"Perfect miracle wash for 6mm figures" Topic

I just wanted to share the perfect recipe-after much trial and error- to make an easy to use, mistake free black wash to bring out detail superbly on 6-15mm figures (only tested on these)
No colour dulling,easy to use + a time saver was the sought formulae.

To make 8 oz wash:

scant 4oz Future acrylic finish
scant 4oz distilled or boiled water
1 teaspoon "jet dry" (or other liquid diswasher spot remover)
50 drops opaque black acrylic ink
shake!
pigment stays suspended really well and requires the mildest of agitation to be ready to use.

Prime and paint figures any method, oil or acrylics.
spray with Krylon acrylic coating #1305 (a gloss finish)and let dry to touch (in low humidity, only about 10 min. max!)
brush on miracle wash and let dry to touch (as above 20-30 min max)
Spray with Krylon matte acrylic finish #1311 if you want a matte finish, otherwise spray again with the 1305 and you are done.
Comes out excellent every time!
Indestructable to general handling!
Wont "grey out" white uniforms!

Any examples to show us please?

will do- just have to get my son to show me how to do it!

Some photos would be very desirable.

I guess I need a place to post pictures…working on it

I guess I need a place to post pictures…working on it

With claims like this>>>

Comes out excellent every time!
Indestructable to general handling!
Wont "grey out" white uniforms!

Yes please!

Is it DAZ?

Do you want a bluey whiteness then?

Well, golly. You can try it out. I don't expect anyone just to take my word for it. If it helps your hobby efforts, I'm glad to be of service. If not, no worries.

Just wanted to say that varnishing and then doing washes is an old scale model builder's trick. It keeps the wash from staining the paint.

And his wash mixture is very much in keeping with other wash recipes I've seen on the net. For those who don't like a shiney finish when they wash, they can substitute fluid matte medium from an artist's shop for the future. The future is cheaper and tougher, but if you want matte washes, the matte medium works wonderfully.

These guys have had the varnish then wash method done to them. I got the purple grey skin how I wanted it and didn't want the black wash to stain it, just shade the recesses:

link

For thos of us not in the USofA … Future is a water-soluble acrylic floor coating that was developed by S. C. Johnson Company in Racine, Wisconsin for linoleum flooring.

In the Netherlands it is known as "Pronto Wax for wooden floors" or "Parket Plus". In the United Kingdom and New Zealand it is/was known as "Klear", "Krystal Klear" or "Johnson's One and All". During the 3rd quarter of 2008 the product "Klear" was discontinued. In France and Belgium it is "Klir". In Belgium and the Netherlands Johnson's "Klir" is now being packaged under a new nametag – Johnson's "Sols Plus" and as "Vloer Plus". It is apparently the same product just new labelling. In Germany you can find a substitute for this product under the name "Erdal Rex Glänzer" or "Aldi Stodil". In the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland you can find S.C. Johnson's "Pronto" in "Tesco" stores. A Modeller in the Czech Republic states that in the Czech Republic and Slovakia modellers use a similar product called "Sidolux" produced by a company called Lakma. This product is also available in "Tesco" stores and behaves in a very similar manner to Future. In Portugal Future is sold under the "Pronto Cera AcrĂ­lica" which means literally "done acrylic wax". This can be found in most mini markets and local grociery stores. Xtracolour is distributing a product marked as 'Acrylic Gloss Clear' that smells suspiciously like Future Floor Wax. In Japan and the Philippines it is known as "Johnson's Wipe and Shine". In Argentina it is GloCot.

During the third quarter of 2008 S.C. Johnson distributors in the United Kingdom discontinued the product "Klear". In mid-2009 it appears that the UK S.C. Johnson has reissued a Future-like product called Pledge Multi-Surface Wax, (not to be confused with Pledge multi surface floor finish)

WARNING Be sure to test this / these products before using it on a model you care about. There have been conflicting reports from U.K. Modellers about its effectiveness. It does seem to work well as a general gloss finish however does not give a good result when used on clear canopies.

"Info from the swannymodels website"

Aeromodellers in the UK and abroad are using "future" as a polish for canopies, youtube has vids of people producing and selling ink washes for figures, similar to the Army Painter series of dips/washes.

I am looking for the Klear replacement over here (UK) so far with no luck

Rabbit

Finally got a picture-CampaignGQG is my "other" name

sorry, the above is a 6mm Adler French ADC

I paint 6mm so will give it a go.
If it really does work, perhaps you should have thought about mass producing and bringing it to market, but if philanthropy is the order of the day then hats off to you.

I'll post my results when done.

Cheers

Matt

Anyone can do it- the formulae is just one that produces the correct level of pigment in suspension. To prevent greying and to make it an easy application, the gloss coat before the wash is key. After that any sheen finish of any make-up can be applied for the preffered final look. The firgues above are done exactly as deliniated above in amounts and products. Notice the bright whites!

Those are some awesome looking Naps for 6mm!!!

Stunning work, sir!

Ok, for UK speak:

What is Jet Dry spot remover – is that what in the UK we call rinse aid (which is different from UK spot removers, which are normally used on fabric to remove tar etc). ie – a liquid added to the dishwasher with the powder designed to make glasses come out clear.

What is 4oz scant? Is that 4 fluid ounces? And "scant" – sorry, I guess I am saying is it 4 fluid ounces, or more/less?

Thanks

Hi,
yes, liquid rinse aid for the dishwasher. My brother in London assures me it's the same thing- essentially it reduces surface tension in the wash and allows it to flow off the high parts better.

Scant just means (in this case) about a teaspoon less than 4 fluid oz- just exactly what I did to fit the whole mix in an 8oz container..but not strictly necessary, i would guess.

I've used this recipe for several months now and I am very pleased with the results. It works well with larger scale figures, too. I'm not a huge fan of the shiny look, though, so I give my minis a dusting (very light) with a clear matte finish afterwards and they look great.

Hi,
I'm glad it's working for you…mostly I just take a lot of good ideas from here, so it's nice to be able to contribute something small thats helps someone else a bit.

You have the wrong number of buttons on the 6mm ADC.

I knew speed would impact quality, and now it's catching up with me. My shame is deep. I can only say in my defense I use a clumsy dry-brush/wash technique- next time I'll spend a little more time and try using the tip. Funny how these things always come back to bite me in the butt.

This is an old thread so I may not get an answer but I am wondering why the suggestion is to allow the gloss varnish to dry for just 10 minutes, will it make any difference it if dries overnight? Also what brand of acrylic ink, not all inks are of the same intensity (i.e. Windsor Newton, Citadel….)?

I let my Krylon clear coat dry for 2+ hours, as it is solvent-based. After 10 minutes, it is nowhere near cured, in my experiences. I use it year around, but in a dry Summer heat, it might be cured in 10 minutes time.

Acrylic inks vary in pigment levels. Experimentation is necessary, IME. Over shaking/mixing an ink's pigment won't harm it, so better safe than sorry. Cheers!