Painting Bike Squad

[infinity-coda]

Hello everyone! So here's my question. Would it better to glue the rider of a bike to his vehicle and then paint the whole thing, or glue them as separate pieces and then paint them before putting rider on bike?

[Claws and Effect]

I do the vast majority of my painting pre-assembly.

 

I'll glue some things, but I usually paint with it in several pieces.

 

Example: When painting a Space Marine, I'll glue the legs and torso together and paint the arms, head, and backpack separately.

 

To make the head easier, drill a small hole in the bottom where it won't show and glue it to a toothpick. Then just snip off the toothpick when you're ready to put the head on.

 

It takes a little longer, but you'll know for certain that you didn't miss a spot you'll find later.

 

I haven't painted a biker in a long time, but using my current method I'm sure it would come out a lot better than my old ones.

 

So, I guess that's my answer: Paint as much as seems reasonable before assembly.

[AndrewChristlieb]

Paint the legs seperate from the bike. I know it may seem like an extra step, but there's nothing worse then painting the seat, then painting the legs, then touching up the seat where you messed up with the leg paint, then touching up the legs where you messed up with the seat touchups... And so on and so on :D

[Major_Gilbear]

Whilst I understand the arguments for and against painting models before finishing assembly, I would certainly paint the rider separately from their bike or horse/mount.

 

Having a pin between the legs and a corresponding hole in the bike saddle helps ensure a good join after painting. The pin also gives you a point on the model that you can hold whilst you paint it too, and can always be trimmed to length before you glue the rider on.