Star Wars R2-D2 [WIP - Painting on sprues]

A short, quick update is in order as I get my Star Wars mojo back and resume projects on characters and vehicles of the Rebel Alliance as well as the Empire. Ever since I began this journey with the Bandai plastic scale model kits I've become more receptive to painting on sprues. This is partly due to Bandai's excellent placing of undergates which allow parts to be removed from sprues without damaging painted surfaces. Granted this is not always the case but any damages (usually minor) can easily be touched up especially if the model kit in question is going to undergo a weathering process.

Bandai R2-D2 - Panel lining the main body and applying a semi-gloss coating

I perfectly understand why this is still a no-no among purists who feel that fixing damaged paint is not only double work but also prevents a smooth finish where required. However, I believe the trade off is acceptable in situations where it would be time consuming to anchor small parts for painting and when the model is going to be weathered anyway. In R2-D2's case, I applied black wash/panel lining on the main body and applied a clear semi-gloss coat over everything. 

R2's metallic parts were detailed using diluted Tamiya Panel Line Accent Color

And because the grey parts didn't look in any way like the metal parts they were meant to be, those parts had a layer of metallic paint applied, specifically the Tamiya TS-30 (Silver Leaf) and was then given a diluted black wash. Meanwhile, hardest of all to do was to get an approximation of R2's blues, especially since I wanted to use an existing hue straight from a spray can. With such a restriction in place, it's no surprise I wasn't successful in locating the desired shade of blue. I did the next best thing with available resources namely Tamiya Metallic Blue (TS-19) and Smoke (TS-71). 

An approximation of R2's blue using Tamiya's TS-19 (Metallic Blue) and TS-71 (Smoke)

Next on the agenda is to put the astromech's head together followed by his main body. Then minor touch ups to the paint job and some weathering should see yet another Bandai Star Wars project reach completion. I find having the simple stuff done up on sprues speeds up the project considerably. Having said that, there are still things I will not paint on sprues, and that includes organic flesh and clothing parts. Both require time consuming techniques comprising numerous diluted layers of paint which doesn't take kindly to paint touch ups of any kind. So I guess I haven't completely gone over to the dark side. The again, a wise master once said ... In a dark place we find ourselves, and a little more knowledge lights our way. Master Yoda, if you were wondering.