Sealing Your Models with Tinted Floor Wax

A while back, I read on the PP forums that someone had done up a unit of sword knights by dipping them in floor wax. At that time, I'd just begun to consider sealing my painted models, and using something like Minwax as an alternative to Dullcote sounded interesting and very different.



As a floor wax, Minwax has a definite tint. That's one of the parts that intrigued me about this whole thing. On a recommendation, I got a very dark Minwax. My intent was that it should act not only as a sealant, but also as a wash. It would run into all the model's cracks and crevices and provide an nice look.

Here's what my sword knights looked like after they were painted but before dipping them in the Minwax.

The first thing about dipping the model was that I found it difficult to get each model's entire foot without also dipping the entire base. If I had this to do over, I'd base them after dipping, although I suppose I'd then need to figure out some way to let them dry upright.

Additionally, I found that after dipping there was a ton of excess floor wax on each model. I had to dab off the excess with bits of paper towel. This dabbing became almost as precise an art as painting the model. If I didn't take off enough, I'd have globs. Too much, and it'd be like I hadn't dipped.

Here's a before and after shot. Click to embiggen. You can tell that I took the picture while the model was still wet. The interesting thing about it is that the floor wax made portions of the model look muddy or rusty. With some models, that would be an especially nice effect.

I've used the floor wax on two models since initially using it on my sword knights. Firstly, a freebooter which I occasionally have Rutger Shaw jack marshall when I need an extra shield guard. Unfortunately, I don't have pictures of that one. But it feels to me that mercenary warjacks are supposed to be rusty.

The second model I've applied the floor wax to is Rhupert Carvolo. His pipes are wooden, and I wasn't entirely happy with plain brown paint on the wood of his pipes. So I added the floor wax which had been intended to be applied to wood. I was pretty happy with the end result. (This photo was taken before I finished washing the rest of Rhupert and tended to his mustache and eyes)