How to get the factory finish look in paints on models

[Sutho]

I have been doing model ships for a few years now and always brush paint the kits. Normally use WEM Colour Coat paints as well as Tamiya acrylics for some generic colours as well as other brands.

I have seen photos of model ships where the paint is beyond perfect and it is as if the model has been factory painted. I am just wondering what the secret is to getting the perfect finish. What tips and tricks do others do to perfect the look of their models after brush painting.

[EJFoeth]

Use an airbrush? I've seen models that were hand painted and looked really great (paint-wise). However, I don't think it can beat the airbrush in the clean appearance of the paint. If you add a tiny bit of a semi-gloss coating, the effects gets err, better? (I'd say worse). But more interesting, why would you want a factory finish? For me the trick is to avoid exactly that.

[wefalck]

I think many shipmodelers have the showcase builders' models in mind, when they build their own models. That's why they spend hours filling, sanding, filling, sanding, painting, sanding, painting etc. their hulls. Of course, that's not what a real ship would look like. So the fundamental decision is showcase-type model or a life-like representation ?

On the other hand, a poor paint job looks like a poor paint job and cannot be (easily) sold as a life-like appearance, though on a real ship you will see a lot of poor paint jobs. The poor finish and inaccurate painting of details will always look like exactly that. Giving a life-like appearance with weathering and wear has to start from a good paint job as a basis.

And, indeed, a good paint job is most easily achieved by us amateurs using an airbrush. I am not a professional painter, but believe that acrylics are no good for brushing, when you try to achieve a really good surface finish. Acrylics just dry too fast to be worked well with a brush. Also, with an airbrush you apply much less paint (if used correctly) and, therefore, do not drown out surface details (but also surface imperfections will show up).

wefalck

[biggles2]

... on a real ship you will see a lot of poor paint jobs.

I fully agree. Up close you can see rough paint jobs, poor over-painting, painted-over chipped and blistered paint, and repaints with not-quite-the-same-shade of paint. But, scaled down to 1/350 or 1/700, most of that tends to disappear, and, sometimes, when trying to simulate those conditions it just ends up looking like a mistake! ie; if you stand 350 ft from a ship you're not going to see much poor paint jobs with the naked eye. (they look nice from far, but they're far from nice!)

[Tim Jacobs]

Saw this first hand when my wife and I started doing cruises. All the promo pics show pristine paint jobs on the liners. Get up to a real one, and you see the corrosion, blistered paint, scrapes, etc.