Panel Lining - Beginner Gunpla Tutorial 

For snap builders lacquer thinner is fine, but be careful advising using lacquer thinner for cleaning up in general, it's going to make new painters cry. On painted kits, lacquer-based thinner will eat through lacquer, enamel and acrylic paints. Better to use the same type of thinner based on the type used for inking the panel lines, the Tamiya panel liners are enamel type, so use enamel thinner or lighter fluid. it won't damage the plastic if applied with control and don't let the paint and thinner seep in between the plastic or joints, cos then they won't be able to evaporate and then damage/crack the plastic. It's not enamel paint or thinner that's the issue, it's how and how much and where you apply.

I prefer panel lining completely in black, and the reason why is that I can see it easily from my display shelves without having to look closely to find those finer details. If realism mattered more to me I would definitely vary the colors used.

Used to build lots of gunpla 20+ years ago in my early teens and got back into it (transitioning from making motorcycle plastic models). For panel lining, best bit of advice I can give is to use an eraser (the ones you rub out pencil lines with) and they clean up real well, and no damage to the plastic. For the tighter spots I use the Tombow mechanical erasers (Ultra-fine 2.3mm) and it does the job pretty well. For precision, you can use the craft knife to scrape some of the paint but you can easily scratch the plastic so use this technique with caution.

very useful! I mostly build warhammer space marines and miniatures for games but recently bought some panel liner to try out. Now I know how to actually clean up when the panel liner goes where it shouldn't (mostly the fault of my shaky hands). There are so many tricks that many in the war gaming crowd are missing out on by staying in their own circle!

I didn't learn anything new from this video, but I have been building for some time now. Having said that, if I were new to the hobby, you have made a fantastic video. No fluff, just substance.

Good stuff!! I will probably use a hybrid approach, as I like the contrast of shadows and 'gasket' lines. Love the use of the pen!

You are criminally underrated

Just starting out and your videos are the best ones ive come across. Thank you so much!

One more Gunpla tutorial before bed... Sees my favourite Mobile Suit Tallgeese. Alright I'm paying attention 😂

Just opened a mastergreade F91. It's my first Gunpla kit. I have experience in model building and I am finding out that gunpla is a whole other world in terms of building. Thankyou for this video as I am very hesitant about panel lining and making sure I do a top notch job.

This is the best Panel Lining tutorial out there. You are awesome thank you

I usually use dark gray on white parts instead of regular gray. The regular just never seems to go on well for me but the dark gray is a nice medium that looks dramatic without looking like it was drawn on.

Thanks for the video, very timely for me. Just retired and getting into gunpla. Your delivery is very pleasant and relaxing, subscribed!

I'm begining to paint my first KIT. Now I know what i need to do! Thanks! Great VID

Thank you for the tips went and tried them out on my narrative gundam B-Pack and it’s turning out nicely

Dude your videos are like perfect aesthetic. Love em

I almost always go for black panel lines because I really like the animated look. Also, good tip on using a quill pen!

I am definitely getting some of that Tamiya panel liner ASAP. Gundam markers have served me over the years, but that looks so much better.

Thanks for this panel line guide, helped me a lot and will definitely recommend this video to those who also want to learn.

Just getting into Gunpla building. Thank you for the tutorial. Got the PG RX-78-2 and the PG RX-0 Unicorn as my first kits. It will definitely be a learning curve, but I’m sure I’ll enjoy the build immensely. Cheers!

I thank you with a subscribe my friend. Digestible conversational delivery, great editing. As a noob I really appreciate it.

I build PCs but recently started collecting to start Gunpla. Quick search, I found your channel. Really like the vibes and production you got going on. Keep it up. I’ll prolly hit you up with questions.

Black panel liner ftw! Good showing with the pen, never tried that

Thanks for talking about the color

Just finished this build and starting my panel lining.

Great tutorial. Exactly what I was looking for.

Great editing. This was an informative video, thanks friend.

personally i prefer black panel line because it makes the lines stand out more and i personally just think it looks better

best tutorial on the yt platform you are so underrated man‼️‼️

You have a great style and a lovely setup and production. Subscribed.

quality stuff rly like the way u set out your videos very chill

i didnt know much about paint panel lining before the video but now i have a good grasp of it thx to ur vid. also the quality of the vids is pretty high, keep up the good work :))

Fantastic video! Thank you so much!

Thanks for the pro tips brother!

Nice video man, smooth and simple, thx!

Very well made video. Thanks man

Awesome video. Thank you!

Wow! Amazing very good!

Most informative video

I like the black panel lining more in the withe plastics. Brown on yellow looks cool.

Crazy how I literally received my tallgeese fluegel and this vid popped up. Deffo helps to see whether the grey or black works

So glad i found your vid, thanks for this!

Thanks so much for the tips

thx for making this its really useful

For anyone looking for an alternative to thinners for removing excess panel line ink, lighter fluid works equally well. With one caveat, it doesn't make the plastic brittle and break. I use the lighter fluid used to light charcoal briquettes and it's been great. Other builders have known to use Zippo lighter fluid exclusively for panel line removal. As for the black liner on white pieces debate; the reason some builders avoid it is because it can leave a shadow/smudge that won't go away no matter how much you try to remove it. The gray one doesn't have this problem. I only use brown for yellows and oranges.

Just bought the Mr Hobby thinner but was worried it wouldn’t be compatible with the tamiya liner since it’s enamel based. Glad to know it works for you!

GREAT VIDEO about to start panel lining my first model with my boyfriend tomorrow, so im currently trying to learn every tip before we ruin our gundams. thanks for the video !

Thank you for this video!!

2 constructive criticisms. when you show comparisons have the pictures be more symmetrical so it's easier to compare and have the pictures up on the screen longer great video man keep up the good work

That quill pen technique looks very interesting but I think I’ll stick to Gundam markers for my panel lining for now. Sure they’re not ideal, but they get the job done and they’re pretty easy to use. I mostly use a combination of the pour-type markers and the fine liners. The pour types are used for details and fiddly bits and the fine liners are for bolder lines and minor bits of shading. Sometimes I’ll also use the Gundam Real Touch markers for panel lining with a bit more color. For example I did most of the lines on my HGUC Ground Gundam with the Real touch GM402 Grey 2. The slightly brownish grey fits better with the grounded/gritty character of that Mobile Suit.

I have to say as a builder for almost 10 years now, I find grey, light grey, and brown panel liner to be the best universal colors. I use to use a lot of black when I first started out for those more exaggerated strong panel lines. Over the years I have become more of a professional builder and find grey/light grey to give me the subtle panel line details you should expect to see from more professional model builders even beyond gunpla. I would suggest anyone to take the time to watch professional model makers in other things like ships, planes, and tanks who have been building for decades. They have such a wealth of knowledge beyond what most gunpla modelers have.

There are Gundam markers you can get now that act like the ink with brush, where pushing them down on the surface releases ink onto it. It's slightly messier but it's still pretty great.

Today I just finished panel lining my HG Aerial ✨

Honestly the best video for this topic. So much depth...

Great stuff, subscribed

I do like the black most of the time. Even on white, maybe like on wing kits. Maybe Grey on IBO. I like both! Depends on the kit! Love the all black on older ones for that cartoony cell shading look.

Very helpful 👍

Nice videos and the comment section here is full of good advice, nice !

Thank you for this. Thats a sub from me. Loving your channel. going through craploads of your videos right meowwwwww

A alternative is using a regular pink eraser works just as good as thinner does without the risk of damaging the plastic

Oooh never thought about using the quill for panel lining

My first kit I used a mechanical pencil and it looked kinda bleh. Then I got some gundam panel liner fluid types and they're pretty good although they smudge super easy, making them kind of a pain to handle while they're still wet. But, they're super easy to clean up once dry and what you use to clean it is pretty flexible. I use Meths which is just a regular ass cleaning product, it's cheap as only a couple bucks for a litre. More recently I've been using the Sumire style gundam markers, they're cool. Definitely pick them up if you're wanting to line areas that aren't actual panel lines, more so edges. Because sometimes the paint just won't flow along parts. On top of their sheer versatility they're also super easy to clean up on UNPAINTED PARTS. All you need is to just rub the excess with an eraser or finger or if you wanna go super sweaty, a toothpick to really get sharp detail. But, do not, under any circumstances use them on painted parts you will not be able to clean them at all. They are purely for straight builds or before a top coat finish. My recommendation if you're just starting out, get a black Sumire style gundam panel liner. They're the easiest to work with just being a pen really, and they're cheap. Don't need anything except a finger to clean them and they can look really good

For almost all of builds, mainly that of RG and a couple of MG's, I've used the Gundam Panel Liners. I had to get a couple more because the tips ended up breaking apart because of how much pressure I used to apply, especially with the gray marker. There is a good use to using those markers; and that is weathering. Make it messy to give it that dirty look that a real life tank would have. That was how I used to do them, but I stopped doing it cause the amount of q-tips used was getting ridiculous! Now I've kind of switched over this felt tip marker and the difference is just amazing! This tutorial was really something. The quill is certainly a nice bonus that I would love to try out in future builds along with Tamiya panel line colors. This is why I love building. There really is no limit when it comes to building a model. And the stuff the people come up with to make models look more dynamic is just amazing.

Thx for good tutorials. 👍 I

Something I’ve found works well is citadel contrast paint or army painter speed paint and you can just use water or contrast medium to clean it up, If your workspace is small and not well ventilated and don’t like to use to many solvents. It’s worth a shot if your in the uk to as some of he tamiya stuff is harder to get hold of, citadel shade paints can work well to if you topcoat first

Sir you deserve way more views and subs!

bro, you should have more subs hands down

thx for the video, It's difficult to get the products in here, so I test several water gel and pigment ink water proof in scraps (runners) and try to remove with my finger and keeps the gundam line without becoming a mess. I found out a nice option: "Edding 1880" drawliner 0.05 mm and alcohol for electronics works fine to clean with a cotton swab

You sir are a god.

ALOT and i mean ALOT of people dont mention tamiya panel liner is enamel based so its best you use enamel based panel liners on a lacquer based paint job. So when you clean off the panel liner with a enamel thinner, the paint does not come off

I've built a handful of kits now and am only now getting into finer details like this, and I'm having decent luck using a .3mm mechanical pencil, seems to be easy enough to clean mistakes with just my fingers and a little more pressure gives darker lines

I find that a calligraphy brush pen (mine's from Pentel) is a relatively cheap way to get very dark, and fairly thin ink into the panel lines. It's easily removable via a wooden toothpick and the darkness of the ink can somewhat be controlled by squeezing the plastic ink well a bit more for darker lines.

Newcomer here! Watching your videos is helpful to my beginner painting skill. I got MG Unicorn Gundam as my first kit a week ago. One thing I could say is that it is unbalanced and the waist-leg joint is so stiff making the leg come out every damn time I change its posture even though I did a decent job in building it.

I just did my first panel lining with some artist markers (I think it was one with a tip pretty close to the gundam markers) I really like the black look a bit more than the others cause I'm an animation nut.

great video! I very much like using Gundam markers but I'm considering getting a quill pen after you talked them up so much.

When I was a kid I "panel lined" My white Xbox 360 controller and I thought I was an absolute genius and hit invented something amazing lol. Fast forward a few years when I got my first Gundam kit turns out I wasn't the genius I thought lol Great tutorial thank you!

I have used the Brown on the White and its fantastic because seams dirt/oil

I liked the gray on white results

Not a popular method and im not sure if im the only one who practices this method but i use sharpy pens for panel lining. What i do is i write over the panel lines and allow the sharpy ink to get through the “inside canals” on the kit. After a few seconds, i rub paint thinner over it and the ink inside panel line remains. Saves a lot of time, money, and effort.

Thanks dude!

Amazing video. Glad I found your channel. Very inspirational. Sub’d.

I have only ever used black souly for that animation look, I love it, and sometimes I miss some spots to clean, and I just finger rub it to give it a almost dry brushed aged look, it's not pro, but I like it, it's got my jank

Kind of late to this, but I'm just getting into using top coat and Tamiya panel line accent colour and had a question. Would the procedure be to top coat on assembled kit (broken up into head, chest, arms, etc.) -> panel line on disassembled kit (piece by piece as if just taken off runner) -> decals -> top coat again? I've only got Mr. Super Clear Matte on me at the moment, considering getting the gloss finish for first top coat.

You deserve more subscribers for this video quality

I've always just used a wash. Some black acrylic paint and some blue in a small sauce cup filled with water

Cool channel bro

The tamiya panel liner itself can make the abs plastic of inner frames become brittle as well. I think oil paints and oil paint thinner might do that to? One way to be able to use any kind of panel liner is to use a gloss top coat first, even if it is just over the plastic. You're probably always gonna want to top coat over paint before panel lining to make sure you don't stain your paint or take the paint off when removing excess liner.

Never thought of using a quill pen! That seems to open up possibilities in using custom colors for panel lining too. Is there a specific pen you recommend?

Question, Is it ok to directly apply the Tamiya Panel Line on kits without top coat first? I read some comments that it makes the plastic brittle

I prefer using Copic markers, far more color options for the kits including green and purple. You can purchase them in various tip sizes, though 0.05 is the preferred size for getting into those hard to reach areas. Paper towel is all that is needed for clean-up.

You can also use a fine tip Gundam marker for panel lining, too.

Great tutorial!💪 I have one clarification though, I was working on my RG Exia and a certain part in the arm became brittle and broke (good thing I was able to salvage it with glue) after I applied Tamiya Panel Lining Dark Gray. I am confused, was it the Panel Line Enamel that caused it or was it the Thinner which was a Tamiya X20 Enamel Thinner?

Wow. Just found this whole hobby and it’s mind boggling. I think I may do one at one point in time but I definitely want to panel line. Although on say a top line PG do you still panel line? Doesn’t it come with enough detail?

I use acrylic inks thinned with acrylic flow medium or just a bit of water. Citadel washes and contrast colours are good too but must be thinned to flow. I avoid oil and lacquer based thinners and paints.

Great video. Tamiya makes a dark grey panel line accent that you might like better. Where’d you get that big ass bag of q-tips?

as time goes by, does the thinner affect the plastic or its still perfectly sturdy?

Just a quick question from an amateur, Do i need to top coat my gunpla before paneil lining or is it better to do it after ?

Do you recommend the Panel Liner ink as better than using a Panel Liner Marker/Pen?

Great video! Super useful for me a beginner. Thanks. The longer you hold the tip of the liner the more ink is released?

dope vid