle looking part in the middle. and it's suppose to be clear? since he oso said he hasn't started painting it. fr that pic, kinda hard to be sure.

ok....somehow the pic wasnt clear when i viewed it in my office. i think u've got the idea on wat to do already. mask both the sides which u want to keep clear. then spray flat coat in the middle part.

did u topcoat the kit before puttin on the water slide decals? if yes, using the masking tape method would help. actually use a stronger adhesive type like cellophane tape. oh yeah, having primed the kit before doing standard painting would also help minimize paint being peeled together with the decal.

to remove water slide can use other methods too.
1) use hobby knife n gently scrape off the decal
2) wet sand the area off

anyway, decals will always yellow. although usually not too fast considering that you're using it on MG Unicorn. but exposure to sunlight and moisture usually does quicken the yellowing. the yellowing is becos of the glue on waterslide. a chemical effect.

what i usually do is...scrape the decal off or if small...peel using cellotape. then if there's a slight discoloration, respray to touch up that small area.

This post has been edited by davelcm: Feb 4 2009, 01:56 PM

depends if u're in kl. if u are, then u can try time machine as mentioned by zero717. oso XL shop in midvalley. or tamiya underground in 1U. glory enterprise aka aunty lenny's in endah parade, sri petaling. if not, Hobby HQ at F&N Business Park, at the roundabout crossjunction of Jalan Loke Yew/Jalan Sungai Besi near Pudu.

if u're not in KL...then u'll need to order online.

do u haf a moisture trap in place? if the airbrush is spitting out water, then problem may be the moisture trap. but if it's coming out too watery, then a couple of reasons. 1 is you mixed the primer with too much thinner. 2, u're spraying high pressure and very close to the plastic.

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Added on February 16, 2009, 1:38 pm1 answer: different chemical compound between lacquer and enamel.

lacquer will "bite" into any paint. but enamel dun mix well wif lacquer. hence when you use enamel for panel lining on lacquer base, you can wipe out the excess without problem. when u use lacquer on enamel...the paint will meld into the enamel base. but enamel can be used for priming. as it tends to adhere to plastic better. like the "animal chess"...mouse get eaten by cat, cat by dog...lion by elephant, elephant by rat kinda theory.

This post has been edited by davelcm: Feb 16 2009, 01:38 PM

airbrushing for an MG kit...external armor only would use up 1 bottle of paint. even conservatively...i.e. dark colors and minimal coats would use up about 1/2 to 3/4 of the bottle easily. light colors use more paint becos usually need more coats to cover the primer. and the bigger the kit, the more paint u use. Sinanju, Unicorn would require more paint then say a Zaku II or a RGM.

internal skeleton...i use abt 1/2 bottle of steel. or any metallic color mix u want. but this is hard to gauge for me as i've mixed this into a big bottle i.e. surfacer bottles.

seriously, try it on a plastic vcd box or a pla plate. then u'll find out if u get the result is u want.

oh, not too sure wat 182 is but yes, if u do the base paint on. then gloss coat it with industrial clear...before finally dulling it wif Super Flat (Clear), it would work.

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Added on February 22, 2009, 10:12 pm"I am trying to make scale disc brakes for a model car. Anyone knows the best way to get a perfect round disc and from what material? I am aiming probably for the size of a 5 cents coin. I don't have access to a circle cutter and hobbyknife scissors won't get a perfect round shape."

use pla plates aka plastic plates. if u want it thin...u can use those phone cards...same quality.

to make circles? u know those drawing templates with a lot of circles on them? use them...slowly scribe the circle on the plastic plate...keep digging into the plastic until u can get the round piece out.


This post has been edited by davelcm: Feb 22 2009, 10:12 PM

......
cut from runner...trim the excess stubs/sprue on the piece...sand the stubs. look at manual...see which part needs to cover seamline. plan to build to have seamlines covered. build...cover seamlines. spray on primer...check on seamlines...touch up on seamline and sand.... spray primer again....paint. gloss coat....put waterslide decals on (i don't use stickers). another layer or two of gloss after decals are on. panel lines on. spray on flat coat. weathering as per liking...THIS is how a model is built.

if u want snap fit...put ur sticker on after snap fitting.

for disc brake....just tot of something u can use. go buy button!!! variety of sizes n types. get round ones...with minimal groove. kinda like those u have on school uniform. seal n touch up from there. i.e. use putty n epoxe to cover. then sand to how thin u want the disc brake be. i think there're some pretty thin buttons available. so u can go try those. but be forewarned. i've never tried it. just thought abt it...

nail clipper. that's the cheapest cutter available. if want good, then it would be tamiya's cutters but costs RM60-80 per piece. other than that...anything else will do. hardware shop will have those cutter.

Thin Cement...as Erh Teo mentioned, u need to put 2 pieces close together. Not until they're tight but enough to have a small thin gap. then apply the thin cement. u'll see the cement flow through the seams. if it's not flowing, it's becos 1) the gap not close enough or 2) not enough cement applied. usually it's 1.

Thick Cement are easier to use in some way...apply on the plastic...n glue the 2 pieces together. Wait 1 day before sanding or after a while (approx 30 - 60 mins), take a sharp new blade, gently cut the excess off. you'll need to sand less than.

nail clipper can cut or not ar? i started this hobby using nail clippers and NT cutter. so i guess...yes.

circular like a ball? the surface where it should join the other kits...use double sided tape...stick onto a pla plate or something to hold it.

i) Yes, Mr Surfacer will need to mix wif Mr Color Thinner.
ii) Not too sure what Mr Lapras 6000 is...so cannot help u there. maybe someone else can. since u asked if damage paint, i reckon it would be something like polishing compound...to make it shiny. if tat's the case, yes...it would if the paint and topcoat is too thin. just spray another coat or 2 of topcoat and base paint. but again, check wif ppl wat is Mr Lapras 6000.
iii) water and dry transfers...apply before doing panel lining. then top coat. but i do it this way, gloss coat then decal then another gloss coat before doing panel lining n finished off with flat coat.

MG Hi NU has very tight fitting. especially the joints around the crotch portion. is the kit snap fitted? if it is, disassemble the kit and check properly if u've used the correct parts. some small differentiation in size may result in extremely tight joints.

jln loke yew/jln sungai besi intersection. near federal bakery. tun razak actually starts further up.

well, try soakin the thing in warm water. hot enuff to touch but not boiling hot til it melts the plastic/rubber joints. then slow do twisting motion on the joint part i.e. slowly twist clockwise a bit, then counter clockwise a bit while pullin the joint out. it won't be easy...but at this moment, i think that's ur best bet.

snap fit to test...then remove to paint. parts are painted piece by piece...INCLUSIVE of top coating. u can go the easy way out...top coat the gloss or flat after finish assembling. but that's the easy way out. wat u shld do is instead top coat it by parts or sections before final fixing.

alternatively, pre-plan ur part colors. then start painting before snapping things in place. and if necessary, at times...yes, u'll need to mask to spray paint 2 parts that are in diff color. especially if that part need to have the seamlines covered.

anyway, this is my standard procedure...
1) cut parts fr sprue
2) trim the extra nips and sand them
3) read manual...look out for seamlines to cover (usually do this at beginning before start cutting lar...but what the heck. do now oso can)
4) fix parts that need to be glued (to cover seamlines)
5) putty the seamlines and wait for putty to dry
6) sand the putty to remove seamlines
7) spray surfacer to check for errors, repeat step 5 n 6 til seamline cannot be seen
8) paint internals (i know some ppl skip this...or paint certain internals only... )
9) paint external armor, etc... color scheme should be planned before reaching here.

ok...here, the process will defer depending on whether u're using waterslide decals or dry transfers (those that come with MG kits) or stickers. But i dun use dry transfers...only use waterslide...so the following is catered for that. for dry transfers or stickers...just top coat after putting the sticker/transfers on after step 9.
10) gloss coat the external armor
11) put on decals
12) gloss coat
13) panel line and do an ink wash on the kit (some ppl do this as the end)
14) flat coat the parts to ur personal liking
15) weathering of kit using pastels, enamels, etc (up to personal preference)

note, the above is standard process to built n paint a kit. excludes extras such as modding for articulation, added detailing or scribing of panel lines. those...u can do after step 3...by doing snap fitting n deciding how u want to mod, scribe panel lines, etc. for snap fitting...cut the joints a bit...to ease takin apart the snap fitted parts. ok..tat's a lengthy explanation. i think it can be found somewhere in this thread..but wat the heck...typed already.


This post has been edited by davelcm: Mar 11 2009, 11:04 PM

airbrush comes in 2 parts...the compressor n the handpiece. u can try art shops or some local hobby shops to look for both.

Vision Art in Sunway (next to Pyramid...near One Academy) has compressors and handpiece for sale...for art college. but same lar. although compressors costs at least RM750. but i have to say, those are good compressors for tat price.
Hobby HQ in Fraser business park...sells both too. but then, u'll need to order as HHQ dun stock up on both.

I think there're some mini industrial compressors abt. u can check some local sites to find them. but then, those sells compressors...not the handpiece.

as for me...i order my handpieces from Japan. beginner may try something cheaper.

oh yeah, u can try this site...www.hobbiescorner.com for both compressor n handpiece.

as for the type of compressors...go do research on the internet...read up on the diff types of compressors available.

gloss coat after decaling is to reduce silvering and make the decal look more natural on the surface. as decal IS an additional piece of paper on the plastic, it would bulge a bit. of cos, you can don't gloss coat after the decaling. it's a personal choice. try it and see if u like the effect.

this rick dias is done without additional gloss coat but i used Mark Setter and Mark Softer only
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v728/dav.../rickdias07.jpg

this is done using the usual...gloss coat, decal, gloss coat, flat coat.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v728/dav...%20kits/013.jpg

sometimes, it can work without the gloss coat. but if ur finishing is not smooth enough, the "silvering" of the decal would be very obvious. so safer to gloss coat it.

weathering is done AFTER assembly. what is weathering? to make the mecha looks like it's been used. wear n tear on the kit. faded paint, rust, mud or oil stains. a lot of newbies prefer their kits clean ala straight fr the anime. which is fine. those u don't do weathering. darker shade on corner is NOT weathering. those are called shading...either pre or post shade. that is part of the painting process.

cover those darn seamlines. that's a basic fundamental process of model kit building. sanding the parts will NOT remove or reduce seamline. just like an actual gun...u don't see a long line running in the middle of the gun or the barrel. nor do u see a long line in the middle of the head or leg. new MGs may have less seamlines...but ppl who have built kits would be able to spot them very fast.

This post has been edited by davelcm: Mar 12 2009, 11:43 AM