Hi All
I'm having a hard time getting that greyish aged wood look on some of my shields. So far they tend to look like a poor wash. Any suggestions!!!
Mark

Mark,

You gonna tell me how you did this. I really like it. Never seen this kind of weathered wood. Great work..
My suggestion is that you did it with a to thin wash. You should use diluted paint but not to thin. Then you got the effect over all the shield.
Remember: Less is better.

marc

Hey Marc
Any effect I got on this shield was accidental. I painted it with a nice wood grain (in oils) and decided it just looked too new. After it had died, I tried to stroke some grey tones along the grain and didn't like that so I brushed most of the grey off and just ended up with what you see. I suppose it's ok but I'm thinking of stripping it and starting over if I can get the grey tones worked out!

No Mark,
No stripping. Just mix some brown and ocre colors untill you get a brown just like in the middle of the shield. Paint that by stippling above the hinges and leather belt. Do the same around the metal ring.
Just some darker shade of this color under the hinge and belt. Do the same around the metal ring.
Then you just paint a tremendous shield.

Marc

Looks good Mark, but why would you want to have that sun bleached, aged look on a shield? I don't think they were ever exposed to the sun that long, or ever got old enough to become "aged". At least not used shields, unlike funerary or parade pieces that would be hung in a church for 100's of years..... Regardless, woe be the soldier that allowed the thing standing between him and a face full of sword or axe to become aged.

I lilke the the way it fills the edges and around the fittings. I might try that with darker wood colors to give the back of my shields some more deoth and character. Thanks.

Hi Mark;

I think it looks pretty good from where I sit. Is this from Young miniature's 90mm Viking? Any chance of seeing that one on the flesh this month? Keep up the good work!

Glenn

Exactly what I was going to say.

Given that these could be in the elements, particularly Viking shields one would think, it's likely they were dressed in some way to help protect the wood from moisture. One of the likely dressings would have been wood tar, a byproduct of charcoal making (which was necessary for the production of metalwork in the absense of coal). Wood tar/pitch was used for many centuries as a wood preservative and is far superior to oiling or greasing, which I had thought might have been used historically in more 'primitive' times.

Shields of this type are surprisingly light in construction (many are far thinner than you'd expect) so they would be susceptible to water damage if just left bare.

Einion

Thanks Guys
Actually I never really thought it through and you have a point Mike, an aged, weathered shield does defeat the purpose. I just glanced at the worn and torn cover and figured the wood should be the same. Alright I will touch it up and return it to a better looking condition.
Having said that I do have a couple Western figures and buildings and I would still be interested in getting that grey weathered look. I suppose the obvious technique would be to paint wood the same way but using black and greys, but is that what everyone else is doing?
Cheers
Mark
P.S. Glenn, I won't get it finished this week!