darkSpyro

Does anybody have any idea or proof of what type of paint works well on plastic. I want to make custom skylanders, just not sure what to use

I used Tamiya paint on mine. It worked well for me. Ill look tomorrow but i think it was acrylic.

Hex only has one coat. I might do another tomorrow but im not sure.

Looks good i would go for a second coat no reason just always better

Thinned acrylic paint. It will take quite a few layers and time, but it produces the best results when painting figures. Golden and Liquitex are two great brands I've used for customizing Munny toys. I've heard paint pens and sharpie markers can be effectively used to some extent, but there is a chance of bleeding/running unless you get a good sealer that works with them. Honestly though, the BEST paint you could use would probably be paint made for customizing figures, like Citadel from Games Workshop, but these paints can be very expensive.

I'm not sure how much help it will be, but here is the FAQ section on Kidrobot's forum. Kidrobot is a company that is known for making customizable toys for artists, and you can learn a lot(at least about painting) from their forums.
http://forums.kidrobot.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=56606

I dont want anything expensive jut something that will look good

How much customizing do you plan on doing?

I dont know i just thought of i all today

Since you aren't real sure what you want to do, I'd start slow. Due to their size, and since they already have paint on them, I recommend sticking to modeling paint. It' made for painting models, and will give the best results. I''ve only customized Munny toys, which are larger and made for customizing. I'm really not sure how a cheaper acrylic will behave on these figures in the long run(cracking and chipping could occur even if you use a protection coat). If you are brave, you could try something like Liquitex, but I'm personally not that experimental on figures that aren't marketed for customizing. Modeling paint is normally about $2-$3 per color, but you don't get a whole lot, which isn't that bad, because you don't need a whole lot to paint these guys. With figures they normally recommend you stay around 3 colors or so to stay balanced, so that's $10, which isn't too bad.

I know a person into the 40k figures. He uses Games Workshop paints, but those are probably the most expensive you could buy. I found this guide that compares some brands, but I can't personally vouch for anything other than the paints from Games Workshop. The paint Sage mentioned is also used on models, and seems to get good reviews, so if it's in your price range, then you should look up more about it. IMO, it actually came out really nice on that Hex figure, which is amazing, since he said he used one coat.
http://warmaster40k.com/2011/0...rchasing-guide/

The cloak looks very well done. I would like to see the head covering in the same color, with the wingy things still black. And how about matching her finger nails to the cloak? Looks like it is quality paint, though.

I do a lot of custom skylanders, I mean a lot of them..yikes. The paints that I reccomend are Testors Model master Acrylic, Formula P3 by Privateer press, and Tamiya clear colors. Games Workshop paints rub off unless you use a primer or basecoat. Their metallics are the best out there but again require a basecoat and a sealer coat. So I usually just use Formula P3's metallics as they stick fine.

You MUST prep your plastic before you paint removing any mold release, silicon oil, or hand residue. This can be difficult because I'm not sure if you're suppose to submerge the bases so a quick wipe of rubbing alcohol will clean them pretty well. I have a whole painting guide and tutorial of techniques on my site if anyone needs them.

I used Testors acrylics and I really liked them. I didn't thin them though. They didn't glop up or anything.

Quote: Jin Saotome

I do a lot of custom skylanders, I mean a lot of them..yikes. ... I have a whole painting guide and tutorial of techniques on my site if anyone needs them.

hi John nice to see you here.

here is a link to John's guide's page http://www.jinsaotomesdangeroustoys.com/guides.html

and for those of you that don't already know here is an example of John's articulated skylander work ...

Quote: t7gga

Quote: Jin Saotome

I do a lot of custom skylanders, I mean a lot of them..yikes. ... I have a whole painting guide and tutorial of techniques on my site if anyone needs them.

hi John nice to see you here.

here is a link to John's guide's page http://www.jinsaotomesdangeroustoys.com/guides.html

and for those of you that don't already know here is an example of John's articulated skylander work ...

Awesome work, his site is what actually convinced me to try my mod. I would love articulation, but have no clue where to even begin. I wonder if he does custom commisioned work.

"I wonder if he does custom commisioned work." ... unfortunately he doesn't.

there is a customizing part in his guides that has some information on articulation

Quote: t7gga

Quote: Jin Saotome

I do a lot of custom skylanders, I mean a lot of them..yikes. ... I have a whole painting guide and tutorial of techniques on my site if anyone needs them.

hi John nice to see you here.

here is a link to John's guide's page http://www.jinsaotomesdangeroustoys.com/guides.html

and for those of you that don't already know here is an example of John's articulated skylander work ...

Hey T7gga! Thanks for the props.

Just so everyone knows I actually play the game and I'm a huge fan of bridging the gap between toys and video games. I'm not here to promote my custom figures or anything but I'm glad if you enjoy them and I'm here to answer any questions you may have about the process. Unfortunately like he mentioned I don't take commissions simply because each day I end up with about 50 emails or so asking for skylanders. People would be on a 2-year waiting list if I ever started, yikes! So instead I have all these guide and tutorials on the ins and outs of customizing, painting, etc. Glad to be part of the forums here and I'll do my best to contribute!