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Painting ornate transoms with inks? or other techniques.


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So I've been looking at various kits of 16th and 17th century warships, especially after the wife said she wanted me to build one, I quite fancy one.

I've seen the kits such as the Revell Wasa, with very ornate transom details.

With seeing various photos of this kit https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61E%2B5rj6M7L.jpg

...And with my experiences of painting small details onto an already painted surface with a brush being a nightmare, even just a few hull anodes.

I can't imagine this being particularly easy to pull off.

A gloopy paint is impossible to cut in the edges accurately and leaves a rough texture and a thin paint will flow around too much and fill detail.

I wondered if it would be possible to spray the entire area with a very matt (and therefore capable of absorbing substances) primer and then use powerful inks with a fine brush to add colour to areas, with metallic paints applied afterwards for gold details etc.

It's a technique I experimented with years ago on Warhammer 40k figures, actually using felt tipped pens... it worked well for them.

Has anyone tried anything like this or have any other techniques for doing such detailed paint jobs?

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I've used them on shield patterns on 28mm figures and it worked well. I print my own decals now as well, for the same purpose. Is this a worthwhile option?

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi Mitch,

Decals would certainly be a possibility for some bits, for example on the Revenge you have alternating coloured areas on long flat boards, I will look into using them here.

-Sam

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Hi Mitch,

Inks would work well on the Vasa as the poly-chromatic paint scheme had quite pronounced shading.

If you are going to do the Vasa then I would recommend getting in touch with the Vasa Museum as research over the last 20 years has shown that she was not blue and gold/yellow, but very complex.

Somewhere I have a set of plans that over many, many trips to the museum I hand coloured so as to have a good reference for when I build my Billings Boat Vasa. Just need to find them... :banghead:

Christian, exiled to africa

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  • 1 year later...
  • 4 years later...

Regarding the Vasa.  Look at Artesania Latinas wood model on their website. In that can be found a chart showing all the figures on the Vasa as painted with a full chart of all the RAL colour specifications used. The painting supplement can be downloaded separately and will be very useful as a guide for painting the Revell and Airfix Vasa kits

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  • 3 months later...

I would think that standard inks applied with a brush would want to wick out in all directions on the surface you describe. You might consider the use of both liquid masks to preserve the base colors of the transom, and perhaps using fine ink or acrylic markers for some of the work on the decorative carved elements. 

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Another thought- if you normally work with acrylic paints, it can be a bear when dealing with an extended detail painting session because of brush drying, skinning and like that. I don't thin my acrylics with water-that exacerbates the drying problem, and begins to allow the pigments to separate from the binders. But to paint fine details well, you will probably need to thin. I use a 50/50 distilled water/ propylene glycol mixture and paint off a wet palette- makes a world of difference. I have also use Pledge Floor Gloss to thin.  Edited to add- test with your paints first....I'm not sure how Tamiya or Gunze might react.

Edited by xebec
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  • 4 months later...

I have been looking at artists acrylic paints again more recently and have discovered that there are very fine tipped acrylic paint pens. They may well be worth a look at for intricate multi coloured figure paintwork such as found on the Vasa. Being acrylic paint should give a solid colour and allow better control for intricate ornate detailing than a brush can offer.

Having experimented with fine felt tipped pens the inks in them are not permanent, and run it they get wet.

There are inks that become waterproof when dry that are available from artists suppliers shops. The one of two I have dry to a translucent finish however.

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where ship building is concerned, you can never go wrong looking out for Harry Houdini on you tube.................hundreds of videos on rigging, sails, hull building..................Posca pens are your best friend

 

 

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Thanks for the link to Harry Houdini models Ray.

The Airfix St Louis really lends itself to the Acrylic Paint Pens.

 

Not seen that kit around in a long while.

I wish Airfix would release one of their classic ship kits once a year.

I know that the Victory, Cutty Sark, Vasa and Golden Hind that they peddle year on year are good sellers for them,

But it would be a nice change to see something else that they produced in years gone by.

HMS Prince, Royal Sovereign (Sovereign of the Seas), Discovery, Royal Louis. Great Western to name a few.

Or maybe even tool up brand new kits of HMS Warrior or the CSS Alabama.

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