Tricks for Painting and Finishing Miniatures

What I use to paint figures.

For painting metal figures, I have a process. After casting an removing flash, I give it a once-over with a thin wire brush. The thin wires do not mess with the details. They leave tiny, almost invisible scoring. You need a magnifying glass to seed it. Paint adheres better because of those scores / grooves. Next, I wash it with water and let it dry overnight. Next day, I give it a coat of Rustoleum clean metal primer on all sides, including under the base.. After letting it dry for a couple hours, I bake it in a small toaster at about 250 to 270 degrees for about 20 minutes. This makes the paint primer harder.

I paint using various techniques. Usually I start with a base coat of the primary color for the figure. Next come the other colors, and then the details. Last I paint the top of the base a thick acrylic green or brown shade. While still wet, I add model railroading turf, usually a blend of grass and earth. For desert figures I use a base coat of dark yellowish tan paint and add playground sand.

Depending on the figure and the colors, I may also use washes and / or dry- brushing.

The final step is a flat / matte clear spray to protect the paint.

For plastic, I spray paint a base coat of flat enamel and let it dry. I follow up with acrylics. They adhere to the flat enamel well. Acrylics do not always adhere well to bare plastic.

I do NOT wire brush plastic figures. Never!

I use a hobby spray for plastic, such as Model Master (We used to like the old Pactra flat sprays.)

I use craft shop acrylics. Favorite brands are Folk Art, Deco Art, Apple Barrel and Anita’s. Years ago my friends and I used a brand called Polly S. Now it is made by Testor’s and is called Polly Scale. (I do not have a nearby hobby shop that carries it). The craft stuff is cheaper and you get more of it.

For clear coat, Folk Art makes a good flat. Rustoleum also makes a few..

I use Rustoleum Clean Metal Primer for priming .metal figures.

If I must brush on flat enamels, I use Testor’s in the small bottle. I have used Testor’s for over 55 years. I used to paint with Pactra, too, which is no longer available since it was bought out by Testor’s.

I use paint brushes and other items. Small hobby files and metal emery boards are quite useful. Knives are also valuable, be their a very sharp pocketknife of craft knives such as Excel and Exacto. Another goodie is the old Atlas Snap Saw.

For removing pieces from a sprue, I use a sprue cutter. In the past, I used a small wire cutter. Cutting is better than twisting. Cutting / snipping does not damage the piece. Twisting can mar the piece.

I buy good brushes. for the most part. I have a variety of sizes, from 4 to 00. Brushes are cleaned thoroughly after use. Better brushes last much longer than the cheap ones.

Toothpicks can also be used for many things from applying dots of paint to applying and shaping glue and putty. Round toothpicks are best. The pointy end can be further sharpened with a knife.

Birthday candles have their use. They can be used to heat the end of a pin. The pin is used to poke small holes in plastic, whether you are making bullet holes or holes for adding detail parts. Then there is the old “stretch sprue” trick. A piece of hard plastic (usually fro m a model kit sprue) can be held few inches over the flame until it is soft, then pull both ends to make thin pieces. These can be used for details, antennae, etc. Use this at your own risk. I keep a cup of sand around when I work with small fire. Sand can douse the flame and is a lot less messy than water.

Small wire brads can be used to replace broken rifle barrels in 45mm to 60mm figures.

Most of my tricks were developed because I could not buy better items when I was younger. For instance, I did not have an airbrush or more advanced hobby equipment. It was all hand tools.

Painting: Shading Uniforms and Other Tricks

Perhaps 1 out of 50 can paint miniatures that win competitions. They have the talent combined with experience to produce beautiful figures. This article is for the other 49. Though we might not be able to produce competition-grade miniatures, we can paint figures that look great. Here are some tricks I have used over the years. They work great even with crude figures, as seen in accompanying illustrations

Shading

Shading is the art of adding shadows and highlights to miniature figures. These replicate their real-world counterparts. Shading follows the normal ambient light. It is as if the light comes from above. Shadows and highlights are painted accordingly.

Highly-skilled artists can do amazing shading work. They paint each fold and highlight meticulously. Perhaps one in fifty figure painters has this high level of skill. But all is not lost for the rest of us. We can do an attractive job of shading that will make miniatures of which we can be proud. in this article, I will discuss some quick and easy tricks for shading uniforms.

Center and left figure with teal wash over light green; right with blue wash over blue grey

Shading fatigues

This is a trick I have used for years and it produced interesting effects. I paint the fatigues in a base color. For US troops circa 1942 - 1980, I use a sage or eucalyptus green. The paint is allowed to dry fully (24+ hours minimum for acrylics.) Next, I make a wash of a darker shade of green. For this, I use Olive Drab, Forest Green or dark Teal Green.. I give the figure a good wash, making sure the colors get into the folds and crevasses. Once the wash dries, I may go over some highlighted places with the original base color.

Base color

Shading color added

Finished figures (Left figure made with teal wash over grey, right with darker tan over khaki tan)

A greenish khaki tan is easy to do. Paint the figure a khaki tan. Wash with a thinned dark green. Let dry. Touch up highlights with the base color.

Four figures done with olive green over light green. You can vary the darkness. Compare with dark olive soldier and teal wash over light green figure.

As the above photo illustrates, the thickness of the wash can be varied for different effects.

For some figures, I take a medium blue-grey (more blue than grey) and paint the figure’s uniform. When it is fully dry, I give it a wash of a dark Navy blue. This works for Civil War figures. A thinner wash looks good for Air Force figures.

For painting Germans in field gray, I use a flat sea green. When it is fully dry, I give it a thin wash of dark gray. Done right, it makes a great feldgrau.

Shading: field gray tunic, stone gray trousers

If the Germans are wearing the stone grey trousers, I paint the pants light grey. When fully dry, I give them a thicker wash of dark grey.

Another German trick is to paint the figure grey, an then wash with Dark Teal.  It produces a very interesting take on Feldgrau (Field Grey)

For Afrika Korps, paint the uniform in light khaki. A more yellowish hue is also acceptable. When fully dry, wash with a honey-colored tan.

For the early olive Afrika Korps uniform, paint them a light olive. Follow with a thin wash of a darker green.

Afrika Korps early green uniform shaded. Even a crude figure looks better.

For the Afrika Korps uniforms that faded to brown, there are two options. Use a light to light-medium brown as the base color. When filly dry, try either of these. 1) a thin wash of a darker brown, such as cinnamon or medium brown. 2) A thin wash of olive green.

Heavy shading makes these figures look interesting.

Grassing the base

Get a good “grass” mixture (also known as ground foam). Scenic Express and Woodland Scencic are two good brands. You can use green grass and brown earth colors. I also have some playground sand, which is very fine.

Paint the completed figure’s base in a thick coat of paint.  Green for grassy terrain, brown for earthen terrain, and tan for deserts and beaches. I use acrylics.  Pour some of the stuff in a small container. While the paint is still wet, place the figure’ base in the container and swish it around. Make sure it is fully covered with ground foam. Let dry for at least 24 hours.

Afrika Korps with sand base.

Civil War Goober with grassy base

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Notes: Acrylics tend to dry flat, though some may have a slight satin finish. This is not a matter of brand so much as a particular color. Whether it is a factory thing or the pigment I do not know. Acrylics need to be given a protective coat.

The acrylics available at craft stores are affordably priced. Qualtiy varies. I have had good results with Delta / Delta Ceramcoat, Folk Art, Apple Barrel Colors and Anita’s Acrylic Craft Paint. I have had poor results with Craft Smart, the bargain brand sold at Michael’s.  Tamiya acrylic works well enough, but it is pricey. A bottle of it contains less than half what a bottle of the craft store acrylics contain.

I prefer to give objects a base coat of flat paint before using acrylics. I prime metal figures with a flat primer. For plastic models, I give a spray of flat enamel. I do not have to prime wood, which holds acrylics well.

This article shows applying shading to tan and green figures: http://www.thortrains.net/toysoldierart/flame1.htm

Color variations

Paint the Eyes on Miniature Figures: Easy Tricks

Many collectors of toy soldiers and wargame figures like to paint their own. One thing that many find daunting is painting the eyes. Though there are experts who can paint amazingly realistic eyes, the average hobbyist does a fair job of it. All too often, they eyes are bulging as if the soldier just saw a ghost, or they are varying degrees of cockeyed.

Do not despair. Here are some simple tricks that modelers have used for years.

Eyes are not that difficult using these trick

The Better Paint Job.

This one is pretty easy. Follow the illustrations below, numbered 1 through 4. The oval in the middle of the image represents the contours of the casting’s eye. In other words, it is the molded-in eye.

2) Paint a strip of white over the eye. It is alright to go past the contours of the eye.

3) Paint a line downward where the pupil should be, in the eye color.

4) Following the molded contours, paint the flesh color as shown. Then follow up with eyebrows..

Using this trick, the Sikh soldier's eyes look natural, not the "I see a ghost" from too much white

Even a crude figure can have a good set of eyes

The Simpler Paint Jobs

Maybe you find that a bit difficult. Here are two tricks that were used by factories that painted the old toy soldiers. It can be used on figures 50mm / 1/35 and above.

In both examples, the oval represents the contour of the eye as molded on the figure.

Large Figures 

This one is good for figures from 50mm on up. One company that used it to good effect was Elastolin.  If you have an exceptionally well-detailed figure, you can do it on smaller miniatures.

1) Paint over the eye, where the eyebrow should be. You could use black or brown, or the figure’s hair color.

2) Paint a black line through the eye where the pupil should be

You can touch up with skin tone if your lines are too long.

Small Figures

This little trick is great for smaller figures from 30mm to 15mm.

1) Paint a black or dark brown line over the top of the eye contour.

2) Paint a short line underneath where the pupil should be.

Do not fret if you go over the “line”. You can touch up with skin-tone paint.

These are all good tricks for painting the eyes. With practice ,you can do more advanced techniques. These tricks will get you started in the right direction.

This Elastolin warrior shows the simpler eye method for large figures.

More #5681 Paratrooper Conversions

The troops I painted previously in the “chocolate chip” camouflage illustrate just how creative one can be with this set of figures. They were cast from the Rapaport /Castings / REB mold # 5681 “Air Commandos.”  My intention with this set was to paint them in the style of Vietnam-era US soldiers.

The trick to painting these figures is simple. Their uniforms and field gear are almost generic, insofar as soldiers from the 1940s to recent years. They wear a jacket similar in cut to a field jacket or tunic. Their boots are meant to be the British type worn with a cuff-like legging. These can easily be painted as a one-piece combat boot. The belts and shoulder straps are cut like many used by US, UK, German, and other armies. The most that might be necessary is a little filing on the back of the man with rifle and bayonet. Using thick paint can simulate a Y or H harness. Ther ammo pouches are of the British type. Scoring two grooves on each would make them similar to the German ammo pouch for the submachine gun. One can also file them shorter to resemble the ammo pouches used by the US Army from 1957 to the present.

Then again, one might not bother filing the pouches and still get a fine finished product.
One trick to develop is filing a bowl or M1 Hadfield helmet into other types. With many homecast GIs, it is possible to carefully file the helmet to resemble a stalhelm. One can also file them to replicate a Fallschirmjager helmet. For longer barrels on firearms, wire brads or very small finishing nails can be used. At this size, the head of a finishing nail looks like a flash suppressor.