You look over at the piles of unpainted figures, which have lovingly come to be called the steel legions. Your better half bitches at you because she has to dust around them, and the box they are piled in says "Merry Christmas 1991." You sigh, as you are a busy person, and have no time or energy for them. What's a lad to do? WELL, SANTA HAS THE ANSWER FOR YOU! TAKE 'EM FOR A DIP! That's right! Dip 'em! You think, "Wow, Santa's really gone off his rocker this time...must be burned out by the Christmas season and labor problems with his elves." In all seriousness, this installment is about a quick and dirty painting method that can cut your painting by up to 3/4ths!
First you get yourself a can of Minwax "Polyshades." Not just any can, mind you, you have to get "Tudor", which is the darkest stain they make (for those of you who are not familiar with polyurethane, this particular polyurethane is a one step item, has both stain and polyurethane in it). This puppy is hard to find, but the only one recommended for the process. I found mine at True Value hardware, not anywhere else, but I suppose that it can be special ordered. By the way, I got a quart of this stuff for $10.99, but believe me, it will dry out before you use it up.
The next thing to get is one or more disposable brushes for the actual process. These must be a soft or at least flexible bristle. After that, based upon your choice of brushes, you may want mineral spirits or paint thinner to clean them in, as this is not water-based material. I get the cheapest brushes that I can, and just throw them away, avoiding the brush cleaning step.
Ok, on to the actual process. First, base your figure up in the usual manner. I use popsicle sticks for this part. Don't put the figure on its final base, unless you want varnish all over it. Its OK to use "slotta" bases, as the varnish won't show through the black. Next, prime your figure. I brush-prime mine with an acrylic prime. Use a white primer, DO NOT use black, and don’t worry, nothing will show through, trust me! If your figure has a lot of steel, such as a knight in shining armor, or items such as a sword, you don’t have to paint wherever the metal is, you can leave it bare metal. That can be difficult, though, so I usually paint it anyway. Do a base paint on your figure, and I mean only one color. If the figure has a red shirt, just paint the shirt red. There is no shading or highlighting done in this process at all. If you have a sword or metal that you need to paint, just paint it strait silver.
After it's dry, open up your poly. You have to stir it really well, especially if the can is brand new. The stain and polyurethane will separate while sitting. You may even feel the poly caked on the bottom of the can, that's OK, just stir away until you don’t feel it on the bottom anymore. Once it's stirred really well, you can do this by one of two methods.
1)Brush the varnish onto your figure.
2)Dunk it into the can (hence the name, "dipping").
Be careful not to allow too much pooling in one particular area, and just brush it out gently. This is why you must use softer bristles, otherwise you will create air bubbles, which is something that you don’t want. In fact if you do see a bubble, smooth it out. Then simply let it dry. What you get will be a figure that has a magnificent shade, and generally, if you are not 100% accurate with your base coat, it will not be noticeable or covered up.
When you buy this varnish, buy satin. Don't buy glossy, unless that's what you want. You will notice that the figure will have some shine to it, I recommend, if you don't want that, to just spray a little dull coat on it to take that out. Dark colors will still be shaded, but will not stand out dramatically, hence my total avocation of a white undercoat. If you wish to do some highlighting, you can experiment a bit and do some subtle highlighting. Don't do a huge difference in color, because the stain will make that stand out. Oh yeah, and do it before you stain (I think you figured that out). Believe me, you don't have to worry about the paint being scratched off these suckers. After all, this is for furniture. I recommend that you first experiment with a figure that is not highly prized, just so that you can get the feel for this method. You'll be amazed!
'Til next time!
Copyright © 2000 Twinsburg Wargame Association
Revised: 2000-12-31
