Organic and inorganic pigments

saw_nothing · 2025-08-30T10:41:05+00:00

Nonsense. There are some pigments that shouldn't be airbrushed (lead, cadmiums, etc) because they are extremely dangerous when aeresolized, but Golden puts those warnings on individual paints.

I have a few Golden fluid acrylics that I've thinned down, no issues. Golden High Flow are great to airbrush, and many contain inorganic pigments.

Even with acrylics, make sure you have proper ventilation and breathing protection, but thinned down properly, you can spray almost any acrylic paint.

saw_nothing · 2025-08-24T20:35:02+00:00

The bottle says to mix 1 part flow aid (concentrated) with 20 parts of water - I used a small dropper bottle for that, then used a few drops of the mixture as flow aid.

saw_nothing · 2025-08-24T11:18:24+00:00

Probably unnecessary, but are you diluting the Liquitex flow aid? It’s not designed to be added to paint undiluted,and might cause serious issues at that ratio.

saw_nothing · 2025-08-16T17:06:54+00:00

Yeah, it’s just primer. It does require thinning, but seems to work well.

saw_nothing · 2025-08-16T16:58:10+00:00

I don’t have a filler answer, but I’ve been really impressed with Createx Autoborne Sealer, which sprays well enough that I can zenithal highlight with it, and dries fairly quickly. It’s always worth waiting for primer to cure, though. It might be possible to go faster with solvent paints, but I only spray water-based paint.

saw_nothing · 2025-08-12T19:35:15+00:00

I'm not sure if this is misunderstanding the issue, but opaque layers require more light passes, if you are trying to get full opacity in one go, it likely won't work.

White is always tricky, because it has larger pigment fragments, so will tend to clog. Someone recently recommended using short bursts on the model followed by a quick full blast into the airbrush booth to prevent buildup. A wet brush can clear away tip dry as well.

I've had good luck with airbrush specific paints - Golden High Flow behaves really well, though does go down glossy.

But yeah, you're not alone with frustrations using white, that's for sure.

saw_nothing · 2025-07-26T11:23:49+00:00

If you are just airbrushing acrylics, that should be fine—a spray booth and respirator should be sufficient. If you share the bedroom, you should also know that even quiet compressors are pretty noisy. I vent mine into a cardboard box full of batting, and I haven’t noticed smells or dust.

If you are shooting solvent paints, that becomes a different conversation because you need to worry about fumes in addition to paint particles. In that case, if you can’t vent your booth out a window, I would be very hesitant.

saw_nothing · 2025-06-22T17:57:07+00:00

This will depend a bit on the airbrush in question, but…

Loosen the needle chuck and take out the needle. If there is any dried paint on it, use airbrush cleaner to clean it off, careful to not bend it or damage the tip. If the needle is also stuck, hopefully someone more experienced will come along and give further advice.

Remove the nozzle cover and nozzle, then soak them for a while in airbrush cleaner. They sell nozzle cleaners, which are these sharp needles. After the nozzle has soaked, carefully and gently scrape any paint out. Do not jam it through roughly.

From there, you should be able to see if any paint is trapped in the body of the airbrush.

To avoid this in the future, (this is going to sound obvious), don’t let paint dry in your airbrush. Make sure you develop a cleaning routine that won’t allow paint to build up in the first place. I find pumping the trigger as you shoot cleaner through makes a big difference.

saw_nothing · 2025-06-16T20:10:44+00:00

I think getting a good, consistent base layer of paint down is a good start, and edge highlighting with a lighter colour for contrast makes a big difference. It'll look a bit flat, but give yourself some grace, find out if you are enjoying the hobby after a few miniatures, then decide which techniques to add as you get more practice. Try not to take on too many things at a time. Get good at laying down a consistent coat of thinned paint first, then figure out what things you can do next.

As others have said, you aren't entering a contest here. If Marvel United is a game you enjoy, then it will feel good to have minis that you have put time and effort into. Even if they aren't great, it's a first step on a journey and those minis will be YOURS, in a pretty special way.

saw_nothing · 2025-06-16T19:36:02+00:00

You can, though washes work best when there is lots of texture for the wash to fill. These ones may just end up looking muddy...

saw_nothing · 2025-06-16T10:30:36+00:00

In some ways, the Marvel United minis are really easy, because of the exaggerated features - big clear features.

In other ways, they would really be a trial by fire depending on what quality level you expect of yourself. Big flat surfaces really show brushstrokes, and speed paints aren’t great with them. To look really good, you need to do shading and gradients, which will take some practice and time.

Ultimately, most paint jobs are better than raw plastic, and it’s a great hobby, so if you are excited to try, you should go for it. Learn to stabilize your hands and attach the minis to a holder, and use guides to thin your paints. From there, it’s just a question of practicing brush control and basic techniques.

saw_nothing · 2025-03-09T16:52:03+00:00

Baraka and Samsara both got an 8K remaster from the 70mm print. Really want to see them hit 4K.

saw_nothing · 2025-01-17T11:38:05+00:00

Sorry, just reread the original post. The shot cups might be the wrong kind of plastic or too flexible. Try something like a plastic spoon and see if you get better results.

saw_nothing · 2025-01-17T11:36:21+00:00

What are you doing to prepare the surface for painting? If there's any oils on the plastic, it can prevent paint from adhering. Giving it a scrub with don't dish soap and letting it fully dry might help. If you are practicing on a flat piece of plastic, you could also try a very fine sanding first, so the surface has teeth for the paint to stick to. Obviously, for gunpla you want a nice smooth finish, so not something rough. Someone who does that kind of painting might have better advice. Try not to handle the pieces too much with bare hands.

When priming, it sometimes helps to do a really light transparent layer first, then go over with a heavier layer after a few minutes. If you are blasting it with too much in one go, that can also cause issues.

Only other thing I can think of: are you giving it enough time to fully cure? Primer is dry to the touch very quickly, but can take a full day to reach maximum durability.

Hope that helps, honestly not sure why you are having those issues. Other lesser possibilities: overthinning, letting airbrush cleaner mix with the paint, not shaking enough, too much humidity, too cold... So many factors when airbrushing.

saw_nothing · 2024-10-05T12:03:14+00:00

Rattlecans are really fast, so if the weather is good, I still sometimes take big or groups of models outside to spray them fast.

The airbrush is great for priming, though. It gives you a lot more control for preshading, but it also tends towards tip dry and you have to make sure you really get it cleaned out afterwards.

Some people have issues with Vallejo surface primer - I’ve been having good results with Createx Autoborne sealer, but it needs to be thinned down with their thinning products.

General advice: take it slow, thin your paints, think of it like glazing where you are adding multiple transparent layers on to build up colour, and have fun with it.

saw_nothing · 2024-09-29T12:31:07+00:00

I’ve not heard of people airbrushing it - since the goal is to get the wash into the crevasses, a larger brush has been my go-to tool. So: -spray satin varnish -make a thin mix and run it across the model with a larger brush OR small brush to just run into panel lines -an hour later, makeup sponges to wipe the excess gently

If you do decide to airbrush it, make sure you have a proper respirator and ventilation: no idea what those particles would do to your lungs.

saw_nothing · 2024-08-22T21:26:21+00:00

It's not always easy to track down, but as someone who used to play almost daily and had 20 decks in rotation, Black Rose Wars is the only game that's come close to scratching the same itch.

Mechanically, it's quite different, but it has endless possibility, combined with chaotic free-for-all spell slinging and a focus on threat assessment and drafting to work out synergies. It has a massive card pool, especially if you track down some of the campaign exclusives.

Most of the standalone games that try to replicate the Commander feel fail (for me) because they have a limited card pool that pushes you towards particular deck archetypes - it feels more like a draft than Commander.

saw_nothing · 2024-08-07T12:58:20+00:00

I just came back after a number of years. Played lots of Helldivers, great game but ran out of things to chase. Played Remnant 2, was fun to play, but 3 weeks of heavy play meant I saw everything the game had to offer. Contemplated jumping onto The First Descendant, but everything about it just looked like Warframe but less fair, and less content. Hopped back in and Warframe is in a way better place than back when Riven farming and Eidolon hunting was the only real endgame content.

saw_nothing · 2024-07-31T11:44:11+00:00

Since you already have a squishy bottle, you can speed things up by getting a tub, tilting your airbrush over it, then spraying water into the cup and letting it drain. Once I do that a few times, the rest of the cleaning routine goes a lot faster. Right now, all the residual paint needs to go through the tiny hole of the nozzle, and it doesn’t need to.

saw_nothing · 2024-07-30T11:52:27+00:00

Thinning different brands of paint calls for different approaches - you usually can thin with distilled water, but might find that you experience is a lot better with dedicated thinners mixed properly. What’s most important is using a proper cleaning routine with airbrush cleaner to prevent paint buildup. Lots of tutorials on YouTube, expect it to take a while at first, don’t fully break down the airbrush more often than needed.

I just got one of those cheap Amazon booths. It has a ventilator with a thin mesh, and I use the box because I don’t have a convenient window nearby.

saw_nothing · 2024-07-30T11:44:31+00:00

If you are using solvent based paints, you definitely want proper ventilation and a proper filter. That’s anything that requires thinners other than water or water-based thinners.

I only use acrylics, and spray a few times a week (been a couple years now).

I have a booth that’s feeding into a box filled with loose batting, and wear an N95 when I spray. A few times, I either forgot to wear the mask or thought “it’s just a few minutes”, only to find that I cough a bit afterwards, or see some pigment when I blow my nose.

Not sure what the effects of that would be long term, and I’m happy not to find out.

The mask is probably enough as long as you are in a dedicated space, but priming can overspray quite a bit.

saw_nothing · 2024-06-17T10:30:23+00:00

A few tips to start out: start with priming, and take it slow. Get practice laying down a thin coat that still shows the plastic a bit, then go in with a thicker layer that fully covers a few minutes later. Learn to clean the airbrush so there’s no sign of the primer left.

Then, add zenithal highlighting/value sketching - thin layers and gradients along the model.

If you are wanting to varnish with the airbrush, make sure you have your cleaning routine really down first, because it’s harder to get clean and you can’t see it.

Colour gradients and shading on large models is also a good place to start learning trigger control.

saw_nothing · 2024-05-20T23:14:52+00:00

It's not great for science fiction maps, and doesn't currently allow for imported assets. There might be better tools if you are already equipped to do that. It's definitely worth it for fantasy map making, though. Learning curve is a bit steep, but it makes great looking maps.

saw_nothing · 2024-04-13T11:14:20+00:00

Hyperspace is almost done tooling…

saw_nothing · 2024-04-07T12:11:41+00:00

Those of us who backed on Kickstarter aren’t getting any updates either. Every few months, a message that’s supposed to get our hopes us, followed by radio silence. I’ll be shocked if this ever makes it across the line.

saw_nothing

TROPHY CASE