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.

My Citadel blood red paint pretty much just turned into a gelatinous mass. I can't even brush it on models it's so thick. It's been in the same place as all my other paints, but only this one did this. The same thing happened with my friend's pot of blood red paint. Anyone know how to prevent this from happening?

I dunno about preventing it, but it happened because the water in the pot evaporated, leaving pigment.

Did you leave the pot open a little bit? Is it a particularly old pot? Also, I've heard the seal on GW paint pots isn't really the best thing in the world. :(

Anyways, the solution is just dropping some water in the pot and mixing the pigment back in.

My last 2 pots of blood red did the same thing while being kept in the same conditions as all my other paints. I thought it was just me! Anooci is right that just adding some water will help, but make sure to mix with something that won't waste paint, so a chopstick or stick end of a brush. It sounds so obvious but I have seen way too many people mix water into paint with a large brush and then realise half the pot is in the brush bristles.

the gw pots are abit gakky i find, try to keep the lids free of crud, water them down a little every now and again, and maybe use an agitator? maybe a large-ish plastic bead, just dont use any metal ball bearings, not sure but i think it would react with the paint quite badly

Generally pigments in paint are not the same material. They're only chosen because they're non-toxic and have the desired color. Pure red is generally made from a type of dried beetle, while a certain blue is often made from minute amounts of cobalt. Since GW doesnt actually print the real name of the pigment on their paints, it's harder to tell what they're using as pigment. I dont use GW paints, but from what I gathered from you guys it seems like whatever GW uses to get that red is probably inferior to standard red paint and requires extra care to maintain it's consistency.

Try mixing some matte medium into the paint if water doesnt work. Medium is better than water since it's more of the stuff that the pigments are initially mixed with, so it will give you a much more consistent coat when you brush it on.

Every time you are done using a GW paint you should shake it (once closed!) to cause paint to fill any open areas that might exist due to the awful quality of their pots. This will cause crusty dry bits next time you open it, but will stop the bulk of the paint from drying out. Use an agitator and clean water to mix it up again and try to give them a good shake and some extra water once every 6-12 months or so.

I have the same problem with blood red....its the only paint ive worked with that forms a blob in my bottle. All you can do is add water and shake.

I've got the same problem with a 4 year old blood red pot, It was perfect until 2 weeks ago where, in the space of 3 days, turned into a solid ball!The same thing has happened to a bleached bone pot I've had since 2004, It's just turned into a perfectly shaped ball when I opened it :( But yeah, all I do is add some water to it drop by drop until it is usable, But don't forget to shake

I hate GW paint (Except foundations). Get some Vallejo Bloody Red, sme thing but no problems, much cheaper to.

Same thing happened to my Blood Red (or started). I mixed in a bit of water and shook up the pot. It worked (although I admit that chemically it's not really a sound long term solution).

FWIW, you don't necessarily have to shake up the paint after you add the water. I drop a little water into my paints periodically and just let it sit on top. When I need paint from that pot, I tilt it so the water moves aside, and I can get the pigment laden stuff underneath.