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STICKY TAC!!!! i found some in my desk and thought hmmm i wonder. Works great for holding small bits in place while i paint like helms, groin plates, or even arms and shields.

What are some useful things you all use when painting to make it easier?

Netflix.

Backspacehacker wrote:STICKY TAC!!!! i found some in my desk and thought hmmm i wonder. Works great for holding small bits in place while i paint like helms, groin plates, or even arms and shields.

...do you paint many groin plates? lol

and corks for me, for sticking minis to them while painting

Deathshead420 wrote:Netflix.

Exactly. The best thing ever to help with painting. Until something funny happens andyou laugh while either painting or gluing........

Pandora/ grooveshark/ youtube.

Pandora when I'm alone, Netflix when I'm working around friends.

My "hey my model is getting more awesome every second!" attitude!

and some motivational music always helps keeping the rythem in there!

movies - mainly war movies

but here lately i have been watching/listening to the Game of Thrones series

Squidmanlolz wrote:grooveshark.

I am groovy I guess.

Lord of the rings helps.

funkyh wrote:Pandora when I'm alone, Netflix when I'm working around friends.

same here.

Also I use 2 liter bottle caps as temporary bases for models while I paint them, the ridges on the side are good for griping.

iTunes and Ventrilo

tunes and friends to yack with

Poster tack also works great as a simple and reusable mask (just knead it a bit to break up and distribute the overspray and it regains its stickiness). I stick loose bits to toothpicks (jam it in the hole for AoBR snap-fit models, dab of superglue after clipping the tip for anything else) and slap the bases/bodies onto craft paint bottles (I like the stability and grip the longer, heavier bottles give). Full-spectrum bulbs are a godsend, too. My one daylight bulb in a gooseneck lamp gives me better light than I got from my old CFL (in the same lamp) and incandescent (in an overhead clip-on lamp) combo.

Background noise is nice, but I watch things when I watch things, so it's either Grooveshark (for specific artists/albums) or Last.fm (for genre/"similar to this artist" playlists), for me.

The last useful bit is a Detolf display cabinet from IKEA (which I've finally reclaimed for models and added extra shelves to). I find I've been painting more regularly now that I actually have a place to show them off (not like I have anyone to show them to, but they're out there, at least ). Seeing the sea of grey plastic surrounding my pretty little island of painted models is about as big a boost to motivation as my disposition will allow.

Netflix and Pandora. And trying to read through 6th ed, but that's a tad more tedious...

Another trick for holding bits and such:
If you plan on pinning a model, drill out locations and drop in your wire ahead of time, just don't clip it short until assembly. Then stick the other end of the wire in some cork, and you're golden.

Even if you're not pinning the mini, the locations of your drilled holes will be tucked away behind a layer of glue when you're done, so no harm no foul.

I like listening to podcasts while painting, like 40K Radio.

My wife and kids yammering at me to help clean the house.

Cat hair, dog hair, and repainting from all the times my cats aim for my minis....I swear they do. Its even worse if I try to shoo them away, they spazz and knock bitz everywhere.

Its got to be star trek series for me, working through Voyager atm while i paint my blood ravens, then onto enterprise after that. Beasts of War videos are also good

Backspacehacker wrote:STICKY TAC!!!! i found some in my desk and thought hmmm i wonder. Works great for holding small bits in place while i paint like helms, groin plates, or even arms and shields.

What are some useful things you all use when painting to make it easier?

Sticky tac is also good for people who want all the fun of magnets, but are afraid of drilling minis.