Is AK interactive Still Water any good?

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

What ideas do you have for using "AK Interactive Still Water" in different ways?

[@_marduk]

Potentially in extremely thin layers to make armor look like it was rained on. Do you think that would work?

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

@YounCon interesting thought. I haven't tried to recreate that sort of effect yet. But could the look you are going for, be achieved with a gloss varnish?

[@ghostrangerp.8819]

You can make a stencil place it over the armor where you want it to look where the drops will appear...create the droplets. ...then spray....i would suggest trying it on wood or other first to see how it looks then if results are to your satisfaction then on armor

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

@@ghostrangerp.8819 nice idea. I like that!

[@ghostrangerp.8819]

@@FlyingRavenStudios We do various effects using stencils the way we want some stencils are pre created but dont have that look we want so ma y of us just create that look we need and invest in a airbrush to get that effect . ...

[@LaoLaoSW]

So i ended up using this product for my wargaming board, it was great for Ponds, Puddles and anything you wanted a somewhat smooth surface on. My conclusion is; AK Interactive Still water is great for a cheaper alternative to using UV or Exposy resin, it's great for "Still Water" as the name suggests. AK Water Gel is great for rough textures such as oceans, since you can form waves and rough up the texture as it's a "Gel" form. But ultimately my best effects was actually using both AK Products and UV Resin all together. Basecoat of different blue shades, then Still Water in thin layers, then another very very thin watered down light blue paint then the Water Gel for a rough surface and movement, then finish up with UV Resin for that clean crisp transparent surface. this allowed the Paint on the Basecoat and still water to change into multiple different shades and really gave an in-depth look.

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Thanks for this, this is really interesting. I haven't had much chance to play with the UV resin yet, but I had been thinking experimenting along similar lines with the AK still water and the swamp gel. Thanks for the tip and I look forward to testing the AK water gel and the UV resin!

[@tojorozombie]

Another fine demonstration! Excellent idea with the caps and Milliput for the test subjects! Thanks!👍😎

[@chrisgrainger83]

Just come across your vid 👌🏻. I use Still Water on a lot of my bases. I make ice with my Space Wolves. Once dried, I add a liquid super glue on the edges. This creates an ice effect. On other bases, I mix with paints, to make different colours. I mix Zandri Dust, to make a muddy puddle effect. Loads to do with it. I always find going shallow first and building up, helps loads with the little dimples. Great vid 🙌🏻

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Thanks and there is some awesome ideas there! Im gonna have to have a play 💪

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Love the idea of using superglue and this really got me thinking.... So I decided to try it out for myself..... I might have gotten a bit carried away (kzbin.info/www/bejne/hZmkYWiBo7RpoZI) :D I would love to hear if what I managed is similar to how you use this technique and if you have any additional tips you have found useful!

[@scoobydruid]

What a great experiment! I saved a lot of time watching this. Thanks!

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Thanks! Really glad you found it helpful

[@yagsipcc287]

I have this stuff since 2020 and it is great once again AK have some of the best products including their paints!! I love them. My stuff is still fine nothing wrong with it after almost 3 years :-) great for puddies and of course mixing in with some ground effects for extra muddy ground.

[@_marduk]

The level of detail you have here is great thank you!

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Thanks!

[@goforitpainting]

It was interesting and useful. Thank you for sharing.

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Thanks and you are welcome!

[@HunHaze]

Really nice attention to detail in your video. So do it slowly in small batches and don't poke it.

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Thanks HunHaze! Yes that would be a fairly safe strategy 😁

[@stormycatmink]

Another great video. Thanks for this one; was looking at getting some AK Still Water, but would have messed that up. Looking to make some ice and snow, and needed some nice clear water for it.

[@dirtnastyish]

Thank you for making this video. It's an interesting product, much easier than resin.

[@parazatico9030]

Very interesting! I haven't used the AK water effect, but I have used their 'Puddles'. I've also used Vallejo's 'Water Texture' and something called 'Aqua Magic' I got from a model railway shop. Results with all of them have been a bit mixed, I have to say. I wondered if this had to do with atmospheric conditions, or some other mysterious variable (and as you say, all of these products have an amazing capacity for attracting pet hair). Main problems have been that tendency to dry concave you mention, and little pits and fissures appearing in the surface. I also found that it is a bad idea to use artist's acrylic paint to tint it, as it causes major cracks to appear, presumably because the resins are incompatible. The 'Aqua Magic' generally gave the best results, but despite what it says on the pack, mixing paint into it doesn't seem to work, as it is quite thick and treacly, and the mixing process creates gazillions of tiny air bubbles that remain when it dries, giving the effect of a muddy jacuzzi. If anyone knows how to avoid this happening, I'd love to know! Do you think the AK stuff is superior to the Vallejo equivalent?

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

The results you have had with the othet products are very intriguing. I have not tried them yet, but I hope to so I can test them out more. Out of interest, what paints were you using which made it crack and how quickly did it crack?

[@parazatico9030]

@@FlyingRavenStudios Chroma Colour, and overnight. I also found that if I used that paint on the groundwork, the water effect tended to peel away from it. I've used Chroma Colour with Winsor and Newton with no ill effects, so I would imagine the base resins must be similar, hence my (possibly unwise) generalisation.

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

That's worth knowing. I haven't had any issues with this AK Still water effect and the paints I have used in this video which are Army painter, Vallejo colour and Vallejo model air. Interesting stuff!

[@parazatico9030]

@@FlyingRavenStudios No, it's just me being...let's say 'economical'. Vallejo do explicitly say to only use paint from their 'Game Air' or 'Model Air' ranges to tint the water effect, rather than 'any old stuff you've had knocking about for donkey's years', so I probably shouldn't be bellyaching, really.

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Lol there is that as well 🤣

[@Dscustomcolelctables]

Great video and subbed! I found AK Stillwater just a pain in the arse and very random. As for colouring, I use pigment powders as this adds no extra fluid to the mix. Personally I now swear by UV resin as curing is Instant and no waiting to see fails 👍🏻

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Thanks and welcome to the Flying Raven journey 😁. Thats an interesting shout regarding using the pigment powders.... hmm yeah I will have a play with that, thanks. I have added UV resin to the "kit test list" 👍

[@Dscustomcolelctables]

@@FlyingRavenStudios just bare in mind pigment powders can be very strong when mixing so if you want just a light colour experiment 👍🏻

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Awesome. Thanks for that!

[@MrVinnyh]

A great puddle mix, but having watched a few model railway channels other water effects not grand for a duck pond!

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Depends on the size of the duck pond 😁. But yes I would be inclined to agree

[@benburkin7942]

I've used it once and wasn't that happy with the results, hence watching videos of other people's results. I used it on some small puddles on a 32mm round Warhammer mini base. The liquid climbed the edge and didn't settle flat. Might try a little water to see if that improves flow. Good to know adding a little colour works too.

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Let me know how you get on!

[@benburkin7942]

I prepared the reverse side of some old 25mm round slotted 40k bases. This gives me about a 2mm depth. Applied different colours as base colours. Used neat AK Still Water in half of the bases and really didn't like the results. It's climbed the edges again, I wonder if this is some kind of capillary action? It hasn't self leveled, to the point where there are small areas completely uncovered by the water effect if I didn't manipulate it. And it's dried at an angle where it climbed and also didn't self level. I'll try adding some water to thin it during application, but so far, really unimpressed. Very tempted to bin it and switch to Vallejo.

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Yes I want to test out the Vallejo water effects as well

[@reb3102]

Great video, thanks! I've been testing out UV resin. I've tried it for a small area and got a few bubbles in it. I think it works best with thin layers, just like this stuff. I picked up some tinting inks for it. What I found is you can't tint it heavily or the UV light can't cure it. So very minor tinting works. I'm wondering if the tinting inks I got will work with this Still Water? Not sure what they are made of.

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Thats really interesting. I am hoping to try out some UV resin in the new year. Like you say, I guess it depends on what the inks are based on. If they are acrylic based, I could see them potentially working. Would be an interesting one to test!

[@beyond_hope]

Just seen this video as I'm looking to add a pond to a model railway. Has anyone tried this with acrylic flow improver ? May help with the surface tension.

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

That's an interesting thought! ..... I will have to test that one

[@martinoconnor4314]

Oh dear! I wish I'd found this video earlier 😟. I tried this product for the first time a few days ago, depth of 2mm straight out of the bottle with nothing added and after 48 hours its still liquid with a skin on top. I tipped the diorama base to help the product get to the edges of the ditch a bit better then put it on a shelf in a cupboard. After checking it every few hours and resisting the urge to poke it I noticed undulations where I had tipped the base to help it flow, the product had oozed up to the edges where I wanted it to go but after it had sat on the shelf it had oozed back down leaving peaks and troughs. Also bubbles had appeared where there were none when I first poured it. As far as I'm concerned the drying time and its inability to self level even after 48 hours makes this a terrible product and wouldn't recommend it.

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Sorry to hear that. But glad I could help in a way. Yes this stuff has its uses... but it is very temperamental. Could you rescue the build with thin layers over the top to flatten out the water surface?

[@martinoconnor4314]

@@FlyingRavenStudios Thanks for your reply. When (if) it dries I should get a better idea what kind of mess I've got to deal with but I do like the sound of a slightly thinned layer over the top. But as it stands already, this product is not for the impatient type..... like me!

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

@@martinoconnor4314 I want to test out some other water effects soon. I will add "impatient proof" to the testing list 😉. But also please let me know how the rescue attempt goes

[@martinoconnor4314]

@@FlyingRavenStudios Will do mate! 48 hours and counting drying time for a 2mm thick layer will test the patience of a saint 🤣

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

@@martinoconnor4314 lol that is true

[@orangeblack1285]

How long would you wait between layers?

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Very much depends on depth, if you have thinned it at all, temperature etc etc. But I found thin layers are dry in an hour or so. I found that any depth will take much longer and may need over night or longer.

[@jakemckee2260]

How do you eliminate the bubbles? They are killing me!

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

One way I found is to use a small tube (like the plastic cap from a paint brush). Place it on the bubble you cant pop and it will try to suck it up. Then carefully remove the tube and the bubble should be gone!

[@jakemckee2260]

@@FlyingRavenStudios I'll try that. I also noticed that using a brush to move the bubbles to the edge works pretty well too. I was using other implements to drop the liquid in place, but I've taken to dropping it in a cup, adding one drop of water, then using the brush to gently move it around... really helps. And applying with the brush is great. Thanks for the video!

[@TheAndrian463]

Use a kitchen blow torch gently on the surface; gets rid of bubbles easily.

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

I have seen it done but not used one personally. Do you find it creates ripples in the surface of the water?

[@TheAndrian463]

@FlyingRavenStudios No, not at all just warms it up. There is no air movement, unlike, say, an airbrush.

[@jimcarr4007]

Great vid

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

Thanks!

[@alessandrapalma6353]

Thanks for the usefull demonstration.

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

You are welcome!

[@ghostrangerp.8819]

This just seems to be a heavier consistensy of water solution...thats all...

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

I haven't tried that yet. But it would be interesting to compare!

[@subodai85]

So it’s basically a clear slightly thinned more expensive version of PVA

[@FlyingRavenStudios]

I wouldn't have thought so.... but it's an interesting thought for a comparison. Thanks!