Lord Help Me... I'm going to paint minis!

Started by son_of_montfort, September 11, 2012, 10:00:38 PM

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LongBlade

Quote from: undercovergeek on September 16, 2012, 04:36:04 PM
oh man thats an awesome idea - a grogs mug and everything you can find in the minis section, DO NOT, DO NOT click on the lingerie section!!!

oh errr, actually, the lady from page 3, 6, 13, and 18!

and if i cant have them just wear what theyre wearing on christmas morning

Heh. Best thing to do is to start feeding me links to stuff you like. That's the best way to ensure I'll have something you want in the mix.
All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

undercovergeek

you said it boss - the list is in the making

TheCommandTent

SoM those came out great and I think the brown wash added alot!


@Jack Nastyface -  I agree with the others it is probably a combination of humidity and not shaking the can of primer up.  The only other option is to get a brush on primer.  I think there is a black one called artist gresso (sp?) that people on TMP talk about and really like.
"No wants, no needs, we weren't meant for that, none of us.  Man stagnates if he has no ambition, no desire to be more than he is."

undercovergeek

im off to GW tomorrow to pick a mini to paint - still undecided on 40k or FB - i think FB ill see when i get there - not Elves

LongBlade

Quote from: undercovergeek on September 17, 2012, 05:24:33 PM
im off to GW tomorrow to pick a mini to paint - still undecided on 40k or FB - i think FB ill see when i get there - not Elves

If it's an official store they may give you a free first mini. Ask ;) They also typically hold free painting classes - you'll get better than us very quickly if you hang with them for any length of time.
All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

undercovergeek

i dont know how it works in the US, over here a GW is a shop full of teenagers and hormones that smells vaguely like an armpit, and then because youre not dressed in black or skulls and crossbones the equally odd looking teenager behind the till with half a beard and acne eyes you very suspiciously - one has clearly set off all the 'parent' bells and are approached patronisingly like you know nothing of the hobby. Its probably the one thing that stops me joining some kind of club they put on!

Anyway, ill go see what takes my fancy, nothing massive like a Skaven screaming bell or massive centre piece, but not just a 'soldier' either - maybe a general or a champion. I always fancied the Dwarves, or maybe undead in this new world of Zombies

In the back of this months White Dwarf i bought for £30 theres a very impressive looking painting guide that doubles as a ring binder that can support itself so you can stand it on the desk and follow the guides - DVD too

LongBlade

Hmmm. Guess I should look for a White Dwarf. I can always improve.

Most GW stores I've been to have been clean and well kept. I can't recall seeing any misfits in there, but I will confess that I don't keep regular hours and could easily have avoided the worst of a herd.
All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

Jack Nastyface

Sigh...from bad to worse.

So I did some google-fu to figure out how to remove primer from plastic minis.  Simple enough...but during the cleaning part I managed to break a few gladius (gladii?) and pilum (Pilia?).

A good argument for going with metal minis...

Jack Nastyface
Now, the problem is, how to divide five Afghans from three mules and have two Englishmen left over.

LongBlade

Quote from: Jack Nastyface on September 19, 2012, 11:39:08 PM
Sigh...from bad to worse.

So I did some google-fu to figure out how to remove primer from plastic minis.  Simple enough...but during the cleaning part I managed to break a few gladius (gladii?) and pilum (Pilia?).

A good argument for going with metal minis...

Jack Nastyface

Despair not.

Minis break. Just glue them back together and keep going.

Also, make a mental note that if you're going to be transporting them anywhere, you're going to need some kind of protective. case to carry them. ;)
All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

jamus34

Thread resurrectus

I'm thinking about journeying down the rabbit hole of painting miniatures. Grabbed a starter set of acrylic paints (mastercraft brand, hopefully they are at least ok and I can always upgrade), some brushes and a tub of The Masters brush cleaner.

Going to grab some spray primer and a thin sheet of melamine to use as a top to my card table to protect it.

Going to grab some cheap medieval minis on amazon to practice a bit before launching my goal of buying mice and mystics (to play with my kids) but to paint the figures.

Any helpful tips above and beyond here?
Insert witty comment here.

Pzrjager

Quote from: jamus34 on September 24, 2018, 08:35:41 AM
Thread resurrectus

I'm thinking about journeying down the rabbit hole of painting miniatures. Grabbed a starter set of acrylic paints (mastercraft brand, hopefully they are at least ok and I can always upgrade), some brushes and a tub of The Masters brush cleaner.

Going to grab some spray primer and a thin sheet of melamine to use as a top to my card table to protect it.

Going to grab some cheap medieval minis on amazon to practice a bit before launching my goal of buying mice and mystics (to play with my kids) but to paint the figures.

Any helpful tips above and beyond here?

Go for it, mini painting is therapeutic. Also a great way to listen to podcasts or audiobooks.

Stay away from craft paints, even if you're starting out. They're very thick and you need thin coats. The last thing you want starting out is to be fighting the paint. Vallejo Model Color is great for military figures, Vallejo Game Color for more fantasy/sci-fi. Citadel is good but imo very expensive. There are lots of other paints out there, just get one meant for minis.

When you finish post on reddit.com/r/minipainting and ask for feedback. People there are pretty constructive and you'll be surprised how much you'll improve between your first several minis.

jamus34

Thanks Jager.

I'll look into the Vallejo paints. I've heard too many complaints (and cost gripes) on the Citadel to go down that route.  I just figured I'd thin the paints I got to proper consistency.

I'll probably go in both directions as I think my kids will like swords and monsters more, not that I mind them, but my heart is more with mechs.
Insert witty comment here.

Pzrjager

That bit of advice about craft paint is something I hear echoed often. I guess there's no harm in trying it out and seeing for yourself, the important thing is that you're enjoying yourself  :).

jamus34

Quote from: Pzrjager on September 24, 2018, 12:00:25 PM
That bit of advice about craft paint is something I hear echoed often. I guess there's no harm in trying it out and seeing for yourself, the important thing is that you're enjoying yourself  :).

Yup. Worse case I have $10 of acrylics I can give to my kids to paint with if it pisses me off. The initial buy in with even a starter set of miniature paint is 4 times as much.

One thing I've not really seen much on is what is the drying time for acrylics? Last small scale painting I use to do was models using enamals where you painted a section and then came back the next day type deal

Insert witty comment here.

Con

Quote from: jamus34 on September 24, 2018, 08:35:41 AM
Thread resurrectus

I'm thinking about journeying down the rabbit hole of painting miniatures. Grabbed a starter set of acrylic paints (mastercraft brand, hopefully they are at least ok and I can always upgrade), some brushes and a tub of The Masters brush cleaner.

Going to grab some spray primer and a thin sheet of melamine to use as a top to my card table to protect it.

Going to grab some cheap medieval minis on amazon to practice a bit before launching my goal of buying mice and mystics (to play with my kids) but to paint the figures.

Any helpful tips above and beyond here?
Its funny I did the same thing myself after about 15 years of not painting minis I dove back in.  I too wanted to play mice and mystics with my kids and thought it would be fun project to do with them.  It turned out to be very therapeutic - I built a small workbench/painting station in our basement setup a radio and brought a bottle of scotch down.  The wife had to yell at me to come back upstairs as I have turned it into my man cave corner. 
I went with  Vallejo paints same reason as listed here
I also bought a tabletop magnifying glass with built in light - best thing ever for my older eyes
I started out with about a dozen paints but with repeated trips to the hobby store to get that right shade or purple/crimson/mouse brown etc I must have more than two dozen now
I enjoyed painting so much the kids wanted to try so I bought them cheap plastic figurines and they painted as well (with my expensive paints I might add).
1 of them paints any color they like gold/silver yellow etc - makes the figures look like French whores.  The other tries to paint realistically (white snow covers,grey trousers black guns etc).
The mice and mystic figures turned out so well that I have to guard them from my kids who would play with them until they were destroyed(I went and bought the foam mice and mystics insert for the game).
I really need to take some photos of them and figure out how to host them since I have become inordinately proud of my dive back in.  Looking forward to doing some models and maybe more figures with the kids as winter projects.

Con