Will Dipping Hinder Your Painting Skill Progress?

[Dark_Templar]

I am fairly new to the painting scene, and love the modelling but am not a very confident painter. Would using something like quickshade to start with hinder my potential in the future?

I know it is hard to say for sure, but I am guessing something like dips could become relied upon and overused.

Is it best to leave the dip on the shelf and follow the "practice makes perfect" method and have enough Simple Green on the shelf to get me out of trouble?

[Lerra]

If you are dipping the basic troops but taking time to paint HQs, nice elite models, and other things that stand out in an army, your painting skill shouldn't suffer.

Even expert painters will sometimes use the dip method to speed-paint hordes of gaunts or other small troop models.

[Morgrim]

The dip method ca get the bulk done quickly, and then you can go back and pick out key bits on the model. If you stuff them up, it won't make a difference at tabletop level, and as you improve you may start trying fancier things. Besides, dips progress pretty easily into washes, which even experienced painters use when painting at the army scale.

[Dark_Templar]

Thanks all. My Citadel Foundation and Badab Black should be turning up today, so I will have a crack over the weekend at going no-dip, with wash.

I will also purchase a quickshade next Wayland purchase and give that a go.

Cheers for the feedback.

DT.

[Duke]

I just wanted to throw my two cents in.

I have found that some of the easiest way to paint the minis is through a wash over a foundation paint. It is very fast (except for waiting for the wash to dry) and looks great.

I really believe in doing things the hard way and loving the way your minis look. I spent a long time doing tournies and painting for speed and I have to say I enjoy the game a lot more when I see models I like on the table. I have recently been freehanding a lot on my models and just putting them on the table is great!

Let us know how it all goes.

Duke

[MunDMC]

I am a mini-painter first and war-gamer second.

However, the sheer number of models in some armies (IG, orks, tyrannids) really lends itself to dipping. WHen painting, say, 30 guardsmen, i base-coat them with foundation paint through an air-brush, apply foundation paint and metallics where needed, dip, and voila! I now have roughly 10 extra hours to devote to painting Creed, Kell, Inquisitors, retinues, officers, tanks, etc. that i otherwise would not have if i shaded each individually.

I argue that dipping rank-and-file troops gives you MORE time to get into serious painting where it matters to you.

Cheers

[eagleboy7259]

Not to sound like an idiot, but what's dipping?

[Mike X]

Not to sound like an idiot, but what's dipping?

Exactly what it sounds like. It's literally dipping your models in paint. Or coating them in spraypaint*.

Like this:
http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x141/nyp4ever/wtfwhy.jpg

*I must note that the spraypaint method is different than priming a model.

[The West Coast Knight]

Dipping was a good thing in the past but I think the wash range has a far better effect on your models in the finished product.
With dip you get one shade over all your base color but with washes you can mix and match I recently did 2000 points of Orks by first painting the base colors on cloths and metallics then a Badab wash then Goblin Green the skin and wash Thrakka.
Finished product looks awesome and has a better effect then Orks dipped and all shaded brown.

WCK

[Lerra]

Dipping doesn't usually refer to simply spray painting a single color. Usually it involves painting the base coat normally and then using an all-over wash, or dipping your painted model into something like a wash (often a wood varnish).

Here's a good guide: http://www.warseer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=27857

[Col.Gravis]

Dipping is perfectly acceptable for quickly painting large numbers of models to gaming standard, with alot of basic guys the results can be pretty impressive really, it's not going to improve your painting though, unless you think in terms that with the time saved on the bulk of the models you can lavish time on characters and the like and improve your work.

[rbryce]

personally i paint all my minis as best i can. my troops are all painted to the same standard as my characters, most have 5+ coats, shade, highlight etc. not that id recommend it. it took 3 years to complete my 1500pts sisters, and ive only in the last 6 months started the tanks! I did it like tha tcos when your entire army is metal, you want that extra cash you paid to count.with my next army, im going to be a lot more relaxed about painting i think. may go plastic. mmm beastmen