Cheap terrain paint

[GHQ]

First off we would like to thank everyone who has participated in the Micro Skirmish topic. There are some good posts there with nice pictures, and some great information. One topic that popped up in that thread is cost-effective paints to use when finishing terrain. We have intentionally not gotten into the terrain paint business because most people can go to a Home Depot, Lowe's, or any hardware/home improvement store and pick up a quart of flat interior latex paint for about $5-7. You can choose from a virtually infinite number of colors and have them custom mixed for you in a few minutes while you wait. This is what we do when we put together any of the terrain boards that we make and use in our website photos, catalog photos, convention games, etc. With the widespread availability and infinite number of colors available in cheap paints we didn't think that it was worthwhile to get into the terrain paint business- not to mention the cost of shipping a 4 pound can of paint that sells for $7.00.

Thank you for your support,
GHQ

PS One thing to always remember when working with styrofoam- DO NOT use an oil based paint or any other oil based products on the styrofoam. It will melt the material.

[tstockton]

To the good folks at GHQ,

You are quite correct -- that is the most cost-effective method of obtaining paint. And sometimes, you can even find an "already-mixed" color that someone didn't want, that you could use as a base color. I've seen those go for as low as $4 for a gallon. Talk about cheap!...

My personal preference, though, is the "craft paint" acrylics. It takes me a while to go through a 4 ounce bottle of "Trail Tan" -- of course, I rarely work on more than eight to ten hexes at a time. The convenience of shaking the bottle, flipping open the top, then squeezing out a little bit of paint at a time as I need it (again, this is personal preference) far outweigh the cost-effectiveness of the quart- or gallon-sized can of paint.

Now, if I were doing 50 or 60 hexes at a time... that would be a different story!

Speaking personally -- and I think I it would be safe to say that most of us would agree -- you are quite welcome for your compliments! I'd like to thank you, GHQ, for not only producing such fine products, but for providing us this Forum so that we can share our works, hints and tips with each other. And the fact that you are actively involved here is another plus! Keep up the good work!

Regards,
Tom Stockton

[Peter_Fitz]

I buy "test pots" of decorators' acrylics from a local paint store for next to nothing, and transfer them into cheap squeeze-bottles from a local "plastic crap" shop - that way I get the benefit of cheap paint and the ease and convenience of being able to squirt out just as much as I need.

I first hit on the idea when I was painting a mural for some friends (you can see it here) and I've been using it ever since.