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Hi, I've noticed alot of different painting forms, so this is a poll to know how people like to paint their models:

How do you paint yours?

Nw: if you're 'style' isn't listed post it!

Huzzah! First vote to me I generally put models together and then paint, but it depends on the complexity of the kit.

I do the opposite. I try to paint all the little details first.

It really depends on what type of model. If it's a Space Marine with a bolter, I tend to put the Bolter on afterwards. If it's a model with good access, it could easily be fully assembled before painting (Assault Marines, for example).

I assemble, then paint. I'm rather meticulous, if not skilled, in my painting, so it makes little sense to do so since I may miss little details that become inaccessible. I guess I'm somewhere between "if you can't reach it, you can't see it, no need to paint it" and "oh crap, I already assembled this trukk... how the heck am I going to paint all the little gubbins in the cab?" I've just been painting up slugga boys, currently, so I have fewer issues with access. Any complex kits I do in the future will probably get a smarter treatment - snip>clean>assemble in sections>prime>paint>combine sections>final details.

I eradicate mould lines, I put together, put all the base stuff on, then primer and paint.

Totally in agreement with the "if you can't reach it, you can't see it, no need to paint it" school, though I will go to the bother of giving it a dark colour and maybe a vvery rudimentary highlight, as far in as the brush will reach.

Helping a friend put together and paint the new plastic doomwheel was a complete exception to this rule.. so complex!

as I put more together and gain skill, this will change but at the moment my greatest barrier to having a painted army is being to finicky and particular about a paint job that very few will see. When the mini is there on the board at arms reach, 5 layers of shading is just not visible. It needs to pop to do that, but up close it looks a bit gaudy to me. Oh well. I'll continue trying to shift that middle ground.

Am I alone in this or do other people struggle too?

I use a combination of putting them together and apllying paint at the same time, because some areas are difficult to reach when your model is completly put togheter... srr about the bad english..i'm dutch ya now

I don't know about the rest of you, but i paint my models en mass on the sprue then snip and assemble one by one.

With figures I remove mold lines, undercoat, fill in all the areas the spray can missed, paint each component, then assemble, then do a final highlight.

Vehicles are pretty much the same except I assemble sections at a time.

I would also echo someone else who has posted in that I try to make up for a lack of talent by being as meticulous as possible. I have just started thinning my paints and using blending techniques.

It makes things more difficult, but I always put my models together first. It helps me better visualize the paint scheme I plan to do.

After trying to do trim on Berserkers (I am terrible at painting, and I require myself to paint all trim a different color from the base color) I started painting on the sprues. It makes it easier to do small pieces, seeing as if you make a mistake, it doesn't really have any possibility to run onto other parts of the model. Hope this made some sense.

I put most of the model together but I leave the arms and guns on the sprues, so I can paint the chest so it's not left with what ever colour I prime it. Then glue the arms on afterI paint them on the spures.