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Okay like many painters, collectors and gamers I have way more unpainted models then finished.
I also don't really play so I'm in no rush to get them all together and painted up.

But does anyone have any tips on finishing models?
Keeping focused is also a problem, anyone have any tips or advice about that?

I don't use spray paint as I think it's just to temperamental to get a good cover with them with out a lot of practice.
So I just use the good old paint brush.

I was Planing on trying to do at least 1 model a day.
Surely that's manageable?

Hopefully I can get some sort of finished results over the next couple of weeks.
and post my finished models on here.

I find it helpful to have a theme. Right now, I working on Cthulhu Mythos beaties, last month it was Frostgrave/Ghost Archipelago, the month before that it was Oldhammer Beastmen. I choose between five and ten models, and work on them for just under a hour every morning. Another thing I find helpful is to do everything in stages-- skin and faces one day, cloth the next, then browns and blacks. I was able to finish my Orc army in three months using this method. They won't win any awards, but they look good enough on the tabletop.

Well i hate to paint so for me i have to constantly rotate my armies.

If i paint more then 1 unit or single heavy from 1 army i vomit at the sight of the army.

Aka i have spent 2 months to paint a total of 15 imp guards from 3 different units, plus 2 hq`s and they not even done good. As sutch now i hate anything IG and have moved to one of my old unfinished BFG ships for now.

On the other side, it took me a total of 2 days to build and paint 10 eldar guardians cuz it was something i had never done before.

 JoshInJapan wrote:
I find it helpful to have a theme. Right now, I working on Cthulhu Mythos beaties, last month it was Frostgrave/Ghost Archipelago, the month before that it was Oldhammer Beastmen. I choose between five and ten models, and work on them for just under a hour every morning. Another thing I find helpful is to do everything in stages-- skin and faces one day, cloth the next, then browns and blacks. I was able to finish my Orc army in three months using this method. They won't win any awards, but they look good enough on the tabletop.

Yeah I was going to try and do a daily theme so,
day one, let's say 5 Space Marines
day two, 5 Eldar Warriors
day three, 10 Imperial guardsman
day 4 maybe a tank or a rhino or some scennery,
the problem is I have way to many models!!!

At least I've not bought any for a while....

It sounds silly, but hold yourself to a higher standard.

1) The hardest part? Don't play with unpainted models. Simple as that. Hell, don't assemble a model till you're going to paint it. This is the easiest way to encourage/force/coerce yourself into painting. Stop taking the easy way out and stop playing with plastic models.

2) Don't try to paint to a standard above your skill or interest level. If you don't like painting, stop watching pro-painting tips on YouTube and trying to paint more than you need.

3) Cheat. Use coloured spray primers. Use dips. Use washes. Use drybrushes. Depending on the army you can fly through stuff with these methods.

4) Use good equipment. Use the right paints and decent brushes. Don't cut corners because those corners will wreck your enthusiasm when it makes painting something harder than it should be. I'm not saying buy silly Windsors and Newton $25-30 brushes...buy buy brushes and paints intended for use with miniatures.

5) Have a proper painting area set up where you can leave it - so models are sitting on the desk waiting to be painted when you feel the slight urge to paint. If you have to haul stuff out, set it up and then paint...then put it all away this will MURDER your enthusiasm to paint.

6) This is a hard one: get things painted and finished. Nothing is more encouraging to make you paint than having an army or other things already painted. Once you set this standard for yourself, it becomes self-fulfilling. I only play with painted stuff: now that I have two fully painted armies, I'd never consider putting bare plastic on the table alongside my fully painted army...just couldn't do it. This is a self-producing benefit.

7) Don't paint when you don't want to. Even if you "need" to, this is a bad way to tackle stuff and you'll end up unhappy with your results.

Really it boils down to number 1 above: don't play with unpainted stuff. Hold yourself to a higher standard. They're your miniatures and your game: make it pretty.

 Elbows wrote:

5) Have a proper painting area set up where you can leave it - so models are sitting on the desk waiting to be painted when you feel the slight urge to paint. If you have to haul stuff out, set it up and then paint...then put it all away this will MURDER your enthusiasm to paint.

That's what I struggle with. When I'm not getting to do any painting till the end of the day anyway, that's the final hurdle that is just too much.

I am going to have a dedicated painting room, but I need to finish decorating 2 kids bedrooms and a spare bedroom first... :(

@Elbows has some good points. I always want my armies painted and enjoy having the armies finished, but do not thoroughly enjoy the process to get them painted.

** kind of like yardwork... I like to have a nice yard and manicured lawn, but do not like doing it. But, I do it because I want the yard nice and do not want to pay someone else to do it...

Anyway, here is my technique for fast painting with minimal work.

1. Assemble and affix to bases.
2. Base and prime the minis in one shot using the primary color of the finished mini. If the main color will be blue, go ahead and prime them blue - why prime/basecoat in a color you will just cover up anyway? I have even used silver for mostly armoured minis.
3. Minimize your color palette. Pick just the absolutely essential colors. Question yourself if you have much more than 5 colors chosen.
4. Paint a regiment of about 10-15 at a time. Use one color at a time on all the minis before moving onto another color - do all the flesh, do all the brown, etc. This saves tons of time.
5. After you paint, hit with wash (all one wash or multiple colors, if you feel like it) to set the shadows in all the recessed areas.
6. Find a neutral highlight color and drybrush it lightly all over to pop the raised areas.
7. If basing, mix Elmer's glue with your paint, paint it on the base, then drop on your base covering of choice - sand, gravel, grass, mix of all, etc.

Done!

MDSW brings up a good point: Find the number of models you're willing to paint together and don't exceed that. If I'm doing skirmish minis I can more or less paint three models to completion in a 3-4 hour sitting. If I'm doing massed infantry I can only do maybe 10 at a time or I just lose my mind. Even with the quick cheating tricks, more than 10 is just too much for me.

This doubles up on why I don't build things to play before painting them. There is a psychological impact of seeing an army of grey plastic sitting behind your painting table. It is a massive demotivator. Five models sitting on your paint desk? It becomes a possible task. Don't psyche yourself out by trying to do too many (because if you do, you'll have an even worse time and it'll put you off painting more in the future).

Another thing: buy models and armies which work with your lack of painting enthusiasm. If you know you don't like painting - don't play Imperial Guard or Orks. Don't do it. I don't care how much you like the army, you're setting yourself up for failure. If you know in your heart you don't like painting and simply won't finish 200 Ork figures...don't buy that army. Don't use grey plastic as an excuse to play an army you wouldn't be willing to paint.

I give myself a time limit. As an example, I have a tournament in Feb. So I have until Feb to finish painting what you have in que.
I also don't play with unpainted stuff, my whole army was painted before I came back to 8th. When I came back I bought a bunch of stuff out of necessity. So because of that, I told myself I wouldn't play any more games until I have that stuff done.
I think the difference is that I actually like painting. So it doesn't bother me to paint all day if I have the time to.

 Moxatron wrote:
Okay like many painters, collectors and gamers I have way more unpainted models then finished.
I also don't really play so I'm in no rush to get them all together and painted up.

#1 thing that gets you fired up to get done is a looming game or tournament.
If I shoot my mouth off of possibly playing one of my "other" armies, my opponents fully expect me to have them painted well since my go-to army is complete and nice looking.

But does anyone have any tips on finishing models?
Keeping focused is also a problem, anyone have any tips or advice about that?

What keeps you happy and amused?
Many play with some video in the background.
I get a music list running on random and have a beverage next to me and do "assembly line painting" of one colour at a time on 10 guys.

I don't use spray paint as I think it's just to temperamental to get a good cover with them with out a lot of practice.
So I just use the good old paint brush.

Identify what parts of the painting you do not like.
I do not like "block painting" straight-up coverage of given areas.
I got into airbrush to help alleviate that problem.
I am angry with myself not having got to it sooner.

I was Planing on trying to do at least 1 model a day.
Surely that's manageable?

It completely depends on your schedule and the quality of paint job you are setting out to do.
Tabletop standard, you could easily do the equivalent of "1 a day" but I find both for efficiency and for cohesiveness it is best to do a unit.
I found a marked improvement from squad to squad as you get your practice up... I hate it when you want to do the 1st squad over when on your third.

Hopefully I can get some sort of finished results over the next couple of weeks.
and post my finished models on here.

I find fixing and upgrading computers and then the inevitable games is KILLING my army model painting.
I have two boys that need my time so painting happens somewhere around 9:30pm to 11:00pm.

Look really hard at what causes you to hesitate about painting... once a day look at these issues and address them.

- Have a plan, what are the colours you plan to use and in what order. Write them down. Store the "recipe" with the models. I hate it when I forget what I used when I pickup an old project. That is discouraging.
- Take inventory based on your "recipe" to make sure you did not run out of something unexpectedly. A planned trip to the hobby shop is far more enjoyable.
- Set a calendar event to "refresh" your paint, all it takes is one unexpected too thick or dried out paint to make you pack it in. Get "matt-medium" for acrylics like from Liquitex to add, too much water eventually makes the paint settle too much or act strange.
- My back tended to hurt a bit, I adjusted my bench height, still not right, I now wear an apron and paint on my chest leaning back with swivel lights on arms around me.
- Hard on eyes? More lighting. Jewelers visor, "cheater glasses".
- Cleanup is a pain or changing paint colour? Look for quick and easy tools for cleaning. I use disposable plastic shot glasses, got a bunch of white shower tiles for pallets, get the pink artist soap for the brushes. Dropper bottles and squeeze bottles help with this.
- Found my hand cramped up a bit holding the models the oils on your fingers are bad anyway: get at least some 1" cylinder of some kind and use blue sticky-tac or whatever works. There are a multitude of holders out there.
- Unsteady hands? There are a few techniques for supporting the part and your hand with brush to improve things. I was involved with a kickstarter that makes a holder with a wire steady/crutch that really helps: http://rathcore.com/.
- Have a "reward" model to the side where if you want a break from the grind you can fuss over some character model until ready to go back to bulk painting.
- You can always go back to some assembly for a break.
- Look up some videos or "how-to" for some tips to improve technique or "speed-painting" assistance.

Good luck, I seem to relate a little too well by "hating" painting for a while and suddenly enjoying it more than anything else.

 Elbows wrote:
It sounds silly, but hold yourself to a higher standard.

1) The hardest part? Don't play with unpainted models. Simple as that. Hell, don't assemble a model till you're going to paint it. This is the easiest way to encourage/force/coerce yourself into painting. Stop taking the easy way out and stop playing with plastic models.

2) Don't try to paint to a standard above your skill or interest level. If you don't like painting, stop watching pro-painting tips on YouTube and trying to paint more than you need.

3) Cheat. Use coloured spray primers. Use dips. Use washes. Use drybrushes. Depending on the army you can fly through stuff with these methods.

4) Use good equipment. Use the right paints and decent brushes. Don't cut corners because those corners will wreck your enthusiasm when it makes painting something harder than it should be. I'm not saying buy silly Windsors and Newton $25-30 brushes...buy buy brushes and paints intended for use with miniatures.

5) Have a proper painting area set up where you can leave it - so models are sitting on the desk waiting to be painted when you feel the slight urge to paint. If you have to haul stuff out, set it up and then paint...then put it all away this will MURDER your enthusiasm to paint.

6) This is a hard one: get things painted and finished. Nothing is more encouraging to make you paint than having an army or other things already painted. Once you set this standard for yourself, it becomes self-fulfilling. I only play with painted stuff: now that I have two fully painted armies, I'd never consider putting bare plastic on the table alongside my fully painted army...just couldn't do it. This is a self-producing benefit.

7) Don't paint when you don't want to. Even if you "need" to, this is a bad way to tackle stuff and you'll end up unhappy with your results.

Really it boils down to number 1 above: don't play with unpainted stuff. Hold yourself to a higher standard. They're your miniatures and your game: make it pretty.

+1 all this

8) Pull up a long youtube video or Twitch stream of painters. I like Next level Painting, Pirate monkey painting. They have music playing, and just seeing someone else, even if you just hear them paint along with you makes it feel like I am having a mini painting party.

1 model per day could work, or could take half your day. Just depends on your standard and what model. A tac marine I don't care about I could do easy. A character, it better be a weekend day. Batch painting can help.

That being said, I find that playing games and upcoming events motivate me. When I have unpainted models on the table, it drives me to work on them and get them painted, as it bugs me to play with unpainted models (but I'll still do it for a temporary solution). Each person is different with this of course, as many said they won't play with unpainted at all.

I also either listen to some good tunes or watch a movie, or two with headphones on to keep my attention on what's in front of me.