In this tutorial, I will show you how to make a procedural rusted metal material using the shader nodes in Blender for your project.
Base Texture
Make sure you have the Node Wrangler add-on activated in the Edit menu under Preferences
In the Shading Workspace, I add a new material and name it
Using SHIFT + A, I add a Bump node and connect it to the Normal of the Principled Shader
I use SHIFT + A to add a Noise Texture node
I connect the Color output to the Height input of the Bump node
I can now change the strength of the Bump node
I also change the Scale and Detail of the Noise Texture
I select the Noise Texture and use CTRL + T to add a Mapping and Texture Coordinate node
I change the Texture Coordinate output from Generated to Object – this will mean that the texture won’t be dependent upon the UVs of the object
I use SHIFT + A and add a Color Ramp between the Noise Texture and Bump – this will be used to make some areas of the object smooth
If I move the White Color Stop, I can add some smoothing to the object’s surface
I add a second Bump node and connect it to the Normal input of the first Bump node – this will make the smooth areas a bit less smooth
I use SHIFT + D to duplicate the Noise Texture
I connect the Color output to the Height input of the second Bump node
I can now change the Strength of the second Bump Node
I now change the Scale and Detail of the second Noise Texture
I select the nodes (except the Principled Shader and Output node)
I use CTRL + J to join them together
I then right-click on the Frame and rename it
Adding Color
I use SHIFT +A to add a second color ramp and change the White Color Stop to a midtone gray [#858585]
I connect the Color output to the Base Color of the Principled Shader
I move the Black Color Stop toward the middle and the White Color Stop a bit to the Left
I use SHIFT + A and add a third Color Ramp and connect the Color output to the Base Color of the Principled Shader
I connect the Color output of the first Noise Texture to the Factor of the second Color Ramp
I change the Metallic to 1.0
I click on the Plus Icon and add a third Color Stop
I change this new Color Stop to a red [#832912]
I add a fourth Color Stop between the Black Color Stop and Red Color Stop
I change this Color Stop to a midtone orange [#8B310B]
I now move the Color Stops
I connect the Color output of the first Noise Texture to the Factor of the second Color Ramp
I use SHIFT + A and add a Mix Color node
I connect the second Color Ramp to the A input and the third Color Ramp to the B input
I connect the Mix Color node to the Base Color of the Principled Shader and make changes to the Color Ramps
I can change the Blending Mode – I will use Screen
If I change the factor, I can affect which of the Color Ramps has dominance
I select the Color Ramps and the Mix node
I use CTRL + J to join them together
I then right-click on the Frame and rename it
Base TextureMake sure you have the Node Wrangler add-on activated in
the Edit menu under Preferences In the Shading Workspace, I add a new material and name itUsing SHIFT + A, I add a Bump node and connect it to the
Normal of the Principled Shader I use SHIFT + A to add a Noise Texture nodeI connect the Color output to the Height input of the Bump
nodeI can now change the strength of the Bump node [0.3]I also change the Scale and Detail of the Noise Texture
[3, 12] I select the Noise Texture and use CTRL + T to add a
Mapping and Texture Coordinate nodeI change the Texture Coordinate output from Generated to
Object – this will mean that the texture won’t be dependent upon the UVs of the
object I use SHIFT + A and add a Color Ramp between the Noise
Texture and Bump – this will be used to make some areas of the object smoothIf I move the White Color Stop, I can add some smoothing
to the object’s surface [0.495] I add a second Bump node and connect it to the Normal
input of the first Bump node – this will make the smooth areas a bit less
smoothI use SHIFT + D to duplicate the Noise Texture I connect the Color output to the Height input of the
second Bump nodeI can now change the Strength of the second Bump Node [0.15]I now change the Scale and Detail of the second Noise
Texture [6, 24] I select the nodes (except the Principled Shader and
Output node) I use CTRL + J to join them togetherI then right-click on the Frame and rename it Adding ColorI use SHIFT +A to add a second color ramp and change the
White Color Stop to a midtone gray [#858585]I connect the Color output to the Base Color of the
Principled ShaderI move the Black Color Stop toward the middle and the
White Color Stop a bit to the Left [0.4, 0.75] I use SHIFT + A and add a third Color Ramp and connect the
Color output to the Base Color of the Principled ShaderI connect the Color output of the first Noise Texture to the
Factor of the second Color RampI change the Metallic to 1.0 I click on the Plus Icon and add a third Color StopI change this new Color Stop to a red [#832912] I add a fourth Color Stop between the Black Color Stop and
Red Color StopI change this Color Stop to a midtone orange [#8B310B] I now move the Color Stops I connect the Color output of the first Noise Texture to the
Factor of the second Color RampI use SHIFT + A and add a Mix Color node I connect the second Color Ramp to the A input and the third
Color Ramp to the B inputI connect the Mix Color node to the Base Color of the
Principled Shader and make changes to the Color RampsI can change the Blending Mode – I will use ScreenIf I change the factor, I can affect which of the Color
Ramps has dominance I select the Color Ramps and the Mix node I use CTRL + J to join them togetherI then right-click on the Frame and rename it