Basic Weathering - DIY Washes - The Warhammer 40K Effect

[Sir TophamHatt]

So way back then, I posted about weathering some stock.

 

After buying some EWS wagons on the cheap to test and following some videos, the outcome was not great at all.  I decided to forget about weathering as it clearly was not going to be for me.

 

Fast forward and months later, I buy a 3D printer.

I've been printing up some replacement pieces for Catan (boardgame) and watching dozens of videos about washes, painting and what not.  I've noticed there's a lot of crossover between painting model railway items and game pieces for Warhammer 40,000.  The technique seems broadly the same - it doesn't seem to be about one layer and that's it but building layers to make the effect.

 

Thought I'd give this a go and turns out even a couple of washes improves models quite a bit.  It's by no means finished and only my first attempt but I'm pretty pleased so far.

 

You can buy pre-made washes (which I eventually did) but there's also a recipe to make your own basic wash to get started (which I did first!).

 

Ingredients (for about 80-100ml):

1/5 - Varnish (this specific one was listed as it's  matt finish) (a more expensive alternative)

4/5 - Water (the instructional video suggests bottled or distilled water so you don't get the impurities that come with tap water.  I just used tap water.)

2 drops - Washing up liquid (depends how much you're making but one or two drops is plenty - think ballasting)

4 drops - Ink (black needs about 4 drops depending on how much you're making, other colours like brown need more.)

 

Don't shake as you don't want bubbles, but mix well.

 

This is for a DIY Citadel Nuln Oil wash.  Video of the above HERE.

 

Now for some photos!

 

Before wash:

 

 

 

After wash:

 

 

Don't have a before look for this one, but a simple wash over it has really brought out some details:

 

 

The effect is quite subtle, especially on the brake van but it's only the first layer.

The photos don't really do them justice.

The HST needs a lot more work but better than the very plastic look it had before!

Edited February 10, 2021 by Sir TophamHatt