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Title says it all. How do I ink large, predominatley flat areas to match the tone of my army. I inked my basic guys with alot of crevices, but when I do flat areas or large areas it looks like crap. Is there a way to do it to help me match the tone. I am using nuln oil to darken and also to do recesses.

Not 100% sure what you're asking? You might find it helpful to varnish the model first with a gloss coat. That will help the wash to run cleanly into the corners, and if there are any blotchy areas after the wash dries, it's much easier to just wipe them away. Once everything it dry you can go over it again with matte varnish to remove the glossy sheen.

If you're looking for a way to shade large flat surfaces (not just the crevices) then that might be a bit more difficult. I think the easiest way is probably to use glaze medium and build up the shadows layer by layer so you get nice smooth transitions.

One way to shade large flat areas of armour is to paint them a slightly lighter shade than you want for the finish, then over-paint with a wettish layer of a darker shade, then sponge off this layer while it's wet, with gentle presses, not wiping.

This tends to leave more of the darker shade in the crevices and around the edges of the armour plates.

 Smacks wrote:
Not 100% sure what you're asking?

I think the issue described is as such: for infantry models, a certain color is shaded by applying a wash all over, say, over a guardsman shoulder pad. So, not just in the crevices, but over the entire base color. This works as the wash won't blotch on the small surfaces. You can't do the same on, say, a Leman Russ without getting a splotchy / dirty coat. If you only apply the wash in the crevices on the Russ, the overall color will look different than it does on your infantry, because on the infantry all the base color is tinted by the wash, whilst on the tank, it isn't. Ask me how I know.

As for a solution: I don't think there is any, except trying to be as neat as possible on the larger surfaces, maybe thinning the wash a bit. The lesson to learn is to just put the wash in the crevices on the infantry models so you won't have this problem when you get to tanks. An alternative fix is to weather the tanks nicely, the dirty coat won't be much of a problem then. This obviously won't help if you're going for a clean look.

 Sgt. Oddball wrote:
I think the issue described is as such: for infantry models, a certain color is shaded by applying a wash all over, say, over a guardsman shoulder pad. So, not just in the crevices, but over the entire base color. This works as the wash won't blotch on the small surfaces. You can't do the same on, say, a Leman Russ without getting a splotchy / dirty coat. If you only apply the wash in the crevices on the Russ, the overall color will look different than it does on your infantry, because on the infantry all the base color is tinted by the wash, whilst on the tank, it isn't. Ask me how I know.

Hehe.

Actually, I run into a similar problem quite often. I like working with washes and glazes (light to dark), so I often end up in a situation where I need to retouch an area that has been 'stained', and so doesn't match any named colour. That's why I think being able to mix your own colours is always going to be a necessary skill. Mixing enough to paint an entire tank might be problematic for the OP though if he doesn't have empty pots and stuff. I use the 60ml bottles of Vallejo premium for mixing colours that I know I'm gonna need a lot of.

@ OP you could try buying another pot of your base colour, and then mixing nuln oil into it little by little until you get a colour that matches your desired midtone. You can test it by painting a little line on something rough that is already the right colour, when you can't see the line anymore, you know you've got a match. Be careful though as nuln oil is very dark. The tiniest speck on a brush tip (less than a drop) might be all you need to turn your base colour almost black, so you need to go really slowly.

Sgt. oddball hit the nail on the head. I am trying to do a knight. I think ill try and ink just the metal bits and hope for the best.


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mabye a sponge on would do good?



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Tried it with a sponge, it let me cover a large area before it dried, and I could go over it again to absorb excess. Still not fantastic, but much better than had I used a brush. I dident use just any sponge, i got a small painting sponge from a hardware store. real dense foam.

It is my experience that washing any flat areas has a tendency for the wash to pool up and look "blotchy." The larger the area, the more likely it is to happen and the harder it is to prevent without sacrificing the end results. In my opinion, the best way to get the look you're after is to learn (assuming you don't already know how) to blend your color. It will benefit you in the long run anyway. Washes have one thing over blending; speed.

Here's a fantastic example of a washing technique by Sorastro of Sorastro's Painting.

Later in the video, he uses a dark wash over a light paint job and his model, an AT-ST, has several larger flat areas. He's going for a dirtier, more worn look, but the process should still help you.


For the record, his channel has a ton of great "how-to" information for many techniques, especially in the Star Wars: Imperial Assault series.



Ghidorah

The trick you're after is glazing. It's down to loading the brush with less paint. On large, flat surfaces, a flat brush works better than a round.

You want to apply a filter rather than a wash. Step two in this link sort of explains it...

http://www.ipmsstockholm.org/magazine/2003/01/stuff_eng_tech_afv_weathering.htm

Use a large brush and thin the paint down with medium, apply thin coats and it might take a couple of coats to reach the tone you desire.

If you have an airbrush it's easier, you still want to apply several thin coats rather than letting it build up to the point where it wants to pool.