over the years iv seen pics of rubber sheets and panels on AFV and Armor from the M36 and T34-85 from the Bosnian conflict in the 90s to the rubber panels on Ukrainian M1A1 and leopard 2A4
so what do modelers use for those rubber panels on thier kits?
Haven’t tried it myself but I understand others have used “refrigerator magnet” material
this one is 16 mil or .016" thick.
About half way down this particular page this modeler goes into how he uses it
ZSU-57-2 1:35 – ScaleDracula
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Well this has come along at the right time. I was wondering what to use for the rear mudflaps on my Warrior build. The kit parts are just not realistic so I was going to use etch but it’s too thin and doesn’t bend properly if I want to show them hooked onto the mudguards. I’ll be having a look at some sheets of this at Hobbycraft and let you know what I think.
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I have thin Verlinden lead foil thats perfect for it, but you can get similar evil bay o Mr Bezos site … just look for modelling lead foil sheets or similar wording … they also usually come in various thickness’s as well.
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I have tons of lead sheet from my dentist, but it’s no longer used for X rays. Thankfully I have enough for a lifetime.
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Wine bottle top covers,
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Got boatloads of foil but again I don’t think it will look right. I’m always up for trying something new and for folded mudguards it might be just the ticket. But I’ll have to look at some first.
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You can also use the larger heat shrink tube, cut to shape & DON’T apply heat…
And sand off the markings
Mal
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how thick is 16 mil?
Don’t know whether it will be convincing, but herewith 2 pictures of an old build of mine(BLG-60M-2 AVLB), where I used lead foil to represent mudguards:
In progress
Finished
Cheers,
Angel
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Take an old soccer ball, cut it open, use the rubber inside. Or, get an old inner tube. Or a tire patch kit, with flat patches.
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16/1000 of 1 inch.
The question that hasn’t been asked is “How thick are the sheets you are trying to replicate?” Some of the suggestions I’ve seen would clearly be way off and wouldn’t fit on a model where the real things go. Also, many of the real panels are reinforced with fabric or metal. They behave more like sheet metal than a popped balloon. Some of them are short, so they don’t wave and flap. Rubber may look like rubber, but if it is too thick, too thin, too stiff, or too floppy, what’s the point?
KL
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Lead foil or brass make nice mud flaps. Yours look very good.
As for rubber panels, the ones with a texture can be simulated by applying strips of masking tape in whatever pattern you need, and shooting it with a nice filler primer. Pull the tape off and you have a very convincing texture done with paint.
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We-eell
there are two widely available (at least in most countries) sources of very thin rubber.
Way thinner than any bicycle tube, lead sheet or rubber gloves (dish washing gloves).
The gloves used by medical staff during examinations are thin.
If those are still too thick, buy some plain c-o-n-d-o-m-s …
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We represent steel armor with styrene.
We represent aluminum wheels with styrene.
We represent wooden boxes with styrene.
We represent brass shell casings with styrene.
We represent fiberglass hoods with styrene.
We represent composite weapon parts with styrene.
We represent cloth uniforms with styrene.
We represent plastic water can with styrene.
We represent human flesh with - yes, that’s right - styrene.
Why is there such a need to represent rubber with rubber?
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Dang right!
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So you’re suggesting that we only use styrene? I’m not sure about you but:
We use metal wire to represent wiring, conduit and metal tow cables
We use metal tracks to represent metal tracks
We use photoetch and thin metal sheet to represent sheet metal
We use turned metal gun barrels to represent metal gun barrels
We use turned metal shells to represent metal shells
We use balsa and basswood to represent wood
So why not use rubber to represent rubber if it works, is easier to use for what we are trying to achieve, or looks the part better? Why restrict yourself to one material?
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I would use whatever material is best suited to the purpose.
Thin styrene sheet could be a better option than using rubber
(easier to glue and easier to paint).
I prefer resin instead of rubber for tires/tyres
and I prefer styrene instead of wood (grain needs to be very fine
to scale down correctly)
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And are commonly nitrile, not natural rubber, because of issues with latex allergies. Nitrile is a synthetic rubber, and is more resistant than latex to oils and other chemicals. Test a sample before using it in your model with the paints you want to use to be sure. You can get black nitrile gloves if you want to avoid painting the material.
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