"Need help with dipping needed .for diverse 15mm armies" Topic

Okay y'all, I need to know which wood stain or polyurethane I need to use on my 15mm armies First up is a Late War German Heavy panzer engineers. Next is a Late War American Armored Rifle Company. The next one is a Late War British Para Coy and after that in the not to distant future a Late War Soviet Strelkovy Battalion. So with these diverse armies do I need a variety of wood stains or shades or will one shade/stain be suitable for all? Thanks and salut y'all!

Bruce the Texas Grognard

There are two shades of dip I'd consdider.

-Minwax Polyshades Antique Walnut.
Use this medium-dark brown color for anything that would react well to a brown wash. Yellows and tans look great with this. Miniatures with alot of flesh also.

-Minwax Polyshades Tudor
Use this Black-pigmented color for units that would not look good if given a brownish-hue. I like Tudor with greys, some greens, reds, etc.

If you haven't painted the figs yet, I'd recommend using a white undercoat and slightly lighter shades than historically accurate. Dips work best over lighter colors and they will darken the paintjobs. If you've already painted them in fairly dark colors then I'd go with Tudor as it's dark enough to contrast darker colored paintjobs.

If you only want one color dip for everything, Tudor is my best suggestion.

I'm not as familiar with the particular units you mention, but that's the general guidelines. I've got alot of information on dipping and many painted examples with both shades in my tutorial. link

Actually, I believe it is "Royal Walnut". That is my go-to shade: easy to locate in any DIY store, whereas Tudor (Black) is typically only found in hardware stores in the USA. The Royal Walnut is a dark brown, which gives the figures a dirty look, as if they haven't had a bath in a while, and they've been slogging in the dirt. I use it almost exclusively, but that's just me.

If you coat the figures with a full-strength application of Pledge Floor Shine, the rough, microscopic surface of the paints will be smooth, and the stain varnish will not darken the whole figure as much, as it will concentrate in the folds more, with less darkening of the raised surfaces. Cheers!

I like the Minwax polyshades Tudor Satin. Wherever 2 different colors come together there is a thin black line.

Got to love that… considering the amount of time I would use before being very careful and then too, doing touch ups.

To avoid darkening of the initial paint colour, try applying satin or gloss varnish first. Allow to dry thoroughly before applying the "dip". Personally , I use "Magic Wash",using Future floor polish. It's much cheaper, less smelly and doesn't dry up so quickly as the mineral spirit based dips. It is also possible to make exactly the colour you want by dissolving appropriate acrylic inks or paints. NB: do not use " Indian ink"

link

Future Floor Polish has been renamed, Pledge Floor Shine. Same great acrylic product, just a different name. Cheers!