Should You Prime & Paint Your Minis On the Sprue?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 30 ม.ค. 2020
- In the old days, some people preferred to spray primer and on and even paint their wargaming miniatures on the sprue, and then cut the pieces off and glue them together. Is this a good idea?
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The “Nubbins” are called gates, (ten years in the industry, and this is the only useful thing I can add.)
It is all such a 'drag' that I just can't 'cope'. Thankyou and goodnight!;)
I need to make an effort to disassociate the word "sprue" from when someone at work says it to when a hobbyist says it lol
@@marc400 how is it used in your workplace?
However, ‘nubbins’ is a funnier word. That’s all I have for that. Thanks for watching!
@@tabletopminions If it wasn't a technical term, it is now.
If you're not bothered about mould lines, gaps in the model, glue overspill, unsightly fingerprints and mismatched paint work, painting on the sprue is for you!
This, pretty much.
Why even bother painting then? Seriously, just spraying assembled models + dipping would at least look consistent.
i actually sprayed the sprues of my first kits i can agree with these words
I spray my barbed braken on the sprue and just do one coat over it after I glue it on the base. This is because I don't prepare the base at first. I just find it easier.
cruorangelussilicis Wow. I’ve been model building for years and paint on the sprue quite a bit. Usually it’s only one or two “nubbins” points you have to worry about anyway. I have none of the problems you list...don’t you touch up in the end anyway? To each his own.
"Never do that. Only villains do that"
This is a holdover from scale modeling. Usually one will leave tiny bits on the sprues to get paint on them. It is handy because the gates were typically at the glue points. It is real useful for building cockpits, tank interiors, engines, landing gear, etc. Also most scale modelers did this on vehicles not the figures.
Not really!! That's what tweezer clamps are for :-)
makes sense
Bingo. I am looking at the sprue for my very first miniature - and it is not even a character miniature.
When I was younger I was decent at building scale models. This miniature is a ship so I thought I was going to just rinse and repeat via my previous experience. However, look at the percentage of rework in something that is two inches long vs something that is a foot long. Plus, the rework will just be another pass of paint. This thing will look absolutely ponderous if I keep 'touching it up' 😃
I was so excited to prime on the sprue, until I cut everything out and saw the unprimed spots. Bummer.
Yes, this is the main problem, and seems to kill any idea of efficiencies in most situations. Thanks for watching!
@@tabletopminions I posted above about using ultramarines blue plastic mono-pose primaris marines and was running into the issue of being very difficult to get all the angles primed. Painting them on sprue made it about 10x easier. It is a complete outlier. Like anything in our hobby there is almost always an exception lol.
Well at least you dont have to paint the whole piece
I have seen people paint on a sprue a lot lately, and I agree I think it is extra work that is not needed. Working in factory for years double handling was just silly.
@william crow "dystopian socialist..."? You have not been a modern, peak capitalism workplace. The most ignorant bastards are the ones who run the program. I had a program director hold up a piece of paper in front of his face so he could make mocking expressions at me. My crime? Mentioning one of most common aspects of the job. My idea was having upper management actually learn what the job is so they can actually make coherent decisions regarding policy.
Dan Morgan this feels like a r/whooosh
@@loudinternalscreaming4543 Not really. Just correcting a popular misconception.
@@clinch4402 You're okay with being publicly insulted by someone you know is inferior to you? It amazes me how many people get off on this sort of disrespect.
@@clinch4402 Hey, bootlicker, what is your favorite flavor of shoe polish?
I used to do it about 20 years ago when I was 15. I found it made painting trim on Khorne bezerkers much easier.
However I didn’t shade, clean mould lines or worry about much beside getting paint on minis and getting them on the table.
I wouldn’t dream of doing it now.
Those khorne bezerker models were amazing then in 2020 not so much.
Exactly! When Atom talking about it not being good for new hobbyiests and then talked about painting the light direction, i was going: "Lighting? I thought you said it was a bad idea for newbies, what newbie is going to paint more than omnidirectional high-lights?".
It persists because it is easier to the very newest of wargaming hobbyists, but even then it is probably not a good idea because its a bad method to pick up. It makes it harder to get better, as you have to re-learn the process without doing it. And all that's before they tetris'ed the sprues.
Maybe not highlightning for beginners but if a person could find this video they could use a wash though and that will work way better when the model is standing compared to on a sprue.
I don't play table-top games or paint miniatures - ran across your channel looking for acrylic paint tips, but I find your channel super interesting and appreciate your honest take on things. Thanks for all the info.
I used to prime on the sprue largely because I live in Central Canada and rattle cans are only effective maybe 30% of the year (too cold or too damp much of the year)... I'd batch prime four or five units at a time, then spot prime with a brush after assembly. The benefit deffinitely didn't outweigh the downfalls though.
It was one of the biggest driving forces behind me purchasing an airbrush, so for that I'm glad I started that way
I have the same issue but I always found if the model was warm and so was the paint I could run outside and paint a layer real fast with no problems. Haven't tried it when its less than about 0C tho.
I sometimes leave tank tracks on sprue to prime in leadbelcher. Assemble whole of leman russ but leave tracks off. Prime body in green or whatever. Then attach primed tracks. Track mold lines and clipper marks are mostly hidden and definitely will be once you have added washes, dry brushing and mud effects.
Specially airbrushers do techniques like that
There are exceptions to every rule. This is one of them for this rule.
Still don't recommend that, your glue will bond to the primer but not the plastic. If it's plastic glue, it won't bond at all.
@@burialgoods Valid point but, if I can, I try to mask off a few contact points (which won't be seen at the end) before priming - tape or blue tac work well
@@chrisgoodier6825 Aye, that's the best way to do it. I either mask them off or scrape them later. A lot of people aren't aware though. I've bought quite a few secondhand miniatures that were glued paint-to-paint that fall apart after a game or two.
Well, I've done it before and there are (as you allready mentioned) pro's and con's. The most important thing to remember is that de modelling glue bonds the parts by melting the plastic and fusing the parts together, so pre-painted parts can no longer be glued that way unless you scrape away the paint where the parts meet. You'll have to glue it together with superglue, but some brands tend to 'cloud' the paint. Allso: the bond is but as strong as the adhesion of the paint, because you glue on the paint instead of the plastic. I do find that the technique has it's use in combination with the sub-assembly technique: I still use it (partially) for very small or flimsy pieces like weapons or claws that otherwise would get in the way for painting or break of the model too easily while painting (these parts sometimes get loose when a wash seeps through and weakens the bond or get torn of when drybrushing). In that case I leave a substantial piece of sprue on it to act as a paint handle. When finished I clip the sprue of, just glue it on with a dab of PVA or super glue (depending on the situation), sometimes gently scraping away a bit of paint with a needle, and retouche the paint.
I agree with literally everything you say - though I found one exception: he armour plates for Adeptus Mechanicus. I build the body, paint all the metal parts, add oily details etc, then airbrush the big panel sections in bright fancy colours and don't need to mask anything off. All of the mould-lines are on a metal trim so I can undercoat and paint the metal by brush after I remove those. Added bonus, because most of the model is already assembled there are fewer parts on the sprue to get in the way
I'd imagine there are a few similar edge-case scenarios for specific bits of specific models. But for the most part yes, absolutely agree it's a strange and silly method for painting - I tried it a couple of times because some people raved about it and didn't like it
Commmented my edge case above and one that just totally makes sense to do on sprue. GW custom bases, like Sector Imperialis come on a sprue that only connects on the bottom lip of the sides. All the details are just right there and perfect to be primed.
@@Lazorlink What's the benefit of leaving it on the sprue, though? Easy handling while you spray?
@@beezany I have now details in my comment. The edge case I mentioned was the blue plastic monopose primaris Marines from the smaller dark imperium sets. Since they are monopose when they are assembled it's just about impossible to get every angle and not over do the primer, at least with the color I was using. I did a 2nd batch on the sprue and it was 10x easier. I was never able to get all the blue convered on some of the assembled models. I had to do a lot of filling in by hand, and still missed some spots I found later. On the grey plastic I'm sure I missed those same spots but its not really visible like bright blue. The terrain the spirits are attached at the very bottom to the bases. All of the detail are literally straight on, so it doesn't hurt at all to prime them on sprue.
I tried this when I first started. Abandoned it pretty quickly
Same. I brush prime so I was seeing which way worked best. Didn't start mould cutting until later. I was also white priming my models back then.. I black prime now. This video would have been helpful at the start. :/
Me too
I am painting some viking warriors and I'm going to paint their shields on the sprue. I am keeping their shields separate while painting anyway, and freehand painting them on the sprue seems less fiddly than handling the tiny shields on their own, even with a pill bottle. The connections are on the rim of the shields, which I won't paint until after clipping them off, so scraping off paint shouldn't be a problem.
This seems like a situation that could be beneficial, but ONLY if the sprue was designed just right. The way you describe it sounds like it might work well. I’d still prefer to do it my way, but I’m not freehanding shields much. Thanks for watching!
I would agree, leaving small 'accessories' on the spruce stops them from being blasted across the room when priming but for main assembly I always clip, glue and then prime
There's one set of models that painting on the sprue is amazing for. The armor plates on Adeptius Titanicus models. They put all the gates so they're hidden when you build the model.
Could also do the armor on an imperial knight as all the gates are in the trim.
I found it pretty decent on the Citadel Skulls which I often tend to only add much later after priming and painting because I don't think ahead as much as I should
Agreed. Totally did that.
Oh man, I remember when GW sprues put "nubbins" any which ol' where. Top of the head, obscuring hair detail sure! Middle of the thigh, why not? The sharp part of a blade, of course! But at least they never used to cut shoulder pauldrons right down the middle....
The ammount of parts for a single model these days can be rediculous. Seeing parts of the torso being fused with the legs and still needing a back to put on. I understand that it's probably a more efficient way of designing and producing, but sometimes the skill level you need to put it all together is increased by a lot.
Long ago I painted my Epic scale Space Marines on the sprue (having removed the sprue attachment points on their heads, so they were only attached by the bottom of their bases) and that worked fairly well. It allowed me to do the mass base coating and drybrushing that counted as painting for them very easily. I wouldn't want to try the same trick on more complex models.
As a kid in Alaska in the late 90s priming on the sprue was useful when I had to run outside to prime real fast for 360 coverage then run back inside. Obviously had the sprue clipping cleanup step but those were quickly re-primed in a very very quick way.
I First prime a thin Coat on the Sprue Then build then and spray another Coat and then paint. Because before i had the issue That i dont get the Spray every where specially underneath
I have a tendency to prime on the sprue when doing vehicles (recent example being a Genestealer Cults Ridgerunner) and then start a very slow step by step assembly. The straight lines on the components usually make it easy to clean off the mould lines and gate (thank you comments section) remnants, and I find for me it makes the assembly a bit easier. It also means I can do components that are a different colour (wheels, the various fuel tanks and accesories on the Ridgerunner) seperate from the main model, as there isn't an issue with colour mismatch this way. It works for me, not sure it would work for everyone, though I don't do it on any non-vehicle model or as pointed out, you can run into the issues described in the video.
Love your work by the way.
I did it when I was painting goblins, they had these tiny shields that were all nicely grouped in one or two parts of the sprue and since I was going to have to paint the front and back, I left them on the sprue and sprayed and painted them that way. They were simple Goblin shields, attached just with one single nub, so those were very easy to cut off later and touch up the spot. But those shields were tiny, they needed the same colours on the front and the back, so keeping them on the sprue just made sense because I could paint both sides in one go as I could hold onto the sprue and not worry about getting my fingers all in the paint. I may do it for things like spears (which tend to just have a nub at the bottom) in the future too, for the same reason and they don't roll away when I try to spray them that way. I'm a sub-assembly painter anyway, so making things easier on myself by keeping shields and spears on sprues makes sense. It just doesn't make sense to me for other parts... (though, maybe heads...)
Having just stabbed myself while hobbying a couple of days ago, that hobby knife getting waved around was feeling like Chekov's gun.
Great video!
I paint on the sprue, but not in the usual sense. I cut the bits off the sprue, do all the prep work, and then glue them back on the sprue via the contact points as far as the model's construction goes. So the parts that are being glued aren't going to need paint anyways. I have pieces of old sprues that I use as sticks and have done so for a while. I find that painting my models this way is twice as fast and 3x cleaner than fully assembling the model and painting it afterwords.
I have recently tried priming on the sprue because I've been moving to priming with an airbrush (I generally don't use spray primers, I don't have any braincells left to spare).
- Prime it
- Build it (frequently with the modern models it's better to clip parts for a single model at a time)
- Clean the visible mold lines
- Touchup primer
- paint as usual
Even when did use spray primer back when, I STILL had to touchup primer because the spray always missed a spot...
As for where the idea to paint on sprue comes from: military modelers who use airbrushes. The general idea is that you can paint the large panels without needing much masking and then just touch up the joints after assembly.
That seems like a good idea. Priming on the sprue seems like it would make it much easier to get everywhere. Trying to prime an already assembled model makes it difficult to get primer everywhere you need to get it, so you need to touch it up anyway. Probably easier to only have to touch up where you snipped the pieces off. You could also try removing some of the mold lines while it's still on the sprue so you don't end up having to scrape some primer off after you spray it. I haven't tried that, but surely you could at least get some of them. And you know exactly where they're going to be when the pieces are still on the sprue, they're all in the same orientation.
^ this - scale armour modelers often prime and occasionally base coat with airbrush (or rattle can) on the sprue. With 1:35 scale armour, you have lots of flat spaces and the gates tend to be hidden at armour joints, etc - and weathering usually finishes dealing with missed spots.
nubbins attached to the chins, Necron warrior bloody wish
jackoghost Where is the absolute WORST place to put the gates on this part? Well, we can’t put them in the eye socket so under the cheeks will have to do.
Wait, its how they are attached in 9th edition sprues (indomitus/elite/commander), so you can left some gates as goat beard
It's working fine with terrain kits for me
I collected Warhammer 40K up until about 15 years ago, and I always used to paint on the sprue. There were a number of reasons for this:
- Struggling with hand-painting those hard-to-reach areas on assembled models (especially capes, like you mentioned)
- Fewer rotations of the model(s) for priming: you only need to do 2 sides while it's on the sprue (side 1 + top and side 2+ bottom)
- Priming completed models often misses small nooks and crannies, especially on more complex models (this kind of ties into point 1, but for spray-priming rather than hand painting)
- I never found any issue with clipping/filing. If your clippers are sharp and you cut carefully, there should be a minimum of mould/flash
- Manually priming the small areas you cut off is super-easy and takes 2 seconds; I never found this an issue, and like you say, a lot of those are located where you glue anyway
- Easier to hold for my slightly unsteady hand, in the old days before fancy grabby thingies.
[HOWEVER] - Looking at modern sprues with their compact structure, and with model-holders now a thing, I'd definitely think twice about sprue-painting or priming today.
I paint on the sprue. I just do touch ups when I cut it off. I can't get the details when the mini is assembled.
I’ll prime my stuff while it’s on the sprue and then paint it as I assemble. I like the amount of detail I can put into my minis
Thanks for your vids. You made me realize in your discussion too that emory boards will last longer when not subject to getting gummed up with paints.
Mould lines on Marines are fine ... just adds some extra detail to the armour panels right? ... Right?!?!?!
lol
Thank you for the video. I’d say Experience vs. “Wisdom”, but that’s me. I prime on the sprue. I was curious if others did or didn’t ? Your video is just what i was looking or. Thank you for sharing your “experience”, “wisdom”, and opinion. I predicate all of them. Well stated also, I appreciate your insight. Cheers.
I came to the hoppy from plastic modelling which I learned from my father. We never primed, but we did paint small parts on the sprue. Especially surface detail parts that are going to contrast from the main model. This limited cleanup of the part before installation, made it impossible to miss and get detail color on the main body. This also functioned like subassembly painting where you can paint the hard-to-reach inside sections.
I tried building GW minis by painting on the sprue. For a big Tau mech, it worked OK. for old-style Orks, it was a disaster. I think there is a place for painting details on the sprue. Or more often as subassemblies. But build and then paint works better for minis this size.
I used to prime on sprue. It adds a bit of work when you need to scrape and/or file the contact points, because you won't get a proper bond putting glue on primer. The tiny un-primed areas from the "nubbins" aren't really an issue if you just zap 'em with a little Abbadon Black (assuming you used Choas Black Spray) However, note I said "used to." Now I build, prime, and paint in that order.
This video is perfect timing I was thinking this very thing. As such Ive decided i'll cut the parts I need, deal with the mold lines etc then build the model using blu tak then I'll prime it, separate it and paint the individual parts. Not long started this hobby, I built the models, glued them then primed them and painted them. I realised doing it this way leaves it very difficult for me to paint detail etc, so until I get better Im gonna try the method Ive just mentioned. Thanks for the videos!
I could have used this video a month ago. I used to do Gundam models, and frequently painted on the sprues. When my daughter and I got Start Collecting sets (Seraphon and Stormcast respectively), I primed on the sprues, and it had lead to all sorts of trouble putting models together, especially the big one.
A reason is space. Maybe you have limited areas for a large batch of minis that need to dry.
Another is time, maybe you have time now but not next week, the minis you primed and started painting are still on the sprue, on a shelf.
You can prime all on the sprues, and fan them dry. All the minis are in one flat sprue. You can prime 1,000 minis in no time on sprues and set them aside. No parts here and there(some clip all the parts off and have them unsorted in a box, savages!). You don't need 35 pillbottles standing on your desk with minis, they are all in a flat sheet of plastic. It's the original speed painting method, but I think we are talking 30 minis or so for it to be a time saver.
But painting on sprues is more a non-fantasy/scifi-wargamer thing, it's a method those other hobby tabletop painters do.
I painted Dreadnought's leg plates on sprues (WH40k)
I prime on the sprue. Cut out then paint all the individual pieces separately until I shade. Shading is done when the model is glued. It works for me
I have a sister and a dad who've both been into painting Warhammer for about a year now - they both paint on the sprue, using wet palettes. It isn't to give them something to hold, it's so that they don't have parts of the model that are getting in the way of reaching other parts of the model. I think my dad has started using sub-assemblies instead for a competition piece though, which I imagine achieves the same effect, without having to repaint over unpainted gates or nubbins.
I guess I am the only villain here. Cuz that is still how I do it. Its just like anything, do it enough with enough practice and you get the feel of it. Not saying its the right way to do it. Its just how I feel comfortable doing it. For me, at my age, my hands are starting to shake more and its easier to keep the sprue on the desk or angled pressed on a board or desk while I am painting to keep my hand steady and the model steady. As for when I cut them off, its a small spot that requires touch up and I use a knife not a sander to take off any extra gate left on it so minimum damage done to the paint job. Love your channel and love the advise you give. Great job!
I did this for a goblin and Necron squads, also a Necron destroyer. Didn't have anything to cut the model out. Not too hard to paint the bare part afterwards. Now days it's easier to hold the piece cut out
Another reason not to paint on the sprue. As someone has already said, you'll end up with paint on surfaces that need glue, but also the fit may be affected by the thickness of the paint coat. OK, fairly thin, but it doesn't take much to cause a high tolerance model to not fit right.
Having said that, it's different if you're dealing with small, single part models such as Airfix where the sprue attaches to the underside of the base. For those, I used to cut up the sprue so I had a short length of sprue with a couple of models attached. Gives you something to hold on to. I put a bit of wire around the sprue, bent the end over and could then hang them up from a chain of paperclips.
When i first started out, i painted my orks still on the sprue because i figured it was the best way to get into the little crevices, like back behind an engine or something. But with the nubbins and missing paint on the top of an ax or back of a knife, it just looked terrible
Hi, I'm a beginner. Since two months I started painting anything that approaches to a marine space (my wife is the next I’ll try to paint ...) . Over these two months I'm trying a bit the different techniques I found online. Personally I find it very comfortable to paint on the sprue for two main reasons: I can be more precise (I handle it without extra operation/tool) and I have no kind of obstructions (other components: weapons, body parts, etc).
Obviously I apply this “theory” only to the undercoating and the first layer of the base coating.
I got used to pass the second layer (in order to cover the part not perfectly painted -> in main case it will never be perfect) of the base coat once the part is out of the sprue.
The shades, the highlights and the drybrush only when the mini is assembled.
Thank you for you videos, very interesting and helpful 🙏🏻
Although priming and painting on a sprue is a haphazard idea, I just realized there _IS_ a very good and rational use of the sprue before you cut everything out:
*_RINSING THE SPRUE_*
I mean with a little detergent and water (or even an entire isopropyl bath) -- and of course an appropriate brush. The reason for this would be to clean any mold-release residue that might be on the sprue. The residue (according to the inter webs) otherwise affects the adherence of your primer.
If you rinse your models _after_ they’ve been assembled - they take longer to dry. I had some Primaris Inceptors that took forever to dry with isopropyl alcohol because the hollow bodies entombed some of the liquid - which would later seep out and ruin my coats!
I just recently painted some large bits on the sprue. I followed Duncan’s video on assembling and painting my Adeptus Titanicus Warlord Titans. It worked great!
“I can fit my whole finger in there!” Haha thanks for another great video, and a good laugh:)
I used too spray prime the sprue before hand with my space marine army. I did it too avoid the issue of not getting full coverage in all the nooks and crannies and having respray after the fact.
I hindsight kinda silly but at the time I hadn't thought too use paintsticks and bluetack and work from a handle instead of a pizza box.
The first time I heard of this, I thought the fella was making a joke (which wasn't helped by the next bloke saying he plays games with his dudes still on the sprue!). It was only a year or so later that I realised the sprue-painter was probably serious. Like you, I just can't see what the advantage is supposed to be.
_submits to Golden Demon on a sprue._
@@stephennorquist7305 Takes first place for best painted sprue 👍
Big advantage is that you can prime your whole box in one go, if you're priming in your base it's even easier.
The problem is you get paint on contact points that you have to clean off before assessing and that's more work
I did some Stormcast shields on the sprue recently. It was good for that application, but it was really just so I could paint the backs before assembly. It just made sense to keep them in one piece and batch paint them. Even the small touch up that was necessary afterwards seemed like an unnecessary chore though, and I can't imagine doing the whole sprue like that.
This is the method I use and I find it very effective:
1. Light layer of primer on the sprue
2. remove parts and build models (usually just legs and torso, glue arms and heads to sprue sticks)
3. Remove flash from parts
4. another light coat of primer to touch up scraped areas
5. Paint and shade models
6. complete assembly
7. finish painting highlights and visible details
Works pretty well for me
So, I like priming and painting on the sprue as a beginner technique for myself a few reasons.
Pros:
Firstly, it is exceedingly efficient for painting large numbers of identical models, i.e. Imperial guard or if you play bolt action or black powder, basically any infantry set. You pick a color, and go through and paint everything that you're going to use on the sprue that color. You don't have to paint what you won't use.
Secondly, for me, it makes my paint jobs a lot cleaner. I have way more control and have access to every part of the model. I make mistakes way less often.
Thirdly, priming is a way different experience on the sprue. Instead of having to change angles constantly, you basically hit the sprue once front and back and you get complete saturation. It can save a lot of paint.
Cons:
Contact points: Yep, it's true. They are left unpainted, but it takes about 1/2 second to paint over those contact points and it doesn't really reduce the time saved. Also, a huge number of contact points are on spots that are invisible anyway, like neck and arm joints.
Mold lines: I have never scraped off mold lines on any of my models anyway, so I guess that makes me lazy, but I haven't really ever noticed them. You can still do this on the sprue though.
Lighting: Yep, this is the biggest drawback imo. You miss out on a lot of lighting. If that's really important for your style, ditch sprue painting. That being said, how many of you were actively considering lighting while painting a huge number of near identical miniatures anyway? Especially at a beginner level?
If you're trying to make painting competition grade models, don't sprue paint, but if you just want to have an army that looks good, is table ready, and aren't trying to make the most well lit army of all time, it can save you a lot of time and effort and overall it improves how tidy your paint jobs are.
One more thing: Hybrid on sprue and off sprue painting is my favorite. If you just save your lighting highlights for after your model is assembled, you're golden
I think there is at least one exception to that: Big flat armour panels, like sides of tanks, or more likely, the armour panels off of Titanicus or Knight parts, where the joining keys to the sprue are on bits of the part where its not readily visible and can be touched up with a spot of primer
I personally dont often, but I can 100% see why people would paint all the Warlord Titan armour panels on the sprue! Much easier to hold and maneuvre :)
I went to a "paint group" in town that had been organised looking to meet some likeminded people interested in my hobby, maybe learn a few things, maybe give out some tips myself. I got there and it was clear this had been a 'thing' for a while with people already gathered into groups.
I inserted myself into a group of people painting some 40k Orks as this was of interest to me being that I've always loved Orcs and had just recently picked up my first AoS Ironjawz models. I hoped at the very least I would get a few pointers on skin tone as Orc skin is (usually) green regardless of game. In conversation somebody pointed towards this table with one guy sat at it, nobody talking to him and mocking him. I questioned what the lonely guys deal was and the group I had infiltrated encouraged me to go and talk to him, so I did. I'm not blind to social ques, so I already gathered I was in for a bad time.
I walk up and the guy instantly gives the wrong impression telling me he's not here to teach. I ask him a few questions just to get a conversation going, "how long have you been coming here for?", "what models are you painting?" and the question that almost made his head explode, *glancing at his pile* "how come you've sprayed and painted all those on the sprue?"
Him: "I'm a sub assembler. In case you don't know what that is, I paint before I assemble"
Me: "But won't you have to repaint parts anyway when you take them off and clean them up?"
Him: *a huge sigh and dropping his head down* "So what? It's not that hard, it's just an extra bit of paint at the end"
Me: *really seeing why nobody was talking to him* "Isn't that going to take a lot more time than if you just did the cleanup first? What about detailed parts you'll have to detail again? Won't the areas you've patched up be really obvious?"
Him: "Well, I'm actually a good painter, so it doesn't matter"
Me: "Well, I'm a sub assembler and I've never done that before"
Him: "You're not a sub assembler then"
Me: "Okay...But I am. I even sub assembled my Ardboyz just to make sure I got paint everywhere it needed to be"
Him: "That's not REAL sub assembling"
Me: "Okay, have a nice night"
He still turns up every month and I've never seen him with somebody for more than a few minutes before they decide to escape, usually people who now I've been there a few times, I've noted that they're new and taking what is essentially the initiation conversation with lonely sprue guy...And I can't deny, he does produce good minis, but you can clearly see where he's had to patch them up after cleaning up the sprue mess.
There are two main reasons why I usually (but not always) prime on sprue: time & ability. Firstly, I do not have a lot of hobby time. The amount of time saved priming on sprue is huge, even when taking into consideration mold lines, gates and connection points (which, honestly, are the only things I really worry about). I do my best to get the mold lines (gates are easy), hence my second point. I'm not talking "oh I suck at painting." My issue is simply fine motor control; due to some medication and old injuries, I shake a fair bit and my grip is no longer what it was. Pro-tip: like Atom says, those handles are clutch. Me and an exacto blade are an accident waiting to happen lol. Now, I recently picked up an airbrush, so my opinion may change. And Atom's also right; priming my AoBR Boyz on sprue is a much different experience than the Mechanicus and GSC out of the Kill Team box lol.
You use the right tool for the particular job. Painting on the sprue can be the right tool at times and circumstances, but in my experience, never painting all individual parts on the sprue. Like you mentioned with the vampire cape example, or a space marine posing with a rifle right off the chest, not a bad idea defer cutting out and adding that cape or that arm in the initial build. Also not a bad idea to cut out the sprue framework around said cape or little arm keeping one of the nubbin attached just to give you something to hold onto (the sprue frame) while you clean up mould lines, prime and paint. Much easier to get that back or chest painted on the model and do techniques like dry brush to get the look you want without those parts attached. I suppose this is all in the sub assembly video Adam Pachow'ed.
I feel you on the no heater business. I don’t have one in my hobby room and there are plenty of nights I can see my breath.
When I first got into the hobby I painted before assembling it because it helped me paint in small areas i couldn’t reach after putting it together. Of course now I have learned that subassembly is better for that but it still helps especially for more complicated models where the number of each piece matters and you don’t want to forget it (eg. model planes or other vehicles).
Hey there, so I'm one of those heretics that used to prime and paint on the sprue. Here are my reasons at the time:
1). For priming, I saw plenty of people online rotating a completed or partially completed model whilst it's being blasted by a spray can to get all of the sides. I wasn't sure about doing that partially because it looked really wasteful but also because I wasn't sure how quickly I should be turning the model. I was nervous about not getting enough or getting too much spray in particular spots. So I came up with what I thought at the time was a genius idea: get a small carboard box (Amazon ones are good for this) and make it stand on its side. Lean the sprue against it and evenly prime 1 side of it. After this side dries, turn it over and prime the other side. It seemed like an efficient way to do it.
2). For painting, I initially started with painting on the sprue because of the holding issue and fear that I wouldn't be able to easily reach certain spots after assembly, like you eluded to in the video. I stopped doing this after a while due to the bald spots you get after unclipping it and the tightness of the pieces on the sprue. You were basically spot on about all of that here
Now here's why going forwards I'm going to stop priming on the sprue as well and it's not actually because of the reasons you mentioned in the video:
1). I realised that I'm not actually saving that much spray. This is because by spraying everything on the sprue, I'm actually priming the insides of some pieces as well when I really don't need to. For example, a Leman Russ turret is made out of 2 halves that glue together. Using the spray on sprue method, I would be priming both the outside and the inside of the barrel. It's not easy for me to avoid doing that because sometimes the outside of some pieces face one way while the outside of other pieces face the other way. TLDR I'm doing unnecessary priming here
2). I've noticed that by trying to prime something in 2 dimensions (which is what happens if you spray the sprue), some pieces end up getting uneven amount of spray on the side that is not directly facing the spray. For example, if you've got a particularly rounded piece (best example I can think of is the Space Marine shoulder pad), you will notice this problem on the edges of the piece.
I used to paint on the spruce in Scale Modelling, but there most things are actually separate and different colours. Like the ejection handles on an ejection seat. Have never done it with minis though. Plus there is the problem with flying especially since these are plastic, and the plastic cement needs good contact with the plastic for a good bond.
I was painting Munitorum Armored Containers yesterday, primed and basecoted them on the sprue. They are big&bulky so I find them more easy on the sprue. But for shading and highlighting, I assembled them.
I did it once. Can't really remember why, I think it was because I was priming with a rattlecan and it seemed like it'd be easier to get paint in all the nooks and crannies. Never occurred to me that once I clipped the bits out I'd have unprimed spots, man I felt pretty darn stupid 😣
I just tried priming on the sprue for the first time this week. Even being an older sprue I had to go back because I missed angles, that newer sprue I just don't see not missing an angle or side, much less a light spot where you didn't get enough primer. I think I'm going to end up with 3 priming steps on these models (i'll still need to touch up on the cut points) so I would not recommend.
Some things i base coat on the sprue. I also like to paint heads on the sprue so I don’t have to drill and pin them to some cork to easily hold them. Just leave them on the sprue and paint them, clip them and glue them, then highlight. Nice and easy.
My only exception for priming and painting on the sprue was for shields. It was far faster for me to touch up the paint where the "nubbins" were than to do it on the model or tape them to a piece of cardboard or something. I had access to both sides and with them being all on one sprue I could batch paint them rather quickly.
Thanks for this video, I just purchased space marine outsiders and sub assembly seems like the best option.
I couldn't agree more with this concept. I've never understood why people would want to go that route and bring along all of the extra work involved endlessly mystifies me. Can it be done? Yes. Should it be done? No.
I have never recommended it to new or experienced painters.
Sometimes subassemblies are worth it, but only rarely.
Sorry about your furnace being out. I've experienced that before during a 9 day long power outage. The day they replaced the transformer on my street, I could see my breath in the air inside the first floor of the house. I had stuck it out then, but I probably wouldn't do that again.
I think it’s fixed now. The landlord for my studio is a good guy. Thanks for watching!
So I pretty much have had to always paint on the sprue, crimping and damage to my wrists leaves me with a tremor when I try to paint so I frequently am bracing both the model (on sprue) and the brush just to get a tolerable paint job. Thanks to your make-up brush advice I can do a whole lot more base coating and sometimes even a simple shade on before cutting out, gluing together. By condensing a few stages like priming and base coating it saves me mental and emotional stress which then I get to spend to work on the fun bits once the model is assembled. I get why people say otherwise, I've tried both ways, but I know which one I can do while still enjoying my hobby.
So I used to paint on sprue before I had the things like the GW handle, etc. The step you are missing is that I would cut the piece off with just a chunk of the sprue attached in a spot that would not have to get painted (like the bottom of the head, bottom of the foot, etc) and then remove mold lines / prime / paint before clipping the nub off and glueing it with no more than maybe a quick tap of base layer.
Like I said, I used to do this. It's not better than if you have all the things, and it's not great the more detailed you get with a model, so I only ever recommended this to the very lazy or inexperienced as a means to make painting easier.
Something that I’ve started to do is to cut out some of the more detailed pieces which have attachment points that won’t be seen, like heads, with a fair chunk of the sprue. That way I can prime it, paint it using the piece of sprue as a handle, and then when I’m all done I can just cut the remaining sprue off the “neck” of the head.
To print and paint the miniatures in the sprue, it was good technique with the old monopod miniatures (not multicomponent), since these were subject to the sprue, mainly, by the piece that joined the base
I prime on the spru. mostly because I paint as I build. certain details cannot be reached after fully constructed. it also helps me locate all the nub points that may need smoothing.
Thanks for the great video. I happen to be a sprue primer, and I do it mainly because it is all the pieces all at once. I may eventually use the extra bits, so I am one step ahead for the next project. However, the points you make about ruining the work you have already done is a good one.
Do you think that the pieces being primed on the sprue reduces the strength of the glue on the model? I have had some of my figures pop apart quite easily and that is really frustrating.
Edit: I just went back and watched the subassembly video that you mention. It answered my question about paint and glue, and taught me some new tricks. Thanks so much for being so helpful!
Works well for terrain that comes on sprues. Saves time and you dont really notice mould lines once painted.
I love that you brought this up because I had this come up recently and don't have a decent answer for the issue of tiny parts that need to be painted off the model. We've all had a model with a gun or shield or something in the way of the torso of the model. It's blocking like half the body. So we assemble the unit, except this piece, and we paint it all up, then we still have this piece to paint. How do folks hold the little piece? I was using my blue tack but then I have a small section left to do apart from the rest. Someone suggested the fancy holder with the alligator clips on it, but same problem and what do you do for really tiny delicate parts? I just need a way to get 2 coats of paint on this little piece so I can attach it to the model to do the OSL, wash, and highlighting.
I agree in most cases. For Titanicus, it's easier to paint the armored panels of a Warlord titan on the sprue (but assemble the rest of the model). The touch up areas are just the edges of the panels and not as complex as a figure.
A lot of folks are mentioning the armor plates on the Titanicus models. I’ll have to take a gander at the sprues on the GW website. Thanks for watching!
@@tabletopminions if you search for "How to Paint: Legio Gryphonicus" and watch the Warhammer TV video by Duncan he explains why painting on the sprue is preferred on this model.
Only thing I can think of is for the monopose models from WAY back. Seemed to be the way to go back then (like you said in the video, you had a butt ton of room to work with), and when fully cleaned, primed, and painted, a lot of dudes would dip them all (on sprue) in a bucket of dip wash. Only reason I can think of, and I guess that way of thinking might still bleed into today. I prefer my stupid way of painting 3 Termagants, walking away for a week, forgetting what I did, then painting 3 more completely differently on accident. Great video.
well i do it because i miss a hand so sometimes i do the basecoat on the spruce. but you have to be careful with gluing (kind off a pain for me to)
To be honnest, when i need to paint primaris in quantities i take away mold parts and spray on the Sprue, paint the initial colors, then clip and add details, inking and such.
I sure have to backtrack some parts but i manage to have a quite decent speed/quality ratio
Regardless of how the sprue is arranged or where the gate is on the piece, like the bottom of the head you were talking about, it's a bad idea. The glue just won't bind as well to the primed and painted surface. You end up gluing the paint or primer to other paint or primer instead of bonding the plastic to plastic or resin to resin or metal to metal. It'll hold for a while but you will see breakage on those joints if you're carrying that army around or even just moving them from a shelf in your house to a gaming table in your house. Even if you just have them set up on a shelf and are moving them around to dust occasionally you'll find that they break pretty easily. The only way to fix that is to take the time to sand the paint and/or primer off of both gluing surfaces before gluing. Of course then you're going to spend additional time fixing the damage to the paint job you created by filing and sanding the paint and primer off. Then how much time have you saved by priming and painting on the sprue?
I think you have a lot of great reasons to why not to paint and prime on the sprue. I still paint on the sprue. I’ve been painting for the last 7 months…I just get a much easier to paint and therefore more accurate paint job when I paint on the sprue (it can be hard to paint certain area once assembled). Maybe it’s the newer models from GW but I’m not getting many if any mould lines on my plastic miniatures. I don’t create effects with zenithal highlights since I’m painting a horde army. Yes, you have to the remove plastic and repaint the areas where you’re cutting plastic off in the end but I try to be very careful there and I’m super careful when applying gorilla glue so that there isn’t excess glue split over on the model (a very small amount works great and even if it does spill I find going over it with paint most of the times will cover it up). I will tend to apply shades and do the base after I’ve assembled the model though. I’ll still paint with this method until my painting skills get better but fully understand the benefits in this video. Thanks for the great content.
I’m starting to prime small parts on the sprew and haven’t had issues yet. Seems to workout a lot better.
When I first got into the hobby, I got a skitarii ranger squad and a friend of mine convinced me to come over for a paint night.... he assured me the best way to do it is prime and paint on the sprue, dont worry about mold lines. After he primed my sprues for me... I instantly realized the issues you mentioned... I didn't get a lot done that paint night and I still have that sprue in my undone plastic collection as a constant reminder not to do that process.
It's a perfectly good idea to do some parts on the sprue depending on the parts in question. Heads, as you mentioned, can be great to keep on the gate and a section of the to prime and paint if the gate is thick and supporting they can be cleaned then primed. Tank tracks can be another good one to leave on though I will admit that often they will need a touch up on them but it saves on messing up the hull plating you spent hours painting. The alternative means for some parts you are cutting off parts often can be small parts and you can be increasing the risk of actually losing the parts if your not organised.
Well, I'm most of an sub assembly guy. I love to paint minis in all the spots, even if they're hide in the end (perfectionist sh*t and all that..) So I was considering painting things on the sprue who are quite hard to hold in sub assembly. Like head or accessories. BUT, in my head it's more like that : I clip off practically all the parts, sub assembly, store each minis in bags, and then clip part of the sprue with the head to prime/paint them. I find hard to keep head on a thoothpick with blutack :/ So that's why. But if anyone have tips for that, fell free =)
the reason to paint on the sprue is usually to paint a model in painting groups. so for a space marine ai glue the body in the sprue together. i do this, because later its easier to paint because there are less areas cover by other parts of the model (e.g. arms, weapons, shoulder pads etc). for me its basically a way to paint a model in several groups. it is not less work though.
Agree for 99.8% of miniatures. For me I have found that those SW Legion B1 battle droids work great being primed and actually painted on sprue. Sounds crazy I know. But I can actually get a unit of those done in 2 hours that way. Excluding dry time of course. Also almost forgot to add that I do cut away much of the sprue before painting
I just started painting space marines, assembled then primed/painted the first 2 and found it was taking too long and I just didn't like having to squeeze into the gaps of the armor or where the gun pressed up against them. I prime while they are on the Sprue now and then clip them and paint prior to assembly. Personally I find it easier and cleaner this way, excess paint dosen't flow onto other parts of the model and what not. Still takes some time but I'm much happier with the end result painting before assembly.
I mostly wanted to try priming on the sprue because I have a spray primer and it should be faster. I do plan on touching up the primer after assembly though, and adding white spray primer on top at that point for lighting.
having been a mini-hobbyist for a couple years now, i find priming on the sprue to give me a small advantage vs priming when built... i do not paint on sprue, only prime... yes there are mold lines and flashing and the lil nubs to clean up after removing from sprue, but most of the time those spots are hidden or very small...
i also only prime on sprue with plastic mini's i dont do it with resin mini's... and i dont have any metal so...
the advantage i have found is that with priming on sprue and using plastic glue, which is actually a solvent melting paint/plastic to then form a bond between the pieces, is the paint can fill in any little gaps that would otherwise have to be dealt with after put together... after i have all my mini's assembled i will do some minor touch ups with primer before painting...
for painting i often have to partially disassemble some mini's anyways... which can be a pain to do if you have used plastic glue on bare plastic because the bond it forms is REALLY strong, but with some primer in those joints its much easier to pull them apart...
are there disadvantages, yes... are there advantages yes ...
is there a right or wrong way? NO, my advice is to do what works for you...
The only thing that comes to mind for me is in vehicles/tanks, buildings, and other things which are mostly the same color or minor variations thereof. If you have a boatload of road wheels, with all of the accompanying suspension gear, and all the myriad same-color parts that go into a Rhino ( or, a Sherman.). Then, getting them all the sa ( or gradients of the same) color as the panels at once could prove to be a major convenience.
I've found a couple of uses for priming/painting on the sprue. For my Warriors of Chaos army, I found it was very difficult to prime and paint the inside of the cloak on the regular Warriors, as there is very little space between the cloak and the body. It is also difficult to paint behind the shields. I found priming and doing some basic basecoating was useful, but I would then assemble into the finished model or some reasonable subassemblies of the model to do the majority of the painting. If the army/unit wasn't so elite, I doubt I would have worried about it, as it was definitely more time consuming.
Great topic Atom! Personally, painting parts on the sprue is not a technique I use for figure painting. I have used the technique for tiny parts on ship or aircraft models, but never for figures. I look at this method as a "once in a blue moon" thing. Just another method to deal with special cases, but never standard. Anyway, that's my two cents, thanks for the video!
I used to spray primer on the spruce and then put them together. This ensured I had primer everywhere, I’ve mainly modeled them so that my brush fits nowadays
The model kit company Revell sometimes recommends painting some parts on the sprue, in particular very very small parts that you could otherwise not hold.
For GW models there's also sometimes a reason to prime and paint on sprue, in particular tank tracks since their color matches the sprue somewhat and not having to be tidy around the tracks makes painting a lot faster. Besides tank tracks i sometimes use a piece of sprue that hold the head of a model when i need to paint the head a different color than the rest of the models, for instance with Custodes. However, these are quite specific cases.
For priming or when you have big areas with the same color, it is an advantage to prime everything and put the main color. I've been painting the indomitus set like that and it is saving me a lot of time. yes, it is necessary to remove the mould lines, but as they are primed, you do see them even better. As I do assemble and paint them simultaneously after. The time saving is that it is easyer and faster to paint, if you do use airbrush. for all hairy stick thing, no advantage in painting before clipping...
I guess one reason could be model airplane painting. In those it’s a lot harder to hold the piece while airbrushing because there’s no base. I still paint some parts before clipping when assembling planes.
priming on the sprue can save abit of time with kits that would otherwise practically need to have every part painted before assembly (like the penitent engine/mortifier) but you will need to remove mold lines and go back and prime parts again. you will also need to clean your contact surfaces
The only thing I paint on the sprue are the track bits for rhinos, spray them leadbelcher and wash with nuln oil and highlight too, I'm not sure it actually saves time after touching up the nubbin bits but feels easier to me!