Help needed with Citadel metallics

[YetiSA]

Hey all,

I've recently been working pretty hard on improving my painting and am making some good progress, but I'm really battling with metals. Unfortunately the only paints that I can get locally are Citadel, so I pretty much have to make them work. In the future I want to give NMM a try but I'm not quite there yet.

My problem is that the paints are WAY too thick out of the pot but they don't respond well to thinning. Even with relatively light thinning (roughly 1:1) the pigment separates after only a few seconds and the actual metallic flakes become so spread out that they are barely noticeable. I don't have many to choose from at the moment but I've had the same experience with Leadbelcher and Warplock Bronze.
I've been thinning with a mixture of water and flow enhancer, which works very nicely for the other citadel colours. I have also tried using plain water but that didn't work any better.

Does anyone have any advice on how to work with them? Perhaps other additives that I might try or some other technique that I haven't thought of?

Thanks,
Yeti

 

[Zab]

Try a little windex to help reactivate the paint and blend it all back together. Some Citadel paint dries and separates a lot. no big deal.

 

[YetiSA]

Thanks Zab, I'll give that a try. I'm not sure that I can get windex locally but I'm sure that there is an equivalent product.

The separating is a pain but I can work around it. The bigger problem is the metallic chips that spread too thin, meaning that you lose a lot of the effect of the metallics.

I should note that it's not so much of problem on larger areas like weapons and armour. I'm more worried about smaller details like buckles.

 

[ten ball]

Shake the fu*k out of those pesky pots !
That should work

 

[YetiSA]

Heh. I'll redouble my shaking to the "fu*k out of" level and see if that help.

 

[Sicks]

Ive found that the land an medium they sell works OK with their metallics, but yes shaking the fu*k out of them help too, I find most of the ones I have separate in the pot overnight and need a vigorous shaking the f out of (especially ones from the later range, the base ones aren't as bad)

 

[oistene]

Do you use a wet pallete? I use GW metallics a lot, and have little trouble.

 

[YetiSA]

Yes I do. More or less essential in the hot dry heat of our summer. How do you thin them when you're working with them?

 

[MAXXxxx]

I suggest it rarely, but try thinning it with a medium instead of water. If you have access only to GW that would be the lahmian medium.

Also for most metals 1:1 is too thin, you don't need to thin it that much.

 

[YetiSA]

Thanks Max, I'll give that a try. 1:1 is about what I thin their normal base paints when blocking colour but I'll try a little less than that and see if it works better for me.

 

[MrJim]

I agree with shaking thing.

Add a couple drops and some type of mixing ball or bead to the pot and shake well to get them down to the consistency of your non metallic paints. Then, once you put the paint on a palette, you will only need a really wet brush to draw out some paint and work it to the right thinness. Citadel metallic actually work really well if you thin them and use a few thin layers.

 

[oistene]

I just use a brushful of water or so. Though, I think our conditions are completely uncomparable - I'm up in the viking realm of Norway!

 

[pariahrob]

As well as a wet palette you could try Vallejo metalic medium or even just the standard medium. They both work well.

 

[dntfeedthemnkys]

Found this issue myself recently and the only thing I could think of was the Lahmian Medium... but haven't tried it out. I saw that MAXXxxx suggested this above - did you try it and, if so, how did it go?

 

[Trevor]

I 2nd the less thinning, 1:1 is too much. I usually would only add 20-30% water, less sometimes.

Edit: Or try Vallejo model air, they can be used straight out of the bottle.

 

[Quantra]

I've not had trouble with Citadel metallics but I always mix some Lahmian medium in. It gives a smoother finish if nothing else. I mix 1:4 M and then add water to thin so something like 1:1:4 W:M but the amount of water really depends on the colour.

 

[YetiSA]

Found this issue myself recently and the only thing I could think of was the Lahmian Medium... but haven't tried it out. I saw that MAXXxxx suggested this above - did you try it and, if so, how did it go?

Partly, I just reduced the amount that I was thinning the paint and it works a lot better. I'm using them quite a lot thicker than I do with the normal paints.
I'm actually thinning everything with a mixture of water and a little flow enhancer and haven't tried the medium.