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I built a couple models as a kid and I went through a fairly long Games Workshop period. Now that I'm trying to get back into the hobby I'm being forced to re-visit my choice of paints.
My dilemma is that I like the ease of use of the acyrlics. They're no-muss, no-fuss. The problem is that I like the finish of enamels (I'm remembering the nice flat colours of the little Testors' bottles). I don't know if you can shade, highlight and blend with the enamels like you can with the enamels. I know I can do it with the acrylics from my figure-painting days. I just find that my acrylics always get rough from dried paint in the finishes and I can't get my flats as flat as the old Testors flat black or as glossy as the Testors either. It also seems that acrylics take a lot of coats to get full coverage.
What do you all use for brush painting? Do you have any helpful hints to producing nice, smooth finishes.
I'd like to find a decent paint that's easy to use and produces nice smooth finishes when brushed. Once I figure that out, I can worry about my airbrush.
Thanks for your input.
The only acrylic I have ever had luck brushing is Valeijo.
13151015
I've always found brush painting smooth finishes to be fairly difficult. I've only ever used Model Master enamels when brush painting and, thinned to a fair degree, after a coat or two look pretty smooth.
When my airbrush wasn't working, I was forced to brush paint this:
It turned out OK, but no where near as smooth as an AB.
Jon
My Blog: The Combat Workshop
Plus, once you get a layer or two of gloss coat or dull coat and some filters and weathering, it'll help smooth out the surface some more.
Vallejo brushes on great.
Thanks for the input.
When using Vallejo paints, do you thin with water or thinner or do you go straight from the bottle?
I've been trying with the thinner and taking the paint off of a wet pallette.
I have been told to use distilled water,but have had no trouble with tap water.I put a few drops in a pallette,and add a couple drops of water until I have the consistancy I want
I like MM (Model Master) acrylic paint myself for brush painting.
Ready to use out of the bottle (but not directly from the bottle), thin with water/distilled water as needed and don't let it get too thick as your painting (eg, thin with water if it's sitting around in open air).
By "get rough from dried paint in the finishes" I assume you mean it dries as you are painting and pulls up the previous layer making it rough. To avoid this you need to learn the hard way how much time you have to "play" with the paint and when/how much to thin it. A good rule of thumb is to paint along the wet edge of your last stroke and make sure it's thin enough not to blob details. Multiple coats are required.
If you do get a "rough" finish you can always let it fully dry and sand it with a fine grit then repaint the area.
I've also heard good things about Tamiya acrylic paint jobs but (insert profanity) is it ever hard to paint with until you learn.
Mongol General: Conan, What is best in life?Conan: To crush your enemies, see them driven befor you, and hear the lamentations of the woman!
By "get rough from dried paint in the finishes," I mean the tiny amounts of dried paint from the bristles that mixes with the wet paint and transfers to the model.
After reading the last "How to Build Scale Autos," (or whatever it was called) I've been wanting to try using the Vallejo paints, as they come out of the bottle, on a wet pallette, while dipping my brush in some Vallejo thinner to "prime" the bristles. I just haven't had much time to work on my model and I don't know how this would work on a large, flat area.
Griffin By "get rough from dried paint in the finishes," I mean the tiny amounts of dried paint from the bristles that mixes with the wet paint and transfers to the model.
Ok, now I assume you mean during the painting process and not dried paint from previous painting sessions.
While painting the main body of a model I completely clean my brush several times for your reason above and to keep paint from drying into the very base of the bristles.So if you have not tried this, it may help.
Sorry if this is once again not what you are referring to.
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