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What are your thoughts on hiring someone to paint one of your models?

I realize that while I have a particular set of skills:

These skills do not help me paint ridiculously tiny freehand details on an expensive resin model.

Should I have someone else paint it for me, and have it look as awesome as I believe it should, or do I attempt to paint it myself, where it will look pretty crummy?

 Quixote wrote:
What are your thoughts on hiring someone to paint one of your models?

I realize that while I have a particular set of skills:

Spoiler:

Skills that I've acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you....

These skills do not help me paint ridiculously tiny freehand details on an expensive resin model.

Should I have someone else paint it for me, and have it look as awesome as I believe it should, or do I attempt to paint it myself, where it will look pretty crummy?

Wich approach will allow you to best enjoy your models? Go with that one.

I really think having someone else do it will make me happier.

Right now it reminds me of one of those special "artist's proofs" action figures that is slate grey versus one that is painted up.

Plus I'm a little intimidated to even start.

Up to what pleases you. I've painted some. Those my son has painted are much better.

Many professional painters are amazing and quite rightly you pay professionally too.

Is there any stigma attached to showing up to a shop and playing with a model that really stands out?

Nah, there won't be. Plenty of people use painting services or get friends to paint a model for them here or there.

If you reckon it'll make you happier and get the model painted whereas otherwise you either wouldn't do it or wouldn't be happy, I say do it.

Whatever floats your boat. Just be honest about it. If someone asks, tell them who did it; don’t take credit for someone else’s work. I’ve not enchanted any stigma about using minis painted by others, and would much rather see that then grey plastic.

I don’t know if tournaments still have best painted categories. If you do enter one that does, check their rules.

Everyone starts somewhere. Just because you are not currently kicking out Golden Demon level work does not mean you can’t get there someday. Or at least get to a quality table-top level you can be proud to put down on the table. That said, the painting side of the hobby is not everyone’s jam, and if you don’t want to, feel free to hand it off to someone else. But don’t let the rocky start deter you from walking down the road if you think you would enjoy it.

There is ZERO shame in paying someone else to paint your models. Heck some people have others build and paint them for them.

OR they buy prepainted secondhand armies on ebay and fb and such.


It really doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is being honest - if you enter a tournament with painting awards check their rules and notify organisers in advance - sometimes its just "best painted and they don't care who did the painting" other times they do and it might just mean you don't get to be entered into that particular part of the awards.

Heck if someone asks and the person who painted your models works in doing model painting then see if they've any business cards or drop them a link to their website and such - spread the word if someone has done you good painting your army and others show interest.



In the end the hobby of wargaming is made of many parts and you don't have to engage with all of them. Some people love painting and never play; some love building but hate painting; others love playing but hate painting etc... It takes all kinds so go with what works for you and be honest.

Not something I’d do, but to each their own. My main concern is when facing you across your board, your army is at least mostly painted*. Exactly who applied the brush is no concern of mine.

*this allowed for recent purchases, and not everyone having the same hobby time.

Grey is mostly painted right.... the colour of the plastic is based on adding a colour to it!! Grey is a colour!!

I painted like a third of my friends HH Tsons army including all their tanks.
It meant they could go to a narrative event with a fully painted army (the tanks even had transfers).

Helping people out is pretty core to the hobby imo whether it's painting stuff, trading bitz boxes or teaching games.

Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:Not something I’d do, but to each their own. My main concern is when facing you across your board, your army is at least mostly painted*. Exactly who applied the brush is no concern of mine.

*this allowed for recent purchases, and not everyone having the same hobby time.

While I would prefer to face off against a painted army, I understand that it’s not for everyone. I do like to see grey legions slowly convert to painted over time. Nice to watch them grow.

Gert wrote:I painted like a third of my friends HH Tsons army including all their tanks.
It meant they could go to a narrative event with a fully painted army (the tanks even had transfers).

Helping people out is pretty core to the hobby imo whether it's painting stuff, trading bitz boxes or teaching games.

I painted about half of my best friend’s SoB army. The rest he picked up via ebay pre-painted. He was a gamer, not a painter, but did like to have a nice looking army.

I’ve done bits swaps a number of times. One mans trash is another’s treasure.

There are tons of commission painters out there. There is no stigma at all playing with models you paid someone to paint.

As has been mentioned, the only stigma is trying to pass off someone else's work as your own.

 Vulcan wrote:
As has been mentioned, the only stigma is trying to pass off someone else's work as your own.

How about if someone assisted you in the construction phase? (ie. If you had some one wire LEDs into the base & model for you) - can you claim ownership of the paint job?

Or is that also a poor move?

 Lathe Biosas wrote:

 Vulcan wrote:
As has been mentioned, the only stigma is trying to pass off someone else's work as your own.

How about if someone assisted you in the construction phase? (ie. If you had some one wire LEDs into the base & model for you) - can you claim ownership of the paint job?

Or is that also a poor move?

“I did the paint, but Bob wired up the LEDs.” Own your part, credit others theirs.

 Nevelon wrote:

 Lathe Biosas wrote:

 Vulcan wrote:
As has been mentioned, the only stigma is trying to pass off someone else's work as your own.

How about if someone assisted you in the construction phase? (ie. If you had some one wire LEDs into the base & model for you) - can you claim ownership of the paint job?

Or is that also a poor move?

“I did the paint, but Bob wired up the LEDs.” Own your part, credit others theirs.

Cool. Works for me. I'm having someone wire up a base for me, but I wanted to paint it up, since wiring LEDs were not apart of my RHVAC training.

 Lathe Biosas wrote:

 Vulcan wrote:
As has been mentioned, the only stigma is trying to pass off someone else's work as your own.

How about if someone assisted you in the construction phase? (ie. If you had some one wire LEDs into the base & model for you) - can you claim ownership of the paint job?

Or is that also a poor move?

If you painted it, then you painted it and it's fair game to take credit for it. But mentioning that someone wired the LEDs for you is good manners.

EDIT: What Nevelon said.

When I first got into this hobby I was looking up artists to paint my models for me as I didn’t think I would have the patience or skill for it. My first few attempts did not look so great in all honesty but I realized not only did I have the patience for it but I thoroughly enjoyed the peace of sitting in my office listening to classical music and painting my own minis: since then I’ve been hooked on improving my skills as a miniature painter and trying out new techniques. I don’t think there is anything wrong with having someone else paint them, but I always tell new people to the hobby to try it out with an open mind and you’ll be surprised with how well you can do and how satisfying it can be.

plus there are folks like myself who have neurological damage which makes fine detail painting impossible.. (in my case, hands shaking really bad) .. I can paint terrain fairly ok, but not beyond that..

I have paid, traded, bartered and otherwise compensated folks for my lack of skill, and have no problems with that.

I also totally am honest up front about it

I don't see any issues with it. As mentioned by others, don't take credit for someone else's work, but it's as simple as...

"Hey, nice minis!"
"Thanks! Joe painted them."

Or for the poster who mentioned they had someone else do the LEDs...

"Hey, nice minis!"
"Thanks! Joe did the LEDs, and the rest of it is my work."

The hobby is yours to enjoy how you see fit. If you don't like painting, but do want to have nicely painted minis, then commission it. S'all good.

Cool. It's good to know that there is no stigma attached.

I used to feel immense pressure from others that I had to buid/convert/paint/play/win in order to be a part of a gaming community.

ccs wrote:

 Quixote wrote:
What are your thoughts on hiring someone to paint one of your models?

Wich approach will allow you to best enjoy your models? Go with that one.

This is the way. As long as you're honest when asked, there is nothing wrong with playing models you didn't paint yourself.

I've painted allot of figures, but I've also got:

-Entire armies, warbands and Gangs bought it traded already painted, mostly from friends.

-Armies with some units painted by others.

-Lots of figures I bought painted and then touched up myself.

-An army of factory painted AT43 Karmans for Grimdark Future. And I play a number of 10mm games with rebased MechWarrior Clix figures.

As long as they're painted, I don't care how and I'm my experience neither does anyone else.

I've been thinking about this as well. Problem in my case is twofold:

1) I'd have very strict requirements from the paint job and finish, in terms of colors, weathering, marking/transfers

2) Considering point 1, the cost would probably be prohibitive for anything more than 1 unit

As for credit, I would actually insist the painter signed at least some of the models (on the underside of the base). Getting their name on the models would be a point of pride for me, I'd never even entertain the idea of not giving them credit for the paintjobs

Painted is always bestest, no matter how it got done.

Basically I need someone with an airbrush to paint aircraft.

I've noticed that unless the vehicle is super dark, the large flat panels like to show off my poor painting skills.

Quixote wrote:Basically I need someone with an airbrush to paint aircraft.

I've noticed that unless the vehicle is super dark, the large flat panels like to show off my poor painting skills.

This might actually be the easiest painting service to find. For a good hobbyist with airbrush experience, airbrushing can be a very fast and relatively easy process.

Especially if you're willing to do the details, interiors, etc yourself, getting someone else to airbrush the body of a tank or aircraft is probably not hard or terribly expensive.

Easy E wrote:Painted is always bestest, no matter how it got done.

100 percent this. At Adepticon this weekend I picked up some more figures and two buildings painted by someone else. The figures will have their accent color painted over in red or bone (to match my chaos army) and then everything will get a wash or dip and drybrush. I love it when someone else does most of the work for me.

tauist wrote:I've been thinking about this as well. Problem in my case is twofold:

1) I'd have very strict requirements from the paint job and finish, in terms of colors, weathering, marking/transfers

2) Considering point 1, the cost would probably be prohibitive for anything more than 1 unit

As for credit, I would actually insist the painter signed at least some of the models (on the underside of the base). Getting their name on the models would be a point of pride for me, I'd never even entertain the idea of not giving them credit for the paintjobs

I think having the artist credit their work is a splendid idea. Now I'm thinking about getting a fine-point metallic marker and having my friend's sign the bottom of the Necromunda gangs they've painted for me.
https://www.chicagoskirmishwargames.com/blog/2019/03/my-necromunda-gangs-characters-from-jon/
Full list at bottom of blog post.

I do think though that if a person has high standards for their painting, having an army done is going to be impossible done for anyone without a significant amount of disposable income. Not impossible, just -as you say- prohibitive for most.