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I'm thinking about picking up some buildings for my board, but I lack an air brush and find painting terrain to be rather tedious. I was thinking a solution to this would be to prime the buildings black and then use DIY spray paint for a base coat, then apply highlights and details myself in the conventional way. Does anyone else do this? Any pointers? Or is this a bad idea?

I think a lot of people will do this. You can get a reasonable effect using black, grey and a lighter grey spray for buildings, just by applying a full undercoat of black, spraying a slightly patchy grey and a lighter, patchy pass of lighter grey.

Then add in weathering, details, etc as normal.

I use spray paint in a can all the time! Its great and cheap. I go to LOWES or Home Depot and use their $.99 cent spray paint(flat black, not gloss). Its a little off and not fully black, but its great if you want to prime a whole army or a table full of terrian for just a buck. Just dont spray on foam as the chems in the can will eat the foam(unless you want that kind of melting look to a building).

This is what I use, bud:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Quick-Color-10-oz-Flat-Black-General-Purpose-Aerosol-Paint-J2853812/100115071

Works GREAT!

If you're using mdf terrain, you'd do we'll to seal it with varnish, or otherwise the cut areas will soak up the paint and not give you an even coat.

Spray primer is a great time saver.

Another vote for cheap black primer, gray dry-brush, and a few highlights.

Behind daemon Bob for example:





Behind Eldrad:



I was shown a technique by a visiting member of the Games-Workshop 'Eavy Metal team. Really water down a color, and use it like an ink, for lichen, mold and other aging, weathering effects:




While I think I over did the purple over the Crisis Suit's left shoulder, the orange in the bottom recesses of the doors looks good as rust.

Take a look at this stuff:

If you're using this polystyrene, avoid spray paints like the plague of Nurgle. Spray painting will cause the stuff to shrivel up into gak, so using a brush is a necessary, not to mention lengthier, evil. Since my basement is being finished and we're doing the framing and insulation ourselves, I'm going to have a lot of excess of the stuff for hills and walls, but that means spraying paint is out of the question for me.

 KommissarKiln wrote:
If you're using this polystyrene, avoid spray paints like the plague of Nurgle. Spray painting will cause the stuff to shrivel up into gak, so using a brush is a necessary, not to mention lengthier, evil. Since my basement is being finished and we're doing the framing and insulation ourselves, I'm going to have a lot of excess of the stuff for hills and walls, but that means spraying paint is out of the question for me.

This isn't entirely true. There are craft sprays that are safe to use on expanded polystyrene. You can also get away with it with other sprays if you first coat the foam in a water-based sealer. Thinned down PVA (white) glue generally does the job. I brush it on, although I have heard of people using a watery PVA mixture in a spray bottle as well.

Using spraypaint on unsealed polystyrene can also give you interesting effects. Can be good for making craters or melted chaos terrain. Though do it outside or in a well ventilated area.

I'm well aware what happens to styrofoam when you spray it, I've ruined a few hills and rocks in my day lol. I was really just asking for plastic and MDF buildings. Looks like a whole bunch of people do this already, thanks for all the advice guys.

 KommissarKiln wrote:

If you're using this polystyrene, avoid spray paints like the plague of Nurgle. Spray painting will cause the stuff to shrivel up into gak, so using a brush is a necessary, not to mention lengthier, evil. Since my basement is being finished and we're doing the framing and insulation ourselves, I'm going to have a lot of excess of the stuff for hills and walls, but that means spraying paint is out of the question for me.

This is true(ish) ... the solvents in most rattle can sprays will destroy expanded styrene. Can be worked around by just sealing the piece before spraying though, or spraying paint without harsh solvents (e.g. by airbrushing). To seal it, thinned down pva should work alright, give it a good once over, ensuring total coverage, let it dry and crack out the spray paints.

For my large pieces, I always us a foam base, but for painting, I'll have Home Depot mix me up a quart of whatever color I want and use a paint gun. I have a standard size one for base coating tables, and a mini for doing terrain pieces. Even coats, and no melting.

I have been making terrain for years, and to be honest have only rarely used my airbrush on any of it.

The method you suggest (craft paint, spray paint, paint on details etc.) works just fine.

The only things I have used my airbrush for are very specific pieces where I wanted special shading in smaller areas etc.
I am not saying that I could use it more....but I have not often found the need.

best of luck!

i think it will work just fine.

try the walmart flat black then they have all kinds of different colours that you could easily put ontop of the flat black base coat.

i believe the colored one are all glossy. or at least the red can of paint that i have on hand is. seal with a matt varnish, should be no problem. then wash it and weather it.

Try this on styrofoam. Dry time is significantly longer but works great. I still use spray paint on even my minis. Don't waste your time on terrain when you could be painting thos boxes and boxes of minis in your closet... We all know they are there.

Anyway this for foam core, tyvek polystyrene, or actual styrofoam:

Spray paint will eat through some foam, but you can use this as a tool actually. You can cover most of the foam with simple acrylic paint; leaving the crumbly areas of the ruins only lightly drybrushed with the acrylic. Then you spray the whole thing with whatever color you want and watch how the spray will eat through the exposed foam. It has a pretty cool effect that looks like crumbled ruins.

I find the most Imperial looking foam comes from the stuff used to pack computers and monitors. It's resembles a wall with buttresses coming off- pretty cool stuff.

you could always seal the foam with any number of different products.