Bolt Action: British Infantry (part one)

Progressing along nicely, but slowly, my British Infantry for Bolt Action are finally getting some color on them! I used Tamiya Acrylic spray paint as a primer for these models. Turns out that this was a brilliant idea, as it made for a fantastic base with which to build up my color pallet on. Great for the uniform colors, the guns, gear and flesh.




As with the PIAT Team, which by the way, I am painting at the same time as the rest of these blighters, I started with the Tamiya brown base and then I went back and applied a dark brown to the areas where the Tamiya spray just didn't catch. I then paint the bases so as not to have to do any touch-ups when I mess up the actual model on the final steps.

But before I get rolling with the initial paint job, it is essential for me to get the eyes right when I paint humans (or humanoids). Now, some people really agonize over this step and they do it far more painfully and passionately than I do. Yeah, it's great to add a bit of color to the irises, and kudos to you it you manage to do so, but rarely do I see results that look "right" to me.

Typically I just white the whole, sometimes over black to get an "eye-liner" type effect, and put in a dot of black for the iris. I used to do this with a brush, but I often failed to get both eyes consistent with each other on the first go and often had to redo the whole thing, so in later years I have found success with using a micron.


A magnifying glass can be your friend here, and really, if you're painting models at this scale you should seriously own one. So once I am satisfied with the eyes I then get to work on the rest of the face.

Now, these models are a lot further along then these pics show, I just wanted this first post to focus on these beginning steps as both a reminder for myself and as a possible guide for others. The next post in this series I will show you where these guys are at right now. And who knows, as far behind as I am on posts, there may even be a Bolt Action Battle Report in the next few weeks ('ey, it could happen!).