Cade

Does anyone know when the trophies will be mailed?

I don't any paint stripper whose time is measured in days. Heck, you might be able to strip a mini by soaking it in water if you do it long enough. My methods usually strip a mini in 30 minutes.

In my opinion, Simple Green does not strip paint very well. I have have to soak stuff in it much longer and scrub harder to get all the paint out, especially tough primers. Lots of bits of paint stick stubbornly in the cracks. Winsor and Newton Brush Cleaner works great. Not only is it the best stuff I've found for cleaning brushes, it strips paint well. This weekend, I used it to clean Rustoleum enamel off my hands, so it even works on enamels and laquers. Its non-toxic and low odor. Don't soak your brushes too deep. This stuff will strip the laquer of the wooden brush of your handle. Hardware store paint stripper works great as well. You have to deal with the fumes though. In this instance, I use a jar that has a lid and soak the mini in it. You don't have to worry about the fumes this way. Just last week I had a primer incident and I way over sprayed and filled in all the detail on the mini. After letting it soak for like 15 to 30 minutes, I cleaned it for a few seconds under the faucet with a toothbrush and it was perfectly clean.

I switched to Tamiya a year or two ago and I've never had a problem with it. Best primer I've ever worked with. A couple of times when I couldn't find it in my area, I bought Mr. Hobby's "Mr. Base 1000." Seems like the identical formula. The spray can even looks like the same design right down to all the sections in Japanese. Just a suggestion for anyone having difficulty finding Tamiya. I have tried Dull Coat as a primer. Found it very difficult to work on, cover, adhere, etc. I don't recommend that. It does work to make a surface more paintable. I've done that to pre-painted mini like the D&D ones so I can just touch them up without completely repainting them.

I layer more then wet blend and I always paint all over my hands. I find it easier to get just the right amount of paint on brush by test and dabbing on my finger rather then on my palette or rag. I also do it to test the thickness of my paints. It helps me tell if I have it thin enough for washes and layering.

I'm sorry if this was addressed somewhere and I missed it... but is there going to be an Artist's conference again this year?

Yes, and I *love* my water-soluble oils!! Am trying to decide which mini (or resin kit) I want to subject to my learning curve with them. --Anne There water-soluble oils? Wow, I have been away from painting for too long. Are these easy to find? Are there any brands people would recomment? I'd like to experiment with these.

Great paint job. He looks very cool. The NMM is sharp and I like your highlighting on the skin. I'm not a big fan of Rackhams orcs, but this guy looks sweet.

I have a hard time classifying art based on the intentions of the artist. 1) Unless you are the artist in question, you can never know for sure what the artist's intentions were. The artist may lie. The artist may only be trying to create something you perceive as art with no real inspiration of his/her own. Take any classically reknowned piece of art that has influenced people for generations. If we found out that the artist was lying about his intentions is it suddenly not art anymore or does the perception of the rest of the world and the influence the piece had allow it is be classified as art? Go to any museum or art exhibit and you will see people standing around talking about the artist's vision and what artist was trying to 'say' with the piece, but you never really know. 2) Does this mean that purely intending to make art succeeds, regardless how bad said piece is to the rest of the world? Is there a point where art can be so bad it doesn't even count as art? I mean if everyone in the world says a particular thing is not art, I'd say it isn't art regardless of the intent of the artist. I'm not a big fan of subjective reality. Though you can create a world unto yourself and make something art in your mind, your reality does not influence mine or the world as a whole. Now, I realize that it's nigh impossible for everyone in the world except only one person to share the same opinion, but I feel it's easier to exaggerate in order to make the point. It's a little like fashion. Though I might hate a particular fashion trend, my personal view on the item or even as its creater, does not define whether its fashionable or not. Fashionable is a status given/accepted by a crowd. Yes, things can be fashionable in one crowd and not another, but there is always a crowd and it is the perception of that group that makes the distinction, not the feelings of an individual. My intent to create art or my personal perception of art will not influence a culture. The perception of a group of sufficient size that something is art can influence a culture.

Super glue is bad with every kind of flock that I've ever used. Stick to PVA glue. I think this has to do with the tendency super glue has to melt/chemically react with certain types of plastic and synthetics.

In this one from the painted gallery, Anne actually says she used the bone triad. "Bone Horror, 14185 from the Warlord line, painted by Anne March '05. I used the RMS paint Bone Triad on this; Aged Bone basecoat, Bone Shadow wash, Polished Bone highlight. :)" Direct Link

Were I to guess, I think Anne painted this with the bone triad: Just a guess though. Maybe someone can give an official answer.

I have used both paints and inks for lining. I prefer lining with paint and have done so exclusively for awhile now. For washes and lining, and I have a premade thinning solution that is 50% distilled water and 50% Winsor & Newton Flow aid. I thin the paint for lining a lot, probably around 8 to 1, so it really flows into the cracks. I paint carefully aiming only for the place I want the lining. I may end up going the lining a second time, just to reinforce it if I need to. After that, I touch up the basecoat as necessary if I was messy.

Limiting the exposure to air is the key, so yes, vacuum sealed zip lock bags would help, but would also be a pain. Part of the problem is the design of the bottle though. The seal doesn't appear to completely keep out air, so they dry over time. Also, if you paint from the open bottle or bottle cap, the paint is exposed to air the whole time. Transfering paint from the bottle to a palettle, closing the bottle and then painting is better. Even when the lid is only open for a short time, a large surface area of paint in the bottle is exposed to air. This is why dropper bottles work better. Good bottles seem to have a better seal again air. When the top is off, very little gets exposed to air. And, you squeeze a few drops out that you need and then put away the rest. Transferring Pro Paints to a dropper bottle will drastically increase their shelf life.

Having looked around, there are several advantage. First of all, you can easily throw paint in a tacklebox or similar. The problem is that if you planning on painting somewhere, its a pain to find the paint you are looking for without taking everything out. Cases that are one level like this one allow you to transport the paint and easily work out of the case without emptying them. Second problem is find cases that manage space right compared to the bottle. One level that allows all the paint to stand up works great as opposed to dumping a bunch of bottles into an open space or putting them in a space that might fit almost 2 bottles, but not quite, so you have a lot of unused space. Also, if you need more than one case. You can easily stack these in a travel back and they stack well at home. Traveling with more than one tackle box is cumbersome. Its hard to explain, but that is actually the size and shape I have been looking for prior to ever seeing that pic. All the rubbermaid like cases I find are too short, too tall or have an awkward shape.

"Ray, if someone asks you if you're a god, you say YES!!!" I'm hoping everyone remembers that movie reference.

I would probably take a pointed sculpting or dental tool, some kind of 'pick-like' tool and carve into the engravings very carefully. Just retracing them a few times with a good point will smooth them out and give them more depth. Then, I would basecoat the area surrounding the engravings. After that, I would take whatever color I wanted for the engravings and thin it to wash consistancy with water and lots of flow improver. For washes, I tend to use 50/50 water vs. flow improver. You can then drawn in the engravings. The flow improver should really help it settle in the cracks. You might have to do this a two or three times, but you should be able to build up the color. Now, because your paint was so thin, there should be virtually none on the surrouning area, but just carefull touch up this base coat as needed. Dry brushing will make the whole area look chalky. For a smooth appearance, you are better of just painting them carefully with the wash approach.

Also, paypal has found quite a niche. Rather than exchanging lots of info and go about complicated and sometimes pricey banks wires, paypal allows a very cheap electronic funds transfer system that anyone can make available at an online point of sale. This eliminates the wait time to get paid so the sales product can be sent out faster. They are pretty much a monopoly here and that tends to make companies less committed to customer service.

NNN. I like it. I think the mini turned out great. I do pick up a very mild transparent effect. If that's what you were aiming, it turned out well. I think the croc games basti are a very cool segment of minis.

yeah, that's how feel about it too. I just keep ignoring the fu thing and hope it goes away.

I can't speak for many Reaper Pro Paints, but I can share some of my experience because I used to have difficulty with browns. If you add white to brown, it lightens to a chalky/faded and usually cooler tone. If you add yellow, it highlights to orange warm tone. Either one can be fine for some brown objects, but neither usually looks good for leather or wood. I generally highlight my brown by mixing lighter shades rather than picking a lighter premade color. I used to simply add a little white and a little yellow to each layer. But changing ratios of the yellow to the white, you control how warm/orange or cool/chalky you get. I've found that adding Vallejo bronzed flesh to brown is a good average of white and yellow. I've started using vallejo bone white instead of pure white, as it looks more natural. Reaper linen white would be good to. Then I can add a little bit of either or warm brown/flesh color to warm the brown up.

Last year, in October I believe, Reaper organized an artist's conference at their site. Unlike Reapercon, the artists conference was completely dedicated to painting, modeling, etc. I was unable to go, so I can only speak on the feedback I have heard. I heard it said that Reaper will be hosting another one this fall, but I can't speak from certainty. Reaper has yet to make an official announcement, so I would just keep an eye out for it. I only mention it because it will be sooner than Reapercon 2006, if it occurs, and it will be dedicated to painting.

Please no... Please. Actually, there was this time while I was in Florida and really, really hammered... Camera phones are evil! Whenever you do something really embarassing, your friends will have pictures of it. But I no more wish to show pictures than you wish to see them. On the plus side, I have a few photos that could be used for blackmail against my buddy if he gets out of line.

I got one at Sears Hardware and saw one at Ace Hardware last week when I was looking for something. Maybe you aren't looking in the right section. I find them all over the place.

Hardware stores are great for getting pin vices as many gaming stores/hobby companies way over charge... cough*GW*cough. However, few hardware stores carry drill bits thin enough for most small minis. I get mine from a hobby train store for like a $ a piece. They also sell steel wire there so I can match up drill size to the metal pin size. My most frequently used drill bit for pinning is about the thickness of an average sewing needle. I would recommend looking around for a really good hobby train/model store. These types of store usually don't carry minis, but they carry a ton of scenery and hobby supplies that are very usefull. That's also were I tend to find Tamiya and Floquil products, which are most common in the trains and models hobby.