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[Mi'ix]

Awesome! That's what we like to see.

Are you planning redoing your whole paint job or just the ab plate?

I'm about to paint my chest plates so you'll want to make sure you have some varying shades of green. Your left chest plate, collar, and back plate are all going to be the same green.  Right chest and ab plate are going to be a little bit lighter and the diamond will be the darkest since the ESB Hero turned out to be a mismatch of various suits.

You and I are using identical parts for this project and you've done a great job so far! Looking forward to seeing what you do with it!

[Sea_Marshall]

I'm about to paint my chest plates so you'll want to make sure you have some varying shades of green. Your left chest plate, collar, and back plate are all going to be the same green.  Right chest and ab plate are going to be a little bit lighter and the diamond will be the darkest since the ESB Hero turned out to be a mismatch of various suits.

You and I are using identical parts for this project and you've done a great job so far! Looking forward to seeing what you do with it!

Yes, I'm aware of all the shades. I'm just putting down Hunt Club green as the Med/Green req. I will likely revisit the plates at a later stage to airbrush on the shades, lighten the plates, and add weathering. Only the ab plate got sanded down because of the mishap. As I near the finish line, which is a marathon away, I'll put more time into the color detail. I went to a variety of paint shops and can't seem to find the right colors and will likely order the colors online once I acquire an airbrush.

I hope to do the plates justice! Just moving it along to get it done and will sort it out if it's not up to par.

[Mi'ix]

Airbrush is definitely the way to go! 

I've got a working color list I would be more than happy to share with you!

[Kebiin Ke'Varek]

Mi'ix is not only the Canon Division Captain, he is an excellent source of information in this department.  Keep in mind that the Brigade Team is here to help and guide you throughout the building process.  It is important to note that in a Canon build, it all has to be right, down to the colors....so his suggestion above is a good one.  You won't be able to cover the wrong color scheme with weathering, so he is simply aiming to help you there by giving you (REALLY GOOD) advice.  No one is here to insult you or your build in any way,  EVER, so never take what we say as anything but constructive, to get you and your kit to the highest possible level. 

[The Unknown Mando]

Awesome work so far vod, nice selection of parts too

[Sea_Marshall]

Decided to scrap my paint job, invest in an airbrush, and pick up the appropriate humbrol paints before moving forward again. 

[Ashen Kelborn]

Heart breaking buddy but probably a good move if you want that finer detail.
Looking like I'll have to do the same with my Jodo too, so i really feel for you 

[Mi'ix]

I'm sorry to see that Sea Marshall.

I saw your PM, I'll get back with you either tonight or tomorrow since I'm kitting up a couple times this weekend.

[Sea_Marshall]

Ah, it's no big deal. Its a primer, silver, mask, green. And I my gauntlets, jetpack, shoulders, and knees are still at a good stage. So just the chest, back, cod, and kidney. Agreed, the finer details will show and I'll be happier that I reset. I still have a long way to go, so this is a minor set back in the bigger picture.

I read up on the TDH forums and it appears that lots of folks are using enamels. I've only ever painted with acrylics, but I'd image thinning enamels would still have a nice look. I wanted to approach the paint with multiple layers of paint to really get a chipped feeling to the armor, but even after the coats I put on, it doesn't look much different than a topical application. The masking layers with thin airbrush coats will give better detail and the accuracy of colors will make all the difference.

Already sanded down a few pieces and reapplied the primer layer. Came out nice, so that's a definite win. Thanks for following along! This only my second kit and painting something this detailed is a new challenge. I knew I wanted to do a Boba, but made my rando to see what goes into the hobby.

[Sea_Marshall]

Updates!

After screwing up my rattle can paint job, I decided I didn't like the color after all and achieving the weathering would have to be airbrushed anyway. Add to that the Flight Suit, boots, and cape can all be airbrushed for weathering, so I broke down and invested in a relatively inexpensive airbrush with a few needles, compressor, and ordered the appropriate paints from Humbrol online.



I've finally finished stripping and sanding the original rattle can color and have started to prime the pieces back to masking prep. Fortunately the shoulder and knees are still primed. Here's the current state as of last night:



Never doing that again, and let me just recommend to other first time Fett painters: Just do it right, get the right colors, and invest in the airbrush... I've already dumped a bunch of money into the suit, what's another couple hundred bucks for a sweet tool that will be used on just about EVERYTHING. At least three other folks told me the same piece of advice and now I'm kicking myself for trying to cut a corner.

Other things in prep:
Fabric dye for the Man of War flight suit (I'm considering an Arkady suit in the future, but will work with what I have)


Locking back pins for armor attachment. Fettastic's post on attachment method (TDH) seemed simpler, cost effective, and user friendly, so I jumped on it too. Should be an easy replacement if it doesn't work out, but appears this will be a great method.


Wookiee Braids! per Woodman, found on Dented Helmet. Fast turnaround, great product.


And finally got the ESB Belt! per Delta Leather Works, found on Dented Helmet. Fast turnaround, great product.


Jetpack beacon should be shipping from Machine Craft Replicas soon, then will sort out electronics on that front.

Once the weather warms up, the last primer/base coats will be going down, masking again, and then I can take the airbrush for a spin. Progress is ramping up! Finish line is still a ways off, but it's coming down to the last laps.

[Mi'ix]

Glad you're rocking this out, dude!

I sent you that PM about paint a little while back. I hope it was at least a little helpful.

[Sea_Marshall]

Updates! Some successes, some failures. Learning A LOT with this build. Posting WIPs helps keep my sanity and overcome hangups.

I decided to scrap my paint job with the rattle can, got everything back to masking prep:



Attached jeweler pins with locking backs for attachment method, using Fettastic's method. Haven't attached them to the vest yet, but used super glue and covered the bases with epoxy putty. Feels solid, looking forward to testing them on the vest.



Got the Spruce Green base coat down on the Gauntlets and Jetpack:



Drilled in screws for the rocket mount.



Then went nuts working on the Gauntlets into the wee hours of the morning. Calling it good for now, will likely revisit touchups before completion.





Also put some time into the jetpack:



Waiting on the beacon to ship and want to get some color variation with an airbrush soon.

Also took a stab at dying my flight suit, which resulted in utter failure...



Turns out I could have used a quarter, or less, of the blue dye to hit the mark. Instead I used .75% of the bottle and the 100% cotton sucked up the color effectively making it Jango colored. I then took dye remover to the suit in an effort to fade it to nothingness using more than was recommended and discovered it was useless, even blotched the color in some places. Some weathering will save the blotches, but the overall color is a disaster. In an effort to salvage the suit, I'm going to try a bleach/water method to bring the color intensity down, but it's probably a lost cause. I had considered upgrading to an Arkady flight suit because the Man of War suit was tight around my arms, but now it's seeming more of a need to upgrade, haha.

Ah well, two steps forward, one step back.

[Jennari]

Keep up the good work, ner vod! Learn from your mistakes; soon it'll be perfect. 

[Mi'ix]

It's alright.

Looks like you made yourself a Pre-pro 2 suit!  You should be able to lighten it with some RIT dye remover. 

[Ashen Kelborn]

if blotchy now, thought of bleaching and re dying with a thinned blue?
OR boil wash and tumble dry several times to fade and weather?