Model Of The Month: Daishi's Frost Dragon by DanBKing

DanBKing

Dan the Man
, "DO OR DON'T. THERE IS NO TRY".:mrgreen:

AMEN......!

or, SO SAY WE ALL....! (If you prefer!)

or, NOTHING FOR MAHALA!!!!

:mrgreen:

But, first wait and see how things turn out in the end, (which is what matters most,) before you use this as a guide...... :rolleyes:

:wave:
 

DanBKing

Dan the Man
From a soft to a hard place.

The first rule of any construction: A soild base.

Mathew 7:24 (para): A wise man builds his house on a rock.

So, as a good base for my dragon, I built a rock...........:mrgreen:

I finished off what I started last week, and completed the rock. I gave it 3 coats of matt varnish, after touching up where necessary. You can see the effect of the before and after varnish pictures...

With144.jpg

and the back..

145.jpg

I still have to build the internal support structure of the rock, but I am debating whether I am going to bother, as all the weight of the dragon part of the model will be supported by the internal armature. The armature will extend from each foot of the beast, through the rock and be secured into a wooden base, with the paper rock acting purely as a shroud....Well, that is my idea anyway.

So, with this in mind, I used the paper base-piece as a template, and cut out the shape in 10mm MDF (Medium Density Fibreboard). I then sanded it all nice and smoooooth!:cool:

149.jpg

and nice and snug........:mrgreen:

141.jpg


I am not certain yet, but I think I will start on the wings next.....

But, please be patient with me, I have a very busy week or two ahead of me, so, I don't know when I can get to the workbench (dining table.:eek:ops:)

I'll keep you posted as things happen...

:wave:
 
THAT is a very nice........rock...

No realy, it looks great, the varnish makes it so that it doesn't look like paper at all and I realy like the matt finish !!
If I may ask what kinda varnish do you use for your models and where do you get it ? Since we both live in Holland it's quite likely we use the same stores.

Do you varnish all your models and if so what should I pay attention to.
I understand that varnishing can increase the livespan of a paper model and it's color quite a lot.

Nuf questions.

Cheers,
Elko
 

DanBKing

Dan the Man
Hey Elko!

I use this, but from the aerosol can. I got mine from my local craft shop. It is expensive though (€17- 400ml aerosol tin.)

tala0201.jpg

2 warnings on the aerosol version though: 1) It gives a heavy-coat/high-coverage spray. 2) It is a killer on the lungs, as it is turpentine based. USE IN A WELL VENTILATED AREA!!!!

The first coat I apply is a 'mist coat' with out getting things too wet. Once this has dried, it seals most of the print and forms a good 'key' for the subsequent coats.

I am not sure that painting it on with a brush will be a good idea, as it will make the paper too wet.

Try anything you use first, on scrap card or leftover print, before applying to the model you having put so much love and attention into........

Remember please: My prints are done with high quality laser printing, I have no idea how this particular product will affect inkjet prints.
But, the product is designed to permantly seal watercolour paintings without damage, so I assume it will be ok for inkjet... And note I say : ASSUME. I dont want to make an ASS out of U or ME.....:mrgreen:
 
I'll have to go and see if my local craft shop has this varnish, they deal in a lot of painting and aquarell materials, it's also where I buy my paper and glue etc.

If they don't have it we still have a modelshop that deals in plasticmodels only and all the stuff you need for that.
Do you think that matt varnish for plastic models would work for paper if the first store doesn't have any ?
 

mcusanelli

Well-Known Member
I've used Testor's Dullcoat, Glosscoat and Semi- Gloss, they all work great, and don't ruin the prints. Also, Krylon Triple thick Glosscoat is my favorite, just use them all outside....They really aren't healthy to breath in.
Mike
 
I've used Testor's Dullcoat, Glosscoat and Semi- Gloss, they all work great, and don't ruin the prints. Also, Krylon Triple thick Glosscoat is my favorite, just use them all outside....They really aren't healthy to breath in.
Mike

I don't know these brands, the only matt varnish I used was for plastic models. The brands I used were Tamiya, Humbroll and Revell.

I'll have to check what the two different stores have and see from there I think. Only thing I wonder is if you can use varnish meant for plastic models on paper models.
 

Rogerio Silva

Active Member
Coating...

About the varnish, I also use a spray semi-gloss varnish, designed, as Dan said, to seal the painting and protect it against UV rays as well. I use laser printings too, but have already tested it in inkjet ones, with positive results. Proof of that is that little Japanese Yokohama crocodile :confused::confused::confused: that's in my avatar picture.
I applied a heavy coat of spray varnish on it, just being careful not to make it drip. It was just fine, and KUN (the crocodile) is doing great, as you can see by the picture...:mrgreen: OH! announce1:DO USE MASK AGAINST VAPORS! PROTECT YOUR LUNGS!!!
All the best!
 

Revell-Fan

Co-Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
announce1:DO USE MASK AGAINST VAPORS! PROTECT YOUR LUNGS!!!

Darth Vader. (... heavy breathing ...) Biggest scratch builder in the galaxy. Helped building the Death Star but ruined his health! :mrgreen:

Please forgive me, something forced me to add that. Now joking aside, Rogerio pointed out a very important thing. Even if you work with paper make sure that your working area is well lit and ventilated (paper dust and glue vapors can easily cause allergic reactions).
 
I've been to one store but couldn't find any varnish at all.
The modelstore wasn't open so I'll have to check that later.

The Testor varnish is also meant for plastic models right ?
I know that the modelstore has Tamiya clear spray but it's for plastic, I asume that I can use that for my papermodels aswell ?

When I spraypaint etc. I do that outside the house in the shed, that's practically in the open air. The glue I use for general papermodeling is Pritt glue waterbased and loctite superglue, no problems with fumes or nasty smells there.

Cheers,
Elko
 

DanBKing

Dan the Man
I've been to one store but couldn't find any varnish at all.
The modelstore wasn't open so I'll have to check that later.

The Testor varnish is also meant for plastic models right ?
I know that the modelstore has Tamiya clear spray but it's for plastic, I asume that I can use that for my papermodels aswell ?

When I spraypaint etc. I do that outside the house in the shed, that's practically in the open air. The glue I use for general papermodeling is Pritt glue waterbased and loctite superglue, no problems with fumes or nasty smells there.

Cheers,
Elko

Hey Elko,

You should be able to use pretty much any varnish on paper. The trick is to spray the first coat very light, just a mist coat. This seals the print and creates a good base for subsequent coats

Try looking here: http://www.talens.com/en-us/where-to-buy/ for info where the nearest supplier of the varnish I use is to you.

Dan
 

DanBKing

Dan the Man
Red Bull? Ha! Only I, can give you Wings .....

As I had already printed the model on 120 gsm and 160 gsm paper, I decided to make the wing membranes from the lighter weight paper.

Like the human arm, the dragon arm contains the same basic elements: Shoulder, upper arm, elbow, lower arm and then the hand including the fingers. The thumb would be represented as the long claw at the top-middle of the wing where the fingers radiate from, (the palm.)
The big difference is the membranes between the dragons fingers. Which of course, are the main components that make up the wings.

This pic from http://www.dragoart.com shows the definitions clearly...

imagesCA0XMJD4.jpg

Anyway, I wanted to use 120 gsm for the fingers and membranes and then change to 160 gsm for the palm and the upper and lower arm. The reason for this is structural strength.
As the wing membranes of the model are made of two parts that join in the middle of the membrane, I did not want to use tabs to join these. I did not want to take the risk of having 'tab shadows' in the membrane after the glue had dried. So, I decided to remove the connecting tabs and join the membranes together using sticky labels on the back side, ensuring the joins were as tight as possible. The joins were edge coloured to match the pattern, as best as possible, using water colour pencils. The labels I use are very high tack and have an extremely long 'stick life.' I therefore did not use any glue for the joining of the membranes. This helped keeping the join a bit cleaner.

002.jpg

Once the whole wing is complete, I will do any touch-ups required to blend the join as best as possible.

It all clicked at this point: I have to build FOUR wings.......:eek: Each wing is composed of the front and the back sub-assemblies, reversed imaged and basically laminated together.

I have to say, that this project has caused me to do a crash course in Pepakura.
It has taken more time to build this model in my head and working out the build order of each sub-assembly, in relation to its connecting assembly, which directly relates to the shape and structure of each related assembly and sub-assembly that connects to it, which of course affects the general structure and shape of the model as a whole, which has an indirect effect on the structure of the base and subsequent means of attachment to this base, than actually doing any building...... But, once you have worked it all out, you need to then decide which is the first piece of the puzzle........:p:phamr:p

I'll get there ..... With a bit of time, if I can find time, that is....

See you soon...

:wave:
 
Hey Elko,

You should be able to use pretty much any varnish on paper. The trick is to spray the first coat very light, just a mist coat. This seals the print and creates a good base for subsequent coats

Try looking here: http://www.talens.com/en-us/where-to-buy/ for info where the nearest supplier of the varnish I use is to you.

Dan

If I want to get the varnish your using then I'll have to order it somewhere in my province since there's no shop that sells it in my city Hoogeveen.
The stuff is quite expensive and I would have to pay packaging and postal on top of that.

What I did find is this:

Humbrol Spray #49 Varnish. 150ml, Matt or Gloss, ACRYLIC or ENAMEL.

I don't know which one would be best Acrylic or Enamel ?

It's meant for plastic but also other surfaces like cardboard.
I can get that at the local modelstore and costs 5,99 per can 150ml and 15,00 euro when I buy three at once.
I think this could work out, the shop is nearby so I can get it when I need it.
When time comes I'm gonna try one can first, if it's good then I know what to use.

Thanks for the heads up though, if the Humbrol doesn't work I can always order the one you use.

Cheers,
Elko


PS


.......working out the build order of each sub-assembly, in relation to its connecting assembly, which directly relates to the shape and structure of each related assembly and sub-assembly that connects to it, which of course affects the general structure and shape of the model as a whole, which has an indirect effect on the structure of the base and subsequent means of attachment to this base, than actually doing any building......

Okaaaay.... that made sence hamr :mrgreen:

I have all confidence that you'll fix it though.
 

DanBKing

Dan the Man
Okaaaay.... that made sence hamr :mrgreen:

Hahahaha, Did it ?

Well, actually, it does....sign1

Please excuse my linquistic pornography......:mrgreen:

Actually, I am not into pornography. In fact, I don't even own a Pornograph ..... sign1

:wave:

PS.... ACRYLIC, in my opinon is the better choice....:cool:
 
Hahahaha, Did it ?

Well, actually, it does....sign1

Please excuse my linquistic pornography......:mrgreen:

Actually, I am not into pornography. In fact, I don't even own a Pornograph ..... sign1

PS.... ACRYLIC, in my opinon is the better choice....:cool:


Thanks.... you made me choke in my scotch, ever had scotch run out your nose, it's not a pretty site.......and it feels even worse :eek:

Acrylic it will be.........

:wave:
 

DanBKing

Dan the Man
In Space, No One Can Hear You Scream......

I am so scared that the model is gonna jump up and attack my face at any moment........:eek:

RIPLEY, WHERE ARE YOU????????

013.jpg

012.jpg

:mrgreen:

:wave:
 
Those wings look very good.
Personaly I would be glad that the model is pretty big.
If I had to make wings like that on a small scale I would go nuts.
Ugh, I think I would go nuts anyway with such a complex model.........

It's gonna be a great display though, visitors will be stunned surely!!

Cheers,
Elko

PS
Nice cuttingmat btw :)
 
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