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The Art of War: Miniature Modelling and Painting

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  • Librarian's ghostLibrarian's ghost Librarian, Ghostbuster, and TimSpork Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Looking at Ein's new stompa's gun I just had an idea for a conversion. Take a Nerf Maverick, remove the casing, and build it into a scratch built Titan.
    nerf_maverick.jpg

    Having taken the guns part before I'm fairly confident the workings could be built into the model with little effort. Then, is anyone starts talking smack for having a stompa you just pull the trigger and shoot them with a dart.

    Or better yet, just follow these guidelines for Nerf Titan warfare.
    20060104h.jpg

    Librarian's ghost on
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  • BrainleechBrainleech 機知に富んだコメントはここにあります Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Where are you getting pasticard from? No one here sells it or has any idea what I am talking about

    Brainleech on
  • EinEin CaliforniaRegistered User regular
    edited September 2008
    My local stores carry it.

    Alternatively, look for Raboesch and Evergreen stuff online. You can buy sheets of the stuff.

    Ein on
  • RaslinRaslin Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    So, am I a bad painter, or the worst painter?
    Marines1.jpg

    Marines2.jpg

    Marines3.jpg

    Raslin on
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  • TheLawinatorTheLawinator Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I actually thought those dudes were all nurgley and stuff for a moment there. I'm not gonna say anything else until I post one of my own dudes and get laughed at.

    TheLawinator on
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  • the cheatthe cheat Registered User, ClubPA regular
    edited September 2008
    the only thing that strikes me about those guys is the shoulders are not blended very well. also, there's some overlapping on the fingers.

    the cheat on
    tKfL2Yd.png?1
  • RaslinRaslin Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Forgot to mention that the bolters didn't get cleaned up, so there's obvious green on them, etc, that needs to be re-painted black.

    Raslin on
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  • Gabriel_PittGabriel_Pitt (effective against Russian warships) Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    They look grainy. What kind of paint are you using?

    Gabriel_Pitt on
  • InquisitorInquisitor Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    The metals could probably use a wash. If you applied a pinch of highlighting to the green it would actually look pretty decent.

    And yeah, things do look a little grainy, is it the camera or are you not thinning your paints perhaps?

    Inquisitor on
  • TheLawinatorTheLawinator Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    So, tell me if these paints look like crap, because I got them really really cheap and expect it. This is my test inquisitor.

    http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/3320/p1000453vi6.jpg
    No flash


    http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/7281/p1000449zm8.jpg
    Flash

    TheLawinator on
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  • RaslinRaslin Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Inquisitor wrote: »
    The metals could probably use a wash. If you applied a pinch of highlighting to the green it would actually look pretty decent.

    And yeah, things do look a little grainy, is it the camera or are you not thinning your paints perhaps?

    These are all plastic models. If you mean the silver I painted on, I honestly don't really have the right materials for washes, much less the know-how.

    The graniness would be the paint, as the camera is very nice. I'm using non-GW paints, but they are acrylic water-based paints. Maybe I need to thin them out more, but then they want to run into the crevices, and I want to leave the shading.

    Raslin on
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  • the cheatthe cheat Registered User, ClubPA regular
    edited September 2008
    So, tell me if these paints look like crap, because I got them really really cheap and expect it. This is my test inquisitor.

    http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/3320/p1000453vi6.jpg
    No flash


    http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/7281/p1000449zm8.jpg
    Flash

    looks good to me.

    raslin, why not try the official GW paints?

    the cheat on
    tKfL2Yd.png?1
  • EchoEcho ski-bap ba-dapModerator mod
    edited September 2008
    the cheat wrote: »
    raslin, why not try the official GW paints?

    I don't like Citadel paints. At all. The foundation paints are nice though, and I'll check out the washes.

    Echo on
  • DampCatDampCat Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    The foundation paints leave a nasty texture, even when thinned. I'm not enjoying them at all. View example one:

    Also, this is the first model i've painted in 11 years since i was 14.. I posted them in the other thread but it's more relevent here.
    1.jpg
    2.jpg

    I'm off down to late night gaming at the local GW on thursday, guy said he'd show me how to do highlighting properly. I might ask to go over blending too. Still, i dont think it turned out too badly given the paint free gap i've had. But yes, didnt like the foundation paints.

    DampCat on
    fiawal6.jpg
    "EVEN IN DEATH I STILL COOK MOTHERFUCKERS".
  • the cheatthe cheat Registered User, ClubPA regular
    edited September 2008
    Echo wrote: »
    the cheat wrote: »
    raslin, why not try the official GW paints?

    I don't like Citadel paints. At all. The foundation paints are nice though, and I'll check out the washes.

    well i'm sure there are other better paints out there then. whatever you folks use seems to be pretty great.

    the cheat on
    tKfL2Yd.png?1
  • stratslingerstratslinger Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Raislin, it's not bad at all. Yeah, your paints could do with some more thinning, or maybe a better quality. You said they're water-based acrylic - are they acrylics you bought from an art supply store (Michael's, etc) or are they some other acrylics that are intended for model/miniature use? As I understand it, the pigment is ground finer in paints intended for miniature/model use, so you can thin them well enough to get control and not be left with a grainy look. Vallejo, Tamiya, and Testors (to name just a few) all make very good alternatives to Citadel. The tubes of art acrylics from Michael's, can go either way...

    Also - as for the washes, you really wouldn't need to go whole-hog on Citadel paints. I've been experimenting recently with the new washes to good effect - there's nothing saying you can't mix and match - use the paints you like (particularly if you can get them to a point where YOU are satisfied with any texturing or lack thereof) and add the washes in for a little bit of depth. If the citadel washes are really out of the question (no access to them, etc), places like brushthralls would surely have some recipes for homemade blackwashes and such.

    stratslinger on
  • MikeMcSomethingMikeMcSomething Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Raslin are you drybrushing silver over the black to paint your helmets are are you painting them silver and then doing a thick ink wash?

    MikeMcSomething on
  • SJSJ College. Forever.Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Brainleech wrote: »
    Where are you getting pasticard from? No one here sells it or has any idea what I am talking about

    In America, it's not called plasticard. It's called card stock, or sheet styrene.

    SJ on
  • NaxNax For Sanguinius! Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Re: Raslin's Marines - the shots of their backs looks like it might be a priming problem? I know when I primed early on, I was doing something wrong that would leave spots with a sandy sort of texture that ended up looking similar to what certain parts of those models look like. Is your prime coat smooth and even? I wish I could tell you what it was that did it, but I never figured out for sure... Just changed entirely the way I prime and seemed to have eliminated the issue

    Nax on
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  • BrainleechBrainleech 機知に富んだコメントはここにあります Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    SJ wrote: »
    Brainleech wrote: »
    Where are you getting pasticard from? No one here sells it or has any idea what I am talking about

    In America, it's not called plasticard. It's called card stock, or sheet styrene.

    When I asked the clerk in a train shop a few weeks ago I said: Do you carry sheets of plastic? It comes in different gauges. People make custom models of it?

    The clerk's response was What? do you have a picture of it?

    Besides the grainy problem you need some shading! Raslin
    I had the grainy priming problem because I was forced to prime my models in the basement during the winter.

    I hate the fact I start painting my black templars and my tyranid army calls to me to build it

    Brainleech on
  • RaslinRaslin Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I really doubt my priming is a problem. I shake my can from anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes. They come out nice and evenly.

    The reason I don't buy citadel, or other paints, is because I have pretty much every color available to me. My mom is a painter, and hence has about 200 different paints. And yes, I think most are from michaels, and other art stores like that.

    Also, I'm currently building three different armies(I'm crazy, as not one is a full army), so I need to save where I can.

    I may pick up just a couple paints though, perhaps a silver and a green, as I plan on going through a lot of it anyways. Could anyone give suggestions for maybe a couple main paints for my scheme, maybe a certain wash too?

    Raslin on
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  • MikeMcSomethingMikeMcSomething Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Brainleech wrote: »
    SJ wrote: »
    Brainleech wrote: »
    Where are you getting pasticard from? No one here sells it or has any idea what I am talking about

    In America, it's not called plasticard. It's called card stock, or sheet styrene.

    When I asked the clerk in a train shop a few weeks ago I said: Do you carry sheets of plastic? It comes in different gauges. People make custom models of it?

    The clerk's response was What? do you have a picture of it?

    Besides the grainy problem you need some shading! Raslin
    I had the grainy priming problem because I was forced to prime my models in the basement during the winter.

    I hate the fact I start painting my black templars and my tyranid army calls to me to build it

    http://www.cchobbies.com/catalog/sheetsevergreen.htm

    Evergreen is what the hobby shops in AZ sell, it is pretty cheap and you can get it in whatever shapes you want - tile, strips, plain card, etc.

    MikeMcSomething on
  • Sharp101Sharp101 TorontoRegistered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Raslin wrote: »
    I really doubt my priming is a problem. I shake my can from anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes. They come out nice and evenly.

    The reason I don't buy citadel, or other paints, is because I have pretty much every color available to me. My mom is a painter, and hence has about 200 different paints. And yes, I think most are from michaels, and other art stores like that.

    Ah, this is probably your problem.

    Acrylic paint used for canvases and the like use a more 'coarse' pigment. Miniature paints are actually specialty made to have the finest pigments (size-wise) so you don't get a grainy texture when painted onto tiny models.

    Sharp101 on
  • Gabriel_PittGabriel_Pitt (effective against Russian warships) Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Tamiya paints are my favorite, and the store I got them from in VA sold them for about $1.50 a pot. Citadel comes in second, and I've never tried vallejo.

    Gabriel_Pitt on
  • It BurnsIt Burns Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I've tried Vallejo and Citadel. I prefer vallejo because I don't have to thin it as much, has a lot better coverage and doesn't come in a pot, it comes in [thing that lets a drop at a time fall and I don't know the english word for right now].

    Also, cheaper than Citadel, equivalent colours and way more variety.

    It Burns on
    The slowest painter. Ever.
  • EinEin CaliforniaRegistered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Vallejo game colors are great paints. That, combined with Citadel foundation and citadel wash, are basically all I ever use/need.

    Ein on
  • It BurnsIt Burns Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    yes! Citadel washes!

    It's easy-mode for shading.

    It Burns on
    The slowest painter. Ever.
  • EinEin CaliforniaRegistered User regular
    edited September 2008
    It Burns wrote: »
    yes! Citadel washes!

    It's easy-mode for shading.

    They're all I can paint with now. If GW ever discontinues them I'll have to quit the hobby

    Ein on
  • Gabriel_PittGabriel_Pitt (effective against Russian warships) Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    The washes are so great. I'm painting Imperial Barricades right now, and I just paint a segment of wall a single color, hit it with a black wash, and as soon as it's done drying, it looks dirty and shaded.

    Gabriel_Pitt on
  • PierceNeckPierceNeck Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I was thinking about getting in to painting miniatures. Is this the thread where I can ask questions and such?

    Also, if all I want to do is paint the miniatures and not play their associated games.... would I be a bad person?

    PierceNeck on
    steam_sig.png
  • JJ Rabbit GangmemberRegistered User regular
    edited September 2008
    It's good to be bad. I could count the number of games I've played since 3rd edition on one hand. Still planning of picking up some flagellants tommorow. Delicious renegade parts.

    J on
  • Gabriel_PittGabriel_Pitt (effective against Russian warships) Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    PierceNeck wrote: »
    I was thinking about getting in to painting miniatures. Is this the thread where I can ask questions and such?

    Also, if all I want to do is paint the miniatures and not play their associated games.... would I be a bad person?
    Lots of people do that. I knew one Italian guy in Japan who had something like 10,000 points of gorgeously painted models, but had never even picked up a rulebook. He just liked the painting, and that was the full extent the hobby interested him.

    Gabriel_Pitt on
  • PierceNeckPierceNeck Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    That's pretty much it for me. Though I do like the lore that comes with it.

    I just think the little guys look cool and want to paint them poorly!

    PierceNeck on
    steam_sig.png
  • Dark_SideDark_Side Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I'm going to throw in a kudos on Tamiya paints as well, I really like them, seem to have a much better flow and coverage then GW's paints, which I find to be very finicky paint.

    Dark_Side on
  • stratslingerstratslinger Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Pierce - absolutely, you're a bad person. As are many of us. Welcome to the club.

    Honestly, I've been "in the hobby" myself for 4 or 5 years (since right around the start of 4th edition). I can count on both hands the number of times I've played a game, with fingers left over. Part is for lack of playing partners, part is because I didn't want to field an unpainted army and painted very slowly until recently. (Still working on the "painting well" part though...)

    The best part (and one I haven't succumbed to, for some reason) about painting and not playing is that you can just pick out whatever models you think look cool, and work on them, regardless of armies or rules or suchlike...

    stratslinger on
  • AlazullAlazull Your body is not a temple, it's an amusement park. Enjoy the ride.Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    You shouldn't feel bad about it. Lots of the best painters most likely don't play.

    Like anything in life, as long as it isn't illegal, do what you feel like doing. Just remember what Jesus says, and don't be a douche.

    Alazull on
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  • AsherAsher Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Well, I finally got around to painting something!
    Thus, for the evaluation and enjoyment of CF, I present my brand spanking new Sentinel which certainly earned its paint job being MVP in 3 of the 5 games I used it in last Friday. I also think it's earned a name, but I'm still not sure about that yet, as the don't have weed whackers in the Iron Kingdoms.
    sentinal1.jpgsentinal2.jpg
    sentinal3.jpgsentinal4.jpg

    I'm aslo particularly happy with how the base turned out on him.
    sentinal5.jpg

    Asher on
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  • Koopa_ParatroopaKoopa_Paratroopa Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I would like to start playing Warhammer fantasy, probably start as either greenskin or dwarf. I have very little artistic talent, I have very shaky hands to be honest. Would this be a good hobby for me to start if I want to paint the minitaures as best as I can and then try and play a game? Mostly focused on the game playing?

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  • AsherAsher Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Yes? Painting is an important part of the hobby, but you don't have to do it. Less than half of my Guard are painted. Same goes for my Empire. Not many people will mind if you're mans are unpainted, and if anyone refuses to play you because they think your painting is bad, then you should feel well within your rights to kick them in the balls. No one is a good painter to begin with, but you improve surprisingly quickly.

    Asher on
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  • Gabriel_PittGabriel_Pitt (effective against Russian warships) Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I would like to start playing Warhammer fantasy, probably start as either greenskin or dwarf. I have very little artistic talent, I have very shaky hands to be honest. Would this be a good hobby for me to start if I want to paint the minitaures as best as I can and then try and play a game? Mostly focused on the game playing?

    People play all the time with armies whose predominant colors are bare pewter and dark plastic grey. There was a picture a long while back of Ein's model shelves, which were covered with what looked like hundreds of boyz, and the only painted models were the small handful we've seen showcased here.

    Now, I like _looking_ at painted armies more than non, but unless you somehow stumble into a dark nest of pricks, nobody is going to give you grief over it. Making models looks good is also much easier than you think, and rarely are you going to catch grief over a paint job, unless it's like one former poster here, who didn't have the attention span for painting, and just spray painted some of his space marines models red, and didn't even cover all the grey.

    Just like there are people out there who love to paint, but have absolute no interest in playing, there will be people who enjoy playing, but just have no desire at all to pick up a brush.

    Gabriel_Pitt on
This discussion has been closed.