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Made in ie
Norn Queen






Dublin, Ireland

I think I recall one of the commission guys in the showcase forum saying he pulled an 18 hour stint to get a piece finished. I could not imagine that, let alone concieve the state of my poor back after it

How long can you last over a painting session, for me its about 1 hour to 2 hours maximum, after that I simply need to take a break, stretch and relax a bit.

Whats the longest stint you've ever pulled painting or modelling?

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By 1-irt: Still as long as Hissy keeps showing up this is one of the most entertaining threads ever.

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Made in gb
Thane of Dol Guldur





Bodt

done most of a day, maybe 7 hours but my concentration span is all over the place so theres probably the odd xbox break in there aswell

Heresy World Eaters/Emperors Children

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Made in us
The Marine Standing Behind Marneus Calgar





Upstate, New York

I know when I was young, crazy, and full of energy I’d pull all-nighters painting. Now that I’m an old broken wreck of a man, I top out at a couple hours. I’m also more likely to break up my sessions with time outs for stretching, sitting reading, or puttering on the computer to help mix things up. So while I might spend the bulk of a Saturday “painting” only a part of it is actually at the bench.

   
Made in se
Boosting Ultramarine Biker




Stockholm/Sweden

I've done more than 36 hours straight.

Of course that includes bathroom breaks and going to the fridge for more drinks and snacks/food, but just painting while listening to music or having some kind of video/documentary playing in the background.

"Pain Is Temporary, Glory Lasts Forever"

My Space Wolves WIP Thread

My Miniature Blog 
   
Made in us
Savage Khorne Berserker Biker






I get around 4-6 hrs. Depending on if I am airbrushing or painting by hand. Also what I am painting plays a big part. I tend to do Either one big model or several minis at a time.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2015/03/20 15:06:49



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xqOf-KjdVY
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http://i.imgur.com/yLl7xmu.gif 
   
Made in ca
Ancient Venerable Black Templar Dreadnought





Canada

The best interval that comes to mind is when I "got in the zone" I did a little over 8 hours solid.
Literally where I put my head down and got to work and every time I looked up a few hours passed.
Other than a washroom break and dragging drink and food to the bench it was uninterrupted.
I could go for longer like those crazy 30-odd hour guys but that may need caffeine and I find it gives you that tiny bit of shakes which I can do without (save later hours painting for "block painting"). This is for my own use and I do not commission paint so I have less incentive to push for unduly long.

I understand the "old broken guy" hurt sitting that long, I taught myself to lean back and paint at my chest with lots of overhanging lighting.

Now with some skills in airbrush, what can be done in a few hours has a whole new meaning than before.

A revolution is an idea which has found its bayonets.
Napoleon Bonaparte 
   
Made in gb
Longtime Dakkanaut




Nottingham, UK

I think I did a 20 hour stint doing a Golden Demon piece once. Could have been the whole day but I had a 4 hour power nap.

 
   
Made in us
Tough-as-Nails Ork Boy





I cant focus my eyes for more than an hour or two before I get eye strain
   
Made in gb
Decrepit Dakkanaut





Nottinghamshire

About 15 minutes. I am an absolute pain in the rear end.

I mean I've done entire days, but my butterfly mind breaks that up into pieces. Done that coat, let's get a drink. Okay that needs to dry? I'll pick something else up and glue rivets on.

When I did an art degree, I could do 12+ hours in a stint and get kicked out when the studio lights went off, but I was a more focused beam back then.


[ Mordian 183rd ] - an ongoing Imperial Guard story with crayon drawings!
[ "I can't believe it's not Dakka!" ] - a buttery painting and crafting blog
 
   
Made in gb
Longtime Dakkanaut






Cheltenham, UK

Without a break, about 2.5 hours. But with breaks to make tea, change videos on YouTube or switch between podcasts, I can paint non-stop for 8 hours a day, five days a week.

   
Made in us
Fixture of Dakka





Depends. Some days I can't be bothered to even get started. Some days it's half an hour or so. Sometimes I can go a couple hours.

And then there are the rare days where I'm at it pretty much all day long. But I pay for those days with back and hip pain...

CHAOS! PANIC! DISORDER!
My job here is done. 
   
Made in us
Gargantuan Gargant





Binghamton, NY

Uninterrupted, I think about two hours (maybe a little more) is the longest I've done. Like many of the others, I've spent the bulk of a day building and painting, before, but broken up with breaks for an errand, food and drink, walking the dog, etc. Actually, I don't think I've done that long since I've had a dog... Regardless, 8-10 hours is the most time I've ever put into the hobby in a single day, 2-3 in a single stretch.

The vast majority of the time, though, a full hour means I'm in the zone and those stints are few and far between. Much more common is a few minutes here and there, only adding up to an hour on a good day.

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Made in se
Focused Dark Angels Land Raider Pilot





Skovde, Sweden

I'd say about 12 hours, but to be honest productivity dropped alot in the end.

// Andreas

Dark Angels 4th Company (3,830pts) 950pts fully painted

 
   
Made in au
Grizzled Space Wolves Great Wolf





I've done days of about 12 hours, mostly when I was younger. These days I find if I paint for more than 2 to 4 hours I start getting cramps in my hands, these days most my painting sessions are probably about 2 hours, I'll occasionally do more if a model or batch of models is almost done and I just want to get them finished.
   
Made in us
Screeching Screamer of Tzeentch





Vancouver, Wa

I think my longest session was a little over 12 hours. You get into the zone, and the time just flies by. You think to your self, "I should really go to bed", but there is always one more detail to finish, or one more color to add.

I always have movies or a tv series on netflix playing on my laptop, to listen to while i paint.
   
Made in be
Three Color Minimum





MY longest is about 3 hours without a break,usually i top out at about 30-50 minutes though

 casvalremdeikun wrote:
 grendel083 wrote:
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Perhaps not, but since GW seems to subsist off sadness and pain, I can't rule it out.


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Made in us
Pyromaniac Hellhound Pilot






Schrott

IN a single go?

ADD makes me float in an out. So sometimes I can go for a good period (usually helps to be at the gaming store with less distractions and such.) or curl up infront of the TV with my big painting tray and go off and on until I wander off to something else or finish.

I keep the paint scheme simple more or less since I want to be done as fast as possible so I don't wander off leaving an unfinished model for a long time.

Best bet would be a few hours at a time.

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Made in us
Grim Dark Angels Interrogator-Chaplain






A Protoss colony world

I wish I could paint for hours at a stretch like some of you guys, but my attention inevitably wanders and I lose interest...plus my hand starts to cramp up on me sometimes. Best I've ever done was a couple of hours working on a Rhino and some troops (with some small breaks).

My armies (re-counted and updated on 11/7/24, including modeled wargear options):
Dark Angels: ~16000 Astra Militarum: ~1200 | Imperial Knights: ~2300 | Leagues of Votann: ~1300 | Tyranids: ~3400 | Stormcast Eternals: ~5000 | Kruleboyz: ~3500 | Lumineth Realm-Lords: ~700
Check out my P&M Blogs: ZergSmasher's P&M Blog | Imperial Knights blog | Board Games blog | Total models painted in 2024: 40 | Total models painted in 2025: 25 | Current main painting project: Tomb Kings
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Made in gb
Blood-Drenched Death Company Marine





United Kingdom

Longest was probably around 12/13 hours. I don't typically sit and paint for more than 2, though. Too much other stuff going on, plus it's probably not good for your posture and eyes to at continuously for hours on end.

   
Made in ca
Frenzied Berserker Terminator





Canada

I can go all day baby, but I need smoke breaks!

How often can you say that in any other circumstance?



Gets along better with animals... Go figure. 
   
Made in us
Stalwart Space Marine




Kalamazoo, MI

I wish my life allowed long spans like those posted. In perfect conditions I can get four hours in the occasional evening, and I start work quite tired but enthusiastic. My quality of work by hour 4 begins to wane. I do try to paint an hour a night whenever possible though.
   
Made in us
Dakka Veteran





Florida

Days. I have oil paintings in one room, resin casting going on in another, next to my minis painting area. I'm also making Oyumaru sculptures for friends and building terrain for a LGS. This weekend felt like college again!

\m/ 
   
Made in gb
Morphing Obliterator




Medrengard

Depends on the mini, if I'm not really feeling it I struggle to do an hour. However my warhound was easy, I built and painted it over two weeks while I was off work.. averaging eighteen hours a day. My longest continuous stint was around twenty two hours

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2015/03/22 01:22:14


12000 pts
5000pts 
   
Made in us
Drone without a Controller




Well, I've gone for about five hours total without any breaks, but that was back when I was starting.
With breaks, I've done 14 hours tops, and when I put my brush done at 2 in the morning, my productivy had dropped majorly. I still had to finish them because they were needed the next day.
   
Made in us
Longtime Dakkanaut





The longest I ever painted was in 1983, just before I left for school in England, I painted for almost 40 hours straight (with two bathroom breaks).

I used to regularly get into fugue states like this when painting, drawing, or playing a musical instrument. But miniature painting seems to have been the most severe manifestation of these states.

Several of my art professors had similar behavior, where they would wind up stuck sculpting or painting for days at a time.

I really miss those states, as they were very similar to other altered states of consciousness that are typically thought of as appealing.

Now... I am lucky if I can go two hours at a time without having my concentration broken.... Pathetic of me.

MB
   
Made in us
Sagitarius with a Big F'in Gun





tornado alley, United States

I can get into a good hobby building/painting zone these for probably 4-5 hours before I need a long break. Either at that point I'm tired of messing with fiddly details and I want to play a game, or my back is throwing a fit and I need to stand up for a extended period of time.

The longest one day period was probably about 12-14 hours, with breaks for food, drinks, etc.


I know my painting and modeling record is:

3 tyranid warriors, all magnetized, painted
(all weapons magnetized, the weapons I was using for those warriors completely painted, everything else is primed)
1 thing of ripper swarms magnetized (primed)
1 box of termagants (12) painted,
1 venomthrope painted with tentacles magnetized

All while playing and qualifying 2nd overall for kill teams in 5 weeks, along with writing my overall fluff.

And my guys typically have like 12 different colors of paint on them..it's not just 3 color standard.


This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2015/03/22 05:45:17


~6000 ~4000 ~1000
Imperial Knights: & Admech:

My finance plays

DR:70+S+G+M++B+I+Pw40k14++D+A++/sWD409R+++T(M)DM+

I do not work for GW in any fashion. When I edit my post, either I've misspelled something, punctuation, or I'm fixing swearing. Oops.  
   
Made in au
Dakka Veteran





Sydney, Australia

I've built and fully painted a baneblade in one session. Took me about 10-11 hours to do it, but would've taken a lot longer if I didn't spray the hull. The rivets alone took ~3 hours to do

DC:90S++G+++MB+IPvsf17#++D++A+++/mWD409R+++T(Ot)DM+

I mainly play 30k, but am still fairly active with 40k. I play Warcry, Arena Rex, Middle-Earth, Blood Bowl, Batman, Star Wars Legion as well

My plog- https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/787134.page
My blog- https://fistfulofminiatures.blogspot.com/
My gaming Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/fistfulofminis/ 
   
Made in us
Fixture of Dakka





dead account

8 hours is the longest stint I've done of a single session.

I'd say my average session used to last 3 hours... we'll see how it will be when I get started back up again.
   
Made in gb
The Hammer of Witches





cornwall UK

I'd say 8 hours is doable, especially if one is getting paid. But recreationaly I'd prefer to take a break after 2-3 hours.

   
Made in ca
Fixture of Dakka






It kind of depends on what you mean in the question. I doubt I sit in one place without moving my butt for more than 3 hours a stretch.

However...

I often paint from 10pm - 3am relatively uninterrupted except for little things like refilling drink or bathroom -- so I guess 5 hours during the evening is pretty common.

Today, other than a quick lunch, and then a longer supper with the wife, I worked on painting projects from 9:30 am when I woke up until now, 2:30 am -- so that's 15+ hours (subtracting out some short breaks) -- but that's pretty unusual that I get that opportunity.

I think the longest I've airbrushed in one go is about 4 hours.

I don't get paid for painting; it's truly just cherished hobby time In effect, I actually pay money to give myself time to paint, by hiring people do things like house cleaning and yardwork, or ordering in food (if my wife isn't cooking ) -- tasks which I'm perfectly capable of doing and happy to handle... I'm just happier with a size 0 S7 brush in my hand!

This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2015/03/22 09:33:40


 
   
 
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