# Army Painter dip, worth the cost?



## Arcane (Feb 17, 2009)

The hardest part for me in painting minis is getting the shadows and shading needed to take it from block painting to detailed. So Army Painter dip seems like a great solution. But... $30 for a cup of the stuff seems really steep, and that's before shipping since no one carries it around here. 

So has anyone actually tried this stuff? Is it worth the cost or would some tinted polyurethane be just as good at a fraction of the cost such as Minwax PolyShade? I've found several photos of painted minis using the afor mentioned stuff that look just as good as the AP dip.


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## Magpie_Oz (Jan 16, 2012)

That tin looks to be a bit bigger than a cup there seems to be a fair volume for $30 ?

I've not tried it but for my money it is a bit too "broad brush" for my liking. Varnish and shade all in one? 

Mind you it would be pretty quick I suppose.


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## falcoso (Apr 7, 2012)

What actually is dip, because I have heard a lot of people talking about it lately


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## bitsandkits (Mar 18, 2008)

falcoso said:


> What actually is dip, because I have heard a lot of people talking about it lately


its a tin of cheap tinted wood varnish, that some idiot decided should be repackaged and sold for triple the price to wargamers who like all there models to have a brown tinge to there paint job.


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## Azkaellon (Jun 23, 2009)

falcoso said:


> What actually is dip, because I have heard a lot of people talking about it lately


Its more or less a easy way to quickly paint models. Personally i hate the Dip look....But some people love it.


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## elmir (Apr 14, 2011)

Tinted polyurethane varnish will work equally well. All you want, is the typical flow of the medium (wich is quite a bit different from regular acrylic washes). 

Worth the cost is very subjective. You are playing a game in wich you can pay upwards of 25€ for a single model not even 2" tall. So that's your call... If you like the tint of the armypainter brand, go for it, if you don't... make your own. Any combo can be made with inks if you want a more "vibrant colour". 

I just did a testbody of an eldar guardian in hawk turkoise and purple. I wasn't quite happy with it yet, so I added a bit of polyurethane wood varnish with a drop of vallejo game colour blue ink in it. I'll post the results once it's dried.


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## Suijin (Aug 11, 2011)

Fantasy Flight Games had some on clearance a bit ago 50% or more off? I'd have to check again. A friend of mine bought some, I'll have to check if he has used it yet.


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## Arcane (Feb 17, 2009)

falcoso said:


> What actually is dip, because I have heard a lot of people talking about it lately


To answer your question more in depth, "dipping" is a process very similar to using an ink wash, using a pigmented wash to fill the recesses and crevice of your model with a dark color to accentuate lines and shadows. However, unlike inks, varnishes have a lower viscosity, so they not only fill all the crevice but also rest in the lower portions of a model, creating a shading effect. In addition, a tinted varnish creates a protective polyurethane coating over your model, much like it would over varnished wood. 

In actuality one does not really "dip" the model (unless desired) but instead paints on the coating with a brush much like any other ink wash. The benefit of this method is that a painter can quickly block paint (some call base coat) a large group of models and "dip" them to get a good, uniform paint job across them all. How detailed one paints their model before dipping is really up to them but the idea is that finely detailed shading and shadowing is not needed, while some still prefer to highlight afterward. 

Also, for metal models which are used for play, polyurethane keeps the paint from chipping off the pointy bits of the model which even acrylic clear coat often fails to do. 

Here is an example of what I'm talking about:









Frankly, I could try to explain why someone would want to use this but it doesn't really matter. While I agree with Bits that some companies charge a stupid amount for the product, it's up to how someone else wants to paint their little plastic (metal) army men and it's funny when he and others get their panties in a bunch about it. :laugh:


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## elmir (Apr 14, 2011)

Like I promised, the experiment with the urethane "matt" woodvarnish. The steps:

Painted using an airbrush. Hawk turkoise highlights on a prusian blue basecoat. 

Wash of regular GW asurmen blue wash

Rehighlight of hawk turkoise.

Highlight of turkoise mixes with dead flesh.

Mix of blue ink and polyurethane varnish applied. 

Interesting experiment: In my book, this "dip mix" acually boosted the vibrance over the regular asurman blue wash. I really like the finish and it does show you can make any type of wash this way


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## lav25gunner (Dec 13, 2008)

Try this polyurethane from Minwax, it's a little cheaper. 










Just remember to get a dark shade, like the Tudor one. Also keep in mind that the colors you paint with will have to be brighter than normal.


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## falcoso (Apr 7, 2012)

Thanks for that bitz and Arcane, it actually gives a really nice effect in those picture, so if it consistently does that that then I would definately use something similar, but $30 sounds a bit steep


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## lav25gunner (Dec 13, 2008)

You can find Minwax Polyshades at Lowes or Home Depot for around $13.











You will also need to buy a can of matte finish because polyurethane leaves your models shinny as hell!


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## constantin_valdor (Apr 8, 2011)

if you want mate i can post of pics of my grey hunters once my pot of dark tone turns up, it should be here tomorrow so wednesday at the latest for pics.
Yes it is pricey but again if you can afford this hobby why not, the reason im buying it is the fact it should get alot of my army done which is handy when i dont have alot of spare time.


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## lav25gunner (Dec 13, 2008)

constantin_valdor said:


> if you want mate i can post of pics of my grey hunters once my pot of dark tone turns up, it should be here tomorrow so wednesday at the latest for pics.
> Yes it is pricey but again if you can afford this hobby why not, the reason im buying it is the fact it should get alot of my army done which is handy when i dont have alot of spare time.


I for one, would like to see that. 
Make sure you take plenty of before and after pictures.


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## constantin_valdor (Apr 8, 2011)

Ok so its going to be friday now by the time my dark tone arrives but will get some pics taken of the guys im going to test it one, but just be warned my painting aint the best haha. So yeah will post pics soon for you all.


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## rxcky (Jun 7, 2008)

A lot of folk hate this stuff, I personally think it is pretty awesome and if used carefully can get you some pretty great results. 

I used it on my Minotaurs and they came out out pretty nicely I think. They are somewhere in this thread. http://www.heresy-online.net/forums/showthread.php?t=109454 

You have to be pretty careful with its application but it can get you some really good results if used in conjunction with traditional painting methods.

The only thing is whether you want that glossy look to your finished figures. I use matt varnish after the "dip" has been applied, leave that to dry and you can then add additional detail to finish the figure off. 

Its not cheap, I will give you that. As an alternative you can just get the dips in ink form now from army painter, their strong tone and dark tone ink are basically the same as GW's old Griffon Sepia and Badab Black washes. When Badab Black dissappeared I almost cried when my last pot was finished, but this stuff is exactly the same and does not stink like the GW stuff.

30 bucks is pretty steep, its about 16 quid over here which is slightly cheaper but like the other guys say it is essentially wood varnish. I think its worth a shot, if you are looking to paint loads of figs and your wanting to do it quickly, it does the job and gives you a pretty nice result.


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## shaantitus (Aug 3, 2009)

I like the idea of these but my problem with them is that they are polyurethane. I do much of my painting at work and i have to fly to get there, so they have issue with me carrying solvents on the plane. The gw washes will have to do for the forseeable future.


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## Raptor_00 (Mar 17, 2008)

Go with the Minwax. It's the same thing but cheaper. It also comes in different shades so you can do some different tints depending on paint scheme and army.
Do a test model first. The smallest can got me through 100 skeletons and 100 zombies (real cheap rubbery plastics) for a DnD campaign and I still have enough Minwax for 500+ more if I wanted to.


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## Arcane (Feb 17, 2009)

wow Elmir that looks great. Can you please go more into detail about the contents and creation of your "dip" mix? 

Also thanks for the other follow ups. As an answer, yeah I can afford the hobby but just barely :/ So yeah, it makes a difference.


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## lav25gunner (Dec 13, 2008)

shaantitus said:


> I like the idea of these but my problem with them is that they are polyurethane. I do much of my painting at work and i have to fly to get there, so they have issue with me carrying solvents on the plane. The gw washes will have to do for the forseeable future.


I recommend you get this instead.


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## Hobbess (Feb 4, 2011)

I wound up ordering a two cans of the dip a couple months ago, but due to some painting delays, hadn't gotten around to testing them. Shaking / flinging the extra off would definitely be important and can say so because I did not do a good enough job. Still, for the majority which got the correct amount of dip, I do like the results. And I was able to do a bit of clean up while highlighting. So even having done a poor job I think they will look good on the table.


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