Painting Script

[Khulu]

How do people paint words on their minis? I have only really been successful with this once and it was through extreme patience and fixing everything over and over. I tried using a toothpick which someone recommended but it doesn't hold paint the same way so it came out blobby. Do I just need a smaller brush or does doing one little name take a couple hours like it did for me?

[Kisada]

Try using a micron pen.

 

I've used it on a bunch of my Templar

[Khulu]

Very nice, thanks for the tip! I'll have to pop over to a craft store and see if they've got them.

[Major_Gilbear]

I used pens in the past when I was much younger, and discovered to my dismay that some of the pens "bleed" through/across the paint. Even over-painting them to start again, the pen came through again and again. In the end, I had to scrape allt he paint off the affected areas and re-do them from scratch.

 

So whilst I know a lot of people do use pens on painted models, and they also have no issues with them, do be aware that some pens may not react well with certain paints/primers/varnishes. Therefore I would suggest testing on a spare base or such that you have primed, painted, and sealed the same way as your models first.

 

For freehand tips in general that would also apply to script, this recent thread is full of useful info.

 

Also, as a general point: never, ever use a toothpick for painting. It's totally useless as it doesn't hold any paint and has no way of releasing the paint on it's surface neatly onto the model:

 

 

Use a sharp Kolinsky sable brush, ideally a big brush. I know this sounds counter-intuitive, but the crucial bits for drawing thin lines are the sharpness of the point of the brush and the smoothness of the paint. If you use a 10/0 brush or a toothpick, or such, the paint is in such tiny quantities that it dries on the tool you're using and you get nowhere. A big brush (size 1 or 2) keeps the paint wet as you paint it on, so you get smoother thinner brush strokes.

[Khulu]

Hm, when you say you've had pens bleed, does that only come into play when painting over it?  Or can they bleed into the paint that's already there?

[Major_Gilbear]

Hm, when you say you've had pens bleed, does that only come into play when painting over it?  Or can they bleed into the paint that's already there?

 

Both - it bled across the paint I'd put the marker onto, and then again through the paint when I tried painting over it to fix it.

 

Don't get me wrong, it can work perfectly well - lots of painters use this trick successfully, and that's exactly why I tried it myself. However, it ruined my work so successfully when I tried it that it put me off ever trying again with different pens.

 

That's why I warn people when I see this topic/suggestion come up; not to say "don't do it", but to say "test it first, just in case".

[deathspectersgt7]

never had the bleed over happen to me. just wish they made white ink .

[Major_Gilbear]

just wish they made white ink .

 

They do make white ink. Example.

 

 

Which reminds me; perhaps using a quill pen and artist's ink might actually be a very viable alternative? I use/have used artist's inks on models before, and even mixed them with paints and such successfully. There is also no reason why these same inks cannot be used with a very fine-tipped brush or even a quill pen.

 

(Yes, you can use a quill pen on a model - I spent many, many, hours marking archaeological finds with long reference numbers in black and/or white ink when I was young, and you would be amazed at how small the work you can produce with a quill pen is).

[Kisada]

What kind of pens were you using?

[Major_Gilbear]

What kind of pens were you using?

 

It was a looong time ago! I think they were Staedtler micro-tip permanent light-fast pens though, not least because I had lots of those when I was doing technical drawings (and they had nib tips under 1mm in size).

[Lemainus]

never had the bleed over happen to me. just wish they made white ink .

 

 

  They do! :D

 

  Sharpie makes an extra fine white paint pen. Water based, for easy cleanup and correction if there are errors made.

 

  Ive used it on my tanks and larger vehicles, and lemme tell you, *it is so handy*. Would recommend them to anyone.

 

 

[Kisada]

@Lemainus ... My Black Templar salute you ... going to use your advice, buy that pen, and for its first use I will write your name on something/someone in my crusade so that your name may live on and be forever revered in the hearts of my Templar

[Lemainus]

Cheers!

 

For the record, I've found that the instructions on the side of the paint-pen are very clear, but miss one particular point - when you depress the tip onto your work surface to "charge" the tip with paint, oftentimes it oversaturates, and this can cause pooling. It works best if you depress, saturate, and then squiggle a little bit on, say, a cutting mat or some scrap board to refine the point a little bit. It can be splooshy, otherwise. 

 

  I'm honored to have a quiet shout out in your army! Hell yeah! You'll have to message me so I can see it, that'd be so cool. :D