Need help with washes!

[ServoBadger]

Hi,

 

It's probably best to point out that I am incredibly bad at painting and that I really have no idea at all what I'm doing.

 

Right, now that's out of the way...

 

I've wrecked several Blood Angels vehicles as I can't paint smoothly with a brush. I thought I'd solved my problem by using Army Painter Pure Red spray on a Rhino, and it did give me a smooth coat. I then made a horrendous mistake and tried to wash the model with Baal Red. Now it's covered in brush marks and blotches and looks nearly as bad as the ones I've painted by hand.

 

Clearly I should have stuck with spraying the red bits red, the other bits black, and given up at that point, but with so many examples of brilliant painting on the site it's hard to give up at one coat!

 

Where I'd tried to apply the wash thinly the model has gone streaky, and where it went on thicker than I thought it should, trying to brush the pools away resulted in bubbles, which dried to provide the blotchy finish.

 

I've watched painting videos where people cover the model in the wash and it settles into the recesses and doesn't ruin the model, so could someone explain in very simple terms how to perform a wash, please?

 

I'm sorry, I really am this incompetent.

 

Thanks!

[RebG]

While I'm no master at painting theres a couple of basics i think might help.

 

Dont wash the WHOLE model. Use a smaller brush and paint it into recesses as accurately as possible (no need at all most of the time to wash armoured panels and other flat surfaces as there's no detail to highlight).

 

Less is more with washes - too much on the brush and you get the pooling you describe. Washes are very thin so dry quickly - allowing you to add another layer quite quickly if needed. If you do end up with pooling use a clean brush or cotton bud to absorb what you can - dont spread it about.

 

Another tip, if you spray the tank black first, then do a couple of light coats with your army painter spray, keeping the can moving, the red won't go in all the grooves as much as the panels. That mean they'll automatically be darker and not need to be washed in. Takes a little practice on some things but works well often enough as a shortcut.

 

Good luck!

[ServoBadger]

Thanks for the reply!

 

I'll try what you've suggested for the washes, and I'm also interested in what you've said about undercoating. I usually undercoat in white, but in this case I sprayed the model without an undercoat, and as a result it came out darker than I'm used to (which became darker still after the wash, but anyway) and would come out darker still over a black undercoat. If this is what you do, is that dark red the look you go for, or if not, how do you lighten the model up after spraying?

 

Thanks again!

[Bungicats]

While I'm no master at painting theres a couple of basics i think might help.

 

Dont wash the WHOLE model. Use a smaller brush and paint it into recesses as accurately as possible (no need at all most of the time to wash armoured panels and other flat surfaces as there's no detail to highlight).

 

Less is more with washes - too much on the brush and you get the pooling you describe. Washes are very thin so dry quickly - allowing you to add another layer quite quickly if needed. If you do end up with pooling use a clean brush or cotton bud to absorb what you can - dont spread it about.

 

Another tip, if you spray the tank black first, then do a couple of light coats with your army painter spray, keeping the can moving, the red won't go in all the grooves as much as the panels. That mean they'll automatically be darker and not need to be washed in. Takes a little practice on some things but works well often enough as a shortcut.

 

Good luck!

 

I agree less is more with paint or washes. It is far easier to add more than it is to remove too much. I always paint from a black undercoat b/c for me it automatically adds a shade to the model even if the final color is white. Also what type of brushes are you using? Is it synthetic natural? Some brushes do perform better. Making sure the paints are also watered down enough (aka many thins layers). And don't worry about how bad YOU think your skills are...practice is the only way to get better. If it helps I can post some of my sad sad attempts from 10+ years ago :)

 

Many people say they are using *washes* when indeed what they've done is water down a normal paint so that its almost translucent i.e. very little color. The washes GW offers are highly pigmented IMHO and I almost always add a little water or acrylic extender to thin it some. I also wash my models about 3-4 times while painting them in between stages.

 

Remember, you can always strip the paint or simple re-undercoat the model also and start fresh! (I've done this WAAAYY too many times).