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So these are the first models I've painted since I was a child, about 6-8 years ago. They're basically finished, although I still need to seal them and put chapter markings on them (they're from a blood angels successor chapter I dreamed up, so I haven't decided what kind of markings to give them)

There's 9 more in their batch, but IRL stuff has gotten in the way so these are the only ones I've had time to give the final details. Once the batch is finished and sealed imma put them in the gallery.

What do you guys think? Any constructive criticism, compliments, questions and encouragement welcome

Solid start. maybe invest in some inks to pick out details, then work on bringing your colours up to highlights. Personally I dont like the silver arm. it clashes with the red. if you want to use silver, maybe use it on the shoulder pad trims and the aquila. bases! i can see youve used argellan earth. give that a drybrush with a bone colour to pick out the flakes. Paint the rims black to finish them off and frame your base.

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
Solid start. maybe invest in some inks to pick out details, then work on bringing your colours up to highlights. Personally I dont like the silver arm. it clashes with the red. if you want to use silver, maybe use it on the shoulder pad trims and the aquila. bases! i can see youve used argellan earth. give that a drybrush with a bone colour to pick out the flakes. Paint the rims black to finish them off and frame your base.

I have used a wash of Baal red, but unfortunately the photo quality is terrible so it doesn't show up
Maybe a recess shade of agrax is in order.
Great idea with the bone drybrush! Imma do that first thing when I get home.

For one: glad you are getting back into it I hope you are having fun.
The left metal arm is a characteristic of the Deathwatch, you may have some story of how they tie-into that.

Good:
- Very clean painting, everything is within the lines, a very good job based on that fact alone.
- Nice use of the technical paint for the cracked looking earth on the base.
- The bases have a nice clean look to them, I always had a problem of seeing streak marks or too much paint and it sags to the bottom of the tapered base.
- These are good quality tabletop standard models I think anyone would be happy to see anywhere.

Noticed:
- I can just see the slot in the base, you could try filling it in from the bottom until it is level with the surface (epoxy, white glue or green stuff) and then put on a bit more of that base paint.

Suggestions:
- The pictures are just that tiny bit out of focus or too low resolution some details are hard to identify so please forgive me pointing out something you may actually have done and I just could not see it.
- The vents on the backpack and helmets have an uneven look to them, not sure if it is applying overly thick/dry paint, some mold-line cleanup issues or you were adding an orange/skin-tone highlight that is an intentional "patina" look that the picture does not do justice.
- I cannot see the eyes very well, would you think of using a green for them?
- Think I do not see any "edge highlighting", it will add that extra level of "pop" to the models.
- Have you used "shade"? I find after you have done you "block filling" and edge highlighting, "Smearing"-on some shade in the crevices helps blend and define the model more: try red shade on the armor and black on the weapons. I noticed a blue tint to the steel so I think you are using something.
- Either apply a dot to the tip of the gun barrel OR my favorite is drilling them out. I use a pin or suitably sharp point and indent the middle (to be sure I hit the center) before I drill: starting to drill right away usually results in tears since the tip tends to wander. Use a "pin-vice" to hand drill, a very small drill first for a "pilot hole" then bigger to match the appropriate barrel size.
- For "glow" on the weapon I add shade since it picks out the crevices and emphasizes the blue and then use a very light blue to dry-brush along the corners or tops of the ridges.

Okay, this is me at my most "helpful" stage of suggestions.
I find you stop adding paint to a model when you feel it is "good enough" I remember regretting the decision of painting my joe-troopers to a high standard and it took me FOREVER to get them done (if there is such a thing as done).
They look great but in some cases it did not seem worth it too keep them all to that standard.
Save your best painting for your sergeants and character models and maybe the special/heavy weapon guys.

Good luck, hopefully we will see you post a squad and then an army.

<edit> Note, I was writing this prior to your last reply so good to know you had added shade, the Agrax with give it a more "warm" look which I think is better, red has a cleaner "marines on parade" look: I tend to build "marines by Hasbro" clean looking guys.

 Talizvar wrote:
For one: glad you are getting back into it I hope you are having fun.
The left metal arm is a characteristic of the Deathwatch, you may have some story of how they tie-into that.

Good:
- Very clean painting, everything is within the lines, a very good job based on that fact alone.
- Nice use of the technical paint for the cracked looking earth on the base.
- The bases have a nice clean look to them, I always had a problem of seeing streak marks or too much paint and it sags to the bottom of the tapered base.
- These are good quality tabletop standard models I think anyone would be happy to see anywhere.

Noticed:
- I can just see the slot in the base, you could try filling it in from the bottom until it is level with the surface (epoxy, white glue or green stuff) and then put on a bit more of that base paint.

Suggestions:
- The pictures are just that tiny bit out of focus or too low resolution some details are hard to identify so please forgive me pointing out something you may actually have done and I just could not see it.
- The vents on the backpack and helmets have an uneven look to them, not sure if it is applying overly thick/dry paint, some mold-line cleanup issues or you were adding an orange/skin-tone highlight that is an intentional "patina" look that the picture does not do justice.
- I cannot see the eyes very well, would you think of using a green for them?
- Think I do not see any "edge highlighting", it will add that extra level of "pop" to the models.
- Have you used "shade"? I find after you have done you "block filling" and edge highlighting, "Smearing"-on some shade in the crevices helps blend and define the model more: try red shade on the armor and black on the weapons. I noticed a blue tint to the steel so I think you are using something.
- Either apply a dot to the tip of the gun barrel OR my favorite is drilling them out. I use a pin or suitably sharp point and indent the middle (to be sure I hit the center) before I drill: starting to drill right away usually results in tears since the tip tends to wander. Use a "pin-vice" to hand drill, a very small drill first for a "pilot hole" then bigger to match the appropriate barrel size.
- For "glow" on the weapon I add shade since it picks out the crevices and emphasizes the blue and then use a very light blue to dry-brush along the corners or tops of the ridges.

Okay, this is me at my most "helpful" stage of suggestions.
I find you stop adding paint to a model when you feel it is "good enough" I remember regretting the decision of painting my joe-troopers to a high standard and it took me FOREVER to get them done (if there is such a thing as done).
They look great but in some cases it did not seem worth it too keep them all to that standard.
Save your best painting for your sergeants and character models and maybe the special/heavy weapon guys.

Good luck, hopefully we will see you post a squad and then an army.

Thanks for the tips! I'm gonna put the black dot on these, now that you mention it. Gonna experiment with drilling barrels and muzzle-brakes on my next squad. I got the plasma glow and the arm-tint using differing levels of guilliman blue glaze. TBH I think the backpack vents are a mold-line issue.

Danielle Rae wrote:
Thanks for the tips! I'm gonna put the black dot on these, now that you mention it. Gonna experiment with drilling barrels and muzzle-brakes on my next squad. I got the plasma glow and the arm-tint using differing levels of guilliman blue glaze. TBH I think the backpack vents are a mold-line issue.

Due to learning all this the hard way some notes on this:
- Drill the muzzle first as I outlined, I have a few marines running around with off-center barrels so use the pin and eyeball it. Keep denting until it looks perfect, then drill. If you drill the muzzle-brakes first, the aggressive larger muzzle hole can break when you do it.
- I usually use a drill 1/2 the size of the barrel or you run the risk of distorting or breaking the barrel.
- Drill each side of the muzzle break individually into the muzzle hole and then run the drill through the muzzle to clean-up. Yes, I did try to drill straight through a few times and missed, I can do it now 99% of the time correctly but why risk it?
- I would suggest getting double the size drill and apply a light "chamfer" to the opening of the barrel and muzzle-brakes: it actually looks much better and gives the illusion of the opening being bigger than it really is.

<edit> Something about being able to see through the muzzle-breaks adds that extra something to the model, it makes it seem to have that extra detail where people get the impression it was expertly done...

yeah I couldnt see the red wash. thats good. use a darker wash on the areas that would receive the least light. the silver arm is indeed a signifier of the death watch, although I always thought this looked stupid and personally only used a silver shoulder trim on my death watch models.

Good start! I've also just started painting again after, like, 20 years off. I've found that the use of washes make getting a better, deeper and more detailed looking effect a very easy win.

If you're careful, you can probably 'paint' the wash only into the recesses, rather than doing what I did at first, which was splat the wash everywhere and then re-paint the main colour afterwards.

What drew you back into the hobby? I hadn't thought about it for years and my son found some old models in the attic and got really interested, and all of a sudden I'm collecting a (small) army again!

 RobS wrote:
Good start! I've also just started painting again after, like, 20 years off. I've found that the use of washes make getting a better, deeper and more detailed looking effect a very easy win.

If you're careful, you can probably 'paint' the wash only into the recesses, rather than doing what I did at first, which was splat the wash everywhere and then re-paint the main colour afterwards.

What drew you back into the hobby? I hadn't thought about it for years and my son found some old models in the attic and got really interested, and all of a sudden I'm collecting a (small) army again!

I actually kept the baal red wash on afterwards because it deepened the red

I got back into it because I realized I had more free time than I had since starting university, as well as more money since I got a job. That and scheduling conflicts making it impossible to get to swordplay practice meant I had a gap in my schedule where I could fit model-painting. Also I've become less of a perfectionist over time, so painting is a much more pleasant experience than when I was young and would get mad at myself for every tiny smudge.

Its much more fun as an adult, sad as that sounds. you have access to better materials, better tools, more patience, and can generally buy the models you want. plus you have basically unlimited access to tutorials online. I got back into the painting and modelling 4 years ago, after a brief period as a kid. Now I'm preparing to enter my first Golden Demon in a few weeks.

Do any of you have tips on putting chipping & weathering on these guys' armor? They look a little bit too clean given the backstory I have for this chapter.

Danielle Rae wrote:
Do any of you have tips on putting chipping & weathering on these guys' armor? They look a little bit too clean given the backstory I have for this chapter.

Rip up a sponge into uneven chunks, and use this to apply a dark brown paint to areas that would get chipped. Around the edges, feet etc. For larger scratches, use a darker red to outline them to create depth in the armour. Use weathering powders around the feet and in recesses, and on the base to tie it into its environment.

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:

Danielle Rae wrote:
Do any of you have tips on putting chipping & weathering on these guys' armor? They look a little bit too clean given the backstory I have for this chapter.

Rip up a sponge into uneven chunks, and use this to apply a dark brown paint to areas that would get chipped. Around the edges, feet etc. For larger scratches, use a darker red to outline them to create depth in the armour. Use weathering powders around the feet and in recesses, and on the base to tie it into its environment.

Tnhanks for the tips! I'm just wondering, is it like a kitchen sponge or like the sponges you get at art shops? Also I thought it was best to put a lighter shade around scratches, although so far that hasn't worked for me so I might want to try putting a darker shade.

Does the sponge method only work well in tandem with the weathering powders, or can I skip those until I next go shopping and try them out on another squad?

Any sponge. A cheap kitchen one I'd say. The darker line around the chip gives the impression of depth to the paint chip. Now obviously if you have a dark colour, the line will need to be lighter, but for a red like that it needs to be darker.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Yeah powders aren't necessary, but they look decent and I'm a big fan of them haha.

Sponges do work great for a worn look.
I find the smaller hole sponges work well for the small models, go to a larger hole sponge for big items like the Dreads or Tanks.
For simple scratches i have seen the good old pencil used to good effect along edges or accurately pick out areas after sponge-work, just handle the model minimally and seal.
Ah! Nice to find stuff that confirms some things I said, please see this link here.

I find weathering can be a bit of a risk like shading or airbrush:
Once you are finished block painting (all touchup complete) and edge highlighting, you mess anything up or blob, blending it back in again is terribly difficult.

Some people better than I, suggest after a perfect mint-from-the-factory-paint job you hard clear-coat the model and then do all your shading and weathering so if you mess-up you only start over again to the clearcoat not to primer.
The smoothness also helps the flow and wicking I found a bit better.
Some get a good effect with Future Floor polish as their clear-coat.

Found this, he talks a fair bit in the beginning but his technique is simple enough and good results:



Good luck!

Those look pretty good, nice and clean as stated above.

I personally like to panel line SM type models with black ink to break up the surfaces and give them the neatest edge highlight I can muster. Panel lining is easier than it sounds, especially on the Primaris models.