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Hello!

Looking for advice on which brushes to buy, and where to buy them (in the US).

Are the Army Painter Brushes any good?

Privateer Press' P3 line?

Thanks!

Personally, I have not had much success with "gaming" brushes. I tried the old Citadel brushes and did not like them except as paint stirrers.

I have always had best luck buying brushes at an actual art store. You can try them on blotter paper, to see how you like them. Plus, they sell the stuff to help you keep your brushes at their best.

My last batch was a bunch of Da Vinci sables on sale, and I am well-satisfied with them. *Excellent* brushes for the money.

I also have some Windsor & Newton (W&N) Sceptre Golds also good brushes.

My advice is to try whatever brushes you're interested in. I would not buy brushes over the Internet.

Good to know...

Off to the art store it is then!

I've been using Windsor and Newton University Series 233. I can get them for about $5 for 0, 00, 000, or 1 sizes at the Michaels chain (and most independent art supply shops too, which is where I actually go).

They're a synthetic brush, slightly stiffer than most of the sable brushes I've tried, but I actually prefer that, as I find it gives me more control when I try to do lining or freehand stuff. They clean up really well too.

I'd say, if you're looking for brushes at an art store, that you need a harder bristle, such as Nylon or Golden Taklon. Soft brushes are very hard to paint miniatures with. Also, it can sometimes be difficult to find miniature-sized paintbrushes in some art stores.

As for brushes manufactured for miniature painting, I can definetly recommend the Reaper Pro Paints series. It's cheap, but very high quality for the amount of money you put into it (Cheaper than GW's, and Twice the quality, not to mention that they come in smaller sizes). I've had some trouble with some stray hairs and such, but it's a much smaller deal than when that happens with a friggin 20 dollar paintbrush. You can find Reaper Pro Paintbrushes at any FLGS that's not GW exclusive.

Chrysaor686 wrote:I'd say, if you're looking for brushes at an art store, that you need a harder bristle, such as Nylon or Golden Taklon.

Soft brushes are very hard to paint miniatures with.

Also, it can sometimes be difficult to find miniature-sized paintbrushes in some art stores.

No, stick with sables. Don't paint with toothbrushes. If you want toothbrushes, you can buy Citadel brushes or other junk.

Soft brushes flow better, but if all you do is paint with toothbrushes and toothpicks, I guess you might draw such a conclusion. You'd be mistaken, though.

The key is the size and quality of the point, not the size of the brush per se. At most any art store, you can get 0, 2/0, 3/0, and 5/0 brushes for detail work, if you don't need to carry so much paint. Of course, you'll want 1, 3, 5, maybe a 7 for larger work as well...

wats wrong with gw???

I've been using Windsor and Newton University Series 233. I can get them for about $5 for 0, 00, 000, or 1 sizes at the Michaels chain (and most independent art supply shops too, which is where I actually go).

This is exactly what I was going to say

wats wrong with gw???

Are you being facetious? If not please for the love of god go buy a real brush and compare....

I suspect if he abuses a good brush like GW "teaches", he'll destroy it in a single session.

You need to gently *pull* the paint when drybrushing, not mash it into the model!

Redbeard wrote:I've been using Windsor and Newton University Series 233. I can get them for about $5 for 0, 00, 000, or 1 sizes at the Michaels chain (and most independent art supply shops too, which is where I actually go).

They're a synthetic brush, slightly stiffer than most of the sable brushes I've tried, but I actually prefer that, as I find it gives me more control when I try to do lining or freehand stuff. They clean up really well too.

I have a few Windsor and Newton 233s as well. I picked up a 00, a 1 and a 2, and love them.

GW brushes are the devil. The only one I get any regular use out of is the tank brush. Oh, and the "Detail Brush" (HAH!) that I use for touching up the parts I missed with my undercoat.

My last brushes I got from my FLGS. No idea what brand they are, but they're pretty sweet - and they've lasted pretty well considering how little care I take of them.

Windsor Newton Series 7. Best investment I ever made. Of course like any brush it will only last if you care for it. I regularly clean mine with Brush Masters brush soap. It comes in a shoe polish container and is simple to use.

I buy most of my brushes here.. http://www.dickblick.com/

You can find them other places as well, but I tend to watch for them here because they put them on sale quite a bit. I have found $15-$30 brushes on sale for $5-$10.

After I bought my Series 7s on sale, I would have paid $15-$30 for them, but I got lucky. They also have some decent cheaper sable brushes that are not to bad either.

Try the Privateerpress brushes. No complaints.

I might give them a whirl...

I have always just painted with brushes from Michael's. They are usually on sale, and you can get 2 for the price of one crappy GW brush. The only thing I use GW brushes for are glue on bases, and their drybrushes (which I have always found to be decent).

The Lowell Cornell brushes at Michael's (black handle) are quite good in my opinion. You may get the occasional curled tip, but the variety of sizes, good prices, and durability make up for it.

It is all a matter of personal opinion though! Just like paint. The arguments on which paint is best never seem to end!

loomisc wrote:Windsor Newton Series 7. Best investment I ever made. Of course like any brush it will only last if you care for it. I regularly clean mine with Brush Masters brush soap. It comes in a shoe polish container and is simple to use.

I buy most of my brushes here.. http://www.dickblick.com/

That's what I've heard multiple times at the mini-painting workshops at GenCon.

WN Series 7 are very well-known, widely-available, and easy to buy over the Internet, but they aren't the be-all, end-all in brushes.

Any of the kolinsky sables will do a good job with a well-made brush. You can get comparable brushes on sale at your FLAS (Friendly Local Art Supply), so support the local business!

I own some Series 7 brushes. If you want a good price on them, check out www.aswexpress. com.

However, I've also purchased some of Dick Blick's own brand of Kolinsky sables, and they're nice brushes at a good price. Why buy a quality brush at $10 when you could have 5 Michaels el cheapos for that price? Because the good brush will last 10 times as long (provided you take care of it) and maintain a sharp point throughout.

Don't buy brushes from game companies. Would you buy games from brush companies?

gorgon wrote:I own some Series 7 brushes. If you want a good price on them, check out www.aswexpress. com.

However, I've also purchased some of Dick Blick's own brand of Kolinsky sables, and they're nice brushes at a good price. Why buy a quality brush at $10 when you could have 5 Michaels el cheapos for that price? Because the good brush will last 10 times as long (provided you take care of it) and maintain a sharp point throughout.

That's the key for me...

Thanks!

Quick question:

Getting back into the painting thing here, restocking my brush supply, what brush sizes should I start out with?

Thanks!

OK, let's talk about what sizes *really* mean. Brush size is mostly a measure of how much paint you can hold, and the maximum width of a line you can paint in a single stroke. Larger brushes can paint larger areas faster, while smaller brushes are more nimble. But notice that I don't talk about fine point. That is because, point varies a lot, and has not so much to do with brush size.

Personally, I'd suggest 5/0 for fine details - but you need to buy this in person to ensure you get a good point. Only buy this as a full-sable brush, and be willing to pay full price for this one. It'll be worth it in the long run.

So, given that you're buying the 5/0 at an art store, what else should you get?

I'd suggest:
- 3/0 ("000"), 2/0 ("00") and 0 for 28mm minis work.
- 1, 3, and 5 (or else 2, 4, and 6) "rounds" for basecoating.
- a large flat brush for vehicles.

WALMART! thats where i buy mine at about 2.50$ a brush its not a bad deal they dont last forever but at that price its worth it and they have really small ones tol

JohnHwangDD wrote:OK, let's talk about what sizes *really* mean. Brush size is mostly a measure of how much paint you can hold, and the maximum width of a line you can paint in a single stroke. Larger brushes can paint larger areas faster, while smaller brushes are more nimble. But notice that I don't talk about fine point. That is because, point varies a lot, and has not so much to do with brush size.

Personally, I'd suggest 5/0 for fine details - but you need to buy this in person to ensure you get a good point. Only buy this as a full-sable brush, and be willing to pay full price for this one. It'll be worth it in the long run.

So, given that you're buying the 5/0 at an art store, what else should you get?

I'd suggest:
- 3/0 ("000"), 2/0 ("00") and 0 for 28mm minis work.
- 1, 3, and 5 (or else 2, 4, and 6) "rounds" for basecoating.
- a large flat brush for vehicles.

Thank you very much for the advice!

Weather permitting, I'll hit the local art store tomorrow...

Again, thanks!

As you're going to the art supply store, *ask* someone there who actually paints small scale, preferably watercolor / acrylic. You'll find they can be very helpful in selecting brushes and brush care supplies (i.e. brush soap).