How To Get Into Miniature Painting

Have you ever wondered how to prep plastic miniatures for painting? Specifically, I am writing today about difficult plastic miniatures like those by GW, Wargames Atlantic and many other companies likewise.

There are a few different ways to prepare your plastic miniatures for painting. In some of my other tutorials on this site, your will see a few unlike methods. I will link to some of them at the cease of this article. Today, I want to focus on how I am getting my Wargames Atlantic Skeletons fix for painting. For these miniatures, I used The Army Painter White Primer and some wood filler besides. What is the woods filler for? We will get into that soon.

The steps I go through to prep plastic miniatures for painting goes as follows…

How to Prep Plastic Miniatures for Painting – My 5 Steps…

1. Determine if you need to wash the plastic frame or miniature.
2. Build your miniatures.
3. Attach the miniatures to your bases.
4. Prime your miniatures.
5. Kickoff painting your miniatures.

Step One: Make up one's mind if you demand to wash the plastic frame or miniature

When it comes to plastic miniatures, y'all generally don't accept to wash them. I did not wash these this time around.

The reason for washing your minis this is to remove any residue that may have been left on the miniature from the manufacturing process. If at that place is residue on the miniature, it tin can interfere with the paint and primer adhering to the miniature. This leads to paint jobs that can easily chip off, or frustrating paint sessions where the pigment won't stick to the miniature.

That said information technology is not a bad idea to do and so just in case. All y'all have to practice is wash them with dish lather and h2o, rinse them off and and then let them dry. I mostly utilize a molar brush or scouring pad to scrub the miniatures too while they are in the soap and water.

I have a really good chart nearly this in my how to pigment a RPG Miniature Commodity. Below is a film of some metal miniatures in the rinse stage of my washing process. I utilize the same bath system when I prep plastic miniatures for painting.

For metal and resin miniatures, you need to launder them to help brand paint stick to them. You don't more often than not need to launder plastic miniatures, but sometimes y'all do. Check the instructions to encounter if at that place is mention of washing the minis. If you make up one's mind to wash your miniatures, utilize dish soap, water and a brush to make clean them. After washing the minis, I rinse them off in a 2nd bath of just plain water. Finally, I take the miniatures out and let them dry out before continuing.

Again, you don't usually need to remove residue from plastic miniatures. I exercise it sometimes to be safe. Really, generally.

Check the packaging and instructions that your miniatures comes with. If there is any mention of washing your miniatures, do information technology. Dystopian Wars, for instance, recommends that yous wash their plastic frames just in case.

Otherwise, you lot should exist safe without washing plastic miniatures.

Step Ii: Build your miniatures

Next up, build your miniatures. This is my favourite part of the hobby. I just like building miniatures. For plastic miniatures, I like to employ plastic cement. Super Glue would work well too, but you lot will get a better concord from plastic cement as it slightly melts the plastic and fuses the pieces together.

Personally, I like to use Testor Brand Plastic Cement. Mostly I buy the non-toxic blue tube cement bellow, merely, lately, I accept been experimenting with Tamiya plastic cement too. If you lot apply the Tamiya stuff, brand sure y'all employ information technology in a well ventilated space. I open the window and run some fans while using it.

As you build your miniatures, remove whatever lines and flash that bother you. Lines often occur from the molds and flashing is ordinarily more associate with metallic miniatures. Some people use fancy tools purpose built to remove lines, simply I simply use a scalpel and the same hobby knife I use for trimming the parts off the miniatures sprues.

Now, let me tell yous nigh attaching your miniatures to bases. Some people salve this until the finish and paint in sub assemblies, but I find this the easiest method.

Step Three: Attach the miniatures to your bases

Either as I build the miniatures, or at the end, I similar to adhere the miniatures to their bases. If you are using plastic miniatures and bases, yous tin use the plastic cement that I talked about earlier to connect the 2. If you are not using plastic bases, yous will need to utilise super glue.

For this plastic miniature past Wargames Atlantic, I used super mucilage to attach it to an MDF base.

For super glue, I like to employ Gorilla brand glue, only lately I started to employ cheaper brands in smaller tubes. I like the Gorilla Glue more than because it is less viscous on my easily when information technology accidently gets on my peel, but it tin dry out in the bottle. That can exist frustrating not existence able to utilise all your glue earlier it dries out.

Using the smaller bottles creates less wasted glue in my opinion. I switched brands to save money, but the Gorilla stuff is good. This is a new shift in thinking for me, so far it works well.

If y'all are working with integrated bases, there are 2 different ways I use to attach them to gaming bases. I volition start past telling you about how to hid the bases with filler, and and so tell you lot a second method I use when working with integrated bases miniatures.

Using Filler or Spackling To Hide an Integrated Base of operations on a Miniature

If you are working with an integrated base, there are a couple of means to hide them on your gaming base. In this prototype, I attached the integrated base of operations directly to the gaming base. I so employ wood filler or spackling to make the integrated base less obvious.

After gluing my miniature to its base, I use either woods filler or spackling to build upwardly the residuum of the base to match the integrated i. Ordinarily, I piece of work upward a slope to the integrated base so I don't have to comprehend the entire surface with filler. I besides think this gentle slope makes it appear more natural.

In the example of these miniature skeletons by Wargames Atlantic, I used wood filler. I added it on after the primer, but normally, I similar to add it before priming. The dental tools there, I bought from the closest Army Surplus Store. You can use whatever you have on hand.

I find that if I mix a petty water on the tool afterward I lay down some paste, that I can smoothen information technology out to make a nice ground texture for the miniatures that also hides the integrated base.

A look at my desk-bound as I polish out some wood filler onto my bases to hide the integrated bases already attached to the miniatures.

Whatever filler that overshoots the base or that is too high, I remove or sculpt down with a wet tool or paper towel.

Another Way to Deal with Integrated Bases on Miniatures – Cutting information technology off

The other manner I like to deal with integrated bases is to cutting them completely away, except under the feet. This raises the miniature above the terrain elements that y'all add together later. Raising the miniature in this way makes for a satisfying look.

You can come across that I cutting away all the integrated base except under the anxiety.

Here is how that same miniature looks after I added basing materials. In the picture to a higher place, we take on the left an integrated base cut until merely under the feet remain. It raises the miniature above the terrain. In the heart we have a slotted miniature. On the correct, we have an integrated based miniature with some spackling to assist hide the base.

Now that I showed you ii unlike ways on how to adhere miniatures with integrated bases onto a gaming base of operations, let'southward move on to priming your miniature.

Step Four: Prime number your miniatures – How to Prep Plastic Miniatures for Painting – Adjacent Footstep Painting

Priming your miniatures is extremely important. It allows the paint to attach to your miniatures. Without information technology, y'all might discover that your paint runs off the miniature as yous apply it, or it chips off hands later on you lot paint the miniature. Neither outcome is good, so it is best to avoid information technology all together by priming your miniatures earlier painting them.

In another mail service, I talk virtually some castor on paint that y'all can substitute for primer. I will link to that in the resource section at the terminate of this article. For today, I am using spray primer by The Army Painter. To do this, I set a box in my garage to protect my surroundings from overspray. To make sure the space is well ventilated, I opened the garage door.

Spraying outside is even better.

A look at my priming area in the garage.

Equally I mentioned earlier, I used The Army Painter spray on primer. Specifically, Matte White. I have the castor on paint that matches it also. However, I did cease up using information technology incorrect. To help you lot avert the same mistake here is a video from The Army Painter on how to utilise their primers.

I also continue on below discussing exactly what I did incorrect.

A video showing y'all how to use The Regular army Painter Spray on Primer.

If yous scout the video above, y'all will be better equipped to utilize The Regular army Painter primers. Now, let's talk about my mistakes.

The Mistakes I Made with The Regular army Painter Primer

My primer came out a little dusty and did not adhere right away to the miniatures.

With my first test spray, not much paint adhered to the models. Having recently watched the video, I know now that I was either spraying from too far away or it was too hot on the day I primed the miniatures.

And then, I sprayed a little closer. At the time, I did not realize that you use Regular army Painter Primers differently than other brands of primers, because I had non watched that video I posted above.

I too wonder if the box caused part of the consequence with how information technology fabricated the paint waft through the air around the miniature. That said, I used the same technique for The Ground forces Painter black primers without any problems, so I am guessing not.

The other cistron could be that maybe the twenty-four hour period was too hot outside to exist priming. They mentioned that in the video besides.

Hopefully yous tin learn from my mistakes. Be aware of your distance that you are spraying from and the oestrus on the day that you lot are doing the piece of work.

Y'all should exist spraying this stuff 7-and-iii/four inches from the miniature or closer. Information technology is different than other brands of primer. I was spraying from further away, so I think the altitude acquired the dusting.

A look at my beginning batch of Wargames Atlantic Skeletons.

Here nosotros have both batches of Skeletons set aside to air dry. You can run across the dusting, just I call back that is considering the twenty-four hour period was either as well hot for me to spray, or I sprayed them from as well far away. Either could be factors to lead to this issue. My judge is the distance.

Despite my boards having a dusting of paint on them, the miniatures themselves are fine. I don't discover any issue on them with the primer.

A Response From The Army Painter

To get a amend idea of what went wrong, I reached out to The Army Painter about my primer incident. They got dorsum to me with the following response.

Hi Jacob, the flaking you experienced isn't all that uncommon if the instructions aren't followed. Information technology's a shame that you lot had to observe out the hard way, but I am happy you institute our (rather outdated, don't worry I'm working on a new 1) video for Colour Primer all-time practices. There's a common misconception that all spray primers on the market place are the aforementioned. That's not true. Many of the "primers" yous find from competitors aren't really primers at all. They are simply spray paint. Our Colour Primer Sprays utilise actual priming agents to offer unparalleled adherence to your miniatures, and to provide the best possible basecoat for your layering. Due to this, our Colour Primers require a bit of added attending before utilise.

An Extract from an email between me and The Regular army Painter.

Of course, the can says in big white letters to "Read Instructions Carefully!" Do you recall I did. Conspicuously not!

Primer Tips from The Army Painter

The Army Painter went on and gave me some advice to help me prep plastic miniatures for painting in the future. Specifically, how to utilize their primer correctly. Below are those steps.

1. Always milk shake the can. Nosotros recommend shaking for a expert 60-90 seconds. Don't shake information technology hard but shake it well so you ensure that the high-quality pigments are perfectly agitated with the priming agents.

2. We always, always recommend you spray a test model first. Keep an quondam mini handy only for this purpose as it's the best way to tell if y'all've properly shaken the paints, and if your surroundings is good for spraying. Which leads me to…

3. Spray in a well-ventilated area. Outside is best, provided information technology isn't too cold, or too humid. Both extremes can cause the pigments to demark together leaving the flecks or dusty effect.

4. Spray in a smooth motility.

5. Spray at a closer distance than what yous recollect. We recommend no farther than 20cm or approximately 7-viii" away from the miniatures. This likewise prevents the pigments from binding before reaching the surface of the miniature.

half dozen. Run across Step #2…I tin can't emphasize enough how important this is. Always use a examination model. I've even come to using i for airbrushing and applying things like varnishes just to ensure I've washed my due diligence with the paint prep earlier application.

I hope yous find this helpful, and if you lot e'er forget, don't worry! We've printed these instructions clearly on every can of our Colour Primer Sprays and Spray Varnishes.

An Excerpt from an email betwixt me and The Ground forces Painter.

At present, I have another tip about the dusting effect that occurred when I primed the miniatures. I also learned this one the hard fashion.

Some other Tip…

If you go the kind of dusting I did, do non reuse the same boards for your side by side chore without cleaning them off first. I reused the boards to varnish some miniatures later this paint dried and I had some less than satisfactory results later. Step six in the above listing would have saved my miniatures that I varnished white flecks onto. I volition link to the commodity about my failed varnishing job in the resource section down beneath.

Humidity could as well have caused the problem I ran into with the varnish, but my feeling is it is directly related to the dusting issue I had with the miniatures in this commodity.

With all that out of the way, yous now know how to prep your miniatures for painting. The side by side step is to actually paint them.

Step Five: Showtime to paint your miniatures

In one case you complete the steps above, your miniature is ready to paint. I wrote other articles on Must Contain Minis that can aid y'all with that. They will exist linked in the resources section beneath.

For today, I will allow yous know my plan for these skeletons. I primed these miniatures with The Regular army Painter Matte White Primer. I then program to paint them with bones colours and and so hit them with some Quickshade washes. That is likely where I will terminate with these models. I might become dorsum and practice some highlights too.

Earlier doing this, I am going to accept to brand a trip to the Hobby Store, and I honestly take been hardly out at all since the offset of the pandemic.

For this specific project of painting Wargames Atlantic Skeleton Miniatures, I want to paint the figures using products only by The Army Painter. If yous have seen my other tutorials, you may take noticed that I use a plethora of brands. For these minis, I want to see if in that location is whatever benefit to using just one make of paints.

Relevant tutorials will be linked in the resources department below.

In retrospect, information technology turns out that The Regular army Painter has a Skeleton Bone colour. That might have been a ameliorate starting colour than Matte White. That said, I am anticipating that after I run a wash over my miniatures, information technology might irksome down the white enough that I can just leave it as is.

Below are some related articles and links.

Related Resources

In this section, y'all will find related links and articles to this tutorial on how to prep plastic miniatures for painting. The tutorials below have y'all past the stages of prep and priming and correct into painting.

Related Articles and Sections on Must Contain Minis

• My Review of Wargames Atlantic Skeletons. Larn more most the miniatures in this article.
• How to Paint Space Marines – This article details the culling brush on paint that yous can use as primer that I discussed earlier in this post.
• The YouTube version of How to Pigment Space Marines – A video accommodation of the above post.
• An commodity about how I painted my Living Expressionless Peasants by Fireforge Games. In this mail, I talk over how I used Gesso to brush on prime the miniatures.
• A very detailed tutorial on how to paint miniatures for Role Playing Games.
• An extremely detailed Wild Due west Exodus review and tutorial on how I painted my Cerulean Clade Posse Set up by Warcradle Studios. These are the miniatures that I spray varnished after priming the skeletons. Y'all volition run across the dusting issue that I discussed in this article on those miniatures.
• A Tutorial on how I painted some elves for Oathmark.

Companies of Interest

• Wargames Atlantic – This is the company that made the skeletons in this article. They make extremely affordable miniatures of great quality. If you are looking to mix value and gaming, go to these guys.
• The Army Painter – This is the company who's primer I used and the company who'south paints I plan to utilize for the miniatures.

Wrapping it upwards…

Thank you for joining me in this commodity on how to prep plastic miniatures for painting. Hopefully y'all found it useful, and I give thanks y'all for checking out this website.

I also take a YouTube Channel that you can check out.

Until side by side time, Happy Gaming Everyone!!!

Source: https://mustcontainminis.com/2021/08/how-to-prep-plastic-miniatures-for-painting.html

Posted by: frasierpree1974.blogspot.com

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