Ok, the more I see/read the more I am liking the ideas of using Filters. But I have a couple questions I hope you guys can answer. First, when using a dot filter (a.k.a. Fading I believe??) do you still do the dot filtering on gun barrels, raised detail like tie-off points and tools, etc? Or would you use a regular filter for the gun barrels and dry brushing for raised detail? And speaking of “regular” filters my next question. I have mineral spirits. I can easily obtain many colors of oil paints. But what I don’t know is the proper ratio of thinner to oil paint to use. Can anyone suggest a good ratio? I remember in a post Doog saying a filter is basically a REALLY water down wash, and in general I remember the ratio for a wash was 1:10 Paint:MS. Would one go up to maybe a 1:20 ratio, or is that too much? And one last question. Dot filters go on a matte finish, regular filters satin or gloss? Or do both get applied to matte finishes?
And lastly, thanks guys, you have really been a help over the months. I am aching to crack into a new build after the less than amazing first try. I hope to turn all these things I have been learning loose on some plastic!
Never used the dot filter method…yet. Sorry I couldn’t be more of a help, but I’m bumping your thread back to the first page. So hopefully somone else can give you some answers.[:)]
After seeing Doog’s tutorial, and what Mig has about them in his book they seem to offer an interesting way to add some subtle color variations. Unfortunately, in Mig’s book he never actually mentions how to MAKE a filter (i.e. the proper proportion of thinner and oil paint), and surprisingly never actually mentions his brand name of filters (though you can see pictures of them in there.)
Ok, I did find the answer to a couple questions, mainly the ratio of thinner to paint (which is suggested as 95-98% thinner and 5-2% oil paint) and the ideal surface to do the filter on being satin (I do know in his book Mig suggests Vallejo’s satin clear coat). Still interested in knowing the answers to the dot filter questions though, as that is the filter method I am more interested in.
The link to the answers I found for the other stuff is here:
Brian, forget all that hooha about “ratios”–it’s all a bunch of bollocks, in my opnion. It’s just a way to tell you to thin the paint really, really well! And the only way you’re going to find out the correct manner of adding filters is to experiment; hands-on, just start doing. Don’t worry about “correct ratios” per se.
If you do the dot technique right, you’ll see that the oils won’t even be noticeable on the highest parts of the model if you do it correctly. As far as the barrel and whatnot, just use the paint that comes off the tank during the process to slop some of it on the barrel and other unassembled parts. you just want to transfer some of the patina onto them.
Excellent Doog, that helps a lot! Thank you as always! I have just a few things left to do to the Wildcat I am building for a group build, and once that is done I am digging into the T-34 with a new grasp of what to do to produce a good looking kit.