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Over the years I've noticed many great painted models on Dakka ,but feel they are a little let down in the final effect simply because all the mold lines are very prominently still on.
I don't understand why.Surely if you spend hours painting a model to a fantastic standard you can also spend time preparing the model in the first place?
Is it a lack of time?

I think it's cuz moldlines are tedious and you run the risk of ruining the model with a bad scrape. Each of us probably has a model where we got a little overzealous with the knife or file and now has a dip where it should be smooth.

I always try to get the mould lines off of my models. I have missed many, and have gouged out many others due to a dull blade or careless cutting, but it is worth it to me. Why not take the time for it? It's like drilling out the barrels of the guns to give it a more "fiinshed" look.

I do completely understand not wanting to do that though. It's time consuming, and someone can slip and cut themselves or the model. I will never deride someone for not doing that extra bit of work.

I once drilled my finger trying to get the barrel right.

Me thinks my drilling methods are not up to par.

mostly just laziness.
i dont paint them either due to time and skill.

Eh, I clean the ones I see. If they show up during/after painting, so be it. I clean all the gates obviously and tend to clean enough. I rarely see a nicely painted mini with mold-lines though. Poorly painted minis with mold lines? A few.

Simple overeagerness to get started with a big dollup of laziness thrown in for good measure.

I clean everything

I don't paint but I clean the mold lines

I sometimes miss them. It drives me bananas, and I always promise myself I'll go back and get them.

Never have.

Because I am lazy, and find it tedious.

I generally try to if I'm making an effort with the model, but sometimes I miss one after starting, and I'm not starting over. Other stuff, like my current Rus' project, I'm trying to ride the momentum and get the project actually done for once, and taking the time to remove them would break the flow (plus, mass unit paint, so less noticable.)

Sometimes I just don't notice them till I've painted them. Then I don't want to file it off to as it'd wreck my work.

For me, it depends on the material. Restic or Bones are just too much of a hassle for all but the very worst mold lines. HIPS can be scraped, and metal filed, though, so I do my best with those.

Slipstream wrote:
Over the years I've noticed many great painted models on Dakka ,but feel they are a little let down in the final effect simply because all the mold lines are very prominently still on.
I don't understand why.Surely if you spend hours painting a model to a fantastic standard you can also spend time preparing the model in the first place?
Is it a lack of time?

Really? I've never noticed a lot of really well painted models with mould lines still on. I've seen a lot of seemingly rushed or inexperienced paint jobs with mould lines still on. The mould lines still being on is just a side effect of being rushed or inexperienced, if the person wants to spend more time on it they'll start removing the mould lines or as they get better at painting they'll start to realise the mould lines are ruining their paint job and remove them.

I don't want to start a naming and shaming so I don't want you to post examples But on the other hand I'd like to see examples of what you mean because most the paint jobs I've seen with mould lines still on the model don't look like they took "hours" to paint, more like < 1hr.

I often consider not cleaning the mould lines on my speed painted models, but then most my speed painting techniques involve washes which make mould lines stand out even worse

I clean any of the ones I can see.

And of course if the mold line is in 'just' the right spot I'll just highlight it and pretend it's 'supposed' to be there.

1. I DON'T spend "hours" painting them. Maybe an hour, tops. That includes assembly. I remove the mould lines I can see. If I have to examine it with a loupe at 4" away, it doesn't matter.

2. I paint them for me to use on the table, not for display. They only have to live up to MY expectations, not anyone else's. I'm not entering a painting comp with them, so it's irrelevant.
2a. I only paint because I will not ever use an unpainted model on the table.

Thanks for your concern, anyway.

As I paint my armies on tabletop level, not Golden Daemon level, mold lines don't bother me that much. Furthermore I find removing them tedious work.

Only if you take a close-up with a photo, or look at the miniature up close, they are visible, instead on the tabletop they are not.

You're probably asking the wrong section of Dakka.

Personally I clean and fill them like my life depends on it.

I clean them as much as possible but sometimes there one or two that are just two small to see or impossible to file