Grenadier Box "Gold Line" group "painting" Therapy?

[Revfan]

I guess a lot happens when you are away for a bit....

Just found out Mirliton had a kickstarter and re-issued some of the Grenadier Dragon Lords stuff.... here are their recast and painted 2001 Boxed Wizards



*UPDATE*
I didn't paint these... they are from the Mirliton website.  I was just trying to relay that Mirliton is recasting them.  This pic is from their website.

[Ethelred the Almost Ready]

They look great (I had the wizard in red, only I had painted him in purple with Humbrol enamels).
I hope they put out the Orcs of the Severed Hand.  I would love to have these now - just not painted in green enamel with a home made wash that made them look blotchy and dirty.

[warlord frod]

Ok, I finally dug out those old grenadier figs I painted over 40 years ago  . So please take that into account as you look at the paintwork. I have a couple of the "Monster Manuscript" boxes I never painted so maybe I will do them and post them here for comparison 

So without further ado

WIN_20180828_09_36_17_Pro by John Grusendorf, on Flickr
WIN_20180828_09_33_17_Pro by John Grusendorf, on Flickr

WIN_20180828_12_16_48_Pro by John Grusendorf, on Flickr
WIN_20180828_12_24_31_Pro by John Grusendorf, on Flickr

[Hobgoblin]

They look fantastic - gloriously old-school and would still grace a gaming table today!

I recently acquired the Orcs of the Severed Hand on eBay - all but the chieftain, alas (he's not the best of the bunch by any means, though).

Those old orcs that Mirliton have re-released are terrific  - shame there are just four:

[Revfan]

I've recently teamed up with some other 50-someting dudes and rolled up some AD&D characters! 
We went for about 8 hours on a Sunday a few weeks back (Right near D&D's 45 anniversary). 

Lots of fun!

Now I have even more inspiration to get some of these sets finished....

More to follow!

[otherworld]

Welcome back!

I got side-tracked with other old lead projects, but looking forward to getting back to some Grenadier soon...

[Spooktalker]

Ok, I finally dug out those old grenadier figs I painted over 40 years ago 

A joy to behold!  And you have kept them in such good condition. I'm sure the gloss varnish helped! I applaud you for treating them with care all this time. It's not often you see figures with paintjobs of this age without chips and scars, but of those I've seen, these are some of the best. On occasion (ones like this) I've stopped to wonder if I'm doing it wrong, if this style is the sweet spot between craftsmanship, visual appeal and practicality, and if I should go truly old school on my D&D figures.

I would be very interested if you could walk us through your technique, tools and paints in as much detail as you can remember.

Also interested in what action these have seen on the tabletop over the years. Looks like they were rebased in the mid-80s, so guessing they saw use for years.

[warlord frod]

A joy to behold!  And you have kept them in such good condition. I'm sure the gloss varnish helped! I applaud you for treating them with care all this time. It's not often you see figures with paintjobs of this age without chips and scars, but of those I've seen, these are some of the best. On occasion (ones like this) I've stopped to wonder if I'm doing it wrong, if this style is the sweet spot between craftsmanship, visual appeal and practicality, and if I should go truly old school on my D&D figures.

I would be very interested if you could walk us through your technique, tools and paints in as much detail as you can remember.

Also interested in what action these have seen on the tabletop over the years. Looks like they were rebased in the mid-80s, so guessing they saw use for years.

Thanks  I am a fanatic when it comes to taking care of my collection and yes the gloss coat helps. I have always and still do think in terms of a classic toy soldier look thus the gloss coating. I also think it helps make the colors pop. I believe I was still using Humbrals enamels when I painted these. I primed them black and then ran my hobby knife over the chain mail and some of the armor to get the metal look as opposed to using silver paint. Once painted I sprayed them with Rust-oleum clear. I was not doing much dry brushing back then but did use thinned down black to bring things out. Today I use acrylics exclusively and all the techniques associated with that. I do, however still gloss coat.   

I used to do some rather large (for the day) "Chainmail" fantasy battles and over the years I used them both in D&D games and smaller skirmish games. I don't pull them out as much today but I cannot possibly part with them.

As far as the bases go. For years I left them unbased or on a small square of wood because I wanted my collections to have a certain look that unified them. Once GW started producing basses I bought hundreds of them and based 90% of my collection on their bases. I still use their bases or similar brands to base my figs today.

Thanks again for your kind words

[Revfan]

I am still churning through the Females box.... A little everyday.  I have been asking around for some inspiration though, if anyone has already painted them, please post because I am struggling with the detail (or lack there of on my models) and can't figure out what some of the stuff is.  Boobs, I can spot... But some of the rest of the belts, buckles, bags and bits I am lost on.

[Revfan]

Ok... Just to update. 

I am getting there with the females box... slowly but surely.  The thing with this old lead is that sometimes I have no idea what the original sculptor was "intending".  That, or I just bought the 30000th figure from that mold...
So, that just means I am doing a lot of guessing.

I'll post a pic soon!

[Revfan]

Ok, here are my "lovely" ladies.  Remember, I am still just developing my skill set (as you can tell from the other boxes), but this one by far was the hardest... too much flesh, nondescript casting, etc etc.
They are still a work in progress, but I am getting close since my goal is table top quality.

[Too Bo Coo]

They look great so far. After I base flesh I use a premix 60/40 purple red wash. Gives a good fleshy tone, then I start the highlights beginning with the base color again. Hope it helps

[Revfan]

Thanks for the tips... all are appreciated it. 

[Hobgoblin]

They're looking good!

I meant to add these fellows to this thread a while back, but forgot:

[Garanhir]

Your shields. Always a work of art.