AHHH The Painting is the worse part.

I love building models and doing custom setups on them but when it comes to painting everything goes down the drain. So now im thinking of getting my models painted for money at a local hobby shop. I also think i t comes cheaper than buyying primer paint and extra stuff. What do you people think is this a good idea??

I personally think that is a terrible idea, whats the freakin point. Next time you go to buy a model you might as well go a few steps down and pick up a pre-assembled die-cast model.

Just be patient, practice, read the faq, and try to learn from your mistakes. No one can lay a perfect paint job the first time, find out what works best for you and go with that.

preesembled models have such a limited choice though.

plus the guy uses nice quality paint and im sure its all airbrushed.

also your telling me that you would paint your real car you own yourself??

I personally think that is a terrible idea, whats the freakin point. Next time you go to buy a model you might as well go a few steps down and pick up a pre-assembled die-cast model.

Just be patient, practice, read the faq, and try to learn from your mistakes. No one can lay a perfect paint job the first time, find out what works best for you and go with that.

Painting the body takes lots of practice. I know its disappointing to put so much work in and not get the results you were looking for, but you have to keep in mind the reason for the build. Try not to take all of the enjoyment out of it for yourself by expecting too much. Eventually you will get better. Buy the best paint (tamiya) soak the can in hot water for at least 6-7 minutes, and have patience with yourself because its extremely difficult to get it perfect.

Keep at it.

i know but dont you guys care about all the money that goes with the effort.

Well if you use tamiya paint and take your time (many small coat) I don't see how you could do a very bad job. Tamiya TS paint is very easy to work with.

I think you should just practice painting it yourself. Letting someone else do half (possibly even more than half) the model for you really takes the meaning out of it. The body is a large part of the build, and should be done by you so you can say that you did it. The interior isn't always the first thing people look at, and sometimes people won't notice it at all.

Plus, the sooner you get it down, the sooner you can stop paying other people to do it for you.

also your telling me that you would paint your real car you own yourself??:wtf:

I had no idea we were talking about real cars, you know there is another forum for that:iceslolan

I build models to create the version of a car that I would want to drive, I love painting the car myself. Painting the body is the part of the build that I like the most. The cost of the supplies is no bother to me, It's a small price to pay for the enjoyment I get from this hobby. Plus it's just plastic, not a real car, you can always dip it and start over in the morning.

Why buy a model kit if you intend others to build them for you? It's almost as good as getting a pre-assembled car. You buy something pre-assembled.... and that's it you just display them and drool over the car. The essence of buying model kits is in building and painting them... whether they turn out magnificent or crappy.

One important characteristic of building plastic models is patience.... if you don't have it then you're better off collecting pre-assembled cars.

ps: You're like someone who entered a room full of chefs and asking them "Why cook if you can get better food from a restaurant?"

i know but dont you guys care about all the money that goes with the effort.

At 26 years old the cost of this hobby isn't bad compared to some of my others. I just spent over $1000 on aftermarket parts for my real car, and thats a drop in the bucket compared to how much I could really have spent. So comparitively speaking, no I don't care- its worth every penny.

You seem really upset about painting the body. chances are you made a few mistakes recently and now your dead set against getting your hopes up again. I say get up, go get some DOT5, soak the bastard kits that didn't come out the way you wanted.

go to the FAQ and tutorials section and read everything you can about painting the body. Even if you've read it before, hype yourself up again by going over it again

Then man up and go pick up $10-15 worth of Tamiya rattle cans and have at it again tomorrow. Im willing to bet it will come out much better then the last. And if not, keep in mind that theres maybe a handful of people on this forum that can get it close to perfect everytime. The rest of us are somewhere in between. its not easy

Either live with the fact that its going to take practice to get it right or find another hobby that offers you instant perfection. :screwy:

yea you just need to practice. i handpaint most of my stuff except for like the frame and body and stuff that shows on the outside of the car. i have never even painted a body before cuz im scared ill mess up but im determined to have a go at it this summer.

When I was still studying, I have very limited cash but I still build models. I buy the cheapest model available and paint it using automotive paint. Of course my build is not perfect and there are a lot of paint flaw during all my builds. All I do is be patient and learn as I build. Be patient and practice... that is what I do. You can always dip it in brake oil or CSC if you mess up.

I would show you picks of my first paint outings but my camera would melt. Just practice and be patient.

lol nice one lilbudman ill give a shot at it at the end of the summer. I get nervous usually and come to close to the model with execive paint drops from the side of the car.

Just practice more man its not rocket science!Also,if someones going to paint your models for cheap there not very good anyways.

[QUOTE=cbrain]The essence of buying model kits is in building and painting them... whether they turn out magnificent or crappy.QUOTE]

:iagree:
I haven't got a lot of experience, but I have been "frustrated" with every model I've made so far because it hasn't come out as well as I had planned or because I messed something up. But on the BIGGER plus side for me is that I also see the bits that DID come out as I had planned and the bits that are BETTER than my previous model.

For me modelling is a bit like golf, you may be playing a round with someone else, but the person you are really playing against is yourself and if you don't play the game, how can you hope to ever get better?

sorry to be a bit pompous about it, but I just don't see the point of getting someone else do my hobby for me...

stevenski

All I'll say with regards this discussion is; Would you get yourself a girlfriend and then get your local barman to perform foreplay? Na, didn't think so. I'm pretty poor at painting but I wouldn't dream of asking someone else to do it. I'm sorry but I'd feel a failure if I done that. Almost akin to someone having their model built for them and then taking their model to a contest and pretending it's all their hard work! It's all or nothing in my opinion.

i know but dont you guys care about all the money that goes with the effort.
Nope

Lots of good replies already but here's my $0.02

1. To me, the hobby is about building. Beginning to end. Paint included.

2. However, if you just want a nice model to display, and are willing to pay someone else to do it (or part of it), then that's your choice. Nothing wrong with that, unless of course, you plan to tell everyone else that you did it yourself.

Murray

Building the model is the fun part. If you want someone else to do this for you, then fine. But you'll get a lot more satisfaction out of the build process and when the model is complete being proud of your own work.

Money is also an issue. Of course this hobby is expensive, but if you're willing to put in the time, money and effort the results will show. Or you could go and find another hobby with instant results and completely free, but how likely is that.

If you dont want to paint and can pay someone else to, and if you get satisfaction out of having a model on the shelf and not building it all yourself, dont see any problems with it. Ask yourself, what do you want really want to get out of your modeling experience?

If I was you I would practice at painting, go out by some $5.00 piece of crap model at the LHS. Take it home, and paint it, when you mess up, put it in brake fluid to strip off the messed up paint and redo it. Continue doing that untill your good at it. This way you have only spent a few bucks on it and its no big deal. Once you get down the painting part of it you will be alot happier than paying someone else to do it for you. besides just think of all the fun you/we can have by posting pictures of your paint jobs while your learning....

ok thankyou for all the helpful comments people.

"Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for life."

If you know someone who is quite capable, don't ask him to do it for you, ask him for his secrets. On top of that, there are many, many threads on this on this board, as well as a tutorial or two on cutting/polishing.

But I do see where you're coming from. I've begun to set a high level for myself, and am disappointed when it comes out bad. To top that off, sometimes there are things out of your control that can go wrong, like paint cracking because two coats are drying at uneven rates...

I haven't got a lot of experience, but I have been "frustrated" with every model I've made so far because it hasn't come out as well as I had planned or because I messed something up.
So I'm not the only one :icon16: Painting comes with practice, definetaly. On my last completed thread I got a reply that my models are becoming instantly better every time I finish one. That first of all makes you feel good, and means you're learning more and more about modeling every day. Modeling isn't easy, it remains to be an art!

Build build build!

And I really have huge questions about paying someone to do it for you being cheaper than doing it yourself. Whoever does it has to have materials, too, right? And do you think they're doing the labor for free? Something doesn't add up there.

I'd say painting is the 'best part'. It's where all your skill shows - you don't need as much to make a good-looking engine or interior. I'm actually starting to dislike all the 'building' leading up to the painting of the body, cause it takes so long, lol. Especially with my recent project, which a 1:24 Mercedes Benz truck - painting and waiting for all the suspension bits to dry is sooo mind-numbing.

And, as other people said, who cares if your first attempt doesn't look show-room quality. Who are you trying to impress?

Girls.

also your telling me that you would paint your real car you own yourself??

Yes, I have, as I'm sure others here have. The principles are all the same, just on a larger scale. Here's my car, which I painted myself last year:

http://www.efnetcars.com/album/rides/amo.sized.jpg

As many people have said, prep work is 90% of the job anyway, spraying the paint itself is simply taking your time and not rushing it. Buying pre-built models is useless, as others have said you might as well go die-cast. You spoke of spending too much money, and the fact is, to get really good scale models built for you costs a fortune, and buying really high quality die casts also costs a fortune. For me, a cheap Revell kit for $10, another $10 in paint, and $5 in supplies like brushes and glue, and time and effort is worth far more.

Scuse me Willimo, but the only models girls are interested in are NOT 1/24 scale!