"Saga of Painting WTJ Ships - Part 1" Topic

Please visit Col Campbell's Shipyard for the first posting of my "saga" of painting the fantastic 1:2400 scale War Times Journal rapid prototype plastic ships.

link

Jim

Thanks for posting the link! If you don't mind a suggestion, when I'm painting black hulls I use a fairly light grey paint, and after it dries apply diluted black-wash to bring out the details. (See example below). With purely back paint, the details tend to get hidden.

Looking forward to more entries as the saga continues!

I like the black wash….! Good Job.

If you don't mind a suggestion, when I'm painting black hulls I use a fairly light grey paint, and after it dries apply diluted black-wash to bring out the details.

Do you add anything to the wash to make it flow better?

Really small miniatures tend to have problems letting washes into the details. I'm usually afraid to even try washes on 1/2400 vessels, and usually resort to drybrushing instead. That black wash over gray looks really nice, though.

- Ix

Do you add anything to the wash to make it flow better?

I dilute the wash with Vallejo thinner medium, my preference being three to five parts thinner to one part wash (depending on how thick I want the wash. Hull sides generally get more than topside features which can be easily overwhelmed). I'm not sure if adding thinner medium counts as making it flow better; I do it more to control the volume of pigment.

I usually apply diluted wash in three steps: (1) the top of the ship (superstructure etc), (2) the port side hull, then (3) the starboard side hull. Obviously the sequence of the second and third steps doesn't matter, but doing them separately and allowing the ship to dry between steps is important.

One trick I've discovered is after applying the diluted wash, and while the ship is still wet, I use a fine brush to suck up some of the wash from surfaces (usually flat surfaces) that have less detail and don't need the wash. This makes the ship look less muddy, and makes the details -- where I have let the wash sit undisturbed -- stand out even more. So, the brush touches the ship, it slurps up some wash, I touch the brush to a rag which dries the brush, repeat, repeat, repeat.

On the cruiser above, for the hull this meant using a brush to slurp up some of the wash from the flat sides, but leave more wash around the sponsons, anchor chain, and so forth. I do this separately for each step for each ship, although typically assembly line style when painting a group of ships.

Jim, I look forward to following your project. I agree the gesso looks a bit too 'toothy' for this size work.

Mr Byron, your pre-dreds look very nice indeed. I have been thinking about using a thinner medium for some time. Not least because some of my vallejo pots have been around for some time. Must get some.

Part 2 of the saga is at: link

Jim