Picked up a second Firespray this weekend so I can run some Boba/Emon fun lists like this.

Now, I really appreciate the quality of the FFG minis and have happily run groups of identical Tie's and X-wings. BUT, we all know it is unacceptable to have two identical Slave-1's on the table. So, I think it is time to get into painting these buggers.

I have some experience making models as a kid eventually painting dials, buckles, and even eyebrows on 1:48 scale aircraft and crew. I don't really have any experience with mixing paints or making washes. Going to make a run to my FLGS and procure some supplies and dive in.

Have read a few guides for beginners including reapermini and a BGG thread. I guess my questions boil down to:

1. Anyone with specific pointers on how to switch from using Testors model paints to painting these minis?

2. What ship makes a good starter project? Not sure if I want to dive right in with a $30 model.

3. Any good options for the Twi-Lek pinup girl if I go for an Andrasta? I don't think free-handing will produce good results.

I didn't even bother trying the Twi'lek on my Andrasta. No chance of that going well.

Personally, painting the Firespray was tons of fun. Easily my favorite ship to do, but also B-wings are good for starting on. There's plenty of big, flat surfaces, but still a fair amount of panel-y areas for detail work.

I watched this vid on painting Imperial Assault minis here before attempting my first repaint. The main thing I learned is that your paint job will look really basic until you put a wash on. Nuln Oil ftw.

1. Anyone with specific pointers on how to switch from using Testors model paints to painting these minis?

You will love the water clean-up.

Thin your paints or you will end up with too many brush strokes and other textures.

Don't get too fancy with your coloring and shading. Virtually all the painting guides out there are for tabletop miniatures. X-Wing ships are much flatter -- and I mean that both physically and in the color sense. If you paint a ship like it's a Warmachine fig, it'll stand out.

You will want to wash, but it's tricky. (You're probably better off buying one than mixing your own. They're often ink-based, which perform better than diluted paint.) Washing was my most error-prone part. Figures are mostly curves and crannies, but ships have lots of flat spots and washes like to spread out on those and visibly stick around. You'll need some practice spreading it so it's faint or looks like decent weathering instead of a muddy splotch or a paint pool. Don't be surprised if you need to paint, wash, then repaint, either. On something as big as a Firespray, until you get experience, it will be tricky to keep the darkening level consistent across the whole ship.

2. What ship makes a good starter project? Not sure if I want to dive right in with a $30 model.

My first was turning a Y-wing from Gold Squadron to Gray Squadron. Simple. (Individual B-wing to Blue Squadron is the same deal.) My second was also a Firespray, for the same reason as you. It's got lots of easily-paintable surfaces.

3. Any good options for the Twi-Lek pinup girl if I go for an Andrasta? I don't think free-handing will produce good results.

I don't know of any, and you're absolutely correct about freehanding it.

Stick to acrylic/water based paints. Simple to clean up afterwards, wash your brush in water (and yourself, the tabletop, t-shirt, table cloth, curtains....). Try not to go to wild (unless that's the intent!!), and keep paint schemes to around 3 colours. Regularly clean your brush even if you're still using the same colour (probably more of a hint for the larger ships/models). This is so your paint brush doesn't get too clogged up.

Never dip your brush completely into the paint pot, in other words, never dip it in over the metal ferrule part of the brush. Paint gets into the base of the bristles, and you'll never get it out. This leads to your bristles starting to splaying out rather than keeping to a point.

If you put your paint brush away after using it, put the plastic tube over the top any good brush comes with on it, to help protect it. When I do it, while the paint brush is still wet I run it over my slightly clenched hand so the bristles go along one of your palm lines, and slowly rotate the brush. This helps the brush keep its point. And never leave your paint brush bristles down in your water pot!! If left for long enough, it will bend your bristles and it's nearly impossible to straighten them.

If you're hanging your paint brush up for a while a thin smear of petroleum jelly on the bristles will help keep them for when you come back. Then when you go to use it again, wash the brush in warm soapy water to remove the petroleum jelly.

Mix your paints on something white. This will let you see the colour better. A white saucer or tile is good, and it's easy to clean. If possible, use natural light. Even better if it's coming in over your opposite shoulder (left if you're right handed), so you don't case shadows over your work.

If buying paint for the first time, and you have a limited budget, you need your 3 primary colours (red, blue, yellow), white & black as an absolute minimum. If you know in advance you're going to use a colour(s) straight up (lets say purple), then get those as well. You can mix a mot of your colours from your 3 primary colours. In this game, a couple different greys and silvers will go far as well.

Washes are a little advanced, but nothing to be scared off. There's a good tip I saw in a video on YouTube for washes for X-Wing (

The Testors paint are a good quality paint, but are you using their acrylic or enamel? Enamel could prove tricky, as if you decide to repaint your ships, you need to use something like mentholated sprits to strip the paint, and that's probably going to melt the ship!

[edit] found the video, now linked in the text above [/edit]

Looks like I typed up something some of you liked. Cheers!

I typed that up half a sleep. So I forgot a couple things. lol

The video linked above, also mentions using the Citadel Agrax Earthshade for those rust stains, where rust has run down from a vent or rivet or whatever. Don't need to use much, and try to follow the contours of the model. This sort of thing is probably when the ship is parked up for a while, so they'll be heading down towards the ground.

Brushes. Someone has already mentioned elsewhere on these forums you need at least a 0, 1 and 2 paint brushes. These will get you through most of your painting. For the larger ships, and those with large amounts of flat surfaces (like B-wings), you will want some chisel/flat paint brushes. These will be more helpful in a slightly larger sizes. Basically buy what you think will help you the most. And buy a couple of different sizes in them too.

There are various types of bristles too. I myself prefer a sable. They're a nice soft bristle and hold a point well, and also hold paint well and has a nice flow. These are named from their original source, my favorite family of animals, the mustelids. Or the same family that the weasel, skunk, otter and my personal favorite, the ferret, comes from. In particular, the Sable, though a variety of mustelids are used to provide fur for paint brushes.

You can also get synthetic sable paint brushes. I have used some of these, and they're pretty good too, and helpful in that they're cheaper than true sable paint brushes.

Also mentioned plenty of times on these forums is thin your paint. These ships have plenty of fine detail. You'll get better results of you try for several thin coats of paint rather than one thick coat of paint. It's also not a bad idea to give it a quick coat of varnish/lacquer after your base paint/before you give it a wash. Will protect the work you've already done, and if you stuff up and flood the ship with a wash, then wash it under a tap and let it dry.

There are a couple of different finishes for varnish/lacquer. But it basically comes down to flat, matt & gloss. If you think you'll be abusing your figures by taking them to plenty of tournaments, a gloss coat is thicker than the others. So you might want to use a spray gloss when you come to finishing your paint job. But then won't it be too shiny?? True, so if you don't want a shiny ship, after the gloss is dry (wait for at least a day, or use a hair dryer), spray it again with a quick coat of flat or matt.

Be careful with spraying your ships with varnish/lacquers. The varnish/lacquers can react with your washes if they're not 100% dry, and could look like parts of your ship is 'fogged'. This can also happen when you spray a different varnish/lacquer over another. So make sure they're completely dry.

You can also get varnish/lacquers in brush-on form. A bottle of gloss varnish/lacquer is perfect for things like cockpit windows, lights & engine glow.

And it shouldn't have to be said, but only use varnish/lacquers in a well ventilated area.

Drybrushing is where you add paint to a paintbrush, then wipe most of it off. Use a rag (paper towel will do, not your mothers best table cloth or your girlfriends dress), and wipe most of the paint off the brush. It will probably look like there isn't any paint on there. That's good. Also, don't use your good paint brush!! Use one that's seen it's best days already. Drybrushing destroys paint brushes. Once you've loaded up a paint brush and then wiped most of it off, then light brush the paintbrush against any detail where you want to leave highlights. It takes a little practice, but is a quick way to add detail. And you can drybrush before and/or after a wash. Depends on the result you're after.

Finally, it should be noted that while I have been painting miniatures for years, I haven't been painting miniatures for years. If that make sense. lol And all Iv'e done with X-wing so far is the dirty up my Millennium Falcon (I didn't think it looked 'used' enough lol )

3. Any good options for the Twi-Lek pinup girl if I go for an Andrasta? I don't think free-handing will produce good results.

Edit - Found it: https://community.fantasyflightgames.com/index.php?/topic/130524-b-wing-repaints/?p=1398237