"Painting old Warhammer Mighty Fortress (foam)?" Topic

I recently acquired one of the old Mighty Fortress kits, which is compressed (or whatever) foam, not plastic. What is the best technique or type of paint to paint this? I am hesitant to prime and slap on acrylics like I would normally, given the material.

Acrylics should be OK. Don't use spray primers. I've always just given things like that a basecoat of housepaint to protect the surface.

Absolutely don't use spray primers. You can use brush on primers though and acrylics will be fine. No idea about oil based paints though.

Whew--I am glad I asked. Do washes and/or drybrushing work the same?

There are some acrylic spray paints, which should be safe… It is the solvents(?) in the spray paints that destroy the foam. Anyway, once it is sealed with house/craft paint, or Gesso (white, gray, or black), it will be immune to solvents, as long as you don't miss covering any spot. Paint, as normal, thereafter: dry-brushing, washes, staining, etc. Cheers!

Acrylic house paint is great for things like this, because they're much cheaper than equivalent volumes of hobby paint. They can even color-match a sample of hobby paint, if there's a color you particularly like.

With something like a foam building, I would avoid anything with solvents, even if you cover it in latex paint first. I've done this with latex paint and oversprayed with regular spray paint and sometimes a bit gets through anyway and melts the foam under the paint.

As was mentioned, Latex Acrylic Housepaint or Craft paint is a very good idea. I've had Menards make me gallons of their cheapest flat paint in various colors for about 10 bucks a gallon!

If your painting large surfaces, I've been experimenting with using a air-compressed paint sprayer on foam. Using normal water based indoor paint, it doesn't harm the foam. And your paint actually goes further, as you thin the paint with water.

Bart

I base-coated my 2nd Ed. Blood Bowl "Astrogranite(tm)" pitch (which I'm sure was the same type of styrene) with a styrofoam-friendly floral spray paint.

That's been forever ago, but I'm sure a Hobby Lobby or some such would have it.

Beats the hell out of brushing on a base-coat.

I painted mine years ago using thinned acrylic craft paint. My idea was to do a wash right on top of the styrofoam but I mixed the paint too dark so it just ended up being a thin coat of black paint. Flowed into cracks pretty well, even though I didn't know to add any surface tension reducer.

Today I would do a better job (primer, different shades, basing, flock) and actually, I have another unopened in the box I found on sale so one day I'll do that.

YOU Can buy floral paint, they have a grey primer and many many colors. I know…I painted a styrofoam / extruded foam using floral paint from a spray can. The propellent is what melts foam…but as long as you keep it about 12-15 inches away, it wont effect it.
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I also have used it on the same type of foam (POLYFOAM) your talking about on the hudson and allen Alamo fort and medieval castles…and used regular spray paint. That type of foam (polyfoam) is not effected by spray paint.

Spary paint melts styrofoam…not polyfoam.