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Model protection


The Son of Russ

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Brothers, what can i coat my models in without them looking shiny yet not chipping?

My Njal and Canis keep getting metallic glints shining through their faces, or pelts, or weapons due to them chipping, same with all my metal models, and i find it difficult to repatch them! is there like something i can use to protect them? i heard someone say varnish earlier on a different thread or something.

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I use Vallejo (game color) satin varnish. Not shiny at all and it protects the models very well. You also only need a single layer of it.

 

Alternatively there is the sealant artists use to protect paintings done in charcoal etc. This also works well, but because it's sprayed on you need to be a bit careful as it can collect in the recesses and look a bit nasty, but that stuff also works quite well. You can buy it in most, if not all shops that sell everything else artists need.

A couple of coats of gloss varnish is pretty durable, and then a layer of matte varnish or satin varnish. To make them not shiny. :)

 

Thanks, do Games workshop supply both of these?

 

Yep (at least they used to). Both should be readily available at any hobby shop.

the UV protection keeps your paints from getting too dingy if they see a lot of sunlight.

 

i'll remember to add sunscreen when i'm painting up my next batch of warriors ;)

 

 

-___- Ever had a poster/picture sit on your wall for years, then you remove it and can see a square on the wall where the poster was b/c the paint is a different color? That's why.

I use Vallejo (game color) satin varnish. Not shiny at all and it protects the models very well. You also only need a single layer of it.

 

This is what I use as well. Works well in my opinion. But then again, I think everything in Vallejo works extremely well ;) That being said, I don't use sprays due to seeing other peoples mistakes sadly. Maybe I am just way to cautious?

Maybe I am just way to cautious?

 

Possibly. But then again, if you've just spent countless hours painting a model, and you don't have enough practice with sprays, it is easy to mess all that work up. I've used the stuff on rank and file fantasy models first because if I had messed up, it wouldn't have mattered too much.

 

The trick is to just spray in burts of less than a second (in other words, as short as you possibly can), let it dry, and then do it again. And always keep your distance (they reccommend 30cm or something I believe, and they've a reason for doing so ;) ).

the UV protection keeps your paints from getting too dingy if they see a lot of sunlight.

 

i'll remember to add sunscreen when i'm painting up my next batch of warriors :lol:

 

 

-___- Ever had a poster/picture sit on your wall for years, then you remove it and can see a square on the wall where the poster was b/c the paint is a different color? That's why.

ehh yeah I know, same goes with decals on vehicles, or car bras... why so serious? I was joking around ;)

Maybe I am just way to cautious?

 

Possibly. But then again, if you've just spent countless hours painting a model, and you don't have enough practice with sprays, it is easy to mess all that work up. I've used the stuff on rank and file fantasy models first because if I had messed up, it wouldn't have mattered too much.

 

The trick is to just spray in burts of less than a second (in other words, as short as you possibly can), let it dry, and then do it again. And always keep your distance (they reccommend 30cm or something I believe, and they've a reason for doing so ;) ).

 

I know how to do it, in theory, just don't see a point in changing something if it isn't broken as the saying goes. Plus, I get to keep my hands on it more!

I know how to do it, in theory, just don't see a point in changing something if it isn't broken as the saying goes. Plus, I get to keep my hands on it more!

 

I know you're referring to something else, but as a broad statement precautionary to anyone it might help, handling miniatures too often without some form of varnish/protection (or even despite it over prolonged periods), the oils on your fingers can discolor, age, or dilute the paint on the mini, altering its vibrancy... this is extremely apparent on lighter painting schemes (particularly skull white, etc).

 

I'll often spray varnish my minis multiple times while finishing one to sort of "save" the individual layers of paint highlights because I've never been able to mount a mini on say a cork pedestal while I paint it, so I'm always touching it.

I've never been able to mount a mini on say a cork pedestal while I paint it, so I'm always touching it.

 

A little off topic here, but why don't you just glue them on their base before painting them? that way you don't have to touch them at all.

 

What I do is to completely design the base first (this also helps to suggest that the model is standing "on" the base rather than "in" it because his feet aren't half covered in the sand he's supposed to be standing on), which includes painting the whole thing. Then I basecoat the mini (before gluing it on the base, mind you, so I don't ruin the base) and then stick it on the base. This means that I don't have to worry about messing the base up while basecoating, or the mini afterwards with PVA glue or sand getting stuck on it, and it's also handy because desiging a base after you've spent hours on the models seems to be more effort (which I why I used to end up with a lot of painted models that didn't have designed bases).

A little off topic here, but why don't you just glue them on their base before painting them? that way you don't have to touch them at all.

 

I've never glued minis to bases for one reason. You can't always get a brush to all the little nooks and crannies once the base is on... particularly for 40mm terminator bases. It's also why I don't glue on backpacks and most arms until they're painted. As for worrying about getting glue on my mini along with the base, I water the glue down a bit and apply with a brush. Also, for the most part I like when models are somewhat "in" the base. All that armor and weaponry has to be pretty damn heavy, so you gotta imagine these marines are leaving behind some pretty big tracks. Visual aids!

 

 

http://www.sciencephotogallery.co.uk/image/astronaut-footprints-on-the-moon_1694873.jpg

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