[PAINT] Painting straight lines
The Blue Raja
Rhino, but I'd rather not stuff it up and have to redo it multiple times or,
worse still, strip and repaint (I've got the inside done perfectly). Since
there's no large (or even *any*) Tactical transfers on the sheet, I figured
I'll have to paint it on by hand.
I've never had the best luck with painting straight lines, so I'm wondering
if anyone has any good tips? I was thinking maybe masking off the shape of
the Tac arrow to make things easier, has this worked for anyone else?
PS. It's the new Rhino if anyone is interested, and due to the size it looks
way too blank without any adornment on the back area.
--
The Blue Raja
"This is John "Smoking Gun" Hwang. He shoots first and talks about Eldar
later." - Rob Singers
RGMW FAQ - Is FAQ, is good
http://www.freewebz.com/rgmw/rgmw/rgmw-faq.html
David Gausebeck
>Rhino, but I'd rather not stuff it up and have to redo it multiple times or,
>worse still, strip and repaint (I've got the inside done perfectly). Since
>there's no large (or even *any*) Tactical transfers on the sheet, I figured
>I'll have to paint it on by hand.
>I've never had the best luck with painting straight lines, so I'm wondering
>if anyone has any good tips? I was thinking maybe masking off the shape of
>the Tac arrow to make things easier, has this worked for anyone else?
>
>PS. It's the new Rhino if anyone is interested, and due to the size it looks
>way too blank without any adornment on the back area.
I haven't done much of this myself, but one hint I've seen in the past
which sounds like a really good idea is to trace it out lightly in
pencil first. Once you have all the outlines, you just have to paint
within the lines, which is much easier (for me, at least) than
freehand.
-Dave
The Blue Raja
news:3d87e697....@news.sf.sbcglobal.net...
I was thinking this too. What would you use for the lines? Felt tip pen,
or something similar I'm guessing. I think a pencil wouldn't leave a proper
mark, and if you pushed too hard it'd "tear" the paint.
Ishka Bibble
"The Blue Raja" <the_blue_ra...@iprimus.com.au> wrote in
message news:am8q52$3m0el$1...@ID-144789.news.dfncis.de...
| I was thinking this too. What would you use for the lines?
Felt tip pen,
| or something similar I'm guessing. I think a pencil wouldn't
leave a proper
| mark, and if you pushed too hard it'd "tear" the paint.
You can get some graphic designer tape at McWhorters or other
office supply places. This tape is farctions of a millimeter wide
to several mm. You can use it as masking or as lines on your
model
Ishka Bibble
Did I hear you say you played at Game Empire in SD? Mebbe we can
arrange a battle sometime in May...
John Hwang
>I'm up to the stage of painting the Tactical symbol on the cargo doors on my
>Rhino, but I'd rather not stuff it up and have to redo it multiple times or,
>worse still, strip and repaint (I've got the inside done perfectly). Since
>there's no large (or even *any*) Tactical transfers on the sheet, I figured
>I'll have to paint it on by hand.
Personally, I'd measure out the size of the space, measure out control lines in
pencil, mask off, and spray paint it to get a nice, smooth finish. Easy as
cake. :)
>I've never had the best luck with painting straight lines, so I'm wondering
>if anyone has any good tips? I was thinking maybe masking off the shape of
>the Tac arrow to make things easier, has this worked for anyone else?
The most important thing is to use a straightedge in penciling in your lines.
Nothing says straight as actual straight. Then eyeball down the lines to be
sure.
--
--- John Hwang "JohnHw...@cs.com.no.com"
\-|-/
| A.K.D. F.E.M.C.
| Horned Blood Cross Terror LED Speed Jagd Destiny
John Hwang
>> >I'm up to the stage of painting the Tactical symbol
>> >I've never had the best luck with painting straight lines, so I'm
>> >wondering if anyone has any good tips? I was thinking maybe
>> > masking off the shape of the Tac arrow to make things easier,
>> >has this worked for anyone else?
>> I haven't done much of this myself, but one hint I've seen in the past
>> which sounds like a really good idea is to trace it out lightly in
>> pencil first.
Yup. If smaller, you can also make a template and stencil a pattern.
>> Once you have all the outlines, you just have to paint
>> within the lines, which is much easier (for me, at least) than
>> freehand.
>
>I was thinking this too. What would you use for the lines? Felt tip pen,
>or something similar I'm guessing.
Nah, Too broad and squishy of a point.
>I think a pencil wouldn't leave a proper mark,
It would.
>and if you pushed too hard it'd "tear" the paint.
Then don't push too hard. You can practice on the bottom of the Rhino to get
the pressure right. Use a #2 or HB pencil, and you'll be fine.
Liam Phillips
> "David Gausebeck" <gaus...@paypal.com> wrote in message
> news:3d87e697....@news.sf.sbcglobal.net...
> > I haven't done much of this myself, but one hint I've seen in the past
> > which sounds like a really good idea is to trace it out lightly in
> > pencil first. Once you have all the outlines, you just have to paint
> > within the lines, which is much easier (for me, at least) than
> > freehand.
>
> I was thinking this too. What would you use for the lines? Felt tip pen,
> or something similar I'm guessing. I think a pencil wouldn't leave a proper
> mark, and if you pushed too hard it'd "tear" the paint.
Here's what I've done in the past. Draw the symbol you want onto
tracing paper - use anything to draw it with, it doesn't matter. Now
cut the symbol out with a stanley knife to get a super straight line.
Position the symbol where you want it. I put a bit of water along the
edges to make the paper stick to the model. Now get a 6B pencil and
using the paper as a template, tarce around it. Don't put any pressure
on the pencil, just dragging it across the paint will leave a mark,
plus, because a 6B is so soft, it won't tear the paint. Holding the
pencil lightly will ensure that it 'hugs' the paper as well and stays
along the edge, giving you a straight line.
Once you've painted the symbol on, any pencil left on the model that
is visible will wash off with water.
This really only works for flat areas, but I had success using this
technique to paint Grey Hunter symbols on one of the old Rhinos.
Liam
Richard Lobinske
>I've never had the best luck with painting straight lines, so I'm wondering
>if anyone has any good tips? I was thinking maybe masking off the shape of
>the Tac arrow to make things easier, has this worked for anyone else?
Brush paint and masking tape can lead to some problems, primarily with paint
buildup along the tape line. I use transparent tape (the stuff that goes from
frosted to clear when applied) as masking tape, leaves no residue and the tape
itself is thinner, plus you know when the tape is actually set against the
model. Once masked, it is really better to spray the design, either airbrush
or spray can.
For repeatablility, you may want to make a stencil on to use to scribe the
design on your mask.
Death before dishonor,
Nothing before coffee
Shameless website Plug: Military Life on Saipan, 1944-1945
http://members.aol.com/RLobinske/Saipan.html
This is a cookie-free website
Christopher Krigbaum
> I'm up to the stage of painting the Tactical symbol on the cargo doors on
my
> Rhino, but I'd rather not stuff it up and have to redo it multiple times
or,
> worse still, strip and repaint (I've got the inside done perfectly).
Since
> there's no large (or even *any*) Tactical transfers on the sheet, I
figured
> I'll have to paint it on by hand.
> I've never had the best luck with painting straight lines, so I'm
wondering
> if anyone has any good tips? I was thinking maybe masking off the shape
of
> the Tac arrow to make things easier, has this worked for anyone else?
Look at a good artist supply store for something called frisket. Its clear
acetate with a slightly tacky backing. Its used to cut stencils and masks
for airbrushing and is perfect for this type of thing. After cutting and
applying your stencil, burnish the edges down with your finger or pencil
eraser to prevent underspray. Also, remove the stencil as soon as the paint
begins to get tacky, leaving the stencil on until the paint dries can cause
the edges to flake when the stencil is pulled off.
Chris K
Andy
<< Tracing>>
Didn't the current generation get taught tracing in primary school?
Draw your pattern in pencil on paper, using a ruler etc.
Follow the lines on the other side of the paper in soft pencil.
You want BB or similarly soft pencil for the side to "transfer".
You then draw/scrub on the original side of the paper whilst it's
pressed against the model and the design will transfer on.
You could also/alternatively invest in some letraset rub-on transfers.
There are ww2 1/35 dscale run on transfers you can get from the likes
of archer which might be OK.
Rub on transfers are far thinner than decals and there's no silvering
problem.
Small scale products do 1/76 which I use on my ww2 skirmish and I
suppose some might do for 40k.
You can also get pre-made masks which stick on and you then airbrush
onto.
For plain straight edged designs you can either use low-tak masking
tape or take regular masking tape and stick/remove on something a few
times to reduce the stickiness.
Similarly sellotape.
I've heard of people making sellotape masks.
The invisible style sellotape is supposed to be best.
Reduce the tackiness as above.
Stick to something like your cutting board.
Draw a design on it... or stick to something clear and trace the deign
off something onto it.
Cut out with a scalpel.
With masks you're best letting the paint dry before you remove.
HTH
Martin J Blow
> "David Gausebeck" <gaus...@paypal.com> wrote in message
> news:3d87e697....@news.sf.sbcglobal.net...
> > >I've never had the best luck with painting straight lines, so I'm
> wondering if anyone has any good tips?
Sure - I found straight lines to be pretty do-able once I came up with
a certain method. First off, use slightly thinned down paint when
marking in your first outline. Not too watery, just enough so it
flows off smoothly and doesn't clump-up in the brush. Secondly,
don't press too hard when you're drawing the line - if the paint isn't
flowing easily off the tip of the brush - rinse it out and get a fresh
brushfull. Thirdly - for doing straight lines, I like to use a small
(5/000) acrylic brush with a hooked tip - the deformed tip allows me
to hold the brush slightly sideways to the path I want the line to
take. Which makes both seeing where the line is going and keeping my
hand motion smooth and fluid much easier than when I'm holding the
brush like a pencil and trying to see where I'm writing, so to speak.
And finally - make certain the vehicle is well-braced on the table (I
use a crumpled-up tube sock as a bed to lay the model in) and not held
in your hand.
>
> I was thinking maybe masking off the shape of the Tac arrow to make
things easier, has this worked for anyone else?
Nope - any time I've ever masked, I get bleed through under the tape.
So now I just render everything 'free-hand'.
>
> I was thinking [of tracing design in pencil]. What would you use
for the lines? Felt tip pen,
> or something similar I'm guessing. I think a pencil wouldn't leave
a proper
> mark, and if you pushed too hard it'd "tear" the paint.
Never, never, NEVER use a felt-tip marker on anything you intend to
paint with acrylic paint. In my experience, felt tip markers don't
dry - they are always water solueable. So whenever you try to paint a
water-based paint over a water-based marker, you will instantly get
bleed-through of the marker into the paint. Just like you spilled a
drop of water on a letter written in felt-tip pen.
Good luck.
--
MJB
Mr. Tin's Miniature Painting Workshop:
http://members.blueskyweb.net/mrt...@blueskyweb.net/
John Hwang
>johnhw...@cs.com.no.com (John Hwang) wrote ...
><< Tracing>>
>
>Didn't the current generation get taught tracing in primary school?
It's only good for primary school. :P
>Draw your pattern in pencil on paper, using a ruler etc.
>Follow the lines on the other side of the paper in soft pencil.
>You want BB or similarly soft pencil for the side to "transfer".
>You then draw/scrub on the original side of the paper whilst it's
>pressed against the model and the design will transfer on.
I'd rather just pencil it in directly. Seems like a awful lot of work, your
way.
>Rub on transfers are far thinner than decals and there's no silvering
>problem.
Not so. There's always a lighting issue.
>With masks you're best letting the paint dry before you remove.
Nah. Doing this risks painting the mask to the part. Peel as soon as
possible, so that the edge dries clean.
Richard Lobinske
>So now I just render everything 'free-hand'.
Bleed under results from the edge of the tape not being firmly set against the
substrate. Run your thumbnail along the edge to force the tape firmly down.
Using the frosted to clear type tapes help with this, if the tape is frosted,
it is not firmly set, if it is clear, it has set properly. Again, brush
painting can still force paint under the mask, spray painting will yield the
best results.
Qrab
<the_blue_ra...@iprimus.com.au> wrote:
> "David Gausebeck" <gaus...@paypal.com> wrote in message
> news:3d87e697....@news.sf.sbcglobal.net...
> I was thinking this too. What would you use for the lines? Felt
> tip pen, or something similar I'm guessing. I think a pencil
> wouldn't leave a proper mark, and if you pushed too hard it'd
> "tear" the paint.
You need a pencil with softer lead.
--
Be seeing you-
Qrab
remove yourhead to reply
Qrab
<sp...@nospam.com> wrote:
>
> Did I hear you say you played at Game Empire in SD? Mebbe we can
> arrange a battle sometime in May...
That's me. Contact me around May and we'll see if we can make it work.
I should be back in the field by then, but I'll have weekends off.
Andy
<tracing>
> way.
You get as many tries as you like before you're happy with the pattern
on a separate piece of paper.
I now notice I forgeot to mention you can trace the pattern out a
book/whatever onto the paper in the first place.
> >Rub on transfers are far thinner than decals and there's no silvering
> >problem.
>
> Not so. There's always a lighting issue.
You always need to varnish over.
But silvering isn't a lighting issue, it's because air gets caught
under the decal or the glue bond fails.
> >With masks you're best letting the paint dry before you remove.
>
> Nah. Doing this risks painting the mask to the part. Peel as soon as
> possible, so that the edge dries clean.
If you lift off straight away, you can all too easily stuff an edge or
two edges, IME.
Maybe John has steadier hands.
<shrug>
Malcolm McDowall
">
> > >Rub on transfers are far thinner than decals and there's no silvering
> > >problem.
> >
> > Not so. There's always a lighting issue.
>
> You always need to varnish over.
> But silvering isn't a lighting issue, it's because air gets caught
> under the decal or the glue bond fails.
>
tiny hole in the silvered area, with the tip if a needle or very sharp
scalpel blade, and then touch a little thinned varnish to the hole.
Capillary action will draw it in and you will find, with luck, that the
silvering has disappeared.
Another approach, is to paint on top of the decal, using the base colour (on
which the decal is sitting). This means that only the key part of the decal
shows, whilst areas of clear film with no pigment/picture on them are
blended back in and don't show.
Mac
Malcolm McDowall
"The Blue Raja" <the_blue_ra...@iprimus.com.au> wrote in message
news:am8oor$3nenp$1...@ID-144789.news.dfncis.de...
> I'm up to the stage of painting the Tactical symbol on the cargo doors on
my
> Rhino, but I'd rather not stuff it up and have to redo it multiple times
or,
> worse still, strip and repaint (I've got the inside done perfectly).
Since
> there's no large (or even *any*) Tactical transfers on the sheet, I
figured
> I'll have to paint it on by hand.
> I've never had the best luck with painting straight lines, so I'm
wondering
> if anyone has any good tips? I was thinking maybe masking off the shape
of
> the Tac arrow to make things easier, has this worked for anyone else?
>
> PS. It's the new Rhino if anyone is interested, and due to the size it
looks
> way too blank without any adornment on the back area.
>
> --
Aircraft modellers use these to recreate the various marking lines on
aircraft. Microscale and Superscale both do these (sorry, don't have
websites, but try Google).
Mac
Moramarth
<the_blue_ra...@iprimus.com.au> writes
>I'm up to the stage of painting the Tactical symbol on the cargo doors on my
>Rhino, but I'd rather not stuff it up and have to redo it multiple times or,
>worse still, strip and repaint (I've got the inside done perfectly). Since
>there's no large (or even *any*) Tactical transfers on the sheet, I figured
>I'll have to paint it on by hand.
sheets of the blank transparent backing waterside transfers are printed
onto is available from specialist model suppliers, and there are
varieties compatible with colour photocopiers and certain types of
computer printer - unfortunately it's not part of the modelling art I've
got into (never had the need) so I can't go into details. However, it
would seem a good idea that if your going to make a mistake, it would be
better done off the model rather than on it!
>
Of course, back in the days before the blank transfer sheet was
available, us old farts who wanted something similar just painted
several layers of polyurethane varnish onto the sticky side of large
"lick-and-stick" labels and used that instead. Unfortunately, the
resulting carrier film was thick and yellowed quickly, but I haven't
tried this trick since the advent of acrylic varnishes.
>
>
>
>
Cheers,
>The Blue Raja
>
>
--
Moramarth
John Hwang
>johnhw...@cs.com.no.com (John Hwang) wrote ...
><tracing>
>> I'd rather just pencil it in directly. Seems like a awful lot of work,
>>your way.
>
>You get as many tries as you like before you're happy with the pattern
>on a separate piece of paper.
Measure the canvas and draw on paper, then measure the control points and
transfer them back. I'd only need one shot at the final product.
>I now notice I forgeot to mention you can trace the pattern out a
>book/whatever onto the paper in the first place.
Sure.
>> >Rub on transfers are far thinner than decals and there's no silvering
>> >problem.
>>
>> Not so. There's always a lighting issue.
>
>You always need to varnish over.
>But silvering isn't a lighting issue, it's because air gets caught
>under the decal or the glue bond fails.
Ahh... Right, OK.
>> >With masks you're best letting the paint dry before you remove.
>>
>> Nah. Doing this risks painting the mask to the part. Peel as soon as
>> possible, so that the edge dries clean.
>
>If you lift off straight away, you can all too easily stuff an edge or
>two edges, IME.
>Maybe John has steadier hands.
Probably. Or more practice. I'd wager on the latter rather than the former.