Paints going funky

[Valkyrion]

I have a pot of Corax White and Wraithbone which has lumps in it, and Stormhost Silver and Rakarth Flesh that seem to have separated in the pot.

This has happened before but it's often coincided with needing a decent order from GW or online, so I just tended to buy a new pot and bin the bad on, but I'm in no real need of anything for the foreseeable.

Beyond the usual shaking like mad, is there anything can be done?

[WrathOfTheLion]

I use a vortex mixer, works great when they separate. You could add an agitator to the worse ones as well.

Corax white I've had to add stuff to it to thin it.

[Magos Takatus]

I also use a vortex mixer and stainless steel balls in my paints. That's served to revive a few paints that I thought had officially died. Mostly GW metallics that has separated really severely. After vibrating the living warp outta them they tend to play ball after that. Vortex mixers can get expensive but I only got a cheap one and it has helped me out a few times.

[Arkhanist]

The stormhost silver and rakarth flesh mostly just need remixing. A stainless steel agitator ball and shaking like hell (or using a vortex mixer if you have old man wrists like me) should do the trick. You can also literally use a cocktail stick or the back end of a paint brush to stir it up in the pot as well if it's being awkward.

For corax white and wraithbone you need something to help break up the clumps too - this is not uncommon with GW white/near white paints. Usually adding a few drops of thinner before shaking hard/stirring with stick will help, e.g. vallejo airbush thinner is what I usually use, as I already have it for the airbrush. A little flow aid is another option, or if you have neither, Citadel lahmian medium will help somewhat.

For corax white in particular, you can also just get a better white. I'm a big fan of Pro Acryl Bold Titanium White, that and the other pro-acryl near-whites are so superior to GW it's ludicrous, they go on silky smooth with much better coverage due to the higher pigment density.

[Urauloth]

A vortex mixer is expensive, but it'll save you a lot of paint and quite a bit of wear on your joints. Highly recommended. For difficult colours like Rakarth Flesh, I'd seriously consider getting them out of those awful GW pots and into dropper bottles, because an agitator will have much more room to work in there. You can cut it with medium, thinner, flow improver, extra water etc while you're transferring it too. This has saved me a lot of hassle, especially with metallics.

[Grotsmasha]

I'd consider transplanting all of your off/whites into dropper bottles as this has made the single largest improvement in the life and quality of my GW white type colours. Failing that, add  Lahmian Medium and an agitator and shake like hell and you should recover them no worries.

[HamezIsGroot]

Always make sure to add your medium and agitator to paints.

[Urauloth]

A lot of GW paints honestly just don't have enough medium in them, especially the base range. I get that they're meant for good coverage, but you'll get way better results if you add some extra Lahmian in there before you use them, and they'll live longer.

[Brother Captain Arkley]

I bought this on Aliexpress for £60 it makes my life so much easier, they are now £72 there. You can currently get one on Amazon for £86 (5% voucher available). I personally will recommend it to all.

But when I transfer my paints to dropper bottles I add 2 lava bead balls, 3ml of medium and 3ml of airbrush flow improver.

I am not saying my method works the best but it works for me.

Edited July 23, 2022 by Wolf Guard Einar

[Emperor Ming]

86

[Magos Takatus]

I thought you could get them for loads less than that?

Edit: found some cheaper ones.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Laboratory-Agitators-Adhesives-Permanent-Pigments/dp/B08Y1VHX7W/ref=sr_1_29?adgrpid=54353479918&gclid=Cj0KCQjwuO6WBhDLARIsAIdeyDIcgT52624FU9yi3qtpq88oTyw2uz25S-LjLsgeet5a02HrKlIoyBgaAl_HEALw_wcB&hvadid=259067741236&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=1007097&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=14233166908262793262&hvtargid=kwd-295926120133&hydadcr=28147_1752672&keywords=vortex+mixer&qid=1658610352&sr=8-29

[Brother Captain Arkley]

Just now, Magos Takatus said:

I thought you could get them for loads less than that?

Edit: found some cheaper ones.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Laboratory-Agitators-Adhesives-Permanent-Pigments/dp/B08Y1VHX7W/ref=sr_1_29?adgrpid=54353479918&gclid=Cj0KCQjwuO6WBhDLARIsAIdeyDIcgT52624FU9yi3qtpq88oTyw2uz25S-LjLsgeet5a02HrKlIoyBgaAl_HEALw_wcB&hvadid=259067741236&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=1007097&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=14233166908262793262&hvtargid=kwd-295926120133&hydadcr=28147_1752672&keywords=vortex+mixer&qid=1658610352&sr=8-29

Yeah I opted to get the more known one.

[Magos Takatus]

Fair enough. The one I purchased was about £50. The prices seem to vary considerably. I didn't know of any companies that manufacture vortex mixers so I just went for a fairly cheap one. I don't know how effective or durable the cheapest ones are. I haven't broken mine yet. 

[Brother Captain Arkley]

19 minutes ago, Magos Takatus said:

Fair enough. The one I purchased was about £50. The prices seem to vary considerably. I didn't know of any companies that manufacture vortex mixers so I just went for a fairly cheap one. I don't know how effective or durable the cheapest ones are. I haven't broken mine yet. 

The thing I noticed the most with the 4E's one is its bloody heavy given its size just over half a kilo.

I did look at various ones but I thought if I am gonna do it I will get the most recommended.

[Emperor Ming]

Why cant gw just produce a smooth white paint, no glupe or bits or whatever

[Arkhanist]

the 4E one is expensive, but it's from an actual lab supply company; they sell centifuges, MUCH beefier vortex mixers etc etc as well. So it's built to be robust - it's heavy at least! Mine's been going for over 2 years now, no problems. I've heard several reports of the really cheap chinese ones stopping working quite quickly.

That said, if I was buying now I'd probably go for the vevor vortex mixer, currently discounted to £34 if you buy direct (or £47 on amazon). They also do lab equipment, and a whole bunch of other motorised gear such as commercial food mixers and machine tools. Not the highest grade perhaps, but should still be solid, and it has good reviews.

Edited July 24, 2022 by Arkhanist

[Evil Eye]

I'm one of those rotten cheapskates that bought a cheap nail lacquer shaker off of Amazon. I've found it does a pretty good job, if not quite as convenient. Might invest in a vortex mixer though, but we'll see...

[Brother Captain Arkley]

3 hours ago, Arkhanist said:

the 4E one is expensive, but it's from an actual lab supply company; they sell centifuges, MUCH beefier vortex mixers etc etc as well. So it's built to be robust - it's heavy at least! Mine's been going for over 2 years now, no problems. I've heard several reports of the really cheap chinese ones stopping working quite quickly.

That said, if I was buying now I'd probably go for the vevor vortex mixer, currently discounted to £34 if you buy direct (or £47 on amazon). They also do lab equipment, and a whole bunch of other motorised gear such as commercial food mixers and machine tools. Not the highest grade perhaps, but should still be solid, and it has good reviews.

Yeah pretty much one of the reason I got it, is it overkill? Yeah probably but I feel its a worthwhile investment.

If mine broke down I would buy another.

[andes]

13 hours ago, Emperor Ming said:

Why cant gw just produce a smooth white paint, no glupe or bits or whatever

AK Intense White (AK11001) is your friend.

[Valkyrion]

thanks for your help on this thread, I'd forgotten I'd started it!

What do you do with this? https://www.amazon.co.uk/VEVOR-Vortex-Mixer-3000RPM-Shaker/dp/B098B5HMYZ?th=1

It looks like you need test tubes?!

Explain it to me like I'm 5. 

[Bryan Blaire]

@ValkyrionDefinitely don’t need test tubes.

Stick the bottom of the paint on the top of the mixer and press down.  It helps to have an agitator or two in there still IMO, but it can work without it.

You can also be like me and also turn the bottles upside down and run them as well, get it well mixed from both ends.

You can do this with almost any kind of bottle - I use it on GW pots, dropper top things, flip tops, screw tops, etc. - basically, if it is used to close paint bottles, it should work.

I wouldn’t use it for squeeze tubes of paint. 

I keep a tight grip across the top or bottom of the container to make sure it doesn’t go flying off, and periodically I will make sure the lids are still sealed tightly, but overall they are pretty easy to use and do a good job of mixing up paint.  They’ve even helped me reconstitute some paints I feared were just a little too far gone (they won’t do anything for straight sludge or solid paint though).

Edited August 8, 2022 by Bryan Blaire

[Brother Captain Arkley]

59 minutes ago, Valkyrion said:

thanks for your help on this thread, I'd forgotten I'd started it!

What do you do with this? https://www.amazon.co.uk/VEVOR-Vortex-Mixer-3000RPM-Shaker/dp/B098B5HMYZ?th=1

It looks like you need test tubes?!

Explain it to me like I'm 5. 

Here is a quick video of me using mine... In principle its the same.

 

Edited August 8, 2022 by Wolf Guard Einar

[Valkyrion]

Cool, so you just kinda press down on it. I was expecting like, I dunno, you sit it in there and come back five minutes later to a mixed product. 

Ha! It's 3000rpm! I should read things properly. That goes someway to explaining it!  That's like your washing machine on steroids. 

And this helps with the blobs? Or really for the paints that have separated?

Edited August 8, 2022 by Valkyrion

[Brother Captain Arkley]

Just now, Valkyrion said:

Cool, so you just kinda press down on it. I was expecting like, I dunno, you sit it in there and come back five minutes later to a mixed product. 

 

Yeah just press down it does its magic. Usually 10 seconds for standard paints, metallics I tend to mix a bit longer.

I have no opinion on the one you linked but mine is pretty powerful I would be lost without it.

[Brother Captain Arkley]

3 hours ago, Valkyrion said:

Cool, so you just kinda press down on it. I was expecting like, I dunno, you sit it in there and come back five minutes later to a mixed product. 

Ha! It's 3000rpm! I should read things properly. That goes someway to explaining it!  That's like your washing machine on steroids. 

And this helps with the blobs? Or really for the paints that have separated?

I use 2x8mm Lava beads to act as agitators. If you have not used the paint in a long time I recommend a little longer mixing.