Oil Wash Troubles

[Artemid]

Hey all, maybe someone can help me.

 

I've been following 

 and finally went and got what should be mineral spirits (god, I hate Michael's with a passion), Grumbacher Pre-tested Odorless Thinner, but I can really tell that it's not working so hot - the pigments are separating from it while drying and running down panel lines and sinking to the bottom of the mixing cup. It's also not flowing so nicely, but I'm guessing it's not enough varnish on the model... anyone have any idea what I'm doing wrong? Did I buy the wrong stuff? This SHOULD work fine if the pigments would stay properly suspended.

 

edit: yes, it's xenos, but it's what i'm testing on, so I can do it properly on the Emperor's servants. But you can see what I mean:

 

http://imgur.com/a/k3WpX

[skawolf]

Yeah, i'm sure the xenos link won't last long

[Artemid]

I mean, I'm not going to go wreck a model I care about to test this stuff on when it's not working, so it's the only thing I have to illustrate the problem.

 

That aside, do you have any direct experience with it?

[Firepower]

Lately, I've been having a real issue with pigment sinking to the bottom of my mixing palette.  I don't recall that being a problem during my testing, when I was using precisely the same paint and spirits, so that's awfully weird.  I'm not sure why it's happening exactly, but stirring it vigorously with every dip is enough to keep it flowing fairly well.

 

Still, stirring constantly is a pain, and doesn't work every time, so if someone has an answer I'm also very keen to hear it :)

[skawolf]

I mean, I'm not going to go wreck a model I care about to test this stuff on when it's not working, so it's the only thing I have to illustrate the problem.

 

That aside, do you have any direct experience with it?

Good save good save :D

 

No I have never used this before. The results look good though.

[Lorenzen]

due to the way oil paint works it will never fully "mix" with the thinner.. however you can buy pre mixed stuff that comes in a bottle from AK interactive, i've been using their streaking grime on my death guard to get the beige colour i was originally getting with oils, because the consistancy is less likely to alter from model to model than with oils.

 

tbh though one of the major advantages of oil washes is that they flow into the creases etc and they can be worked with for a decent amount of time to stop any staining due to pooling etc and tide marks.

[Artemid]

I've already got the paint, I'm not buying a premixed thing so I can have more stuff sit around I'm not using.

 

I'm entirely aware of the advantages of oil washes... that's why I'm trying to use them....

 

But this stuff is separating mad quick. Before it dries quick. So it's not flowing right either.

[Firepower]

I went and dropped a line over in dakkadakka to cast a wider net, so to speak.  I'll tell you if I get any interesting results out of it.

 

Or I suppose you could just go look for yourself. I have the same screen name (and of course avatar) over there :)

[DarkMark]

I don't have an exact answer, but after perusing a couple of my favourite modelling sites I came up with some ideas. Often artists' oil have linseed oil in them; this can can separation and other problems. One way to help remove/ lower the amount of this from your paint is to put the paint on cardboard a couple of hours before you need it, so that it can be sucked out.

You may also want to wet your gloss vanish coat with a little WS before you apply the wash.

Different brands of oil and minerals naturally behave differently. The WS could be attacking the oils aggressively causing a problem.

Sadly I'm no expert, but hopefully if we pool out knowledge/ experience we'll come up with something!

[Firepower]

Having wet WS on the model before a wash actually causes problems, in my experience. It disturbs the flow of the wash, so it won't follow the contours of the model and jump straight into the recesses like it is supposed to. Instead you just get a little puddle where the two meet. Surface tension, and all that junk.

 

I got advice over on dakkadakka which seems curious, in the same vein of oil paint separation.

 

"oil paint can start to separate given time. that sounds like what might be happening, lower pigment and faster dry time because its not mixed properly. knead the tube prior to use. then instead of squirting out a blob, poke a toothpick into the end, swirl it around and draw it out covered in oil paint. hope that helps. "

[Artemid]

I will definitely give that a shot today I think. Or, soon, depends how lazy I feel about cleaning all the captain bits away Probably going to revarnish too to make sure that surface is nice and helpful.

[Artemid]

Didn't help at all.

edit: maybe I didn't knead enough, I don't know. Was pretty similar coming out of the tube, but it's coming out fairly solid...

[Artemid]

So I dropped the question on BuyPainted and awesomepaintjob's actual oil wash vids. Les responded today that it means the wash is too thin, which I was starting to wonder, but I have not tested again.

[Firepower]

But how can one keep it from being too thin if the pigment keeps turning to sediment every 15 seconds...unless my current 'Stir like your life depends on it' methodology is actually how this is supposed to go

[Artemid]

But how can one keep it from being too thin if the pigment keeps turning to sediment every 15 seconds...unless my current 'Stir like your life depends on it' methodology is actually how this is supposed to go :P

Presumably, a much lower spirits:paint ratio when pouring and mixing in the first place. I was thinking of trying it drop by drop, but new job means no time yet.