Search the Community

Thank you to Cranky Dog for the idea. Lots of people have been asking what to bring, expect etc. I figured it would be a good idea to list off what I'm bringing and why. PLEASE TRY TO KEEP POST LIMITED TO LISTS AND ON TOPIC QUESTIONS/ANSWERS Notebook If you're taking a class this is almost a must. Even if you aren't having scratch paper is great. If you get some one on one with some of the artist you'll definitely want it. Writing Utensils See above Battery Backup for Electronics The powers that be have mentioned that there will not be power available in the main hall. Since con is not at the hotel it will be harder to get power. Paintbrushes Everyone has their own favorite brush(s) learning the techniques with the brushes you have makes it easier to duplicate at home. Water Cup There are disposable cups floating around but I like being self sufficient Pallets, Wet and Dry There are paper plates and such floating around but I'm used to my stuff. Brush Soap I've finally taken CashWilley's advice and bought good brushes. Leaving the soap on the bristles is a life saver when you don't have time to properly clean them before your next class. Paints I keep mine in a Craftsman tool box while at cons. While Reaper has the paint rack I try to leave the paints for first timers or people who fl in and can't bring in all their stuff. Battery Powered Desk Lamp The powers that be have mentioned that there will not be power available in the main hall where the open painting will be. While I can paint without one, it's better to have and not need than need and not have. Tool Kit This has some files, pin vise and wire, super glue, hobby knife, Sharpie, etc. I am the prepared boy scout. Examples of my work. Everyone should enter the painting competition regardless of your level. They will post a picture of every min entered on the online gallery after the con so you'll have something to remember each year by. I also use the examples so instructors can gauge my skill level and advise me appropriately. Sculptors also love getting to see examples of their work painted up. Works in progress This year I'm taking classes on gemstones and shading. I'm bringing a project I'm struggling with so the instructor can give pointers specifically to my model. Something to store your loot in If you have the weekend pass you'll get the swag bag but it come fairly full. I keep a plastic for miscellaneous things including all my new acquisitions. Drinking container It's surprisingly easy to get dehydrated at conventions. Make sure you keep taking in fluids all day. A 2 wheel collapsible dolly. I stack everything on and secure it with bungies. Its just the right size that I can put it behind my chair during games or against the wall in classes. A Convention Buddy Make sure you have a way to get ahold of at least one other person at the con.That way if you loose your passport, get stuck at the airport, car breaks down etc we can send help. Dice I'll be playing a few games and prefer to use my dice so I'll be sure to bring them.

A long time ago (years, actually), those of us who didn't want to spend large sums on Ott lights used "natural" bulbs made by General Electric. These were bluish, incandescent, 60 watt bulbs that gave a more sunlike color spectrum than regular house bulbs. Technology has moved on and I'm looking for modern replacements. The incandescents get pretty warm, hot enough to deform the plastic on another lamp I use, and my new painting room gets pretty hot when my fiancé and I have 2 illuminated magnifying lamps going, plus a laptop, three dogs that hangout, an upstairs room, etc. I'd like to buy a pair of LED bulbs (or CF, if that's the only option) with the same light characteristics. However, searches of my local hardware store, Meijer, plus Amazon and even a general Google search have turned up nothing. I used to buy these at the local Home Depot, and I'm a bit concerned that LEDs can't do what tungsten filaments did in regards to spectrum. I am looking for a "standard" size of bulb and base, just like the old incandescent house lights I bought for decades before CF became a thing and then were replaced by LEDs running on house current. What is considered the replacement for these old bulbs? What do people use today, and where can I buy some?

I'm going to be starting a blog series call Tools of the Trade. It's mostly going to go in depth into the tools used but will probably include a few tutorials. If you were reading something like this what kind of topics might you want to see? I'm taking all suggestions currently. This will mainly be aimed at novice painters but could be of good use to others as well, I think

Hi all! I'm wondering if anyone has any tips for fixing the fishhook tip that develops on brushes after awhile. Is it even possible? I tried brush shaper with no success (although it's possible/likely there's a technique I don't know about that would make the brush shaper work better) I'd love to replace my brushes less frequently, and salvage some I already have :-)

So, I'm finally thinking it may be time to break down and purchase a Dremel (or similar tool). However, I have no idea what to look for in such a tool and was hoping that some of you could help me out. I'm not likely to be using the heck out of the thing by any means. My main intended uses for it are going to likely be to help with mold lines (I've found that with the metal figs I still have trouble getting rid of some mold lines with my files and I'm hesitant to use the X-Acto knife for a couple of reasons. I may also occasionally use it for drilling pin holes on particularly stubborn pieces (my pin vice sometimes gets cranky with me making pinning a chore a lot of the time). Finally, I can see me occasionally using it to make mods/conversions to minis. Nothing really spectacular at this point, but possibly things like turning a creature into a zombie variant by drilling out some of the skin and then molding in some flesh with green stuff, etc. Obviously as time goes on I might expand a bit, but for now, not looking for anything too fancy (or at least I don't think I am). I don't mind spending money to get a good product, but also don't feel the need to spend (for example) $150 when a $50 version would do just as nicely. As always, thanks in advance for any help!

I've got a couple of pewter minis I want to rebase, and the clippers I've been using in the past are probably not going to do the trick. One has a a long sweeping dress that covers almost the full base she's on, and the other has great big gallumphing feet that kind of sink into the terrain. So I've been thinking of trying a jewellery saw. Any recommendations? I'm not sure what to look for in one of those, but I hear the blades vary in quality quite a bit.

Just finished a short article for DaggerAndBrush showing you a selection of tools that will come in very handy for pretty much any terrain project. I keep it simple and recommend a number of tools for cutting and measuring; painting, sculpting and engraving; and tools that are nice to have, but not essential. So if you just started making terrain or intend to make some this may come in handy. The right tool for the job

A quick and dirty version of the Bones Blacksmith I did a while ago. Nothing fancy, basically basecoat + wash + abit of highlight on some stuff.

I'm looking into getting some better quality ones and I figured I'd start my search here. Anyone have any recommendations? I'm done of buy "sets" of things on amazon.

I got a visor for Christmas. Look out, 2016,the eyes are coming.

After getting a 3d printer I was thinking about how to organize my painting area a little better. Here's my list of features: A place to put the bottles of reaper paints. I have the colors being used for the figure without hunting for them. A place to put brushes while not actively painting. A well for a little water for brush cleaning. A small wet palette area. My big wet palette collects dirt, flecks of dried paint, cat hair, etc. If the wet palette is small I will have to change it often. It won't have time to grow mold or collect dirt This is the result: The larger well on the left serves as the wet palette. The smaller one of the right is for water. I'll bring it along to Reapercon if anyone wants a close look. Later! Jay

After becoming a master miniatures painter within a few months (heavy sarcasm) I've set my sights on attempting miniatures sculpting. My local game store had a set of army painter sculpting tools for ten bucks so I bought it seeing as it was convenient and I didn't have any dental picks on hand. So, I'm curious, what do you more experienced sculptors use when sculpting? Dental picks? Some custom tool? I'm curious, because I'm looking at all these lovely details and am trying to reverse engineer the sculpting process.

My family just bought a heat gun to do some paint stripping, and I noticed it has a lower setting to dry paint. I was just wondering if anyone had used a heat gun in this way before and could share tips. Things I'd be interested in would be length of time, and distance from the mini. Any other thoughts and experiences appreciated. If it matters, I think the low setting is 170 C.

I started painting my first Bones mini last night (Mister Bones, appropriately enough), and I was able to use an X-Acto knife, needle files, and my trusty sanding sponge to fairly good effect, but because the sanding sponge is made for wood or metal, it was a bit crude for the task. Then I remembered these things: http://www.amazon.com/COSM-TRIM-Trim-Buffing-Block/dp/B001TSNGF8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1377113332&sr=8-1&keywords=trim+buffing+block I went out at lunchtime just now and picked one up at my neighborhood Target for about $2.50, and I'm going to try it out tonight. Has anyone used one of these on plastic minis before? Any suggestions for technique, or warnings about what to expect? Cheers. JD

Reply to prophetic_joe. Pictured are the standard tools that I use to do all my fantasy terrain & building work(s). As you can see; I use nothing elaborate and/or uncommon. I am sure there are modelers out there who have 2 or 3 times more tools and others who may use fewer tools. As I said...use what you are comfortable with and don't try to pattern your needs on what some other modeler uses. NOT PICTURED ARE MY (white glue & hot stuff). I hope that this common sense advice is helpful to you.

I would like to get started sculpting and I would like to know about the best tools to start with. I have seen the basic ones but have also seen others.

So my wife really outdid herself this year....