Hairspray chipping Tamiyas 1973 Raiden
Enamel wash, oil wash, salt chipping and now hairspray. I've tried to do something different with each of my four last builds, firstly to learn, secondly to keep my modelling interesting and thirdly to keep challenging myself.
I looked at a few of the chipping mediums available but decided on the daughters hairspray as it was close to hand and a cheap product that looked like it gave a good effect.
The Raiden is marked as a 1973 box with updated decals from 2003, raised panel lines and only two very basic sprues. Still, at only $18 it includes two build sheets, one English and one in Japanese and a lovely piece of artwork by Watanabe with two colour profiles. The kit falls together nicely for the price, a better fit than a few of the more than twice the price kits i have made so far. Something back when i was a kid i would have knocked out in an afternoon! Terribly, but it would have been built and painted before dinner.
I started with a black base over primer followed by Vallejo aluminium metal colour that i let sit under lamps for a few hours. The hairspray was decanted and then three coats applied which sat for an hour before the top coat was applied. I gave the topcoat another hour under the lamps before i started picking away with my stipple brush, some warm water and a toothpick.
The topcoat came off far easier than i thought it would, probably owing to my three coats of hairspray, so minimum water was used as i progressed. Picking out panel line edges, the wing root entry and undersides was an absorbing couple of hours and made me wonder how the first guy who stumbled on the process must have felt as he admired his work.
After chipping i let the model sit over night before cleaning it up with a brush and soft rag to remove any mess before a future substitute coat. The decals i attempted some weathering on but have decided i need to look at masking my own in the future to get the results i want. Lastly was an oil wash mix of several colours i mashed up, darker on top, lighter on the bottom. The Aotake wheel wells (another great modelling debate) is a Tamiya clear blue/clear green. The wing navigation lights were also cut out and replaced with Kristal Klear.
All up i'm pretty happy with the result on such a cheap old kit despite struggling with the canopy using budget painters tape , cleaning it up, repainting by hand and cleaning it up again than i did painting the whole plane.
Neat fun kit for the price.
Beautiful work. Nothing wrong with learning on an old cheap kit, and your result is pretty amazing. I'd almost forgotten this old chestnut exists.
Thanks Tom, i grabbed Tamiyas old Ki84 while at the model shop as well. Too cheap to pass up!
Great post Jimmy. This hairspray technique also appeals to me, I've used it often in armor modeling. If you look at pics of Japanese planes in WWII you would think that every paint job was also preceded by liters of hairspray: The paint often peels off, more than on allied aircraft. Well done this one!
Cheers Michel! Like i said, i was surprised how easily the paint came away, a really nice effect for minimal work overall. How many coats of hair spray do you usually apply?
Depends on the quality of the spray. I don't use it myself but I have Elnett L'Oreal. I spray usually two generous layers and let every layer set for 30 mins before the next one is applied. I've always applied it from the can itself, but I guess 1:35 scale is more forgiving in terms of surface roughness...
I fairly vigorously rubbed down each layer, black, silver with a cloth first to help smooth it all out, helps the silver pop a bit more as well! Cheers mate.
Very nicely done. Love this bird and what you did with her.
Thanks David. I've always been on the fence about the Raiden looks wise but as the build progressed she gradually won me over 🙂
that's some of the best looking chipping i've ever seen jimmy...so real
Thanks Bob! It's a fun medium.
Nice job Jimmy! Really like the finish.
Cheers James, me too 😀
The chipping on the wing root is just perfect imo, very nice overall
Thanks, very happy myself with how it ended up.
Looks great, fantastic results.
Appreciated Rob 🙂
I have tried a couple of small patches on some planes, but haven't been willing to jump in with both feet yet. I have both hairspray and chipping mediums sitting on one of my shelves, so maybe it is time to dive in. Your results look great.
Dive in 🙂 I figured if i stuffed it i could wet and dry it and start again. I also did the underside first completely before moving topside.
Looks great! I think you came out with just the right amount of chipping - not overdone, and very much in the right places. The Raiden is one of my favorite Japanese aircraft, and you did it justice.
Cheers Greg 🙂
Masterpiece. Very nice. Great looking model.
Thanks Łukasz, surprising for an old and cheap kit that it needed less work fit wise than many dearer and newer models, cheers 🙂