"Gesso and Plastic Figures" Topic
10 Posts
All members in good standing are free to post here. Opinions expressed here are solely those of the posters, and have not been cleared with nor are they endorsed by The Miniatures Page.
Please do not use bad language on the forums.
For more information, see the TMP FAQ.
Back to the Painting Message Board
Areas of InterestGeneral
Featured Hobby News Article
Featured Link
Featured Showcase Article
Featured Workbench ArticleIs DAS Clay sturdy enough to mold tree bases from?
Featured Profile ArticleEditor Julia reports once again on our Christmas fundraising project.
|
Please sign in to your membership account, or, if you are not yet a member, please sign up for your free membership account.
jdpintex | 24 Feb 2014 1:25 p.m. PST |
I've pretty much switched to using Gesso with all of my metal miniatures. However, it doesn't seem to bond as well to plastic figures. Or at least it seems to 'chip' easier with plastic figures until I get that final coat of sealer on them. I'm thinking of going back to spray primers for my plastics. Anyone else having an issue with Gesso and plastics or am I just being impatient with working with a new medium? Any thoughts/comments/suggestions welcome. Especially as the various crack-dealers (miniature manufacturers) keep making stuff that I must have in plastic. Thanks, |
chuck05 | 24 Feb 2014 1:39 p.m. PST |
I use gesso on my plastics all the time. I havent had any issues. |
Jeff W | 24 Feb 2014 1:55 p.m. PST |
Do you give the gesso a solid 24 hours or so to cure before picking the fig up again? |
taskforce58 | 24 Feb 2014 1:57 p.m. PST |
Are we talking about soft plastic common with plastic figures by Revell/Airfix/HaT, or the hard styrene plastic like those with PSC/Perry/Victrix? |
jdpintex | 24 Feb 2014 2:21 p.m. PST |
Talking about hard plastic figures. And I generally give it a good 24 hours or so to dry. Though what I find that if I don't paint the figures and seal them fairly quickly, then they end up 'chipped'. Undoubtedly due to my poor handling, but it's a problem I haven't had with metal figures. Painting faster was my first idea, but that isn't going to happen anytime soon. |
taskforce58 | 24 Feb 2014 2:34 p.m. PST |
I also use gesso, on Perry plastic, and don't have a problem though. Make sure you wash the figures with a mild detergent solution before priming. |
Fizzypickles | 24 Feb 2014 3:25 p.m. PST |
Do you dilute the Gesso? Probably a bad idea on plastics. Which plastics and which gesso? I know a lot of figure painters have fallen in love with gesso as a primer. It does give a lovely tooth to paint on but so far as fulfilling the other requirement for a primer, ie adhesion to the surface, it cannot compete with various other mediums as it is actually designed for porous surfaces. You'd actually get better adhesion mixing some acrylic paint into matt medium and using that. |
Sgt Slag | 26 Feb 2014 11:25 a.m. PST |
Haven't notice any issues, use it on hard, and soft plastic figures. I seal mine with The Dip/Magic Wash, as well. I do, however, notice very frequent pinholes in the Gesso, which requires a touch-up. Other than that, my craft paints adhere normally. A quick coat of Pledge Floor Polish with Future Shine could seal it all in. More work, but if it is a problem, this will keep things simple, and low-cost, without returning to aerosols. Cheers! |
YogiBearMinis | 26 Feb 2014 11:55 a.m. PST |
When you "touch up" the Gesso-primed figure, are you merely re brushing more Gesso on the holes or are you using another technique/material to touch it up? I am really thinking about adopting this technique because it never seems priming is favorable during winters or heat of summers, and I have no ability/desire to create a paint booth. |
Sgt Slag | 27 Feb 2014 11:43 a.m. PST |
I just paint more Gesso over the pinholes I find. It sucks down to the surface, leaving virtually no mark, or rise, in the surface. Painting primer onto a figure is more tedious than spraying it on, en masse, but it works. With regards to 'building a paint booth,' all you need is a box big enough to hold your mini's. By spraying into a box, the paint forms a cloud around the figures, which contains the majority of the over-spray. I use a cardboard box, laid on its side, from the garbage/recycling bin, placing my figures inside. Then I spray inside the box, with very little over-spray, except around the front of the box, on my garage floor. I've even resorted to using a vinyl table cloth (around $1 USD, if you shop carefully, or go to your local Dollar Store), as a drop cloth, setting my painting box in its unfolded center. The tablecloth catches the over-spray, keeping my garage floor from getting color'ed by the gray primer. Cheers! |
|