Will i paint my brass bits

[shihawk]

My usual indecision has raised its it,s scratching head again !!  ,so i thought i would ask for some opinions and advice before i have another sleepless night . As some of you will know i am building a Billings Victory with a few personalised alterations ,mainly due to there constant use of plywood and my persistant desire not to use paint or stains through the build . So far i have managed to solve the problems that have arisen , but i have now come to the stage of the scrolls and decorations on the rear of the galleries . The ply ones provided are plain to say the least and i would prefere not to use them  and that leaves me 2 options  1 carve my own which after several failed attempts i can now rule out ! the other solution was kindly suggested by Keith (clearway) and seems to be the most sensible answer , buy brass fitting kit and leave natural . As he said polished brass looks well with natural wood but this is where my problem arises , If i go with this solution should i then leave all the brass fittings on my build unpainted  I have already tried blackening a few cannons without much success and finished up painting with gun metal  , i then started to think of all the other brass parts that would have to be painted , the very thing i didn,t want to do ?  my query is this, would rudder straps ,chainplates ,eyebolts ,belaying pins and all the other brass fittings look acceptable left as polished brass ,are there any issues with discoloration over time or should i coat the brass with anything ? 

Any past experiences , opinions or suggestions will be greatly appreciated .

 

Boyd 

[wq3296]

Greetings Boyd,

 

In my opinion, flat black is the default approach. Many of the components you mentioned were iron anyway, and the brass ones were probably coated with tar. I don't have much use for the products that are supposed to turn metal black, as they don't seem to do a very good job on brass. Some guys coat the blackened parts with clear coat anyway, so why bother? Get a good flat black spray paint and give it hell. All you need is just enough paint to coat the parts because you don't want them to look perfect - you are not painting a Ferrari. I would cull out any parts that would obviously be brass, such as decorations, bell, brass guns, etc. and leave them be.

 

wq3296

[NMBROOK]

Hi Boyd

I have found tamiya dark iron to give a very satisfactory alternative finish to chemical treatments,dry brushing with silver adds to the effect.Prior spraying with tamiya primer is advisable.If leaving the brass natural,I would give it a spray with a satin or matt varnish,I think gloss can look too much at smaller scales.

 

Kind regards

 

Nigel

[jwvolz]

I paint most of my brass, eyebolts generally being the exception.

 

If you can't get the Tamiya iron black Nigel mentioned you can always add a little bit of gray or white to straight flat black to make it a little less stark. 

[Captain Poison]

For the cannons, I paint them with gun metal and then apply graphite with a cloth..the finish is quite realistic..

[shihawk]

thanks for the suggestions folks and on closer examination of the kit parts  last night the rudder straps are in the inventory as TAPE which means they will have to be replaced and the chain plates seem to be a straight strip of brass so they will also need modification ,therefore painting or blackining of some sort will be necessary . I do have the Tamiya gun metal and like the effect so may use that on any parts that need soldering etc. Liked the thought of leaving the natural brass so may still do so where possible  

[Ulises Victoria]

What I do... and i mean... this is what *I* do... I never left shiny brass things that are not supposed to be shiny. For example: cannons, rudder hinges, cannon port covers hinges, eyebolts, anchor rings, most chains... I do let shinning or brass shinning things like bells and things that in the real thing are supposed to be brass color or shining. Just think a bit about it and you may come to an answer to yourself about what things to let brass shinning and which don't,.

 

 

just my 2 cents