"1:1200 gun and carriage tips?" Topic

I've read a number of painting guides (on this site and others) and have a copy of Rod Langton's Guide. I've also drooled over the photos of ships painted by so many of you (true aspirations!), so I know it's possible… BUT…
Do any of you have tips/suggestions on painting guns and gun carriages on 1/1200 scale ships that you'd be willing to share? Real suggestions, please! (I've already eliminated caffeine :) and have a good quality 000 round brush along with a magnifying desk lamp and plenty of patience)… I'm looking for things you've done to make the task deliver better results. Many thanks!

Other than practise I'm not sure what to suggest. Paint the decks, then the carriage, then the barrel. If at any stage you're not happy with the neatness tidy up before progressing.

1) Put a box or pile of books on your painting table, to elevate the model to chest level, or use a low child's chair.

2) Have the adjustable desk lamp positioned appropriately.

3) Rest your hands on the edge of the box / pile.

4) Use magnification.

5) Make sure the paint on your detail brush is at just the right viscosity. I do this by putting the paint on a plastic palette, and adding solvent to one side of the blob to make a range of viscosities available. If the "palette" is a small plastic box with a lid, you can close the lid to reduce evaporation.

MH

In addition to the great suggestions (all of which I've taken in, so thanks to both of you!!!), I also found that a 000 brush wasn't fine enough for me. I'm now using a 00000 for the finer details which is giving me the results I had hoped for. No jokes about a poor musician blaming his instrument! :P I'd like to think of it as the proper tool for the job :D

Again, thanks for the great help!