how do you guys get so much detail onto your tanks, such as, dirt on the sides, and wear on the paint, were you can see the steel coming through, and it looks so life like. also how do you get mud to hang like that? i mean i've only been seriously modelling for about a month, and i can do some detail such as exshaust, fail penetrate rounds, blown off side skirts (on german armor), but i want to know how you guys get that REALISM in your work ( i also use dullcoat) and if anyone can give me pointers on making diorama bases (senic and urban) please help thanks alot guys.
for mud etc talc is a good starting point mix some into brown paint and it can be applied in clumps and it will dry. sometimes you have to add some white glue to help it fix. You can then add varnish to make it appear wet. Worn metal can be acieved in variuos ways. the simplist is get a good brush that has a point and you can apply a gunmetal colour onto the exposed edges.
It all depends on the scale of your model. Differing scales mean differing techniques. in 1/72 dry brushing is adequate to give a weathered and dusty appearance to AFV's. Damaged mud guards are best simulated by gently heating the area and then pressing it gently against an object such as a wooden block. As for hits on tanks I use a heated pin to produce hits from small calibre weapons and to add lines of bullet holes to buildings.
