Oil Paints?

[pjgtech]

Hi peeps, another question for the hive mind.....
I've seen a few YT vids where the modellers use oil paints, you know the sort that craft people use in those small tubes.
They seem to use them for making streaks, etc.
What do you think, are they a useful paint to use? and do you use them?

[PaulTRose]

Yes....a very useful technique!

Just buy the colours you want.......or buy a cheapo box and bin the spare colours.......cos a tube will last a life time!

Trick is getting the right thinners and lots of practice.....theres lots of different ways to use oils

Oh and dont forget to give them plenty of time to dry off.....i tend to leave a week to be sure

[PaulTRose]

You can make all over washes or pin washes to get those steaks......and if you dont like it flood with thinners to flush it away and start again

[pjgtech]

Vids I've seen say thin oils with white spirit, (and obviously make sure model is varnished before apply white spirit or oil thinned with white spirits) but that smells, what else can be used to thin oils?
I have also seen vids where they say avoid cheap oils, as they can be grainy/inconsistent, they have recommended Winsor and newel oils?

[stillp]

but that smells, what else can be used to thin oils?

Sansodor, from an art shop or Hobbycraft.
Pete

[PaulTRose]

Sansodoor!....thats the stuff!.....hobby craft used to do an odourless oil thinner but this replaced it

it can get grainy but ive always done ok......but expensive stuff aint that expensive when you think you only want a handful of colours and tubes will last longer than you will!

[pjgtech]

Great, thanx for the info..... 8-)

[Jim R]

Oils are very useful and very versatile. Look at Steve Jones Scale Modelling and Mike Rinaldi on YouTube. Use artists white spirit or W&N Sansodor. Ordinary DIY white spirit is a bit too aggressive and can affect the underlying surface. I prefer good quality oil paints Abteilung 502, specially for modelling, or the best artist paints. They have finer pigments.
Oils can be used as washes and filters, they can create streaking, dust, oil stains, rust etc. The only down side is the long drying time but even this can be an advantage as you have plenty of time to adjust to get the effect you are after.
I honestly believe that virtually all the weathering effects needed can be achieved with oils and pigments - maybe occasionally also enamels.

[pjgtech]

What colours would you recommend getting first? say 1/2 a dozen essentials?
White, Black, grey, green, etc

[PaulTRose]

I have lamp black....burnt umber....raw umber....yellow ochre......burnt sienna.........green .......blue..... cos they all work well on a spot wash........every one will have thier own choiced

[Jim R]

Paul's choice is the same as mine except I have Paynes grey and not blue.

[Ian M]

I have Windsor and Newton, the about10cm long tubes. had them for 20 years. used under a quarter of the ones I use most.
One of the reasons they are sooooo long to dry is.... the oil. you will have seen on the videos you have watched that they nearly all put some paint on a bit of corrugated card, at least over night. That is to let the excess oil, often linseed of rape seed which takes for ever to dry.
Seems odd removing some oil to replace with spirits of some form, but the spirit evaporates a lot quicker.
I use them most for rust streaks and panel lines.

[Tim Marlow]

Plus one on Ian’s technique of leaching out the oil before use. I find card from Amazon boxes is good. Sansodor is essential I think, and it can also be used to dilute enamels. I’ve always used Windsor and Newton Winton students range, though I do have a couple of the dearer artists range. To start with I would just buy a small starter set of six 20ml tubes and some Sansodor, plus a titanium white and a lamp black. Learn how to really use these and how to mix your own colours before buying every colour under the rainbow (though Naples yellow light is a great colour for fading German yellow). Oils are not only good for washes and streaks, they are also very useful for dry brushing because of the far smaller and more consistent pigment they use. Don’t worry about them going off either, Oil paints last forever unless you are going to paint very a large picture ?.
While you are in the art shop, pick up some pastel chalks as well. If you have some of those, and a square of 400 grade wet or dry, you will have almost everything you need for creative weathering. Most of the weathering products aimed at modellers are just the same things as this, repackaged, increased in price, and marketed back to us. Besides, if you mix your own, not only will you learn much more and gain confidence, your model will be unique to you….

[pjgtech]

What do you think of the abteilung oils in the scale model shop, are they ok too?
EDIT, oops sorry I see that Jimr has already recommended those, cheers

[pjgtech]

Ok, just ordered some oil paints (Abteilung 502) and sansodor, got black, white, a grey, a brown, a rust colour and a green.
I figure if using for rust, stains, streaks, etc then those should cover me, and I can darken or lighten with the black and white.
Was debating whether to also get a red, yellow and blue, but I can always add more later.
They will do for starters....
Cheers all