Basic colors: all wooden decks red brown base coat, Union ironclad armored surfaces; black base coat , Confederate ironclad armored surfaces, German gray (dark gray) base coat.
Next is dry brushing…
Decks; dry brush beige brown, add white to color for more layers going to very light brown…
Union ironclad armor surfaces; dry brush dark gray, then lighten up layers till lightest just hits the edges and ridges in armor… going for a black weathered look.
Confederate ironclad armored surfaces; add white to the German gray basecoat color for dry brush then dry brush with natural gray, and then hit surfaces with various grays to get the weathered look. I eyeball it going for the worn grayish look.
Rust spots; oxide red watered down for splotches and a few solid spots… again I eyeball it but I’m careful to not over do the rust.
I’m going to do the CSS Arkansas (next batch) with rust patina armor. It was quickly launched as soon as it was done being built. The CSS Arkansas was lucky, she ran into the Union raiding party of 3 Union gunboats that was coming up the Yazoo River to destroy the ship before it could be launched. That did not happen…. It was described as a “red monster” by some whom fought it that day.
