What type of paint to use for armour and swords?

[Phil5000]

Hi there. I'm about to embark on my first non-modern figure, the Verlinden Viking Warrior. I'm interested in knights and things like that and I've been thinking about how you would paint their armour and swords. It's metalic but if you use any of the commercial silvers or metalic greys they wouldn't look right because the pigment seems too big. Also, my viking has a golden cup on the little diorama and I need to know how to paint that so it looks realistic and in scale.

If you do these sorts of models, what paints do you use?

They also wear quite colourful clothes, like a bronze green coat with gold patterns on the sleeve, on the viking. How would you paint that so it looks dull and worn and not like something freshly painted? Some of the pictures in the Verlinden catalog look like the models have been washed, is that a common technique for these types of figures?

I'd appreciate your ideas and any articles you may have come across.

Many thanks.

 

[Francis Gekiere]

For the problem of the pigment, for me the solution is the printer inks houses on a basis humbtol. They are missible to the thiner and painting of the same mark. what permits to play well also on nuance. The acril stell walks. It is a question of feeling.



humbly,
francis

 

[megroot]

Phil,

There are many ways to paint metals.
For instance the way francis do is a good one.
I do it another way.
First of all i start with an undercoat of vallejo acrylic. When it is gold, i start with yellow.
When that is dry i apply an raw umber oilpaint mixed with Windsor and Newton gold to achieve a midrange dark gold.
Mixing more raw umber into the basic paint i make the shadows.
With more ochre i highlight.
When all is completely dry i highlight with pure printsink, to make it easy to apply i mix a little white spirit in it.
After all is dry i make a wash of burnt umber and when that is dry i highlight again.
It works well for other metallic colour's but you have change something.

Marc

 

[Phil5000]

Can you tell me more (or point me to an article) about using printer's ink? Do you brush them on like paint? Do you thin them? Can you use them as a wash, if so will they take off the paint underneath?

Edit: I found some Windsor and Newton Ink, is that the same sort of stuff?

Thank you kindly.