Hobby Cheating 20 - True Metallic Gold

[@Palateth]

Man, thanks a lot for this video and the whole Hobby Cheating series. A few weeks ago, my kids have developed a big interest for the Warhammer figurines (it should be the latest hype stuff in their school), so they have bought some figs at the local GW store with their own money and then they ask me to help them to paint the figs. I've never bought any fig, I've never played a wargame, I do not even like how these small chunks of plastic looks like and I've never threw paint on anything in my life, but as a father, I do not want to disappoint my kids too soon. They will figure out by themselves later. As I did not wanted to trash their figs, I've searched for tutorials on the net, and I've found your channel. And wow ! That's a gold mine of information. I've used your zenithal highlight and sketching techniques and then put thin layers of paint over that and the result is far beyond any of my expectations. It's probably a very basic painting but at least I did not trash their purchases made with their savings. So, thanks to you and your videos, really! It has helped me to stay a cool dad for few weeks more. :) But now, I've started to buy my own figs too, just to try more of your techniques and to apply these on different surfaces and textures and colors and... God ! I have a problem, now... :D And as I have no interest in owning the figs -I only enjoy to paint them-, I give my painted figs to my kids as soon as they are finished so I'm sure they would like to thank you too. :)

[@VinceVenturella]

That is totally awesome to hear! GladI am helping you keep the dad cred. Always happy to help and don't worry, many painters just end up painting and never play, so you are in good company.:)

[@truckasauruswrecks9141]

your hobby cheating playlist is pure gold fam. seriously so helpful for a beginner you got a new subscriber! cheers! and thank you.

[@VinceVenturella]

Thank you, that is very much appreciated and glad you find it helpful, that's always the goal. More to come every week and always happy to add requests to the list.

[@yunkil]

Thank you for your tips. I just got liquid gold and want to use it too. Is the wash you used for shading water based? I'm don't have any citedel paints but normal vallejo acrylic paints. I thought you can't apply water based paints over these liquid gold alcohol paints? Thanks

[@VinceVenturella]

Yep, you can use your normal acrylic paints over the top.

[@briggsy1able]

Hi Vince been using the liquid gold for a few years now never thought of highlighting the way you do I just generally give it a quick highlight of a silver at the end of the wash. So I know what I will trying this afternoon love these hobby cheating videos

[@VinceVenturella]

+ian briggs (Basher) It's nice, because you can thin them with alcohol they hold their color and doing that step gives you a very real gold appearance. Glad to help!

[@pgabrieli]

I'm watching this now in 2020, 4 years after you posted this video. do you still swear by vallejo liquid gold, or has anything come up in the meantime which you think it's better? thanks!

[@VinceVenturella]

I have switched over to Vallejo Metal Color Gold and Copper in a 3-2 ratio.

[@pgabrieli]

Vince Venturella thanks, much appreciated

[@Blackthorn0451]

@@VinceVenturella Thanks for the update here. I was ready to take the plunge on Liquid Gold as I am currently doing Blood Angels and Custodes armies where gold armor will be an important feature. However, seeing this and the current medical importance and scarcity of high-percentage isopropyl alcohol has made me decide against it. I have already been using Vallejo Metal Colour for my various silver metallics, so I will gladly give this recipe a try. I have also heard of people mixing inks with metal colours to achieve different hues. Have you tried, say, mixing Metal Colour gold with red or sepia ink to achieve a desired tone?

[@elrickinslayer5821]

Excellent tips here,Vince.Cleared up a lot of questions I've been asking myself about metallics. Got to get some of these. Cheers.

[@VinceVenturella]

+Elric Kinslayer Glad to help! Thanks for watching and commenting.

[@fizberry8705]

I already have Vallejo Model metal paints. Should I water them down, and if so, with what? I promise to get the Liquid Metals next time! ;-)

[@VinceVenturella]

So in general, metals are tough to thin, especially those metals, as they are very gummy. My honest answer is a little flow improver in your brush can help, but you are still two coats. My best advice is to find some vallejo metal color as soon as you can.

[@celicynd]

Vince, Do you seal the liquid gold with something before you wash it? I thought you weren't supposed to get water on the paint, or it will rust. I just got these paints, and found the color to be amazing, but was wondering about using washes and inks on them.

[@VinceVenturella]

Nope, I never varnish my metals as it destroys their luster. I have never seen any of my metal paints have any problem with rust or anything similar (and some are years and years old with this technique applied). My guess is that the medium makes it much less of an issue.

[@eddavis2970]

I recently received a set of Vallejo Metallic paints after watching this video. Truly impressive products. I read somewhere that they should only be thinned with 99% Isopropyl, and tried to find a local supplier, only to discover no one carries it for the general public. Seems to be marketed to the medical community primarily. However, I discovered that Walmart.com can supply it through drop shipping to my residence, so I chose that route. I got a 16-ounce bottle for just under $8 shipped. A tad expense (for alcohol) but it should last me a lifetime. I mention it because it might help restore that bottle you had separate and turn semi-solid.

[@mephisto2872]

Vallejo Liquid Gold is the paint that needs thinning with alcohol. Vallejo Metallic Paint is Acryl based.

[@danielchalmers9815]

You can also use gold leaf and gild your miniatures, i did this to some of my blood angels. but i lost my gold leaf book when i moved house, before i started collecting tomb kings. it's only about £20 for a small book. i'll probably get some more ;) it can be applied by painting an area with a pigmentless or similar toned paint and applying gold leaf with a static brush immediately, thin layers of paint should become 'tacky' instantly so you have to be fast, if using thicker layers wait until 'tacky'. Thicker layers of paint may go bumpy and appear worn/dented a good effect for tomb kings i would think. (plays with light more that way too.

[@VinceVenturella]

+Daniel Chalmers Yes, I have seen a few people do this and it's interesting. I will have to give it a try sometimes, but it seems even more challenging than this paint is to work with ;)

[@danielchalmers9815]

+Vince Venturella we wouldn't be in this hobby if we didn't like challenging ourselves :P

[@BigAbeTwelve]

Thank you for the tutorial. I just used liquid gold on my first Ultramarine Sergeant and it’s awesome. Instead of using a normal shade, can I wash the liquid gold with an oil wash? Or will the white spirit dissolve the gold? I thought I could make a wash with winton burnt sienna and let the pin wash work its magic. This wouldn’t kill the shine as a GW shade but I still would have deeper shadows...? Or am I wrong at all?

[@VinceVenturella]

You should be able to wash them with oil washes. Once the paint is dry, it's quite durable, that being said, as always, you don't want to be pushing too hard with the brush as the wet paint can be scratched from just being very wet.

[@maxbrandt6]

I really need to get that Liquid Gold stuff!

[@VinceVenturella]

It's a total pain to work with being alcohol based, but the finish is just amazing.

[@TheMuffinBagare]

Hey, great video. I've got a quick question though: would the result be much worse were I to use GW seraphim sepia and druchi violet for this effect? Cheers

[@VinceVenturella]

Nope, I came back to this with a second video later using Scale75 Inktensity inks, and that is my favorite. I would recommend using the gloss sepia and normal violet, that will get your shadows matt but retain the metallic sheen that would be in the warm brownish mid-tones of gold where a good amount of light is still reflecting.

[@darwill7834]

this has to be my favourite hobby cheating video :) awesome video yet again mate

[@VinceVenturella]

+plastic sturgeon Thank you sir, I do love the results, that's why I keep working with and buying these darn paints ;)

[@TheTinnman]

You talk about agitator balls in these paints to help mix them. What do you recommend? I am just starting with painting and won't use this now but eventually I would love to and want a good base of knowledge which your videos are giving me. Thanks.

[@VinceVenturella]

So I end up accumulating a bunch of metal/pewter minis that I don't need. Whether old ones, or throw ins to Con bags. I take big clipper and chop them up and that is what I use. I also like the agitator balls from Warcolours. They are resin and won't rust. You want to avoid anything ferrous so it doesn't rust and ruin your paint.

[@TheTinnman]

Vince Venturella I am sure this might be a stupid question but with the resin balls. Just one per bottle or multiple and what size? If multiple don't they risk breaking and contaminating your paint? And would you recommend them for all my paints or just these? Thanks

[@VinceVenturella]

I generally put in 2, and I haven't had one break yet. I put agitators in everything.

[@brunovancon6103]

I own some of this vallejo liquid metal paint. Is there any risk of rust with a wash technique as showed in your video 😕 ??

[@VinceVenturella]

Nope, no chance of them rusting. :)

[@brunovancon6103]

@@VinceVenturella OK thank you, I will try 👍

[@IDICBeer]

Great stuff my friend, interesting cheat indeed

[@VinceVenturella]

+IDICBeer Thank you sir, very much appreciated.

[@killroy255]

Hey Vince, do you think these liquid gold paints could be used through an Airbrush?

[@VinceVenturella]

I would avoid it, they dry so fast, it would be very easy to really ruin an airbrush. I know some do, but I don't trust it.

[@hipsukun]

Have you tried their Liquid White Gold as a highlight, instead of Silver?

[@VinceVenturella]

I did, in fact, it was my original highlight, but I just found the silver gave more control as it created another layer and allowed me better control of the overall mix. BTW, I updated this vid with a new formula and process, it's #27 in this series I believe.

[@georgesimo9197]

Great video, this and other recommendations made me take the liquid gold plunge. I'm curious, would using an oil wash over the liquid gold be feasible? Have you combined the two yet?

[@VinceVenturella]

I have, you can certainly combine them, though as usual, it can be a little tricky with those metal paints as you don't want to varnish them (or you lose the shine) but you have to be careful when applying the paints as it can chew through the paint if over applied. As long as you are careful, and let everything dry, it works fine.

[@georgesimo9197]

Vince Venturella Thanks for the reply! I'm looking forward to trying some of these techniques.

[@Whorabl3]

Hey Vince, awesome vid as usual. Can you use oils effectively with Liquid Gold products and if so what would be my go-to tones? Also, is there any benefit to using any of those fancy alcohols you see in the hobby store or are those just for enamels? Edit: Also, I see you put some on your fingies. Does that mean this stuff is non-toxic? You're not using a respirator either but I wasn't sure if that was just for the sake of the vid and maybe you normally do. Long story short, any safety precautions you follow with this product? Can't find much online.

[@VinceVenturella]

Sure, you cna put oils over liquid gold, I like Burnt Sienna and any purple. As to the paint, it's alcohol based, so it's not any more toxic than anything else (I wouldn't drink it, but it's not like an enamel paint or something truly horrible). If I was putting it through an airbrush, I would wear a mask, but it's no danger just painting with a brush.

[@dog_creature]

How would you say Citadels Retributor Armour compares to the VLG range?

[@VinceVenturella]

Well, nothing is as good as the VLG, but it's also quite annoying to work with being alcohol based. I have moved mostly to Vallejo Metal Color for my golds as it combines the near sheen and finish of the VLG with the ease of acrylics. Now, retributor armor is really one of the better golds around outside of the Vallejo Metal Color. It's not at the same level as either of the vallejo, but it's still quite good.

[@dog_creature]

@@VinceVenturella ah okay, thanks. I feel like the Vallejo Metal Color stuff is more of a coppery color though, rather than the warmer gold you get from other paints, but I haven't tried them yet.

[@TheVonjunk]

If you just used silver (for small details) which ink would you recommend to bring it down a bit and give it some shadows? Thanks a lot!

[@VinceVenturella]

Just any black ink (Vallejo Black Ink is a simple enough starter). I frequently have done quick small work just with black ink and silver and mixing them where necessary.

[@TheVonjunk]

@@VinceVenturella Perfect. Thanks for the tip!

[@MikeysMiscasts]

Fantastic work mate, really great video to watch =)

[@VinceVenturella]

+Mikey's Miscasts Thank you very much, I hope it was helpful. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@AP-hv9ll]

Super helpful Vince. Just last night I was bitching to my self how ass this 'gold' Looks on the trumpets of these wolf riders. Not that I care so much about them (it looks like a dirty copper/brass-- which fits for goblins,) but I am staring at this unit of chaos dwarfs that I am going to want a richer pure color for. Ordered a set from Amazon today. $24 for a 4-pack including gold/old gold/silver/copper. I will inspect the life of the paints when they get here.

[@VinceVenturella]

Forward in the series (I think #27), I refine this technique even farther. A whole intense month of painting gold for my month of TK gave me some real insights into the proces, so make sure to check that one out as well. Thanks for watching and glad to hear it helped.

[@Crap873]

Very smart indeed!!!! Thanks

[@VinceVenturella]

Thank you, always happy to help. :)

[@ImaginationHobbies]

amazing video vince!

[@VinceVenturella]

+Kevin Deleon Thank you sir, much appreciated.

[@codelicious6590]

There are skulls everywhere not because its GW but because life is cheap in the 41st millenium.

[@VinceVenturella]

Does that explain AoS as well? ;)

[@codelicious6590]

@@VinceVenturella I really don't know what exactly explains AOS. Its anybody's guess, but I'm pretty certain life may be even cheaper if that's even possible.

[@OBeardyOne]

Thanks for making this excellent video, it has been extremely useful! Rather than use a palette, I have poured each liquid gold into a separate plastic coffee lid. If it dries, adding isopropanol will restore it to liquid even after weeks of storage (so don't need to shake those pots any more than necessary!). Not only is it great paint, I never waste a drop of it anymore!

[@VinceVenturella]

I find I still have to shake them for pigment separation, but yes, 90%+ isopropanol is a lifesaver. Glad the video was helpful, I have done a few updates on the technique of NMM shading on it as well later in the Hobby Cheating series as I have found new inks I like better in the way they work with this. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@Archaeos-gj8fs]

Tomb Kings :'(

[@VinceVenturella]

+Archaeos 1861 Oh don't worry, you will see much more TK from this channel in the vids to come ;)