Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Looking to make an investment in a solid starter set. Dust, grime, mud and rust primarily.

I use secret weapons stuff. They have a HUGE variety in colors and are reasonably priced.

I have the Secret Weapon stuff, a few Vallejo pigments and Forge World weathering powders. I also have some pigments from the art store; they all work similarly, IMO -- it's just a question of which color you want.

I have made my own rust to add to models.


Get yourself some steel wool (You can get a big box at the Dollar Tree for a buck) and pack it into a jar.

Fill the jar with some water and let it set. As the water level gets lower, pack down the steel wool, fluff it back up and add some more water.

Repeat as needed.

Mind you this process can take a while, but I really like the results it provides and you can get quite a lot from the process.

I have the Secret Weapon Miniature kit. Love it. There are levels of quality for pigments. Some are mixed with chalk some, some will tell you to buy cheap pastels and file them into powder but doing so means you end up with wax in your pigments.

Go for the pure stuff. Secret Weapon Miniatures and MiG are both excellent products.

eh I have the Forge World weathering set - I got it with the book set so I'm not sure if they'd be considered more expensive than others. They work great, is all I know

All the stuff I've ever gotten from Secret Weapon, as well, is top notch so if I needed more, I wouldn't mind buying their sets or powders too. I've heard good things about them. Plus they have good easy to follow videos on youtube on how to use them!

I have MIG and Vallejo and like both.

Vallejo offer themed sets of 4 jars, and MIG offer different sets that typically have three jars, but not all may be powders (some have washes and others) but the sets are geared towards what you need for a certain 'effect'. Obviously both sell jars separately as well.

I would probably say I like AMMO/MIG the best, but that has to do with the phenomenal customer service I've gotten from their US branch. Product wise they are very similar. AMMO/MIG have a greater variety of weathering products and I think colors of pigments (last time I shopped).

Jake

I just need to ask, how do you apply the powders?

Get some empty containers with lids and some chaulk pastels they are less than a $ each and just shave them into the pot one stick will give you a gw paint pots worth . You can scrub them on dry with. Short hair brush (old one cut down ) or you can mix with rubbing alcohol to make a paste

 CURNOW wrote:
Get some empty containers with lids and some chaulk pastels they are less than a $ each and just shave them into the pot one stick will give you a gw paint pots worth . You can scrub them on dry with. Short hair brush (old one cut down ) or you can mix with rubbing alcohol to make a paste

Seriously...don't do that. If you are concious enough about your painting to want to work with pigments, work with the real thing.

 Erik_Morkai wrote:

 CURNOW wrote:
Get some empty containers with lids and some chaulk pastels they are less than a $ each and just shave them into the pot one stick will give you a gw paint pots worth . You can scrub them on dry with. Short hair brush (old one cut down ) or you can mix with rubbing alcohol to make a paste

Seriously...don't do that. If you are concious enough about your painting to want to work with pigments, work with the real thing.

I've known people who have used chalks to good effect with weathering on high end models. I'm pretty sure that's where the idea of Vallejo, MIG, etc etc etc selling pigments first came from.




That said, I haven't tried pastels myself, I've got some Vallejo pigments and some Secret Weapon pigments and some Humbrol pigments. They're all pretty similar. One may or may not be finer than the others, to be honest I've never checked, I just use whichever one has the colour I want.

I use SWM.

I used pastels back when I built 1:35 scale armor models. Yes they are cheap, and yes you can get great results.

I am now in a place in my life where I prefer the convenience of being able to open a jar and use the product rather than rub a pastel stick across sand paper and gather up the resulting powder.

 Erik_Morkai wrote:

 CURNOW wrote:
Get some empty containers with lids and some chaulk pastels they are less than a $ each and just shave them into the pot one stick will give you a gw paint pots worth . You can scrub them on dry with. Short hair brush (old one cut down ) or you can mix with rubbing alcohol to make a paste

Seriously...don't do that. If you are concious enough about your painting to want to work with pigments, work with the real thing.

So in art school when i was shown how to make them they were wrong ?
You know the ones you buy are the same thing yeah?
You are just paying for the ease of use.

they are good enough for lots of the worlds best scale model painters to use a pigmets and for filters and textures but you obviously have far more experience than all of them .

 CURNOW wrote:

 Erik_Morkai wrote:

 CURNOW wrote:
Get some empty containers with lids and some chaulk pastels they are less than a $ each and just shave them into the pot one stick will give you a gw paint pots worth . You can scrub them on dry with. Short hair brush (old one cut down ) or you can mix with rubbing alcohol to make a paste

Seriously...don't do that. If you are concious enough about your painting to want to work with pigments, work with the real thing.

So in art school when i was shown how to make them they were wrong ?
You know the ones you buy are the same thing yeah?
You are just paying for the ease of use.

they are good enough for lots of the worlds best scale model painters to use a pigmets and for filters and textures but you obviously have far more experience than all of them .

I would like to see you make a stick out of dry pigments and see if it holds together. Newsflash, it won't.

In order for your chalk pastel to hold together and keep their shapes, they are mixed with extra stuff. Stuff you do not need to want to mix with the other products used on your model. I am not just paying for ease of use, I am paying for actual pigments, not chalk.

I know some world class painters that would not touch chalks with a ten foot pole. Goes to show there are different opinions on the subject. I was taught this way, backed with demonstration and facts.

For a complete line of inexpensive good weathering material ..skip the gaming store go to the model railroad store...they have been doing this far longer than plastic army men have existed..

We are talking about weathering powders i suggested that he could crush or scrap down chalk pastels as they are the same thing ...where the hell did i say i was making pastels ?

I was obviously saying how we were taught what you can make basic pigments from them as we were taught . As dry painting in pigments with latex brushes or colour shapers is one technique .

Oh and some "demonstrations of facts " for you all weathered with crushed pastels and sealed with hairspray .