I think it boils down to how much you want to protect your paint job when it comes to cases. For me, I spent so much time on the paint work I want to be sure it won’t get damage in transport. If you are less concerned with that I think other ad hoc solutions work as well. It also depends a bit on your models and if th have a lot of fragile spindly bits. If that’s the case some extra protection might be worth it.
For me a bag is well worth it given the time and money I sink into this stuff. There are a lot of effective storage solutions on the market that can vary wildly in price so it is worth digging into that a bit to find something that suites your needs.
Hey peeps! I’ve got an itch to build some model kits. Previously I’ve bought some very nice die-cast WW2 fighters that are beautifully painted, but my wife has vetoed any expensive toys for the time being, and the idea of painting a kit appeals to me right now. However, I’m a little out of touch with paint for miniatures these days… I painted Battletech miniatures with Testor paint way back when I was fifteen, but I wasn’t really paying much attention to finishes.
Here’s the model I’m looking to build first, followed by an Albatros DVa. It looks like some standard matte green, with metallic or gloss silver as the main colors. My question is, should I be using flats at all? Every time I’ve seen kids paint with matte colors, you see the awful brush strokes and pallid hue. Some if it maybe was heavy handed brushing, some of it lacking in coats, I suppose… and I’m not sure I care to go into spray-painting for such small models. That said, I’m fairly certain my die-cast planes (for example this one) are spray painted, but the sheen on them seems not completely matte or gloss either. Or would I need to coat them with a varnish or something afterwards?
Basically, any painting help on how to approach these guys, and what I’d need to do to keep my cost down. Those little revell pots aren’t cheap, £1.50 each, and it looks like for the two planes I’d need around 6-7 distinct colors, depending on how far I want to go.
I can’t speak to enamel paints at all as I haven’t used them in 20+ years and you really don’t want advice from 15 year-old me. But in the case of acrylics, as you mentioned, you can reduce the impact of brush strokes by thinning your paints and applying multiple coats. That said, even thinned paints will show inconsistencies if painted on a large surface unless you’re extremely careful. Large surfaces on minis are the stuff of nightmares for me. :)
I wouldn’t rule out an airbrush due to your model’s size. Airbrushes are often used to great effect on 28mm minis (some painting techniques are very difficult to achieve without airbrushes, too), and at 80x114x44mm, your craft is larger in every dimension than an average typical tabletop mini. Of course even ‘cheap’ air brush kits aren’t cheap, so if your better half has vetoed purchases, this likely restricts you – but I wanted to make sure you weren’t dismissing them because of your model size.
The example you linked appears to me to be a matte paint with edge and recess highlighting that tricks the eye. My money would be on an airbrush. Keep in mind that folks who paint strictly for show often forgo any sort of finish as even a carefully applied coat will always distort the underlying paint to some degree.
You could just go rattle cans for your base coat for a smooth and even application over the large areas where hand painting would be problematic. The reputable modelling paint providers all have spray can options these days. It’s a good option if an airbrush set is going to stretch the (initial) budget and leaves you with the option to then hand paint details.
Yeah, I love my airbrush, but it’s expensive with all the extra stuff that comes with it (although if you spray only acrylics on the outside it’s not too bad…). Rattle cans (I’d recommend tamiya or Mr. Color) and a lot of masking tape should be the way to go while you’re under veto, before taking the brush out and painting details.
For coats, the alclad semi matte one is excellent (a silky finished look, not too shiny and not matte) but that’s airbrush only. I’m pretty sure you can find semi matte top coat sprays, though. …
Ugh, thanks guys. As I thought when I started poking around, the models themselves are almost free when you start looking at the paint… yeah, it does seem like spray cans would give the nicest finish that I can afford. Airbrush is out. But given that, with primer, two base coat spray cans and 3-4 detail colors, I’m over the cost of just getting ‘proffessional’ die-cast models and throwing them on the shelf. No joy in that though. I might just brush paint everything and accept that the result may be only lackluster.
How necessary is primer, btw? Will the paint clump up or slip off without it? I only ask since painting our house walls, and a pro-painter tip was to not spend money on costly primer, just diluting our water based paint with 1/2 portion water did the trick on plaster, saved money and primed it the right color straight away. Obviously, plastic isn’t plaster, but I’m wondering if that’s another purchase to save with a trick or two.
(p.s. I know I’m starting to sound like I’m one bic-mac away from the poor farm, but have no pity for me… just remember if your wife kindly offers to maintain the family budget and rejoices in three bucks saved on the groceries, to keep a little secret slush fund where every purchase won’t be grated over the guilt-coals every month.
p.p.s. She’s already annoyed by the amount of planes I have on the shelf already, and two more isn’t going to make her any happier, never mind the money spent on them. heh. )
Painting non-primed surfaces with acrylic can (or likely will) lead to cracking or peeling. The good news though is that if you do a spray can layer, that layer will actually act as a primer for you. Using a colored spray as a primer probably wouldn’t hold up as well as traditional primer if you were going to ‘play’ with them (e.g., tabletop minis), but if it’s just for a display piece, I suspect you’d be fine.
Remember that a spray can can last for several models (depending on size and use). If you only do one model, it’s expensive, but doing several might save cost per model.
I’m a little bit unsure about how long rattle cans last/degrade. Been ages since I used them.
If you are going to brush, you might want to look at retarder/leveler thinner. Those can help keeping the brushed surfaces smooth.
Most of the big stuff is done, basically just his face and that Crux Terminatus thingy on his shoulder need highlighting. There is a heap of tiny detail work and tightening things up still though, and that chews up the hours.
Hopefully I can get more done today as I am recovered enough from flu to paint, but still too weak to work.
Another 4 hours logged today and this guy is just about a wrap. Needs basing and sealing and I’m not sure I am entirely satisfied with the ropes, but other than a few tweaks this guy is hopefully done.
Yeah, I’m a bit bummed about the ropes too, but they don’t really stand out on the model too badly. Still, I feel shame.
As for Kingdom Death…you’re on your own. The monstrous scale of that hobby project was why I passed on that at GenCon last year, plus I found the models a bit more spindly than I prefer.
See the problem with panel lines and having done panel lining on a Gundam model, is that I now see panel lines everywhere! All of my kids toys have panel lines and I can’t help but look and them and wonder what they would look like if it they were panel lined and treated to some weathering!
That is a $2, 1.5" tall transformer figure from one of those random collectible packet thingies you usually see in checkouts. Treated with Armypainter Strong Tone Quickshade dip (applied with a brush, rather than dipped), matte coated and lightly highlighted with the Tamiya weathering kits. I think the Dark tone would have been a better choice as the Strong tone is a bit too brown. It was also a very quick and dirty job as the boy was sitting on my lap at the time and I was not particularly careful with cleaning up areas as it pooled and dried.
