Having tracked down the ingredients for Magic Wash, as listed on Fat Wally's website, I am going to have a go with it later, using some ECW trotter cavalry in 15mm that I painted up about 10 years ago. I'll take a before and after photo so you are able to judge the results. If it works I'll give it a go on my newly completed 10mm 35th Prussian Fusiliers. Also found an interesting Miniature paints colour this morning called Stone Green which I am going to experiment with on my 10mm 1914 Germans.
Good luck with the wash, hope it works better for you than it did for me, though I didnt have the patience to experiment with it
Well here is the first effort. The base on the left has had the treatment while the base on the right is still awaiting the Magic wash:
(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g440/dourpuritan/ECW%2015mm/IMG_1335_zpsddc3a3ee.jpg)
I think it has made an improvement to the figures. This is before any highlighting or retouching.
Works a treat and to my mind makes them look a lot better. Plus the fact now all you need to do is Block and Wash (sounds like a shampoo advert slogan) -saves a heck of a lot of time. You can also make up a black version which works very well. In fact you can make as many different washes as there are ink colours. (Inks are much better to use because the pigment is finer).
Actually that is a black wash. Fat Wally says he thinks it makes the figures look cartoony but I think it brings them to life, so to speak.
OoookAaay. I thought it was dark brown going by the shading effect. Still works though.
Yep, works well.
You can obviously make darker or lighter washes by varying the amount of ink in them.
Klear/Pledge has changed its name again - I have a bottle of the new stuff but haven't tried it yet.
I think that works really well !
More than subtle.....Without going 'over the top'.
More than impressed.
Cheers - Phil
:-bd =D> :-bd =D> :-bd
And as a bonus, it's a hell of a sight less expensive than other custom designed modelling washes. I've used it on about 150 10mm figures and the level in my coffee jar has dropped about 1/4 inch. The bl**dy stuff will outlast me at this rate!
S'good! A matt varnish over the top flattens the shine and leaves them better still in my mind :)
Quote from: toxicpixie on 16 August 2014, 08:46:21 PM
S'good! A matt varnish over the top flattens the shine and leaves them better still in my mind :)
Yep, that matt varnish does them a power of good.
It's the way forward, I'm telling you.
Nicely done sir!
Quit chuffed with that. Total outlay was £9.00. Still got 3/4 of each bottle to use and a 1lb jam jar full of the stuff.
Where's the formula?
It's at www.fat-wally.com
That seemed a little churlish, as it's such a simple formula. You will need a bottle of Pledge Multi-Surface Wax (formerly Klear), an empty jam jar, coffee jar etc with lid, a bottle of Winsor and Newton ink (I used black but a dark brown would also work I imagine). Fill the jar to under half way with the pledge. Add a similar amount of water. then add about a 1/4 of the ink. Stir rather than shake. It's now ready to use, but you may want to experiment with varying amounts of water,pledge and/or ink. After it is dry it can be varnished. Fat Wally's recipe can be downloaded from his site.
On Fat Wally's homepage click on Painting Services on the menu to the left. This will bring up his list of useful tips, including magic wash. They are all worth having a look at. However he does make it very clear that he only takes commissions for 15mm figures.
Not churlish- I only expected a link. Searching kept getting me fast food places in Eagleland.
Yes, I beefed up my reply because I kept getting a Bolton Wanderers player noted for his girth.
Have now finished the 35th Prussian Infantry Regiment, Fusiliers, complete with magic wash, highlight of coat blue and helmet front plate silver, then given coat of Vallejo satin varnish. There are four bases in total making 32 figures in two ranks.
(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g440/dourpuritan/10mm%20SYW/IMG_1337_zps6f37fe35.jpg)
Not as clear as I had hoped, but you get the idea. Second rank has come out clearer so I was probably too close.
Second rank look damn good, DP. 8)
Think you're right.....Probably a teeny tad too close for the shot. ;)
Cheers - Phil.
Looks like another convert.
Here's a better effort.
(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g440/dourpuritan/10mm%20SYW/IMG_1338_zps9dc67a67.jpg)
:-bd =D> :-bd =D>
Very nice basing and subtle variation in posing as well :)
They look good
Have you tried using an even flatter varnish spray on them to kill a bit more of the sheen? ( although it might be the flash or light on the figures that seem to be causing that)
They look rather good (especially now we can see them properly in the second shot).
Actually I never use spray now after too many frostings over the years, despite following instructions to the letter. I have also moved from using matt to satin because I prefer the finish as it tends to lift the colours. Unfortunately most of the venues where I use my figures suffer from relatively poor lighting and matt varnish just makes them look flat and dull.
Quote from: Dour Puritan on 24 August 2014, 09:01:11 PM
Actually I never use spray now after too many frostings over the years, despite following instructions to the letter. I have also moved from using matt to satin because I prefer the finish as it tends to lift the colours. Unfortunately most of the venues where I use my figures suffer from relatively poor lighting and matt varnish just makes them look flat and dull.
I think I must be lucky I have only ever had one slight frosting incident in all the years I have been spraying
Every frosting problem I've had has been solved by applying a second coat of the same varnish.
No idea why it works and first time round it was done by accident while trying to clean the nozzle of the spray can!
That's lots better ! 8)
Cheers - Phil.
That second pic is a much better shot. Nice depth to the shading even though it just washes on.
The closest I ever came to spray varnishing was back in the early 80's when I tried hairspray. It works up to a point but I wouldn't recommend it any more. Otherwise it's always been brush on for me.
Superb work!
Very nice indeed!
To lift the colors after the matt-varnish I sometimes pick out certain colors again and especially the metals; it's a bit more effort but it gives me the result I want so I guess it's worthwhile.
Frosting with spraycans... don't even mention it! On the other hand; it was always my own fault; to hasty to wait for better weather, too hasty to wait till the first layer had dried; too hasty to wait till the paint had dried or even just sprayed too close so it got on too thick, and so I paid the price :(
One time it was really bad and I stopped as soon as I saw it; only to find out that I had the wrong can; white primer instead of matt varnish... the primer was matt too though :-[
Cheers,
Rob
Quote from: Dour Puritan on 24 August 2014, 09:01:11 PM
Actually I never use spray now after too many frostings over the years, despite following instructions to the letter.
I agree completely. Brushing the varnish on tales not much longer than spraying and I tend to miss less on the first pass.
Thanks for the comments folks. It looks like magic wash is going to become my default shader. However I am also going to make up a jar using brown ink as an alternative. It will be interesting to see how that pans out. With regard to the satin varnish, it actually doesn't shine that much and its finish suits my purpose. Meanwhile, rooting around in some of the stuff I haven't used in a long time it looks like I have enough for about 90% of a 6mm WWI Belgian army.
The magic wash works really well on 6mm , what are you using as your base ink/colour?
Looks like my old 1860s Sardinians are in for one hell of a surprise. Also 6mm 1914 Austro-Hungarians have some useful figures plus the staff car, Austrian, Sardinian and French officers, railway stuff, a 1914 French aeroplane and several horse-drawn wagons. Once up and running will start a new thread on non-Pendraken stuff.
I used Winsor and Newton's Black as my base ink. The box had a Harlequin figure on it.