Hi,

I try to paint my squadrons and up to the point when the wash is applied everything went nicely. However, the wash I do not get right. It simply darkens the entire miniature without filling the gaps. I achieve that it fills the gaps right when I apply it. But after the mini has dried, the gaps are not much darker then the rest. Can anybody tell me what is my mistake. Thanks in advance!

Edit: I use Citadell nuln oil shade and I watered it down, because otherwise my models became way to dark.

Hi mate

What I do is apply the wash without watering it down....then a hard drybrush of the original colour you used. If you feel like it you can apply a lighter drybrush on top of that

I agree. Watering it down too much will reduce the pigment power and you may not end up with enough concentration in the recesses. Try watering it down with matt medium (Lammellar medium or some similar name is the GW one).

As a wash starts to dry it will sometimes flow downwards forming pools in lower corners. This means you probably applied a little too much but if you come back to the model a minute later and look for large pools you can remove them by touching a clean brush to the area and lift a little wash off.

A wash will naturally darken the original colour so you could try using a lighter than requited base coat knowing the wash will darken it. Or go back over the washed model with the base coat blending in the original colour to the large, flat or raised areas and re highlight them. You can either do this by drybrushing or just use a detail brush and delicately go back over the flat areas. All of my fighters were painted in base coat, squadron colour stripes & detail then Nuln oil wash and pick out the highlights with the original basic colours.

As to the panel lines, I'll fill the well of a finer brush with the wash and apply it directly to the area I want blackened. Might have to hit it a couple times to achieve the desired effect but it works wonders on certain models.

What we have here is a failure to communi-surface-cate

Now, there are good suggestions above, and I'd look into it... But I'll tell you now. I generally only use water to break down my Nuln and Agrax for the Squadrons I paint.

But here's the thing - its all about Ratios and surface differences.

I find that sometimes, the surfaces that I've prepared (usually by poor priming, or inconsistent painting) can have a texture themselves, and washes love texture. If your surface is textured, your wash will fill that surface as much as it fills any recesses...

Then, when its time to wash, I generally invoke no more than a 2:1 mix of Wash to Water, if I'm using just water... Anything more than that, and I'll be tempted to run medium, or, I'll look at a way to break the surface tension (as water is pretty hardcore about that)... Like making a bigger batch at once and adding the tiniest half-drop of dishwashing liquid.

Breaking the surface tension of the wash/water mix will allow it to flow - it won't "pool" on surfaces anywhere near as much.

But most of all, experiment, experiment, experiment...

I mean, I just end up slapping it on at the end when I'm painting squadrons.... But that's because i've taken care of everything else so when I get to that step, I can

Also you need to remember Gravity, a fighter on a stand, the wash is going to run downwards, if you want it to coat evenly, you need to place the fighter (Ties) on its side and wash one side at a time.

Rebel stuff is fine for the most part as they do not have huge vertical sections on them.

I make a very very thin wash. Usually it's a drop of black paint mixed with 10 drops of water and mixed very well. Then, I load the brush and wash the whole model. The model is painted in a brighter shade of the end color. If I realize I've got too much wash on, I either spin it on the stick or give it a few quick puffs from the lungs. If I don't like what I've got then I do it again and let the model dry in a different position or hit it with the base color or a white dry-brush on high points. If you want something to stand out (colored stripes, symbols, cockpit colors, etc) do those things after you wash.

Another option is to paint your low spots like panel lines with a dark color (or prime with black) then do a quasi-dry brushing (more paint than a normal dry rush but less paint than a normal coating and very light touch) with the color you want to end up with. You have to use a lot less paint than you normally would for a normal coat and it'll take several coats/passes before you get the color you want. This is easier on bigger models and it's tricky to get just the right amount of paint.

If the wash darkens the whole miniature, drybrush it with the original color, as was said above. The recesses will be dark.

Thank you all very much. I love this community!

I will try several of your hints. Thanks again!

I find that sometimes, the surfaces that I've prepared (usually by poor priming, or inconsistent painting) can have a texture themselves, and washes love texture. If your surface is textured, your wash will fill that surface as much as it fills any recesses...

Although, I now know thanks to all of your posts that I made several mistakes, I think that this is the main reason. I recognized that my rebel squads have a lot of texture on their surface after priming (the imps don't fave this problem, because I had black priming spray from citadel with them, not the white from Vallejo I used for the rebels).

I'll try to deal with this...

I forgot to mention, the amount of water used to make a wash depends on how thick your paint is to start with. The black I'm currently using is pretty thick, maybe the consistency of melted ice cream when it comes out (i.e. before thinning). If I were using Vallejo brand, I'd thin 5:1 water to paint (using drops of course). If the wash rapidly wicks up your brush then it's probably thin enough … at least for me. Good luck and don't be afraid to experiment. If you mess up, get some Simple Green or another equivalent cleaner and soak the model in that to remove your paint and then start all over. It's all about learning what works best for you.

In my experience with spray primers I found Citadel to be pretty thick and it would cover too much detail. I stopped using it years ago, maybe it is better now. Citadel is also very expensive. I started using black and white spray primer from Walmart. $0.99 a can. Sprays very thin and it very good for miniatures.

In my experience with spray primers I found Citadel to be pretty thick and it would cover too much detail. I stopped using it years ago, maybe it is better now. Citadel is also very expensive. I started using black and white spray primer from Walmart. $0.99 a can. Sprays very thin and it very good for miniatures.

Completely the 100% opposite experience with Primers.

Mostly because Primers themselves are very, very, VERY succeptable to atmospheric and temperature conditions - and also, very succeptable to human error. Not that I want to be treading on anyone's toes here... But basically, in my many years of hobby experience - HOW TO PRIME is a subject that is never taught to people, and it induces the most collossal screwups you have ever seen in modelling...

Primers are different from brand to brand, area to area, humidity to humidity.

By no means is GW the best because its expensive... But I can't use the cheap Walmart stuff, as it sprays horridly inconsistently. Also, my area is super-super Dry, with almost no humidity ever, so my own priming method had to be adapted to change...

I mean, if you want to talk about going on too thickly - my Primers of Choice for where I live (Calgary) are FILLING and SANDING primers from Rustcote... Its mid-range, and if you're not careful, will obliquely fill all detail - but it also fills tiny imperfections when used correctly...

Remember with Primers, if you're priming in Black, then your model should not end up black...

Primers exist to give a surface for Acrylic or Enamel paints to ADHERE to. If you're using your Primer to colour, you are USING TOO MUCH, and no matter what you use, it will be too thick.

Best way to ink a model I have found is to dab at the model and apply the ink where you want it. If you get any where you don't want it you then use the brush once it has emptied of ink to dab it up and apply it elsewhere.

Don't just paint it all over and expect it to do what you want, take brush and show it who is boss!

Tip if you don't want your wash to tint your model: gloss coat first! As Dras mentioned, it's all about surface energy. The gloss on a model helps stuff pool into recesses. Also, consider adding a surface tension breaking agent (like windex or a bit of future acrylic) if you don't want to gloss. It's not like there's all that much fine detail on FFG fighters anyways, though, so I don't think an extra coat of future does too much harm.