Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Ok, so that title might look like I’m asking accusingly, I can assure you I’m not.

I was quite surprised to see a fair few people say they don’t paint their models all when reading the How Important To You Is Painting thread.

I’m genuinely interested in why you don’t do it. Is it that you can’t paint for whatever reason, be it time, money, or another reason? Are you afraid of doing a bad paint job? (I’ve certainly avoided certain models because I don’t feel I can do them justice). Is there just no call for it in your playing group?

I’d rather people didn’t post reasons on this thread why people should in fact paint, we’ve got them all in the other. I just am curious as to why some people don’t. I’m not looking for a flame war.

I paint when i feel like painting and i dont when i dont.

I love to paint! I also love to sleep, spend time with my wife, eat, [need to] work, spend time with friends and family, and sometimes play video games. Painting gets its time...but I’m pretty specific with my painting and don’t rush. So I don’t get done as much as I want.

Time mostly. I work a regular 8-5 job and live close to family, so there's typically something going on every weekend/every other weekend.

I'm fairly close to being able to field a fully painted Guard army. With my goal this year of 3 infantry models (or 1 tank) per week (and two models painted per one model bought), I should be able to get to a fully painted army fairly soon.

I paint pretty much every day, but there's always the feeling that there's something I'm putting off. Maybe I think it's going to be mechanically difficult like Attack Bikes or a magnetized Predator, maybe I think it's going to be a slog like a Repulsor or Land Raider, maybe it's just something I don't think I'll use a lot like Reivers or Terminators, but there's always something.

phillv85 wrote:
Ok, so that title might look like I’m asking accusingly, I can assure you I’m not.

I was quite surprised to see a fair few people say they don’t paint their models all when reading the How Important To You Is Painting thread.

I’m genuinely interested in why you don’t do it. Is it that you can’t paint for whatever reason, be it time, money, or another reason? Are you afraid of doing a bad paint job? (I’ve certainly avoided certain models because I don’t feel I can do them justice). Is there just no call for it in your playing group?

I’d rather people didn’t post reasons on this thread why people should in fact paint, we’ve got them all in the other. I just am curious as to why some people don’t. I’m not looking for a flame war.

Well, I paint most of my models, but there's always unpainted ones because it takes time and there are a lot of them and I buy new ones before I finish painting the old ones.

1 Paints cost too much.
2 I have no place to paint.
3 I don't think painting would be fun for me.

Karol wrote:
1 Paints cost too much.
2 I have no place to paint.
3 I don't think painting would be fun for me.

'
regarding number 3 Karol, I used to think much the same until I forced myself to do it, I paint in small amounts, tossing a bit on then going off to do something, and have found it can be pretty zen, and there is NOTHING more sastifying then completeing a new model and realizing it's one of the nicest looking models you have done to date.

paint costs well.. that's relative, suffice to say GW paints cost a lot but other brands are a bit cheaper. as for a place to paint, you might be suprised, if thats ever all thats in your way talk to your parents.

as for me personally, I paint as much as I can but well.. I've a lot of models, sometimes I've had to show up with the odd mini still unpainted.

Because I didn't prioritize them and they fell further back in the queue.

I basically only play with painted models unless I'm trying a goofy build, but thats like maybe once a year.

BrianDavion 784321 10684239 wrote:
paint costs well.. that's relative, suffice to say GW paints cost a lot but other brands are a bit cheaper. as for a place to paint, you might be suprised, if thats ever all thats in your way talk to your parents.

as for me personally, I paint as much as I can but well.. I've a lot of models, sometimes I've had to show up with the odd mini still unpainted.

Maybe, never tried it so it is hard to be 100% certain. I know I never liked art at school. I know the space stuff is a no go. I live on 45 square meters with 2 other kids, my mom and my step dad. And I am not going to paint at 3 in the night in the kitchen, I like sleeping too much.

You don’t paint because you don’t think you’d like it and never tried it...you know, my mom once told me to never try brussel sprouts because I’d hate them. They’re now my favorite vegetable and I could eat them every night.

You know how it relates? You never know if you’ll enjoy something unless you try it. Art class in school FORCES you to finish something for a grade. Painting these models are at YOUR pace, and you’re your own teacher.

Paint with friends at another place if you don’t have space, paint at your store, talk, hang out and chill while you paint. Some of the best painting sessions I ever had involved South Park, paint, and Pepsi with friends.

I was under the impression that this was not a "convince people who dont paint that they should" thread and instead just posting reasons why people dont.

Generally either burn out or lack of interest either in the model or 40k. I haven't been able to get a game in in over a month. So all I've managed to paint are the legs for an invictor and an eliminator. So I still have the entire upper body to paint and 2 other elimators but no ambition

Too many projects, too little time. I have to split my paint time with RPG's, video games (mostly to interact with my son), story writing, reading fiction (or streaming a new series) and (learning) programming. Then I end up with most of my time on forums or youtube :(.

Also, I can paint okay, but not like a lot of the top end painters here. It's intimidating at times and can bum me out from attempting to paint.

 Stormonu wrote:
Too many projects, too little time. I have to split my paint time with RPG's, video games (mostly to interact with my son), story writing, reading fiction (or streaming a new series) and (learning) programming. Then I end up with most of my time on forums or youtube :(.

Also, I can paint okay, but not like a lot of the top end painters here. It's intimidating at times and can bum me out from attempting to paint.

I was just looking in your gallery, lot's of nice stuff man, I'm impressed. I think you sell yourself short

Like Lance said, I paint when I want, what I want.

But time is also an issue. I paint slowly, so when I do have both the time and the inclination to add to my painted models, it takes me longer to do it.

I also enjoy the game part of the hobby, so that means using unpainted models for all but a few very specific lists.

I do, but slowly. Soooo slowly.

23 minis last year. Watch me go.

Because I don’t have the time and in general I’m not happy doing it. The other aspects of model building and playing the game are what I care about.

I haven’t run into anyone who said they didn’t want to play with me because I play it grey, but if they did I’d disregard them and find someone less high-brow.

Why's that high-brow?

That's just being a sniffy prick. Nothing high-brow about it. In fact, I'd argue it's decidedly boorish behaviour.

I paint "armies" slowly. But they'll at least have primer and some basic stuff done on them by the time they hit the table.

For a skirmish game like Kill Team and Necromunda, it's weird. I'm much more into the building and painting process for them because each of them is an 'bigger part' of a small group and their details and presentation seem much more important to me. I've usually got my gang/Kill-team/warband painted before they hit the table.

 Excommunicatus wrote:
I do, but slowly. Soooo slowly.

23 minis last year. Watch me go.

23 more than I got done!

I am not painting at the moment as I am still patiently waiting for new Berserker and Noisemarine models.

I do have an Alpha Legion / Night Lords project in mind but need to teach myself / get familiar with oil paints and an airbrush. No haste.

Also I work long hours.

 NoiseMarine with Tinnitus wrote:
I do have an Alpha Legion / Night Lords project in mind but need to teach myself / get familiar with oil paints and an airbrush. No haste.

Protip:

Go find a bunch of junk/trash/broken models and practice both of these a lot. Because trust me, 'learning with your army' is a good way to end up stripping or repurchasing about half of your army.

Mostly it's because I have so many projects I get distracted - I'll paint a few chaos marines, then once I have my paint scheme down I'll become more interested in something else, say SW Legion, or some Reaper miniatures.

So I'm left with a bunch of partly painted stuff. I just need to buckle down and get some projects done this year.

Until tournament time when they're fully painted they're usually undergoing some degree of kit bashing, especially with the new Primaris models, they're just too tidy.
My paintwork is pretty average at best so if they don't look interesting before the paint goes down they won't look interesting when it's done.

One problem I have is my painting room is the basement workshop without any heat so when the weather gets cold painting can sometimes be less then comfortable so I often end up having a slow down if not stoppage of work in the december - feubary period.

 Adeptus Doritos wrote:

 NoiseMarine with Tinnitus wrote:
I do have an Alpha Legion / Night Lords project in mind but need to teach myself / get familiar with oil paints and an airbrush. No haste.

Protip:

Go find a bunch of junk/trash/broken models and practice both of these a lot. Because trust me, 'learning with your army' is a good way to end up stripping or repurchasing about half of your army.

Preaching to the converted there!

Already got the schemes worked out but not used to oil paints and zenithal highlighting. Should be fun or a complete PITA.

 NoiseMarine with Tinnitus wrote:

Preaching to the converted there!

Already got the schemes worked out but not used to oil paints and zenithal highlighting. Should be fun or a complete PITA.

I experimented with oil paints on some of the most absurd things I could find. Toy cars and tanks, army men, etc.

Airbrushing is a bit of a pain- I can only do a few little tricks here and there. Basically, my airbrush is an overpriced priming and basing kit that I sometimes use to make mediocre (at best) OSL.

 ScarletRose wrote:
Mostly it's because I have so many projects I get distracted - I'll paint a few chaos marines, then once I have my paint scheme down I'll become more interested in something else, say SW Legion, or some Reaper miniatures.

So I'm left with a bunch of partly painted stuff. I just need to buckle down and get some projects done this year.

Soup has been good to me in this regard. Being able to switch between Daemons, R&H and CSM in one project has definitely helped reduce the feeling of burnout.

 Excommunicatus wrote:

 ScarletRose wrote:
Mostly it's because I have so many projects I get distracted - I'll paint a few chaos marines, then once I have my paint scheme down I'll become more interested in something else, say SW Legion, or some Reaper miniatures.

So I'm left with a bunch of partly painted stuff. I just need to buckle down and get some projects done this year.

Soup has been good to me in this regard. Being able to switch between Daemons, R&H and CSM in one project has definitely helped reduce the feeling of burnout.

agreed. differant armies have differant techniques approuches etc required for them

Free time is limited and sometimes I'd rather do something that takes less effort.