New painter having some trouble

[Siphen]

So this might seem like I haven't done any reading or research on painting. I have...I'm just still having some trouble. I started painting my Tau and my Tyranids a short while ago and there are a few problems with each army.

 

With my Tau, I'm using a coloured primer (Army Painter Spray Paint) as a basecoat for the vehicles and infantry. Problem #1. While priming my models, I tend to either miss smaller areas or put on too much primer. With a Fire Warrior, for example, I can never get primer under his crotch or between his gun and his chest. If I try, I end up covering up details and the paint pools in crevices. I follow all the instructions on the can, but this still happens.

 

Problem #2. With both armies, I find it extremely difficult to paint hard-to-reach (a Fire Warrior's arms behind his gun) or small areas (the "fingers" on a Gargoyle's wing). When I try, I almost always get a small amount of paint on a wrong part of the model.

 

Problem #3. I'm not sure how long it should take to paint a model, but I must be doing something wrong. I'm just going for a halfway decent paintjob...and I gave up before I finished my first gargoyle. I painted one gargoyle for about an hour and it's still only 75% finished. I'm not sure if I'm using the wrong type of paint or what...

 

Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated. If I can provide any more information to help, please ask. Thanks in advance!

 

 

Edit: I might as well add, the paintjob I'm testing for the Tyranids is supposed to be "quick and easy". I'm testing out a color scheme like this one: http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/404252.page (top picture). Just two main colors (Flash Gitz Yellow and Ushabti Bone) and a couple of washes (Agrax Earthshade and Reikland Fleshshade).

[Jehoel]

You should paint before attaching the arms to the torso to avoid those issues. Plus, this is the wrong forum for your army. One of the Mods will probably lock this thread soon.

[Siphen]

Yeah, I realize that now. Sorry about that, haha!

 

I just heard some friends talking about these forums and didn't really know anything about them. Thanks for the tip, though.

[The Sound of Machines]

I'll still reply to try and help mate. If you can't reach it with a paint brush, you probably won't be able to see it when the model is done anyways. It just takes a steady hand and a bit of patience.

 

With the spray, I find those cans to be a little unpredictable, so it might be that. You might be too close or not shaking the can up. Never spray when it's humid and try another undercoat to see if that helps. That's all the advice I have on that, I think :wallbash:

 

All the best mate!

 

Luke

[Gurth]

Essentially, what it boils down to is that painting models is a skill you have to learn like everything else. Your initial efforts won't look as good as you perhaps would like them to be, but you'll improve the more you paint. Simple as that :wub:

[lhg033]

i'm sorry, i have no idea of your ability so i'm writing this fairly genericly. couple of tips for painting:

dont glue it all together if there are bits you want to paint that will be difficult to reach. build the core of the model then leave off parts that will block you eg:

Marines - leave the bolter + arm off so you can do the chest

mount the models/parts on something to give you a good grip to hold them steady. it also reduces you handling the paint surfaces to redue fingerprints/paint smudges. an old paint pot with blutac can work for you o stick under the base of the model to hold. using a pin vice to drill a small hole and using wire works for bits like heads etc. obviously drill into an area that wont be seen. seperate parts is also good t paint/prime parts that will be different colours

make sure you are sitting comfortably - cant remember who originally posted this advice but its golden! you'll be painting for some time, bad postitioning will have you aching and affect your painting.

kind of leads on to this last point: anchor your hands/arms. if you paint at a desk, rest your elbows on the desk. hold the mini (by what ever its mounted on) in one hand and the brush in the other. rest your wrists (lower palms even) together. you should have enough movement left in your hands to move the model around nad hte brush but will have a lot more stability and so more precision for finer detail work.

final tip - thin your paint and build up layers. this will top you obscuring detail on a model.

as for time - when i started out i was taking hours to paint a model an it was pretty disheartening. couple of things that help:

paint in small batches, 5 to 10 rank and file models at a time. do each colour/type of painting at once.

plan out how you paint so you can minimise the need to correct mistakes/go over parts. typically do areas that you dry brush first as these are likely to mess up surrounding areas. do larger areas (space marine armour say or the main body) then go back and do the detail. i usually do dark colours then light but thats more how my paint scheme goes too though the rational behind this is that you can more esaily correct a mistake/slip on a dark area with a light colour than a dark colour on a light area.

listen to music - helps pass the time and you enjoy it all the more

cant access dakkadakka at work so cant see the link.

nids/organic parts of a model, you can get away with some quick tricks like dry brushing then glazing to get a reasonable tabletop job.

base coat.

wash (leave enough time to dry)

mid tone - can be dry brushed on. do a couple of layers of dry brushing rather than being tempted to do a thicker layer

highlight - dry brush only the upper raised areas of the model (chest eagles above do up to this stage)

glaze - you dont have to do this but it can help to bring the layers together/even out the drybrushing.

edit: changed painting order

[Brother Nihm]

Problem #1. While priming my models, I tend to either miss smaller areas or put on too much primer. With a Fire Warrior, for example, I can never get primer under his crotch or between his gun and his chest. If I try, I end up covering up details and the paint pools in crevices. I follow all the instructions on the can, but this still happens.

Use several thin coats instead of just 1-2 thick ones. Distance from the model is your friend, not too far, not too close. Experiment to find what works for you. This way you can also catch mistakes in time. ;)

 

Problem #2. With both armies, I find it extremely difficult to paint hard-to-reach (a Fire Warrior's arms behind his gun) or small areas (the "fingers" on a Gargoyle's wing). When I try, I almost always get a small amount of paint on a wrong part of the model.

Glue the gun arms on after you've painted them.

 

Problem #3. I'm not sure how long it should take to paint a model, but I must be doing something wrong. I'm just going for a halfway decent paintjob...and I gave up before I finished my first gargoyle. I painted one gargoyle for about an hour and it's still only 75% finished. I'm not sure if I'm using the wrong type of paint or what...

With technique, practice and pre-planning (premixing your paint, preparing your scheme) your time taken to finish a model will go down. It will also take less time if you lower your quality. I've spent 3 months on a single Gargoyle (display quality), and I've painted 10 to TT standard in a week. It is all up to you really!

 

 

My 2 Kraks

[Bartali]

With my Tau, I'm using a coloured primer (Army Painter Spray Paint) as a basecoat for the vehicles and infantry. Problem #1. While priming my models, I tend to either miss smaller areas or put on too much primer. With a Fire Warrior, for example, I can never get primer under his crotch or between his gun and his chest. If I try, I end up covering up details and the paint pools in crevices. I follow all the instructions on the can, but this still happens.

 

Army Painter sprays are unforgiving and unpredictable, and they especially don't like having the spray started on the model. As you've noticed the paint pools and masks detail on the model.

 

Alternatives are the GW sprays which are much more forgiving and predictable, but of course only come in white and black.

If you have a spray gun or air brush, try Vallejo primers which come in a ride range of colours. These can probably be brushed on too.

[latch66]

It's probably a bit early for this, but if you are serious about painting your figures, you will eventually want to purchase an airbrush w/compressor and learn how to use it.

 

An airbrush does a much better job of getting into tight places that a rattle-can just can't do without making a terrible mess.

 

 

All the other advice given above is solid.

 

Build your models as if you intend to paint them (break things out into sub-assemblies)

Break your work down into small groups.

Don't get too close with your spray paints (cans or airbrush)

Take your time

Use a good light source (very important, can't stress this enough)

Use the best brushes you can afford and learn to care for them (it really does make a difference).

Practice, practice and then practice some more.

[PaganLinuxGeek]

i'm sorry, i have no idea of your ability so i'm writing this fairly genericly. couple of tips for painting:

dont glue it all together if there are bits you want to paint that will be difficult to reach. build the core of the model then leave off parts that will block you eg:

Marines - leave the bolter + arm off so you can do the chest

mount the models/parts on something to give you a good grip to hold them steady. it also reduces you handling the paint surfaces to redue fingerprints/paint smudges. an old paint pot with blutac can work for you o stick under the base of the model to hold. using a pin vice to drill a small hole and using wire works for bits like heads etc. obviously drill into an area that wont be seen. seperate parts is also good t paint/prime parts that will be different colours

make sure you are sitting comfortably - cant remember who originally posted this advice but its golden! you'll be painting for some time, bad postitioning will have you aching and affect your painting.

kind of leads on to this last point: anchor your hands/arms. if you paint at a desk, rest your elbows on the desk. hold the mini (by what ever its mounted on) in one hand and the brush in the other. rest your wrists (lower palms even) together. you should have enough movement left in your hands to move the model around nad hte brush but will have a lot more stability and so more precision for finer detail work.

final tip - thin your paint and build up layers. this will top you obscuring detail on a model.

as for time - when i started out i was taking hours to paint a model an it was pretty disheartening. couple of things that help:

paint in small batches, 5 to 10 rank and file models at a time. do each colour/type of painting at once.

plan out how you paint so you can minimise the need to correct mistakes/go over parts. typically do areas that you dry brush first as these are likely to mess up surrounding areas. do larger areas (space marine armour say or the main body) then go back and do the detail. i usually do dark colours then light but thats more how my paint scheme goes too though the rational behind this is that you can more esaily correct a mistake/slip on a dark area with a light colour than a dark colour on a light area.

listen to music - helps pass the time and you enjoy it all the more

cant access dakkadakka at work so cant see the link.

nids/organic parts of a model, you can get away with some quick tricks like dry brushing then glazing to get a reasonable tabletop job.

base coat.

wash (leave enough time to dry)

mid tone - can be dry brushed on. do a couple of layers of dry brushing rather than being tempted to do a thicker layer

highlight - dry brush only the upper raised areas of the model (chest eagles above do up to this stage)

glaze - you dont have to do this but it can help to bring the layers together/even out the drybrushing.

edit: changed painting order

Wow great painting advice! These posts should be a stickie or howto or primer...