cdrusn89 Posted October 7, 2020 Share #1 Posted October 7, 2020 I am starting the Model Expo Confederacy kit and am struggling with painting the figurehead - picture below (and other Britannia metal decorations). The instructions say these decorations should be painted to look like wood. I also understand that early on (2009-2010) there were resin versions of these decorations but these are no longer available. So I am stuck with the Britannia metal versions. I have never had much luck painting Britannia metal parts. The paint (and I have tried oil and water based paints) does not seem to want to adhere to the edges of the item. Does anyone have experience painting items like this and have a "tips" that I should follow? mtaylor 1 Quote Thanks, Gary Current Builds - HMS Sphinx 1775 Prior Builds: HMS Winchelsea USF Confederacy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seahawk1313 Posted October 7, 2020 Share #2 Posted October 7, 2020 Hello Gary, My son is into wargaming metal figures. He primes them with "The Army Painter" primer before he paints them. He has very good luck with it. I use the black primer for my tops and yards. I think it works well. The metal needs to be primed. - Hal mtaylor 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg M Posted October 8, 2020 Share #3 Posted October 8, 2020 I paint wargaming figures as well and "The Army Painter" primer is excellent although it doesn't shrink, so it's very easy to obscure detail if you are a bit heavy on the trigger. I highly recommend Reaper Brush On Primer if you plan on brushing. It creates more of a powder coating so it doesn't flake off in sheets if there's no tooth to the surface (never had metal flake primer, but have had smooth resin shed primer). Vallejo Polyurethane primer is awesome if you airbrush as it shrinks as it dries, so it's very difficult to spray too thick and obscure detail and it creates a very strong base if you let it cure for a day. All that said, if you have some Krylon primer sitting around, you can hit it with a couple light coats of that. Metal minis are very forgiving with the primer as they are very easy to strip down to base metal. I also give my metal (and resin) minis a good soak and brushing with Simple Green before priming to remove any residue. mtaylor and Ryland Craze 2 Quote Current: HMS Winchelsea Finished: Phantom New York Pilot Boat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cdrusn89 Posted October 9, 2020 Author Share #4 Posted October 9, 2020 Greg and Seahawk, Thanks for the info I will give the primers a try. mtaylor 1 Quote Thanks, Gary Current Builds - HMS Sphinx 1775 Prior Builds: HMS Winchelsea USF Confederacy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freebird Posted January 8, 2023 Share #5 Posted January 8, 2023 (edited) I know this is an order post, but…. does anyone make any replacements for the cast metal parts (mostly the figurehead) that come in the kit? I’m not crazy about the supplied items. TIA! Best Regards …. Rick Edited January 8, 2023 by Freebird Canute and mtaylor 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dziadeczek Posted January 10, 2023 Share #6 Posted January 10, 2023 On 10/7/2020 at 10:52 AM, cdrusn89 said: I am starting the Model Expo Confederacy kit and am struggling with painting the figurehead - picture below (and other Britannia metal decorations). The instructions say these decorations should be painted to look like wood. I also understand that early on (2009-2010) there were resin versions of these decorations but these are no longer available. So I am stuck with the Britannia metal versions. I have never had much luck painting Britannia metal parts. The paint (and I have tried oil and water based paints) does not seem to want to adhere to the edges of the item. Does anyone have experience painting items like this and have a "tips" that I should follow? Mixing your paints with powder sugar will increase the adhesion to smooth surfaces like glass or metal. Try it! mtaylor 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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