Soft Plastic Painting Techniques

I got my eyes on you, mold line residue!

still, it does make the beard look a bit curlier... and the ear.

Returning to techniques for painting these softer plastics, we'll be looking at some collected off TMP and such. Have to admit, I overall prefer the familiarity of working with metal and hard plastic to learning how to deal with this - sometimes frustrating - soft plastic. Still, have been inspired by various posts around the internet, including "54mm or Fight" blog, and the Gentleman's War Facebook page, plus the appeal of these figures in general - they have a nice balance of skirmish-y toy Soldier feel, action poses, and historical gear.

At top of comments below is the process I want to give a go - below it is the various commentators and sources so that you can use this as you own resource.

Amalgamated Process to try:

1. Gentle-scrape mold lines with X-Xacto, cut obtrusive plastics, etc
2. Rub or scrape with fingernail flaky little bits of plastic
3. Soak in straight vineger, warm water rinse, air dry
4. Dupli-Color vinyl [grey, black, tan?]
5. PVC glue / water mix against areas of visible mold lines, etc to soften contrast.
6. [Black wash - if strong shadowing desired]
7. Block paint [highlights if using step 6]
8. Plasti-dip or clear minwax / etc

Tim Waudby Yes AIP, cheap and cheerful. I found these tricky to paint as the castings are a bit off in places. Never bother trimming mold lines on AIP as they're so slight. These were washed in detergent, left to dry fully, sprayed with GW white undercoat and painted with vallejo acrylics then glossed with humbrol gloss varnish. Two tips:

1. Leave paint to cure for a few days before varnish. This will stop any dulling and provide a good base for the varnish. 

2. Work the varnish in like a shampoo, humbrol will lather slightly. This helps is set nice and strong and shinny!

From TMP here [click]

Dervel:

My process learned from a master of painting flexible plastic figures is:

1. Wash with soapy water.
2. Spray with flexible plastic like Dupli-Color vinyl and fabric spray (from Autozone).
3. Paint with my usual water based acrylics.
4. Spray with Plasti-dip clear.
5. Testors Dullcote to reduce the shine.

Nevinsrip:
People that work in 1/72 tend to use PVA as a base coat. Not so much in 54 mm
Try soaking your figures in straight vinegar before priming. The vinegar will remove mold release residue better than soap and water. Rinse under warm water and let air dry.

A Cough2001:

Having painted more plastic figures than I care to remember, I have come up with a procedure that works well and is durable.
First they need to be clean. Soapy water works but I've also had success with windshield washer fluid (the cheap blue stuff sold just about everywhere) for soaking then going over with an old battery-powered electric toothbrush.
I then prime them with Model Master Grey Primer. After letting it dry overnight, I then apply a thin wash of Tamiya Flat Black, again allowing them to dry overnight. I use a combination of Vallejo and Foundry acrylics for painting.

They are then given a coat of Liquitex Hi-Gloss Varnish. So far I've had great success. You can see the results on my blog, Der Resin Kavalier. Go to https://derresinkavalier.blogspot.com

SGT SLAG:

I painted a few hundred 54mm Army Men figures, only applying acrylic hobby paint to the bits that differed in color from what the plastic was: flesh, weapons, etc. I then painted Minwax Polyshades Urethane Stain on them, Royal Walnut color (the original The Dip technique).

They lasted 4+ years, but eventually, the paint started flaking off. The Minwax will work, for a while. If I had treated them like I do my painted metal miniatures, they might have lasted twice as long.

In my opinion, I doubt anything will last more than 10 years, on soft plastic figures, but I hope someone can prove me wrong. Experimentation is king, Baby! Cheers!

The flags are from Adolph Ramos (highly recommended!).

Duplicolor Vinyl and Fabric Coating, 11 oz. Aerosol Part . Advance Auto Parts:

Desert Sand - #HVP108, 

Flat Black #HVP106, 

Medium Gray, #HVP109,

Charcoal Gray, #HVP111

I'm uncertain what advantage there is to certain undercoats, except that a spray coat is a must for me due to saving time and better overall coverage. It does occasionally miss a nook or cranny and need some thinned brush paint / primer to finish the coverage.

Well, there you have it - I will keep updating this and welcome suggestions as I move forward with my 54mm AIP plastics.