Cleaning your miniatures is probably a more protective step than sealing! I know there are lots of painters who do not bother with this step and rarely have problems. Sealer cannot hold on primer and paint that is flaking off due to issues with the underlying surface.
#PAINT TRANSLUCENT MINIATURES SKIN#
Primer and paint will not adhere as well to surfaces that have debris or skin oils on them. People involved in production may have handled the miniature with greasy fingers at several points, as well. The moulds used to make metal figures are dusted with powder prior to casting, and resin mould release agent is even worse. The familiar is lighter weight, but eventually detached as well.įiling off mould lines and other types of figure preparation creates debris, and you are depositing finger oils on the surface as you handle it, so I always recommend washing a figure, regardless of what it’s made of. And then to add insult to injury, I dropped her on the vinyl tiling floor that was installed during the renovation when I took her out of the case to take pictures for this article! There’s a tiny chip on her thumb and another on the hem of her dress, but considering the way this has been treated, the paint has held up pretty well due to the kind of prep steps I’m describing. And then up and downstairs during a renovation. It got moved repeatedly around my display cases. I’ve just left her lying on top of the base for years. The metal figure detached from the base soon after it was finished. Only the top area of the ’tiles’ was painted. The base for the above figure is made of Sculpey. The paint ended up being much sturdier than my assembly method. This might be a plastic base, coin, washer, or a number of other options. The best way to prevent this is to glue the miniature to a slightly larger base. The outer edges of metal bases and those with Bases with sharp textures near their edges are prone to paint rubbing away when they are picked up or slid across tabletops. I often paint metal miniatures with integral bases. The one area I do regularly have problems with paint rub-off is on bases. This helps avoid damage, stray glue, debris, and other issues that can damage finished paint work.Įxamples of damage along integral base edges and texture. If possible, do as much assembly and base work as possible prior to painting. It’s only a flesh wound, but it’s going to take pinning and paint to fix it. Paint gets damaged when parts break off, so repair usually involves not only reassembly, but repainting. Use pins to attach multiple parts or affix miniatures to bases.
It’s worth taking a little time and extra effort to assemble your figures well. Now I’ll go through the steps above in a little more detail, as well as explaining how those help create a sturdier paint job. Avoid aerosol sealers on Bones.Ī lot of damage occurs not in play or handling, but in storage and transit. You can use matte sealer over gloss to dull the shine. Let the Paint Cure for One Day or More Before Handling or SealingĪcrylic paint seems to dry quite quickly, but like primer, it doesn’t cure fully for at least 24 hours. Use stronger paint brands for tabletop models, and don’t add more than 30% water (and/or additives) to any brand on foundation coats. Don’t Touch the Miniature while PaintingĪffix the figure to a handle while painting to minimize touching it.
#PAINT TRANSLUCENT MINIATURES FULL#
Primer is touch dry in minutes, but takes minimum 24 hours to cure to full sturdiness.ĥ. Let the Primer Cure for One Day or More Before Painting Whether you use aerosol primers, brush-on, or airbrush, you need to use a primer. If you can, do messy and potentially damaging filing, conversions, assembly, and base work prior to the cleaning step.ĭip/brush the figure with isopropyl alcohol, or scrub with dish soap and a toothbrush and then rinse thoroughly.ģ. I’ll go into each of these in more detail below, but I thought a shorter checklist might be handy for people to refer back to. But in my experience, creating the sturdiest paint jobs starts before you even put any paint on the model, and even before primer! You might not be able to follow all of these steps every miniature, but the more you can do, the tougher your paint will be. Patreon supporters receive PDFs with high res photos.Įdited Octoto add additional information in the Seal Your Figures section.Ī lot of people believe the key to a strong paint job that doesn’t chip or scratch is using a good sealer.
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