Basecoat Question

[icemantis99]

Okay, this is probably a stupid question, but...

Looking at painting guides, I'm supposed to mix my base coat paint with water about 3-to-1 before painting, but I can't find a way to get te paint out of the bottles in anything other than a dollop. It's really inefficient- I waste a ton of paint pouring it out, and too much always comes out. Should I mix a large batch and store it seperately, am I missing a tool or something...? Sorry if this is a "duh" question, but while I like what I'm painting, mostly, my basecoats are pretty thick, especially on small stuff like Arachnids. Help? Thanks for your time.

[tenabrae]

You dont always need to thin paint that much, depends which brand paint you're using.

That aside, just use a brush to scoop out some paint (use a dodgy brush) rather than trying to pour it.

Edited May 13, 2010 by tenabrae

[icemantis99]

Thanks. I literally just got into painting. So it's been an adventure, ha ha. I like how my stuff's turning out, but whenever I try and wash, I just end up dumping way too much paint into the pallette.

[costampede]

I use a flat gray primer out of a spray can from Wal-mart, cost around a $1. Cheapest and quickest way to get mini's ready to paint.

[kbdrand]

He is talking about the basecoat, not the primer. What I do when I am using GW paints is use the opposite end of the brush to dip into the paint and pull some paint out onto my pallet. But, I generally prefer Reaper paints since they come in a dropper bottle and they are local to my area.

[icemantis99]

I got a Citadel basic painting kit, but I'll keep an eye out for a Reaper kit. A dropper would be wonderful. Thanks for the advice!

[WookieeGunner]

I use toothpicks to pull some out of the pot and to mix the paint and water. In additon, I use old CDs as my palettes.

[kbdrand]

You can buy sets of Reaper paints on eBay pretty cheap.

[The Strange Dude]

I use GW's green stuff modeling tool as one end has a 'scoop' and a disposable pippette for adding water.

[Sholto]

I use an empty Vallejo bottle (you can buy then on Ebay for peanuts) for water, since you can control it just like a water dropper. When using GW paints I either take a bit of paint out the pot with an old paintbrush and drop it on my palette or add the water directly to the back of the lid (it forms a little cup when you tip it back and - once you're finished - the added water helps keep the rest of your paint fresh.

Sholto

[Steelwhip]

use vallejio paints. they come in little squeeze bottles that measure out even drops of paint.. and they have better pigments than GW paints and are a hell of alot cheaper

[maxvon_d]

What I do when using GW style paint pots is to just use my brush to pick up a couple of drops. I mostly use Vallejo paints though which have a dropper bottle and allows you to deposit a small amount as needed on the palette.

I then have a small plastic dropper/pipette thing which I picked up from Muji which I use to drop in water to the required dilution.

[Melnibonean]

Being new to painting you have to understand... You will always waste a bit of paint. This will happen for various reasons and there is nothing you can really do about it. But remember, the paintjars/bottle look pretty small but they go a long, long way when it comes to painting figures.

When I used enamel paints (in the dim dark past) I had tins of paint that I literaly had for 10 years or more. In fact I had one tin of dark red Humbrol paint that lasted 15 years. Honestly... And I used every single drop in the tin!!!

[Mospaeda]

If you don't put the Vallejo caps on tight, they tend to develop clogs that need to be poked through with a pin. DO NOT SQUEEZE THE BOTTLE HARD to unplug it (or your shirt will turn Beastial Brown too).

[maxvon_d]

If you don't put the Vallejo caps on tight, they tend to develop clogs that need to be poked through with a pin. DO NOT SQUEEZE THE BOTTLE HARD to unplug it (or your shirt will turn Beastial Brown too).

Heh. We're still finding blobs of dried paint on walls and bookcases from when a friend did exactly the same with one of my paints during a painting session!

[Q'iq'el]

If you don't put the Vallejo caps on tight, they tend to develop clogs that need to be poked through with a pin. DO NOT SQUEEZE THE BOTTLE HARD to unplug it (or your shirt will turn Beastial Brown too).

You can open Vallejo bottles and mix them with a normal mixing stick just like any other paints. The "dripper" part is removable and if there are clogs, you can simply wash it separately.