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Hey there, looking to do a new paint scheme for my Alpha Legion army, and I'm not sure what type of paint I should be getting.

So people are recommending doing the following -

Undercoat Black Primer
Coat of Gunmetal (I use vallejo paints, I think thats Leadbelcher for citadel)

Then on top of this, people are using the Tamiya Clear paints (X-23 for blue, and the green I forget the number for). However those Tamiya paints don't seem to be common around here, and they only seem to come in a couple of colours.

The citadel Guilliman Blue glaze seems to do the same thing, but I'm not sure if its better or worse as I haven't seen anyone do a comparison.

Would the paint need to be a 'glaze' (whatever it is that makes it a glaze), or can the same effect be done using other paints?

I know a Wash is a similar transparency, but washes pool in edges and so it wouldn't have a smooth coverage over the areas...

So I'm kinda stuck as to what paints I need to buy!

End result I'm looking for is a metallic style finish (like the forgeworld paint jobs you see on things like mechanicum) in dark blue/purple/red. (I highlight the dark, because the X23 and Guilliman blues seem quite light in colour on the paint charts, but don't know if thats accurate to the final result).

Thanks to anyone who can help

EDIT - I only paint with Brushes, no airbrush or spraypaint things please

Depends on the tools you have

Generally people use an air brush with the tamyas.

If you are just going for a metallic finish then you could use metallic/iridescent mediums from various craft paint people.

If you want to get color shifty then Green stuff world makes a water based paint for that. i think a few others do too.

also deco art interference pants are pretty cheap and the effect works to color shift but only with one color so you base blue then paint turquoise over it for a blue to green effect or vice versa though its very subtle and wont show up on camera that well.



Edit: also deco art stuff is hand paintable and is water based(?) (well iv been using it water so i hope its ok)

 Desubot wrote:
Depends on the tools you have

Generally people use an air brush with the tamyas.

If you are just going for a metallic finish then you could use metallic/iridescent mediums from various craft paint people.

If you want to get color shifty then Green stuff world makes a water based paint for that. i think a few others do too.

also deco art interference pants are pretty cheap and the effect works to color shift but only with one color so you base blue then paint turquoise over it for a blue to green effect or vice versa though its very subtle and wont show up on camera that well.

Yeh sorry I knew I was forgetting something.

I only paint with brushes, don't have the equipment or the workspace for airbrushes. So it would have to be paints that work with a normal brush job, no sprays.

I'll take a look at the greenstuff one you mentioned though, thanks

You could try vallejo transparent paints from their model colour range. I use them with my airbrush so don't know how it works with brush but it isn't from their specific airbrush lines so maybe it works and if you already use vallejo...

Or just get cheapish set ~50-70 euros. Wont' be good for detail work but for base coating and putting in first colours where you don't need to be that accurate well. If you do the metalic colours first no need to worry if you paint elsewhere(indeed I basically paint the entire model like that first rather than try to aim...)

you need to experiment whit thin, evenly painted glazes over various metallic undercoats.

allso i if i was to take a guess on how they did the red armor plate on models sutch as FWs Knight Styrix, i would say GWs screaming bell as basic, shaded whit black and highlighted whit orange and then given a finisher of gloss varnish.

Well, colorshyft psyhotic illusion is quite good for AL scheme, I am painting mine with it. Though I use AB, but it can be used with brush from what they said, but it's not the best on vehichles. Most of those metalics are best used with AB though.

You could check out our Blue Purple colourshifting flip paint at INSTAR, sounds like what you need and it has a nice shiny, metal look too.

We do plan to have some more added to the line soon.

would suggest any clear coat with a brush is a problem, unless you are talking small areas, its just too hard to get a constant depth of paint on larger areas.

For a bush I'd look at tinting a metallic to brush on, its not too hard to do, GW did "tints" but to be honest a silver with some colour added works, just experiment with the other colours, find something you like and mix a dropper bottle of it.

Write down the mix ratio, an ink can work to shade this and the base with a bit more silver as a highlight.

if you want the "candy" finish a gloss varnish brushes over just fine

I use Tamiya clear paints over Citadel metallics and they work wonders. The trick is if you want it to look like colored metal, you'll want to do a thin coat of your Tamiya clear. On a side note, a thicker coat of Tamiya clear over a really bright silver (Citadel Stormhost Silver or The Army Painter Bright Silver for example) is good for painting cameras or glowing screens.

Not thought of that for lights or screens, will have to have a go with that one

Also, even though Tamiya acrylics are alcohol based, you can use them on top of Citadel and others no problem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9q35BPaBN0

This is a great video showing different ways to achieve the effects you are looking for.

You could always try the new Citadel gem paints. They work well over metallics to tint them. You can even combine the blue and green nicely, with some Lahmium medium in there to thin the coat even more you can get some good effects.

And you can also paint gems and visor lens's with them!

 Supershandy wrote:
You could check out our Blue Purple colourshifting flip paint at INSTAR, sounds like what you need and it has a nice shiny, metal look too.

We do plan to have some more added to the line soon.

Does it require a black base coat to function. If you are planning on adding to a color shift line consider shifting across the spectrum so people can start blue and reach red. I usually am working on the wife's eldar and like to shift from aqua blue/green to blue and from blue to purple and then from purple to red as it provides the right aesthetic. Been looking for a color shift series that I can use that way and end with a solid non-color shift color on either end, aqua to color shift through to a red-edge on another part of the model.

AK interactive make a range of wax metallic paints that you apply, then buff up to a shine after leaving to dry. the range is called true metal. i'm currently still waiting for mine to arrive, but the effects look quite decent from what ive seen.

Desubot's suggestion with Interference Paints can be.. hit and miss.

I don't know about his brand choice, but mine, Golden Arts, even with the finest flake it's only translucent, so you'll get a whitish layer over the original material. Not so bad on bright metals, but it can cause problems with other paints. My technique is to mix the main and interference paints together - the ratio varies for application, but mixed in it won't fade the base paint as much, and you'll still get the shift effect.

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
AK interactive make a range of wax metallic paints that you apply, then buff up to a shine after leaving to dry. the range is called true metal. i'm currently still waiting for mine to arrive, but the effects look quite decent from what ive seen.

Its basically rub and buff. i really need to use my tubes of them. i know the effects can be really good.

 Desubot wrote:

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
AK interactive make a range of wax metallic paints that you apply, then buff up to a shine after leaving to dry. the range is called true metal. i'm currently still waiting for mine to arrive, but the effects look quite decent from what ive seen.

Its basically rub and buff. i really need to use my tubes of them. i know the effects can be really good.

Yeah I'm looking forward to getting mine. I hate painting tmm so I'm hoping they might give me a little cheat method.

Folkart makes new "color shift" (interference) paint that seems quite good. Initial tests show no whiteness from the medium and applies thinly and evenly with a brush. Plus they are cheap and available at Michaels. Orktober is going to be shiny for me.

Vallejo Gunmetal blue with blue/green glazing, or Vallejo Mecha Metallic Blue.

meatybtz

There are some pigments we can get hold of that might do what you're asking, problem is we feel the price range might be out of reach.

We are continually looking for innovative paints and ideas, but we don't want to find one and then say "Oh by the way it's going to cost you $20 for a 10ml bottle"

Once we find something innovative and we can price it accordingly, we'll make an announcement over on the News and Rumours forum.

As for our flip paint, the base coat doesn't matter since a white, grey or black base will give you a different effect as shown by these images of our Blue Purple Flip Paint that we took for someone else on the forums (The quality isn't great but you'll get the idea).



Grey base coat



Black base coat

Tamiya clears also come in spray cans now if you don’t have an airbrush. Might have trouble getting them though, some countries have restrictions on solvent sprays going through the mail.

As an aside, I use VMC and don't think Gunmetal Gray is a good approximation of Leadbelcher. It is much too dark. Natural Steel is a better choice.

I now have a GreenStuffWorld colour shift 'cobalt blue' to try out, as well as a tamiya blue clear. I'll report back when I've done some tests