Minwax Polyshades Pecan

[carlos marighela]

Perhaps a question for our American friends. I've recently sourced a supplier of  Minwax in Australia, famous as a medium for the 'dip technique'. I've used the Army painter stuff before but it's horrendously expensive and they recently changed the formula making it horribly viscous. I'm going to purchase a can of the Tudor stain but I also have some minis that will be in a light sand/ khaki drill and I was wondering if the Pecan shade is useful for subtle shading.

Has anyone tried the Pecan is it too light for what I have in mind or is it worth taking the plunge?

[Blue in vt]

I don't have experience sight the pecan but for those colors I would use my antique walnut and thin it out with some mineral spirits.  But they are cheap enough that its worth a try either way.

Let us know how you get on!

Chris

[Poiter50]

Source in Oz, Carlos? I have Cabot's Stain & Varnish Walnut Satin (water based) to try. I picked that up in Bunnings but have not used it yet.

[HerbyF]

Pecan is a dark yellowish tan. Should be just about right for shading khaki or light sand.

[Vonkluge]

Ohhh, yes the "Army painter debate" comes up yet again!  

I have seen this come up for discussion on the LAF forum as well as TMP and commented on it in both spots so here is my two cents once again as well as a excerpt from a previous post here at LAF. I have been painting and modeling for 40 years and a serious miniature painter for 25 plus and have stood with the big boys in painting contest all over. I'm not the best but I do have a lot of accumulated knowledge and love to pass it on. I also do the majority of my painting on ARMYS, 100, 200, 500+ figures so using washes and such to help quickly get an army on to the field is well known to me.

Dips work best on colors that a closer to the dips color and in the case of the furniture or army painter dips this will be anything with beige, tan, brown, and even red oranges ect... other colors can be done but for the most part they wont be as good and will be more noticeable as "they have been dipped" So dipping the "Zulus" or "vikings" good, Victorian ladies at Tea, not so good, but there is always the exception.

I would re-think the "Army Painter is to expensive" thought, an old adage says "you get what you pay for and pay for what you get" I was for a long time an anti army painter guy and used minwax and other dips for projects, mostly dipping "purchased" armies painted by others to improve their look. The wood stains are in my opinion way to all over the map in results to be used when compared to the constant results from Army Painter. You want the high viscosity of AP, it helps to hold the stain evenly from top to bottom on the mini while it drys into the cracks. other dips are most times so runny that collecting at the bottom of the figure can be a problem.

I came up with a mounting I use to hold my minis during paint process many years ago when others were still using popsicle sticks that also turned out to be great for "shaking" excess dip of of the dipped figure. I hot glue each figure to a nail (# 8 penny") just a dab on the nail, this also allows you to twist the figure in all sorts of directions while you paint. Try it you wont go back! (nails a stuck in scrap styrofoam when on desk) The added benefit in this was when I was working o a figure to be dipped I just twisted the nail in between my thumb and fore finger spinning it (in a can or bucket) and the excess dip flew off!

Check out the discussion earlier this year on this subject here on LAF

[url]http://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=48549.0/url]

I have the Light dip and meadium dip from AP. Better to dip twice than be too dark!

[carlos marighela]

Thanks guys, I think I'll give the pecan a try.

Re Army painter, well the first couple of tins I bought were fine and yes judiciously applied it's a good item for speed painting. The last two tins I bought were.... well shite. Creosote pure and simple. Thought it was a bad batch, then I read the "New Formula" blurb on the tin.

Now I can purchase a tin of the Minwax of around a litre for $33. A tin of AP costs around $45 here in OZ and that's for a third the amount.

Poitier here's the Australian source, it's a Melbourne based importer.


http://www.globak.com.au/STAINS/Minwax%C2%AE-PolyShades%C2%AE-Satin-946ml/37/productview.aspx

[Poiter50]

Thanks, Carlos, I have sent them an email enquiry.

Thanks guys, I think I'll give the pecan a try.

Re Army painter, well the first couple of tins I bought were fine and yes judiciously applied it's a good item for speed painting. The last two tins I bought were.... well shite. Creosote pure and simple. Thought it was a bad batch, then I read the "New Formula" blurb on the tin.

Now I can purchase a tin of the Minwax of around a litre for $33. A tin of AP costs around $45 here in OZ and that's for a third the amount.

Poitier here's the Australian source, it's a Melbourne based importer.


http://www.globak.com.au/STAINS/Minwax%C2%AE-PolyShades%C2%AE-Satin-946ml/37/productview.aspx

[Vonkluge]

Wow! thanks for the update on the new formula! I had not known that as I'm still on my old stock. as I said before I really only use it on special occasions like refurbishing old or newly acquired armies, and the occasional flood of NPC characters one needs before a convention..

Why do companies always feel the need to change their products and make them supposedly better? most times they just screw up a good thing, like Cokes "new" formula that sucked so bad they had to spend millions to re-launch Coke Classic, and years ago the most popular paints "Polly S" gets bought by Testors who changed the formula ( became unusable) to lesson brush stroke marks with out thinking about the fact that Polly S was being bought mostly by mini painters not model car guys.

Bill

[Blue in vt]

.... and years ago the most popular paints "Polly S" gets bought by Testors who changed the formula ( became unusable) to lesson brush stroke marks with out thinking about the fact that Polly S was being bought mostly by mini painters not model car guys.

Bill

aaahhhh...PolyS paints....loved them....I actually still have a few pots going...20+ years old now.

I'm fairly convinced that Army Painter is just relabeled Wood Stain anyway....I doubt they reformulated their product as much as had to swicth distributor of the wood stain for some reason.

That is my opinion of course...I have no real insight into their business.

Cheers,

Blue

[Vonkluge]

Army painter is not just relabeled "wood stain", I did a bit of loking into it when it first came out, but it is probably produced by business another company for AP company. That a common business manufacturing scenario. You have a "special product" developed and made to your specifications by a larger firm and put your label on it.
I also doubt that the switch to another producer would cause a change in formula since in the digital age its a matter of plugging the numbers into the mixer and go... but what WOULD cause it is the current crop of epa laws governing shipping of this type of material. Over the last five years many of my favorite products in piant, glues, and other materials have had to change to be allowed to keep their ability for US wide distribution! I cant buy anything but water based contact cement and it sucks!

Bill