Customising Hints, Tips and FAQs

[PumperKrickel]

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[LeapingLaelaps]

Perfect! Thank you Spider

[Paleodude]

Does anyone have a good recommendation for an airbrushing set? I wanted to try it as it seems to give better detail than acrilycs but I have no idea what models to start looking at.

[tyrantqueen]

Does anyone have a good recommendation for an airbrushing set? I wanted to try it as it seems to give better detail than acrilycs but I have no idea what models to start looking at.

Most airbrush artists do spray acrylics.

[MoarCrossovers]

What brand of paints would be best suited for painting figures?

[paintingdinos]

Does anyone have a good recommendation for an airbrushing set? I wanted to try it as it seems to give better detail than acrilycs but I have no idea what models to start looking at.

First step is getting a good compressor. I'm no pro, so others may have preferred brands, but anything that reaches at least 30 PSI is powerful enough for painting models. I have this one. The air tank is nice to keep the compressor from running constantly while spraying and to keep up the desired PSI.

Get a good quality brush. I have a cheaper one and I frequently get annoyed because the push button either sticks, comes loose, or causes some other issue.

Its more expensive, but easier to just buy paints designed for airbrush. I've tried to thin out regular acrylics, but have pretty much had a 100% fail rate with clogging (its a huge pain in the butt to fully disassemble and clean the airbrush). The liquitex inks are pretty good.

What brand of paints would be best suited for painting figures?

Most branded model paints are good, but almost any artist-quality acrylic paint works and is a bit cheaper. I use a mixture of different brands, but liquitex soft body is easy to get, affordable, and works very well.

[MoarCrossovers]

How difficult is it to remove the bases of CollectA figures?

[Lanthanotus]

How difficult is it to remove the bases of CollectA figures?

Depends on the figure, some (though just a few) are one mold, most are placed with pegs and are fairly easy to be removed with a scalpel or exacto knife. Even easier when you bath the figure in scalding hot water for a minute or so.

[MoarCrossovers]

What is the best technique for fixing warped legs?

[Lanthanotus]

It would help if you specify your questions a bit.... on some figures just a bath in scalding hot water can help, sometimes just by bathing and the warped body part remembering its former position from its own, sometimes by actively bending it to the desired position. However, bigger/thicker body parts are less likely to be able to stay bent for an extended time, so on some figures it might be neccessary to build in wire to keep a figure up (the Feathered Safari rex is such an example as it is too heavy and the ankles too thin to hold the weight indefinetly).

[Mini Minmi]

How would one go at painting a figure with articulations to avoid the paint chipping away by the movement? Is there a specific technique for this? So far I've only come across tutorials on how to paint static models. I saw that it was mentioned earlier in the thread that the paint shouldn't damage the joints but how do you prevent the joint from damaging the paint? (I'm thinking of joints like on the attack action Jurassic world toys, for example, where there is a decent amount of rubbing between parts)

[Lanthanotus]

The simple answer is: You can't!

The more complex reply involves to ask for the specific material and then choose the correct primer, paint and possibly coating, however, such steps will add a substantial proportion of material to the surface of the joint and therefor either prevent it from moving at all (because paint, primer, coating made its way into the joint and glues it together) or adding a considerbale hinderance to the joint, resulting in more friction resulting in more force being applied to the paint.

So, if you want to use that articulated toy as a toy futhermore, better do not repaint it (at least not at the joints). If you just want to display is and maybe one day change its pose, repainting is an option, I'd advise though to use the (approriate as in right... water or oil/petrol based) paint as thin as possible and best use a simple mix or standard color so you can repair any paint rubs/scratches with minimum effort.

[PumperKrickel]

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[Mini Minmi]

Thank you Lanthanotus. I was afraid of that, I just couldn't figure out a safe way. I saw it done though! IrritatorRaji posted pictures and an animated gif of a repainted carnotaurus that can still be used to move its head and neck and open its mouth. Maybe it wouldn't hold up to use over time, though.

SuperSpider, thank you, awesome. I'll have a look. It makes sense to make some room for the new paint layer. Clever. I would have thought it might make the joints too lose but I'll go read first.

[Lanthanotus]

[...]
You´d have to remove some material around the joint first. Any place where you expect friction to damage the paint. Just remove a little with a dremel tool and you´re good to go. Definitely not simple, but it definitely works. There are some tutorials here regarding joint protection that are intended for humanoid figures, but should work just as well for dinosaurs or other creatures:

http://www.figurerealm.com/customtutorial

Hmm, smart, didn't think of that solution, usually I got the impression that "repainters" are somewhat different from "customizers/modders" in terms of doing a real physical change on their figures.

[PumperKrickel]

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[MoarCrossovers]

Is it always necessary to coat figures with primer before painting them?

[Melanite]

Hello! I've been watching this forum for awhile, and I love seeing all of the customized figures and other art. I finally took the plunge and began painting one of my toys this week, and I am nearly finished (cant wait to post the result!).

Here is my question, does anyone know if this sealer linked below is any good for use on a dino toy painted with acrylic paint? I happen to have a can of it floating around from a previous project. Thanks in advance!

http://www.michaels.com/americana-acrylic-spray-sealer-finisher-matte/10254974.html

[Over9K]

Anyone have any ideas of what I can use to firm up some very soft wings on a dragon figure? They're soft vinyl/pvc and sag pretty quickly when posed in a outstretched position. Hoping I can find a way to stiffen them up without cutting and adding a spar.

Is there something I can paint or spray onto the top side to add stiffness?

[Halichoeres]

Anyone have any ideas of what I can use to firm up some very soft wings on a dragon figure? They're soft vinyl/pvc and sag pretty quickly when posed in a outstretched position. Hoping I can find a way to stiffen them up without cutting and adding a spar.

Is there something I can paint or spray onto the top side to add stiffness?

I am not aware of anything that can do that. I suspect that the PVC is sufficiently heavy that if you were to spray something stiff on them, the PVC would sag anyway, and the stiff substance would just crack. I've had the sagging problem with the wings on larger pterosaurs, and I just try to arrange them so the very tips of the wings touch something that will hold them up. Maybe some clear acrylic dowels would be the least obtrusive spar.