This seamless 3D PBR texture, presented in an ultra-high 8K resolution, captures the complex interplay of salt corrosion, salt deposits, and weathering effects on metal surfaces. The base material is primarily a weathered steel substrate exhibiting extensive surface oxidation. The metal shows signs of prolonged exposure to harsh saline environments, resulting in a naturally roughened surface with varying degrees of rust formation. The texture’s form is irregular and organic, reflecting the random distribution of corrosion patches, rust flakes, and salt crystallization, rather than following any geometric or repetitive pattern. This irregularity enhances the realism when applied to models requiring authentic aged metal finishes.
The composition of this texture reveals a multi-layered surface structure. The underlying steel acts as the metallic core, with a moderately oxidized finish that contributes to the metallic and roughness channels in the PBR maps. Salt deposits appear as granular, crystalline aggregates scattered unevenly across the surface, introducing localized increases in surface roughness and subtle height variations. Weathering effects manifest as corrosion streaks and rust flakes, which are visible as flaking oxide layers loosely adhering to the metal, suggesting partial substrate degradation. Fine scratches and abrasions, indicative of mechanical wear, are interspersed throughout, adding micro-details that break up the surface reflectance and enhance the normal map’s complexity. The color palette is dominated by muted reddish-browns and rusty oranges, contrasted by pale white and off-white salt crystals, accurately represented within the BaseColor (Albedo) map.
Functionally, the PBR texture set includes several essential channels: the BaseColor map carries the nuanced rust and salt hues; the Normal map encodes the micro-geometry of flakes, scratches, and salt granules; the Roughness map controls the varying reflectivity from polished steel patches to corroded matte surfaces; the Metallic map defines the steel substrate’s inherent metalness with reduced values in heavily corroded zones; the Ambient Occlusion map enhances shadowing within rust cavities and flake edges; and the Height/Displacement map offers depth information for parallax or tessellation effects, emphasizing surface irregularities like salt crust buildup and rust pitting. The texture’s surface finish is oxidized and weather-beaten, with a generally matte appearance interrupted by occasional semi-glossy steel patches where corrosion is minimal.
Designed for seamless tiling, this texture integrates smoothly on complex 3D models, making it ideal for applications in Blender, Unreal Engine, and Unity. Its high resolution allows for close-up inspection without loss of detail, crucial for realistic asset creation in games, simulations, or architectural visualizations involving industrial or maritime environments. A practical tip for usage is to carefully adjust the UV scale to match the model’s size, as the salt crystals and rust flakes have a natural scale that can appear unrealistic if stretched or compressed. Additionally, fine-tuning the roughness values can help balance between shiny metal remnants and matte corroded areas, while blending height and normal maps can enhance depth perception without excessive displacement artifacts.
How to Use These Seamless PBR Textures in Blender
This guide shows how to connect a full PBR texture set to Principled BSDF in Blender (Cycles or Eevee). Works with any of our seamless textures free download, including PBR PNG materials for Blender / Unreal / Unity.
What’s inside the download
*_albedo.png — Base Color (sRGB)*_normal.png — Normal map (Non-Color)*_roughness.png — Roughness (Non-Color)*_metallic.png — Metallic (Non-Color)*_ao.png — Ambient Occlusion (Non-Color)*_height.png — Height / Displacement (Non-Color)*_ORM.png — Packed map (R=AO, G=Roughness, B=Metallic, Non-Color)
Quick start (Node Wrangler, 30 seconds)
- Enable the addon: Edit → Preferences → Add-ons → Node Wrangler.
- Create a material and select the Principled BSDF node.
- Press Ctrl + Shift + T and select the maps
albedo, normal, roughness, metallic (skip height and ORM for now) → Open.
The addon wires Base Color, Normal (with a Normal Map node), Roughness, and Metallic automatically.
- Add AO and Height using the “Manual wiring” steps below (5 and 6).
Manual wiring (full control)
- Create a material (Material Properties → New) and open the Shader Editor.
- Add an Image Texture node for each map. Set Color Space:
- Albedo → sRGB
- AO, Roughness, Metallic, Normal, Height, ORM → Non-Color
- Connect to Principled BSDF:
albedo → Base Colorroughness → Roughnessmetallic → Metallic (for wood this often stays near 0)normal → Normal Map node (Type: Tangent Space) → Normal of Principled.
If details look “inverted”, enable Invert Y on the Normal Map node.
- Ambient Occlusion (AO):
- Add a MixRGB (or Mix Color) node in mode Multiply.
- Input A =
albedo, Input B = ao, Factor = 1.0.
- Output of Mix → Base Color of Principled (replaces the direct albedo connection).
- Height / Displacement:
Cycles — true displacement
- Material Properties → Settings → Displacement: Displacement and Bump.
- Add a Displacement node: connect
height → Height, set Midlevel = 0.5, Scale = 0.02–0.08 (tune to taste).
- Output of Displacement → Material Output → Displacement.
- Add geometry density (e.g., Subdivision Surface) so displacement has polygons to work with.
Eevee (or lightweight Cycles) — bump only
- Add a Bump node:
height → Height.
- Set Strength = 0.2–0.5, Distance = 0.05–0.1, and connect Normal output to Principled’s Normal.
Using the packed ORM texture (optional)
Instead of separate AO/Roughness/Metallic maps you can use the single *_ORM.png:
- Add one Image Texture (Non-Color) → Separate RGB (or Separate Color).
- R (red) → AO (use it in the Multiply node with albedo as above).
- G (green) → Roughness of Principled.
- B (blue) → Metallic of Principled.
UVs & seamless tiling
- These textures are seamless. If your mesh has no UVs, go to UV Editing → Smart UV Project.
- For scale/repeat, add Texture Coordinate (UV) → Mapping and plug it into all texture nodes.
Increase Mapping → Scale (e.g., 2/2/2) to tile more densely.
Recommended starter values
- Normal Map Strength: 0.5–1.0
- Bump Strength: ~0.3
- Displacement Scale (Cycles): ~0.03
Common pitfalls
- Wrong Color Space (normals/roughness/etc. must be Non-Color).
- “Inverted” details → enable Invert Y on the Normal Map node.
- Over-strong relief → lower Displacement Scale or Bump Strength.
Example: Download Wood Textures and instantly apply parquet or rustic planks inside Blender for architectural visualization.
To add the downloaded texture, go to Add — Texture — Image Texture.
Add a node and click the Open button.
Select the required texture on your hard drive and connect Color to Base Color.
