Seaorgrudy Posted September 25, 2020 Report Share Posted September 25, 2020 Just wondering as far as painting and basing the figures are concerned. Would there be some sort of consensus as to what sort of terrain to base certain heroes and villains with? Like I would think everyone from Nordheim would get based with snow and so forth but that's an easy one. I think the mummies would go best on sand but that's an easy one too... Any thoughts on this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garbetsp Posted September 25, 2020 Report Share Posted September 25, 2020 (edited) I'm doing both of those above. However, for basing my focus is a little different. I want some variation so not everything is the same. I have some cracked mud paint, some red iron earth, some rock, even some stumps. My goal is to provide a setting for the miniature but not to overshadow it. It has to sit in the visual space behind the miniature and frame it. To this end I've mostly used muted earth tones, occasionally greens or reds. But I use the color scheme of the miniature and think about what would look good framing it. Most of the time, my default choice is earth tones if I don't want to think about it much. Edited September 26, 2020 by garbetsp Me English Good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seaorgrudy Posted September 25, 2020 Author Report Share Posted September 25, 2020 Yeah that cracked mud looks awesome in pictures. I might try that. I'll grab some of that technical paint and show you my results. Thanks for the insight! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garbetsp Posted September 26, 2020 Report Share Posted September 26, 2020 Get some grass tufts and some static grass as well. The thing it took me a bit to figure out with the static grass is that you really need a gob of glue and you push a wad of it on the base. It stands up as it dries. My earlier minis the grass looks terrible because I just put a little bit on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garbetsp Posted September 26, 2020 Report Share Posted September 26, 2020 Oh, one more thing. Most of the time I'm just putting sand and little grains on with super glue. Sometimes I screw it up. I hide that with grass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seaorgrudy Posted September 26, 2020 Author Report Share Posted September 26, 2020 What is the best glue to use and static grass brand in anyone's opinion? I'm just now getting my supplies in order. This hobby is any awesome but there are many parts to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garbetsp Posted September 26, 2020 Report Share Posted September 26, 2020 For an unprimed surface, cyanoacrylate (super glue) is really the best. I used polyvinyl acetate (PVA or Elmers) on a base once and had it looking incredible. Got finished and it separated in a perfect thin disc. I ended up using super glue to fix. For a primed / painted surface PVA works better. Super glue can appear very glossy if there is any excess. I generally try to get it all set with PVA, prime. Then for grass tufts cyanoacrylate, and static grass PVA. If you have any contrast washes PVA will dissolve. So make sure you're painting is done before any PVA is used. I personally buy stuff mostly from Green Stuff World. I don't know who's the best. I've picked up things in hobby stores and they didn't work as I envisioned. I threw them in my growing 'bits box'. Later they worked perfectly in some other context. So try things. Some will work, some won't. If you really want to make sure of a new technique, just prime some empty bases and experiment. Take all this with a grain of salt, I'm still learning and am by no means an expert. My models are far from perfect, but in those spare moments of time mixing a little paint I find it very relaxing. There's been a few "nailed it" moments that I've let go about and my wife and I make up a story about how they could have ended up in such bad shape, "Well that one was out all night at the club and got hit by a motor bike on the way home." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmallRealities Posted September 28, 2020 Report Share Posted September 28, 2020 On 9/25/2020 at 9:53 PM, Seaorgrudy said: What is the best glue to use and static grass brand in anyone's opinion? I'm just now getting my supplies in order. This hobby is any awesome but there are many parts to it. For holding down most basing materials: Aleene's Tacky Glue (It's a PVA glue that is much stronger than traditional white PVA glues.) For Holding down larger objects (stumps, larger pebbles, etc) I use Zap-a-Gap or another hobby-brand super glue. (I recommend not using generic, dollar store super glues or crazy glue due to their lower shear strength). Also, super glue (cyanoacrylates) cure faster the more humid it is. Several tips: 1. Lightly score or sand the surface of the base prior to applying glue. 2. Do NOT thin out (water down) your PVA glue when applying. 3. Do not shake off excess flock until the PVA has had at least 10 minutes to cure. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garbetsp Posted September 28, 2020 Report Share Posted September 28, 2020 This sounds like really good advice. Nice, I'll give the tacky glue a try. Be ware that most PVA's that are stronger contain formaldehyde or something similar as a solvent. So no eating the glue! I also like to buy the smallest tubes of super glue possible (I currently have 12 tiny tubes of it). The bigger bottles just gunk up beyond belief. I got one with changeable tips and I never could those to work properly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garbetsp Posted October 2, 2020 Report Share Posted October 2, 2020 I pulled the MSDS for Aleene's glue just to see what made it different. It's a standard PVA glue like Elmer's and is not one of the formaldehyde enhanced ones. I noticed it's pH is low (4.5). I looked this up and the pH of PVA glue is dependent on fiber size (lower pH ~ smaller fibers). This indicates a fiber size of around 275nm. This results in tighter bonds than brands with bigger fibers. So the difference is that they've filtered it down to include the better bonding small fibers. I've now ordered some for my work table. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seaorgrudy Posted October 2, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 2, 2020 After that structural chemical assessment I concur. It will be the right adhesive for me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roolz Posted October 5, 2020 Report Share Posted October 5, 2020 I've re-based all my Conan painted minis with clear acrylic bases, to solve the issue of "visual consistency with the boards". However, re-basing with acrylic takes almost as long as doing a regular textured base. I believe that it you do a somewhat generic basing (for example, a bit of stone, a bit of earth, a bit of wood, a bit of grass), it will match most of the boards. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seaorgrudy Posted October 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 7, 2020 I got the citadel basing kit with mud earth snow blood grass tufts and skulls galore. Where should I get pebbles and wood pieces. I live in the city and can't just go to a park. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmallRealities Posted October 12, 2020 Report Share Posted October 12, 2020 On 10/7/2020 at 3:49 PM, Seaorgrudy said: I live in the city and can't just go to a park. Why not? There should be a plethora of sticks and pebbles on the ground in most parks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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