Dreadclaw69 wrote:Nice work. May I ask what weathering powder you used, and how you got that effect?
I'm glad you asked, because it gives me an excuse to post 2 more photos. I was very hot to get this posted, because that's the point I consider a project "done". I did so with bad timing - I finished this model at 2am, and that's when I took the pictures. That's a pretty poor time for doing that because the room I take pictures in is not as well lighted as it could be and pictures taken at night only look OK from like, 1 angle... I really need daylight for good photos. But, I was in a rush. So, here are 2 better pictures and then I'll talk about it.
The weather powders I use are from Forge World. They made a set that had 6 when they first launched which I got. Now it looks like you can buy them individually, which is a better deal: out of the 6 I only ever use 3, anyway. I'd get aged rust, dark earth, and black soot. You can get them from other companies, and I think they're all more or less the same thing. If you're cheap, you can even just get some pastel colored pencils and grind them against a rough surface to make your own - I'm pretty sure that's what people did before they were commercially available.
So far as how to use them, I dusted some on with a soft brush - a wide one for the dark earth on the tracks, and a skinny #1 brush for some fine rust in the cracks. The urge to overdo them is pretty strong when you start out and even still I struggle with it. A light hand is best, you can always add more if you need to but you can't easily take it off.
Once the powder is on, then if you want the best look, you need to leave the model alone and put it on display (powder goes last for this reason). For gaming pieces, this is problematic since the powder will rub off with handling. You have a few options: you can use spray dullcote, which definitely works but will blow a significant percentage of it off. You can use an airbrush and sealant at a low PSI, and that works pretty well too. You can also use something to fix the powder before sealing it: MiG makes a sealant, and I believe people also use hairspray for the same effect. In the case of brush-on fixers like MiG you need to be super careful applying it: just touch a brush to an area and let it spread out on it's own. If you go to heavy with it, it liquifies the powder and turns it into paint and looks terrible.
So, what I usually do is a light hand with an airbrush, then dullcote, and then a delicate touch-up in the cracks as needed. If you want a nice soiled look, you can brush some flat sealant and then while it's wet, sprinkle a little powder as needed, with a light hand.
Again, if you want it to look best, do what Forge World do and just don't seal it at all.