Model Preparation

Today's post might be a bit shorter, and won't contain any photos, which is actually related to the subject at hand: model preparation.

First of all, a statement of the obvious: good lighting is very important. Not only does it save on the eyes, but it lets one see the model more clearly during painting. So there will be a lack of photos until I have a new desk lamp suitable for the purpose.

With that in mind, I thought I'd waffle on about getting models ready to be painted.

There's plenty of information out there, and included with the boxes and instruction sheets, of how to assemble a model. The usual pliers, sharp knife (be careful), etc, all apply. There's also the the recommendation of modelling files to remove left over sprue, a "mould line remover", and emery "sticks".
I find that most of it is actually fairly useful, but for the emery paper. The files do a good enough job, with the emery reserved for those cases that just won't go smooth any other way. So for saving money, definitely go for the files first. They'll also last a lot longer. I recommend a flat file first, and a rounded one second. There are often places where the flat one is too large to fit, and the rounded file works just nicely here.
When using files, I find it helps to keep an old piece of clothing under the model being prepared. The plastic can build up as a dust on the file, and the old clothing (or whatever material) is excellent at wiping this off. I don't recommend paper - the file will likely rub the paper into dust itself. I also don't recommend blowing on the file; other than being ineffective, it just puts the dust into the air.

The mould line remover is actually quite useful, but you can probably use an old butter knife just as effectively (depends which is cheaper!). It's actually more useful at removing mould lines than simply trying to file them off, and saves a lot of time when working with entire squads.

With actual model assembly, it should be obvious to put together as much as won't hinder painting, and leave the rest until after it's all painted. For Space Marines, this generally means leaving the backpack and gun off. Assault troops can make this interesting because the guns are attached to the arms, and swords in particular can cross over the chest and obscure it a little, but I still find it easier to paint them when attached to the model first (I find that my own fingers get in the way of the paintbrush otherwise). Personal preference.

When painting entire squads at a time, spray paint is really useful. Used correctly, I've found it applies a thinner base layer than directly painting with a paintbrush, and it is definitely much quicker to use. I do have a spray gun in my list of tools as well, but I haven't used it yet. I'll be sure to dedicate a paragraph after I've actually tried it out.
One thing to be careful of with spray paints is ensuring that an even coat is applied to the whole model. Spraying one side when laying flat, and then flipping it over and doing the other side can lead to a middle area that doesn't get covered much, if at all. Using an angle to cover these areas can help, but models standing up make it much easier to work with - assuming you have a well ventilated area suitable for that.

Lastly this post (which is already longer than I thought it would be): liquid green stuff. Having learned from the finecast of Commander Dante, I knew that something to fill the gaps left over from manufacturing faults would be very useful. Liquid green stuff is basically a putty than you can paint on, and hardens after a little while. It's very useful for filling in gaps between model components, or filling in moulding faults, but can't really be used as a generic modelling putty. Luckily there were very few places it was required on the recently acquired Lemartes finecast (easily one of the best Space Marine models out there), so the first tries weren't complicated. It really is easy to apply: just paint it on, and let it dry. It thins out well with water, but it's better to use less water, lest it become too runny. The old adage of two thin coats is better than one thick coat applies here too - and it's the second coat I find that really does the best job. The green stuff will shrink a little as it dries, which is one reason that the first coat shouldn't be too "perfect" when applied; leave the proper finish for a second (or later) coat.

And that's about it for now. Most of this post is either going to be old hat, or obvious, but it should hopefully have one or two items that are food for thought in there.

  -- silly painter