Page 1 of 1
Inking Dice
Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 2:07 pm
by arcadayn
I was impressed enough by my Zocchi Pack of dice that I ordered several more dice sets from GameScience. I ordered everything inked except for the Color Explosion Pack. This is a 12pc dice set that includes one full 7pc standard rpg set and five randoms. They are all random colors and include opaque and gem dice. I actually got 2d16s and a d10 numbered to 5 twice! Anyway, they were all un-inked. So, I did a little web research to find the best method of inking them. What I found is that you can use regular minis paint (water based acrylic) and place a dab on the number. You then just wipe the paint off with your finger. It ends up painting the die perfectly. After I got a little practice, I actually began to enjoy it! I now wish I hadn't ordered any of my dice inked so I can paint my own custom colors (not to mention the money I could have saved)!
Here is the link to where I found the info:
http://carmensminiaturepainting.blogspo ... -dice.html
Re: Inking Dice
Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 4:53 pm
by Aplus
I used that same method, with reaper master series paint. It works good for most of the dice, but it stinks for the ones with shallower numbers, such as the d24, as your finger will pull out all of the paint and you have to try again like 5 times. I've since switched to using cheap non-washable crayon, and find that I prefer this method. Once you get the hang of it, you can start cranking them out and I think the results look pretty good.
(I bought a pound of uninked gamescience dice, so I'm speaking from the standpoint of having to do the numbers on dozens and dozens of them. If you just have to do one set, using mini paint can produce very nice looking results and shouldn't make you too frustrated.)
Re: Inking Dice
Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2011 8:17 pm
by CinderellaManJJ
Aplus wrote:I've since switched to using cheap non-washable crayon, and find that I prefer this method.
I never thought of using mini's paint. My original Red Box came with unpainted dice and a white crayon; I've been using crayon ever since to fill in my dice numbers.
Re: Inking Dice
Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 2:27 am
by finarvyn
Yeah, we've had similar discussions about crayons vs paint vs sharpie markers on other threads. Apparently crayons are a popular choice, doubtless because of the old D&D boxed sets.
Maybe all of the dice threads should be scooped together into one place.

Re: Inking Dice
Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 4:22 am
by Drew
Any tips for using a crayon? I couldn't really get it to work. I used a sharpie, but it looks kind of crappy, honestly.
Also, I have a set of clear blue dice. What color would you recommend for those? I tried black but it's REALLY hard to read.
Re: Inking Dice
Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 8:18 am
by CinderellaManJJ
Drew wrote:Any tips for using a crayon? I couldn't really get it to work. I used a sharpie, but it looks kind of crappy, honestly.
Also, I have a set of clear blue dice. What color would you recommend for those? I tried black but it's REALLY hard to read.
When color a die with a crayon it's a 2-step process:
- Color the face until the number is filled in
Rub excess off face with a paper towel
When coloring, scrape across the numbers get the crayon to fill in the valley. If you try to trace the number with the crayon, it doesn't fill very well.
As far as color, I try to pic something with a high contrast. The darker the die, the lighter the crayon, opposite for light dice. It help is you pic a complementary color crayon when compared to the die:
- red<>green
yellow<>purple
blue<>orange
Hope that helps.
Re: Inking Dice
Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 11:33 pm
by Drew
CinderellaManJJ wrote:Drew wrote:Any tips for using a crayon? I couldn't really get it to work. I used a sharpie, but it looks kind of crappy, honestly.
Also, I have a set of clear blue dice. What color would you recommend for those? I tried black but it's REALLY hard to read.
When color a die with a crayon it's a 2-step process:
- Color the face until the number is filled in
Rub excess off face with a paper towel
When coloring, scrape across the numbers get the crayon to fill in the valley. If you try to trace the number with the crayon, it doesn't fill very well.
As far as color, I try to pic something with a high contrast. The darker the die, the lighter the crayon, opposite for light dice. It help is you pic a complementary color crayon when compared to the die:
- red<>green
yellow<>purple
blue<>orange
Hope that helps.
I'll give it a try. Thanks.
Re: Inking Dice
Posted: Wed Jul 06, 2011 1:10 pm
by Devil Swine
Two sets of dice ordered for $30. Uninked!
Geez,the guys will have to share one set because im not forking out any more cash for them to use dice! My set looks pretty sweet and I can't wait to crayon them up!
Re: Inking Dice
Posted: Wed Jul 06, 2011 1:15 pm
by CinderellaManJJ
Devil Swine wrote:Two sets of dice ordered for $30. Uninked!
I'm probably going to get my dice at GenCon. Have to remember to bring some crayons so I can use them while I'm there.
Re: Inking Dice
Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2011 11:56 am
by fjw70
I hear off brand crayons work better than crayola crayons. It's been 30 years since I have done this so I can't say for sure.
Re: Inking Dice
Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2011 2:43 pm
by Ducaster
Drew wrote:Any tips for using a crayon? I couldn't really get it to work. I used a sharpie, but it looks kind of crappy, honestly.
Also, I have a set of clear blue dice. What color would you recommend for those? I tried black but it's REALLY hard to read.
I just "inked" up my set of Zocchi clear dice one of which is there "moonstone" Lt Blue. I used white acrylic paint on all of them and they look great to me and easy to read.