Hope everyone is having a great holiday season! The last post on the comparison of metallic paints got me thinking on how else I could help beginning and returning hobbyists. I learned these tips for using metallic paints when I was devoting lots of time to building historic scale models (WW2 tanks are my favourite subject) and I was devouring as much info as I could on painting scale models well.
I find that experienced/master scale modellers tend to teach their craft a lot in a lot more detail compared to miniature painters. It could be because the range of techniques and materials that scale modellers work with more closely resemble what you would find in an artist’s studio, and many master scale modellers have some fine art training.
Back to the tips for metallic paints!
- Use nylon brushes instead of natural hair brushes
To preserve your sable brushes, consider using nylon brushes instead of sable for metallic paints.
In my previous post, I talked a bit about the composition of metallic paint. In summary, metallic paints have reflective materials added to the paint for that metallic/iridescent effect. This could be mica powder or metal powder (e.g. aluminium).
At the microscopic level, these fine mineral flakes are quite abrasive, and they wear out brushes much quicker than normal acrylic paints. This means that if you’re using your expensive kolinsky sable brushes with metallic paints, these paints are rapidly sandpapering away the structure of the strands of hair, leading to breakage (i.e. the super fine tip quickly disappears as the hair splits or breaks off) and distortion of the nice fat brush belly that sable brushes are known for. It’s like using toothpaste on your own hair.
Nylon is more resistant, and cheaper!
2. Thin metallic paints with medium, not pure water.
To prevent premature separation of metallic paints, thin them with medium instead of pure water.
If you read the previous post on metallic paints, you might recall that water-based metallic paints use a more viscous solvent/binder carrier in order to keep the metallic flake powders in suspension.
What this means is that if you thin metallic paints with pure water, paint “breakage” and separation of the metallic flake occurs more quickly than normal acrylic paints. I notice this a lot when painting up my Khorne army, which requires lots and lots of painting with Balthazar Gold for the brass trim.
The better alternative is to use an acrylic medium to thin metallic paint. Acrylic mediums are composed of water as a solvent, and acrylic resin as the binder, which helps keep the flake in suspension while gradually reducing the viscosity of the paint.
You could use Lahmian Medium from Citadel, or any of the hobby brand mediums, but my favorite in terms of bang for buck is Liquitex Airbrush Medium. “But I’m doing brush painting!” you cry.
Ignore the name. Airbrush medium is a great thinning medium because it’s designed to make thick acrylic paints spray through a 0.5mm nozzle of an airbrush without separation, and it contains flow improvers as well. I highly recommend it as a bulk alternative to hobby brand mediums for regular acrylic paints as well. (Not for washes though, for those please use Lahmian Medium, Army Painter Quickwash Medium etc.)
3. Paint metallics over a gloss black base.
For the brightest metallic look, paint metallic paints over a gloss black base, not white.
Many of us will recall the first time we drybrushed a silver paint over a black-primed miniature, especially the chainmail portions. The first “OMG this really pops, I’m such a master painter!”.
The main reasons why metallics look better over gloss black base paints are (i) contrast and (ii) settling of metallic flake.
Acrylic paints by nature are not completely opaque, and the metallic flake can never fully cover the base layer in two thin coats. Thus, part of the base coat will always peek through the metallic layer. When that base coat is black, it contrasts well against the shining metallic flake and tricks the brain into seeing the metallic flake better. With a white base coat, the metallic flake effect is muted against the brightness of white. Using the principle of contrast, painting metallics over black also allows you to quickly create a highlight/shadow effect, compared to trying to fill every nook and cranny with thick metallic paint and throwing on copious amounts of black wash to create shadow.
My own experience with painting Khorne miniatures is that after priming with Mephiston red spray, I go over all the metallic/chainmail areas with a thinned black paint which actually helps me save time later.
Painting metallics over gloss black has an even greater impact because of how shine is created in metallic paint. Essentially, metallic paint shine is created by light reflecting off the metallic flake. As the paint surface becomes smoother, surface reflectivity increases as the light is less scattered.
Gloss paint creates a smoother surface compared to matte/satin paints. The effect of a gloss black undercoat is especially apparent on large flat surfaces that you want to paint with metallic paint, and many of the metallic paints for scale modelling (i.e. Alclad, Vallejo Metal, AK Interactive Xtreme Metal) have a specific gloss black primer just for this purpose. When I was working on my bare metal WW2 aircraft, I would even finely sand the surfaces with 2000 grit sandpaper in order to get a smoother surface for metallic paint.
4. Final Words and some advertising =)
So here are some tips for beginners on metallic paints, and I hope you found them useful!
I would also like to take this opportunity to share my newest project: GameForge Singapore, an online tabletop games accessories store. (https://gameforge.sg)
I started GameForge for two reasons: The first was that many tabletop gaming/painting accessories are quite expensive for Singapore/SEA gamers because of exorbitant shipping prices, and I wanted to see if I could help our local gamers bridge the gap between what we pay and what overseas gamers pay. I want our local community to have access to great products and deals.
The second was that I wanted to give new and returning gamers a curated experience and help them get into the hobby with a lot more fun and less confusion about what to buy. I got burned and spent lots of money on ineffective products before, and I hope that in some way I can help new and returning players get started and enjoy the hobby more. So do check out the store and the facebook page if you’re interested!
I’m currently doing local shipping in Singapore only, but hope to expand to the region soon. Check out the store and subscribe for future updates!
