Water Effects - Tips?

[Squirrel_Fish]

So I've been looking into using some Water Effects in basing some miniatures. Does anyone have any experience with using it? What brands should I look into in terms of quality? Any advice is helpful.

Squirrel_Fish

[Lunar Camel]

There are several techniques that I use depending on the look you want:

Gloss varnish: This only works to make something look wet or give an object a shine (drool, jewels, swamp surface, etc).

PVA glue. This is the easiest and cheapest but can only be used in thin layers. Too many layers or too deep a pool and it could end up milky if it does not cure right. If you are trying to just get a wet look on a surface this works pretty well.

GW Water effects. This is just like PVA glue but can be used for shallow pools. Use in thin layers and let each layer dry and cure. You'll get the same result as PVA glue if you don't let it cure. You can create waves or ripples by letting it cure somewhat, then tease it with a wood coffee stick or tongue depressor (make sure its flat). A little pricier and can get good results but you need to practice with it.

Plaster: If you are wanting to make a murky pool where you can't see the bottom (or anything else for that matter). Pour the plaster into the area you want the pool to be. Before it sets, use a sponge to create waves, ripples, etc. You can also use the handle of a paint brush, swirl the plaster slowly as it dries. It will take about 10 minutes for the plaster to set up (and you can stop swirling). If you want calm water, just let the plaster dry on it's own. Once the plaster dries completely, paint and add a gloss varnish to the surface.

Envirotex/Envirotex lite: A bit pricey but you get the best results. You can get this at hardware stores and craft stores. Its a two part resin usually used for sealing bar tops. Easy to use (just use in a well ventilated area), just add one part A to one part B, mix and pour. Can be clear or by adding some ink (GW ink works well, not sure about the washes though) you can get some good color. Let set for calm water or make waves and ripples. For better tips on how to use if for water, check out http://www.hirstarts.com.

I'm pretty sure there are other techniques out there but these are some of the most common. As a model railroader of 20 years, I've used all of the above for building scenery with good results.

[therealjohnny5]

it's pretty simple actually. Just use a brush you don't care too much about and glob it on. if you want a base color of the water effect then paint whatever area is getting the WE first with the color you want. If you want a less transparent color than you can mix the WE with the paint and then cover the area with the mix.

[Grailkeeper]

If you want to have a wave effect scrape tile grout over the base then use blue inkall over except the crest of the wave and then re ink to darken the blue

[Brass Scorpion]

GW Water Effects is a repackaging of Woodland Scenics' Realistic Water. Buy the Woodland Scenics product instead as it will be only about half the price as the GW version. Woodland Scenics also makes a product called Water Effects that allows for "sculpting" of special effects like water falls, etc. Go to http://woodlandscenics.woodlandscenics.com/index.cfm for more info, tutorials, etc.

[joescalise]

I like the GW product, but like they said up top. You have to do it in layers and make sure each layer is dry 100% before you had another layer. I like this because it gives you alot of control of your effect. I have used it on bases, power weapons and jewels.