Cheers iMarkay, I am looking forward to painting the command squads, probabaly because I can spend more time on them as they are smaller units, but also because I enjoyed putting them together (when I wasn't screaming at the greenstuff or the brass etch that is!).
Hi Artcore, should mention I have been looking at your Ultras this week again too, and you have got loads done! They're looking ace as well.
Ok I'll talk about the brass etch first as that's easiest.
FW Brass Etch is fantastic, and has really meant that this project is a lot easier, but I won't lie using the stuff can sometimes be problematic on smaller figures like these.
On flat surfaces they are a dream, and will stick with no problem whatsoever, although sometimes this isn't a good thing. I often like to reposition things whilst the glue dries so that I can make sure things are straight or in the right place, but this is sometimes tricky as for some reason brass etch will stick to plastic almost instantly! You'll notice a couple of my aquillas aren't quite straight.....
I use superglue wiht a brush applicator, put a very thin layer on the model and then use tweezers to place the etch.
However I can't stress enough, dry fit first! In other words have a go at placing the etch before you glue it, to check it fits etc.
On curved surfaces though they can be a bit of a nightmare. I have found that gently bending them onto the model before gluing helps, but you may also find that you will need to bend it a bit more for a snug fit once you have glued it in place.
I haven't had any break on me yet, they do seem to be quite bendy.
I use the blunt end of a needle file to bend it in place on the model as my fingers are just too squishy! You have to be careful not to to scratch it though, although once painted you probably wouldn't notice.
And that brings me onto "too paint or not to paint".
I personally will always paint brass etch, but I know people who leave it as it is.
My reasons for this are that I won't always want them brass coloured (the Ultras Symbols as an example will often be white), but also because unpainted they will not cath the light in the same way as the rest of the model, and will need to be highlighted up to the same level.
But the other reason is that brass etch is made of brass, and brass discolours when in contact with air. It also discolours when touched, as the grease on your fingers leaves marks on the brass which then turns it dark brown, or the air will eventually cause verdigris over time.
Varnishing will prevent this, but matt varnish will spoil the lustre of the metal so I prefer to seal it with undercoat and then paint it.
The only place I would not paint brass etch is on a display base, as it looks more professional, and can be polished with brass polish to prevent discolouration.
Ok and then a little bit about Foundation Paints and Washes.
I should explain first that about 10 years ago I stopped using inks, full stop, and never went back.
The problem with inks is that they are unpredictabe, messy and dry with a semi gloss finish which was something I don't like. But it was more the unpredictable nature of them that put me off, hours of work could be spoilt by an ink wash going wrong.
Inks also needed flow mediums added to them and gravity to give the effect you wanted, meaning that figures had to be left in weird position to allow the ink to dry properly, and could take ages.
So I shunned inks and developed my layering and blending skills, meaning that I could achieve the same (sometimes better) effect without having to worry about the unpredictable and uncontrollable nature of washes.
I say this because this style of painting has defined the way I paint for a long time, and I had got a bit stuck in my ways.
This method would involve layering up layers of colour over a black undercoat, using progressively lighter shades to add depth, definition ad highlighting.
I use a black undercoat because I hate black lining on a white undercoat, so it is actually quicker in the long run.
However some colours, like blues, greens, greys would go over a black undercoat very easily, but lighter colours such a syellows, cream, white would take an age.
To give you an example of the way I used to paint if I were to paint my Macragge PDF's fatigues as they are now it would be a s follows:
Black Undercoat.
Paint fatigues Scorched Brown as this goes over black easily and forms a good base colour
Then a paint fatigues Bestial Brown over this.
50:50 mix of Bestial Brown:Snakebite Leather layered.
A layer of Snakebite Leather over this.
50:50 mix Snakebite Leather:Bleached Bone
Bleached Bone
Then highlight by ading Bleached Bone and Skull White
As you can see 7 layers of paint, carefully applied which takes ages.
Then GW released their washed and that all changed!!
GW washes are not inks, but in fact paint washes. This means that they dry matt, but are also much easier to control, need no flow mediums added, and can be mixed with other oaints to create glazes and new washes.
The only thing I have learnt the hard way though is that this means they dry like paints not like inks. Inks contain ethanol, and will evapourite completely over time leaving just the pigment on the model, meaning you can slap them on with no fear of obscuring detail.
Washes however don't do this, so if you slap them on they can dry and block out detail areas, so be aware of this.
However they are very easy to control and mean that you can add shading to a model in one wash, that removes several of the steps mentioned above.
The same fatigues are now painted as follows:
Black undercoat.
Paint fatigues Dheneb Stone
Apply thinned down wash of Gryphonne Sepia (just add water)
Paint fatigues Kommando Khaki
Layer with Bleached Bone
Glaze with 70:30 mix of Komando Khaki:Gryphonne Sepia (Glaze is just a very, very thinned down paint) to blend layering
Highlight with Bleached Bone, then add a bit Skull White to the Bleached Bone to add final highlights.
OK so it's still 7 layers, but the Dheneb Stone I slap on with a tank brush (no really!
), and the washes take seconds.
This method has drastically sped up my painting.
And the only reason Ihaven't used the Foundation Paints on the blue is that they were not available when I started my Ultramarines, so I used Regal Blue as a Base Colour for them which is quite different from Mordian Blue.
Because I want my Macragge PDF to tie in with my Ultras I have stuck to the same scheme, but if I was starting from scratch again I would have used the Foundation Paints.
Hope that helps.