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need help with paints and the like.

Started by Minrat, October 08, 2012, 10:11:50 PM

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Minrat

acrylic, enamel, oil, various types of spays-and of course airbrushing.  So many things to consider, and if my work mates are anything to go by (and the prices are anything to go by) then GW paints are overpriced and not great.

As such I intent to venture into the world on non GW paints in an effort to make my models better (also for a general change in the way I perceive the hobby).

So here are a few initial questions.  What is the difference between acrylic and enamel (have looked this up and found conflicting information-i know the physical difference within the paint, but is there a difference on the models [is one glossy etc])?

having already used chaos black spray over some of my models, can enamel be painted over acrylic (and visa versa-i remember being told that one way works and the other doesn't...but my memory is weird so that may not be accurate)?

Thanks

Minrat   

Jonagon

hey dude,

Great to hear you're looking to improve your painting!

As far as paint goes, GW paints are a bit expensive but I don't think you'll really find there's anything wrong with them. Different acryclic paint has different characteristics in terms of flow rate and pigment density, but as long as you're aware of how they behave I don't think there's really much difference. Certainly some of the best paint jobs i've ever seen have been painted with GW paints.

I've never tried painting minis with enamels or oils, though i know some people have experimented. I wouldn't really try this if I were you. My experience from trying to paint airfix pilot figures says it's possible to do good work with them, but not easy and they probably don't layer/dry blend. I suspect the only way to get good results would be wet blending.

I'm not sure what level you're painting at at the moment so i'm not really sure to suggest, but I'd certainly look at changing brushes before I changed paints. The GW brushes are ok, but much better results are possible with better (and unfortunatly more expensive) brushes.

Minrat

#2
Thanks

EDIT:Didnt want to make anther post just saying thanks again, so thanks to knightperson as well.

knightperson

Quote from: Minrat on October 08, 2012, 10:11:50 PM
acrylic, enamel, oil, various types of spays-and of course airbrushing.  So many things to consider, and if my work mates are anything to go by (and the prices are anything to go by) then GW paints are overpriced and not great.

As such I intent to venture into the world on non GW paints in an effort to make my models better (also for a general change in the way I perceive the hobby).

So here are a few initial questions.  What is the difference between acrylic and enamel (have looked this up and found conflicting information-i know the physical difference within the paint, but is there a difference on the models [is one glossy etc])?

There is no inherent difference in glossiness. Either type of paint can be made matte, shiny, or anything in between. The paints do act significantly different in other ways though. I am of the minority that prefer enamels, so I'll argue the case for them. Enamels have less surface tension, so it's easier to make very thin coats or wash the pigment into the cracks. They need less thinning than most acrylics for the same reason, but painting just the ridges of a model is more difficult. It's not impossible by any stretch, but because the paint is so thin you need to be very careful about removing excess paint from the brush first. I also find that color fidelity is better on the enamels. Whatever color the paint is when wet or in the pot, that's what color it will be on the model, even after it dries. Finally, I think enamels just stick better. Priming is not nearly as important as with acrylics, and they can take a lot more abuse in play even if you don't clearcoat.

I use Testors core line of paints, which are significantly cheaper than most acrylics, but I'm slowly switching to their higher-end Model Master line, which is comparably priced to most others.

Quote
having already used chaos black spray over some of my models, can enamel be painted over acrylic (and visa versa-i remember being told that one way works and the other doesn't...but my memory is weird so that may not be accurate)?

Thanks

Minrat 

Painting enamel over acrylic can damage the acrylic underneath, but it doesn't always. If the acrylic is fully dry you can often get away with it, but it depends on the paints (and probably on luck as well). Painting acrylic over enamel never causes problems.

In the interest of fairness, here are the advantages of acrylics over enamels. Easier clean-up is the main one, of course, as you can clean and thin the paints with regular water. Because acrylics are more popular, most Internet tutorials and discussions assume you are using acrylics of some kind, so you don't have to adapt the technique. And here's the biggest one that bothers me with enamels; if there's a way to do wet palette blending with them, I haven't figured it out. Acrylics allow wet palette blending with simple tools like wax paper and a sponge, but enamels dry so fast that wet palette tricks just won't work.
Cured of what I'm suffering from, but suffering from the cure.