And now I can finally glue some bigger parts together and make some real progress. I studied the available references a lot and decided to go with the black primer method. I tested a couple of different primers and my favorite is the Mr. Finishing Surfacer 1500. I tried the Vallejo black primer, but even their Polyurethane primer is too soft. You want a tough surface that will stand up to the beating it will take once you start weathering. The Mr. Finishing Surfacer 1500 is lacquer based, so it's a mess to work with and you need to use good ventilation and a mask, but the results are worth it.
I decanted mine and airbrushed it, thinned about one part thinner to three parts paint. I used Mr. Leveling Thinner which has a retarding agent built into it and my results were great. A very fine tough coat that didn't obscure any details. I don't have any photos of the black painted parts, but they were black. Not much to show really.
Then it was time to pick a base color. I learned with my AT-AT build that weathering really makes things go dark quickly, so I didn't want too dark a gray. I tested a couple of colors for the X-Wing:
The colors in the test are, from top to bottom:
1. Model Master Camouflage Gray--the one many consider the standard for an X-Wing basecoat, although this is the acrylic version, not the enamel..
2. Vallejo Model Air White Gray
3. Vallejo Model Color White Gray (Confusing that the two colors have the same name and look so different, but that's the way it is.)
4. Micro Lux Reefer White--I did this so I'd have a white reference. Micro Lux is made for Micro Mark by Vallejo and is meant to duplicate the original Floquil color.
Because Red 3 is one of the darker and dirtier models, I decided to go with the Model Air White Gray. Because the 1/72nd scale kit is so small, I decided I'd better lighten it a lot for that "scale effect." Good thing I did or it would have come out way too dark. I mixed the paint with equal parts white and sprayed over the black primer:
I then used a very fine sanding sponge, something like a 3600 from a polishing kit, to sand down the basecoat. On the original models they used steel wool to take down the basecoat, but they were using tough automotive primers. I was being extra cautious. I've since experimented more and discovered that 3M Microfine sanding sponges work very well, and are easier to find in larger quantities.
I have a confession. I screwed up the first basecoat and had to strip the whole model down to the plastic. I wanted to leave some of the black showing in recesses to give the model depth, but this was a new thing for me. I mixed the basecoat too thin and it wasn't covering the black. By the time I'd sprayed enough coats to cover the black to my liking, I'd managed to fill in all the panel lines! So I stripped it and tried again. The second time around I went with about 25% thinner in the Model Air paint and it covered well in very few coats, so the fine detail of the kit was retained. What a mess.
But now I've got a basecoat I'm happy with. The sanding sponge accomplishes two things: first it gives you a distressed and weathered base to work on like ILM used. The black primer showing through on the edges of raised detail here and there will help the finished model look well worn. The sanding also means that decals will go on nicely without the need for a gloss clear coat. The detail on this model is so fine that I wanted as few coats of paint on it as possible. Sanding the matte paint gives it a semi-gloss sheen and the decals adhere to it beautifully with no silvering.
Thanks for looking, more to follow...