Proxxon Thermocut

About 2 months ago, while trying to cut some thin layer of foam to be placed under the Brawa platform support, I realized that the same old ways I used to cut foam are making me lose hours, with the results never being exact. So I went online and ordered from a local online dealer the Proxxon Thermocut 230/E.

Priced at 130 euros, this machinery could have easily saved me days (!) of work back when I was building the ramps and various pillars. With a very thin wire that's kept straight by the arm, you can do cuts in various angles, both horizontally and vertically  (the piece holding the wire on the upper side of the arm can slide). The guiding system is really good and sturdy (maybe it has something to do with the fact that the machine is built in Germany). To be on the safe side, I ordered a spare wire coil (like the one seen here on the top of the arm) which holds 30 m of wire. The heating temperature can be easily modified and the base is actually printed with cm markings and a protractor - all in all one of the best investments recently made.

Lantern Building Roof

With my eye both on the finished building, as it appears on the Artitec site, and on the list of colours supplied by the same manufacturer, I first tried using something different for the roof than the colour recommendation dictated. Since Artitec used a copper-ish finish, and since I already had 2 small bottles of Tamiya XF-6 (Copper) I first used the formula below:

64 drops of XF-2 (Tamiya Flat White)
20 drops of XF-6 (Tamiya Copper)
87 drops of X-20A (Tamiya Thinner)

The result above wasn't really what I was after - the glossy effect actually ruined everything. Hence I turned to the suggested Artitec colours, bought the Tamiya XF-56 (Mettalic Grey) which is the corresponding color from Tamiya for the suggested Artitec list (they only give Revell and Humbrol colour codes) and used it, while trying to leave a hint of the previous coats. Below the result, after the roof was secured to the rest of the building.

Formula used the last time:


20 drops of XF-2 (Tamiya Flat White)
20 drops of XF-56 (Tamiya Metallic Gray)
40 drops of X-20A (Tamiya Thinner)

[later edit] This is the color ZK on the Artitec instructions

Both Edges Completed on Lantern Building

After trying to find out just the right mix for the Artitec suggested colors - namely their Cement (CE) and Blue Green (BG), I finally got the paint sprayed using the airbrush on most of the building's faces, while using a no 1 brush for the drain pipes. Formulas are listed below (CE is on the upper side on the wall, BG on the bottom one) - note that the previous color used has now been switched.

CE (cement)
30 drops of XF-2 (Tamiya Flat White)
6 drops of XF-79 (Tamiya Linoleum Deck Brown)
2 drops of XF-1 (Tamiya Flat Black)

BG (blue green)
30 drops of XF-2 (Tamiya Flat White)
2 drops of XF-79 (Tamiya Linoleum Deck Brown)
2 drops of XF-1 (Tamiya Flat Black)

Upper Wall Edge of Lantern Building

For the upper edge of the building's walls, the Artitec instruction paper indicates using a mix of white (more), a shade of brown (Humbrol 110 - small amount) and black (small amount). This is referred to as cement in the said flyer. So a small quantity of paint was mixed, as follows:

30 drops of XF-2 (Tamiya Flat White)
2 drops of XF-79 (Tamiya Linoleum Deck Brown)
2 drops of XF-1 (Tamiya Flat Black)


The result, representing just one wall barely sprayed in 3 coats, along with the pieces of various types of masking tapes, can be seen below.

[Later Edit] This was replaced as indicated here.

Lantern Building Walls

One side of the lantern building had its wall airbrushed tonight. The texture of the model is really good, and using the airbrush really shows the details - an ordinary job using a brush will most likely make all the details fade. Care had to be taken though with the specs of dust, that tend to stick to the surface after spraying a coat. However I've done one mistake: the center of the windows should have been covered as well, because a thin mist deposited on the window sides on the inside. However with the white windows applied, this might not look too bad after all, providing a bit of a "highlight", usually needed for the small models because the light doesn't cast the same shadows compared to the real thing (so say the experts).

 The formula used, applied in 3 coats, follows:
0,9 ml XF-2 (Tamiya Flat White)
 6 drops of XF-64 (Tamiya Red Brown)
 1 ml X-20A (Tamiya Thinner)

The 3M masking tape applied on the bricks had the added benefit of removing extra mortar that was lying on the face of the bricks themselves.

T

Bricks on the Artitec Building

While looking around the Internet for tips about using masking tape, I've come across some very interesting advice: the normal masking tape, the light-colored one, that when looked up close seems to have all sorts of ridges, is actually not the way to go for miniature painting. The trouble with this - even excellent for use on regular house work - is that it's too thick, making the paint sprayed from the airbrush to accumulate on the edges. Also, even if one tries to really level it, it usually bleeds paint. Enter the 3M vinyl masking tape, which solves these issues, and above all, it's not that sticky, plus the vinyl can be maneuvered a bit to take the desired shape. Somewhat pricy, at 15 euros you can get this as a 6 mm wide by 30 metres long strip.

 After carefully masking one side of the building, so that only the brick parts were visible, paint was prepared:
 0,6 ml XF-7 (Tamiya Flat Red)
 0,1 ml XF-64 (Tamiya Red Brown)
 0,7 ml X-20A (Tamiya Thinner)

This was airbrushed in 3 coats, using a lamp to help dry the paint between the sessions for 10 to 15 minutes. After everything dried overnight the mortar lines were done - first using a dry cloth with Woodland Scenics Concrete to cover the whole brick surface (this needs to be in sufficient quantity, since it will be left for about 10 minutes to dry - when this happens the paint tends to recede from the lines between the bricks; if this happens, another layer should be applied using the cloth soaked in Concrete color). After this has been left to dry for 10 - 15 minutes, a damp cloth can be used to remove the dried color from the bricks' face.

Even if the mortar might not be removed 100% from the bricks themselves, not to worry, since the Artitec guys seem to be having a similar finish on their product cover. As for the brick color, this was chosen so that it matches that of the Brawa platform detailed back here

Artitec Kits

It's been a while since I first noticed the Artitec kits in the offers of various model shops. Pictures of the complete models really looked awesome, by far the most realistic among the rest of the crowd. Trouble was the usual online retailer I'm using - LokShop - doesn't offer any Artitec products. But since I had my eye on a small building that had just the right dimensions to fit on the D segment, and also they had a nice small ship (only the part above the water) that fits well in one of the layout's corners, I decided to go ahead and order directly from their site (http://hobbyworld.nl/). Due to a certain local holiday, the delivery was set back about 2 weeks, but finally arrived. Luckily for me, I found out a couple of months ago that the Artitec kits come unpainted, so that awesome picture of the desired model is really up to you. 

So I went ahead and started working on the Lantern Building (#10228). Don't assume you'll be dealing with state-of-the-art, laser-cut materials. Actually it's a really good opportunity to see how models evolved over the years. Compared to the Faller station I got  last year, this has its issues. First of all, the "Copyright 2005" gives the fist clue. Then you're greeted by resin parts, all having a pretty thick film on the back, which needs to be sanded away. The second photo shows my first attempt at it, however I had to go and buy some real sandpaper to get the work done. In the end it took more than 2 hours total time to only get the parts separated...and a lot of messy plastic dust on the way.