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just wondering whats out there and your opinions on it ,what you like to use in paints.

I use acrylic paints that i buy from the craft store ,I find they are a lot cheaper then the plastic paints, and pretty easy to work with

You have GW , that is same quality as craft store acrylics paint , but cost 4x more.

Then you have reaper and p3 and such.

Then you have Vallejo and their 3 lines of paints.
Cheaper , way better quality , and i like the drop bottle.

Ahh i did not know that thanks for the info.

I'm fairly new too the hobby and don't see stopping anytime soon i have a large csm army and want to start a few more.

my paint just says "Craft" that's the brand like 50 cents a bottle so i stick with it ,I'm thinking about trying some higher price paints (hopefully better quality)now that i have some practice with painting and all .

I'm going to Google the brands you gave me and check them out.

I use GW paints and have since I started painting.
Been looking at giving some of the vallejo line a try but haven't been successful in tracking any down.

solidus wrote:Ahh i did not know that thanks for the info.

I'm fairly new too the hobby and don't see stopping anytime soon i have a large csm army and want to start a few more.

my paint just says "Craft" that's the brand like 50 cents a bottle so i stick with it ,I'm thinking about trying some higher price paints (hopefully better quality)now that i have some practice with painting and all .

I'm going to Google the brands you gave me and check them out.

Well you came to the right place ( Dakka's Paint and Modeling forum )

just take your time and relax , im sure we'll all progress together!

I guess so haha i cant relax until i get my army painted I've been on here a few months and love it best site for the hobby ,it has everything a noob could ask for.


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the_ampersand_man wrote:I use GW paints and have since I started painting.
Been looking at giving some of the vallejo line a try but haven't been successful in tracking any down.

My first time in GW i asked the guy who worked there a bunch of questions about the hobby ,cause i knew little to none about it and i asked what paints could be used to paint the models with the guy tried to get me to buy the paint they sold i said no of course haha then i just decided to try acrylic cause it was 50 cents a bottle at the craft store and lots of it.

I use GW and have been using them, cause Im colourblind and rely on GW painting guides, which subsequently require you to use their paints. And thus, if I wanted a "Blood Red", I wouldnt be able to find a colour equivalent from another brand easily, unless I had the paint to begin with for comparison's sake.

That being said, there's a store nearby that sells Vajello stuff and am tempted to try it out. Im aware there's different lines of Vajello paints, something like "Vajello Game" and "Vajello Model" or something, and Im unaware of the differences between the two product lines, or just between Vajello and GW in general.

Now I think about it though, alot of the "pro" or really really good painters seem to use Vajello alot, or atleast a combination of Vajello and GW.

I mainly use GW paints straight out of the pot. My girlfriend beats me up whenever I don't water them down.

I also use Vallejo paints, primarily from the FoW range.

On top of this, there's Revell's Aqua Colors which have some good colours but tend to thicken really fast.

In a pinch I have been known to use Xtracrylix although these are a tad too shiney for my taste

hrmm interesting thanks for speaking up

that's a good reason for gw paints i like the colors of the paint just to expensive for what i make at my work but may be worth a try plus i may feel better buying something instead of just prowling around and this Vajello im going to try and find it, sounds like it may be promising .

If you don't mind i would like to see some color blind painting it would be interesting .




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infilTRAITOR wrote:I mainly use GW paints straight out of the pot. My girlfriend beats me up whenever I don't water them down.

I also use Vallejo paints, primarily from the FoW range.

On top of this, there's Revell's Aqua Colors which have some good colours but tend to thicken really fast.

In a pinch I have been known to use Xtracrylix although these are a tad too shiney for my taste

I don't really water down much and ya acrylic is a bit shiny, i want to try and capture that sense of relism and put it into my models that's another thing that cheap paint cant do much of

solidus wrote: My first time in GW i asked the guy who worked there a bunch of questions about the hobby ,cause i knew little to none about it and i asked what paints could be used to paint the models with the guy tried to get me to buy the paint they sold i said no of course haha then i just decided to try acrylic cause it was 50 cents a bottle at the craft store and lots of it.

Some of the older painters that got me into the hobby used standard art acrylics and I find they don't look as good and rub off on the models faster. Could just be my experiences though

Ronin wrote:That being said, there's a store nearby that sells Vajello stuff and am tempted to try it out. Im aware there's different lines of Vajello paints, something like "Vajello Game" and "Vajello Model" or something, and Im unaware of the differences between the two product lines, or just between Vajello and GW in general.

As best I understand, the "game" line parallels the GW colours and the "model" line are more realistic/ historical military colours.

They say Model range is better though.

I do fine with GW paints. GW also offer the Foundations and Washes, both of which are wonderful aids.

the_ampersand_man wrote:

solidus wrote: My first time in GW i asked the guy who worked there a bunch of questions about the hobby ,cause i knew little to none about it and i asked what paints could be used to paint the models with the guy tried to get me to buy the paint they sold i said no of course haha then i just decided to try acrylic cause it was 50 cents a bottle at the craft store and lots of it.

Some of the older painters that got me into the hobby used standard art acrylics and I find they don't look as good and rub off on the models faster. Could just be my experiences though

Ronin wrote:That being said, there's a store nearby that sells Vajello stuff and am tempted to try it out. Im aware there's different lines of Vajello paints, something like "Vajello Game" and "Vajello Model" or something, and Im unaware of the differences between the two product lines, or just between Vajello and GW in general.

As best I understand, the "game" line parallels the GW colours and the "model" line are more realistic/ historical military colours.

It's true they do rub off a lot quicker :( i spray some none gloss spray paint to help with that .not much just right and it kinda fades the colors so it takes the shine from the acrylic out but not to much i have some pics up in my gallery of my army the ones iv got around to taking pics of at least ,They look OK but i'm ready to step it up a notch from OK to great

GW mainly, and I find myself using the foundation range more and more. I also use vallejo for specific colours (my WWII figs mainly). I used to use Tamiya a fair bit, but the quality is nowhere near as good. You do need to beware of the cheap paints though, as their acrylic medium is only strong enough to hold onto canvas, not stand up to handling. Cared for and used carefully, a pot of GW or Vallejo paint goes far enough that the expense is not really an issue for me.

I use the following...
-Reaper Pro Series Paints
-Wargames Foundry
-Howard's Hues
-Ral Partha(I have some old ones laying around that are still great believe it or not)

Every so often, just for the convenience of being at the store where GW minis are sold, I buy GW paints. I always feel silly for doing so- they just aren't that price point appropriate. You really get less paint for your money, and they are in no way superior to the other lines out there. I have also found that it dries out and thickens up much faster than Reaper(even my 15 year old Partha Paints are still intact, my 5 year old Citadel paints are dried out). I did invest in a bunch of Wargames Foundry paints, and though I like their unique colors, the stuff is really thick.

I love the Reaper range due to a number of factors: pricepoint, paint quality, shelf-life and range of colors. They also have a Pro series of dropper bottle paints(like Vallejo) but I prefer my paints right out of the bucket.

I have a reasonable selection of basic GW paint colours because that's what the local shop stocks. But I also use a range simply called "miniature paints" and I use Vallejo for military colours of various sorts. I also occasionally use Humbrol/Revell enamels on vehicles and there are various other obscure ranges that I have the odd colour for, usually very specific military colours for aircraft.

I forgot to mention, for vehicles I use Montana Gold spray cans- they have flat spray paint in almost every hue you could ever want!

I loved the old GW white pop-tops, I still have some bottles from 10+ years ago that are still good.
the GW black screw tops make me want to punch babies, I absolutely hate them, and I no longer even try to open them, I just throw them away.
the GW black pop tops are ok, they still dry out relatively quick, but they are infinitely better than the screw tops.

now, Coat d'arms is the company that GW used to get its paints from back in the white pop-top days, and my FLGS now carries their full line. So I am slowly replacing all my paints with theirs.

Ronin wrote:I use GW and have been using them, cause Im colourblind and rely on GW painting guides, which subsequently require you to use their paints. And thus, if I wanted a "Blood Red", I wouldnt be able to find a colour equivalent from another brand easily, unless I had the paint to begin with for comparison's sake.

That being said, there's a store nearby that sells Vajello stuff and am tempted to try it out. Im aware there's different lines of Vajello paints, something like "Vajello Game" and "Vajello Model" or something, and Im unaware of the differences between the two product lines, or just between Vajello and GW in general.

Now I think about it though, alot of the "pro" or really really good painters seem to use Vajello alot, or atleast a combination of Vajello and GW.

Vallejo "Game Colour" is a direct comparison to the GW line. Every paint is comparable to the GW paints, in name and colour. Ie Scab Red (GW) = #12 Scar Red (VGC)

Reference Guide

Gareson wrote:I forgot to mention, for vehicles I use Montana Gold spray cans- they have flat spray paint in almost every hue you could ever want!

Is that Montana Germany? With a fingerprint decal on the can? BOO!! You should use Montana Spain, the original and best grafitti paint in the world. Read up the story about it man, it's a classic example of indies getting crushed under the mighty boot of commercial capitalism.

I personally use GW piants due to the handy availability; if I'm out and about and I suddenly think "ooh, I need purple", I know I can drop in to GW and pick it up. When I have the choice, I champion Coat d'Arms paints whenever possible. IMO a better quality of paint, more in a tub and less money.
Coat d'Arms are the people who used to make GW paints, so you can trust the quality. GW dropped them for a paint that's cheaper to manufacture.

There's also a Dakka Article with a broader color comparison chart between lines.

I've been using Vallejo with a wet palette for about 4 years now, and have been MUCH happier than I ever was with the GW paints. The paints don't dry out and it's much easier to thin them out to the proper consistency.

I do use the GW Foundation Paints and the new GW washes, though. Good stuff.

You came to the right place Solidus. I've learned more about the hobby side from this place than the rest of the internet combined. Some days I spend more time reading here than painting .

I mainly use Tamiya. Started out with it because it works well for airbrushing although currently I use them a lot more for hand painting. I had a handful of GW paints as well, but thankfully I've replaced most of those as I can't stand them anymore, so thick. Last one I need to replace is Scab Red (thanks for the info, Tek). I also just started washing with the Liquitex line via http://www.dakkadakka.com/wiki/en/The_Secret_Ingredient:_Paynes_Grey_%28by_Iffy%29. Works pretty well and dirt cheap for how much you can do with it.

I have been thinking about getting some of the Vallejo line. How do most people buy them? I haven't found any in my area and it seems a little expensive to buy it by the bottle when I see they sell them by the case with the full range all in one. Does anyone do this? Also, has anyone had any experience with airbrushing Vallejo paints? I'm wondering how comparable they are to GW or Tamiya.

I use only Citadel currently, but I have plans to expand into the P3 paints.

Tek wrote:it's a classic example of indies getting crushed under the mighty boot of commercial capitalism.

I am a big fan of commercial capitalism- God bless it I say. Do you even want to know how crappy this hobby would be without commercial capitalism?

unistoo wrote:GW mainly, and I find myself using the foundation range more and more. I also use vallejo for specific colours (my WWII figs mainly). I used to use Tamiya a fair bit, but the quality is nowhere near as good. You do need to beware of the cheap paints though, as their acrylic medium is only strong enough to hold onto canvas, not stand up to handling. Cared for and used carefully, a pot of GW or Vallejo paint goes far enough that the expense is not really an issue for me.

it sounds like it,Im going to the craft store Friday and im going to look at the brands iv seen here and def try them Vallejo is the one that's catching my eyes right now


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Demogerg wrote:I loved the old GW white pop-tops, I still have some bottles from 10+ years ago that are still good.
the GW black screw tops make me want to punch babies, I absolutely hate them, and I no longer even try to open them, I just throw them away.
the GW black pop tops are ok, they still dry out relatively quick, but they are infinitely better than the screw tops.

now, Coat d'arms is the company that GW used to get its paints from back in the white pop-top days, and my FLGS now carries their full line. So I am slowly replacing all my paints with theirs.

haha ya i could only imagine screwing the lid on every time you go to get some paint cause i dip my brush in the bottle i like the pop tops, why did GW change thier lids?




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Gareson wrote:I use the following...
-Reaper Pro Series Paints
-Wargames Foundry
-Howard's Hues
-Ral Partha(I have some old ones laying around that are still great believe it or not)

Every so often, just for the convenience of being at the store where GW minis are sold, I buy GW paints. I always feel silly for doing so- they just aren't that price point appropriate. You really get less paint for your money, and they are in no way superior to the other lines out there. I have also found that it dries out and thickens up much faster than Reaper(even my 15 year old Partha Paints are still intact, my 5 year old Citadel paints are dried out). I did invest in a bunch of Wargames Foundry paints, and though I like their unique colors, the stuff is really thick.

I love the Reaper range due to a number of factors: pricepoint, paint quality, shelf-life and range of colors. They also have a Pro series of dropper bottle paints(like Vallejo) but I prefer my paints right out of the bucket.

thanks for the list iv seen some howards hues paints in the hobby shop its on the other side of the isle from the 50 cent paints i bought ,they have two isles full of nothing but paints the shelves are 6ft tall so i think i have a pretty good chance of finding these brands im hearing about l.


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Rossko wrote:You came to the right place Solidus. I've learned more about the hobby side from this place than the rest of the internet combined. Some days I spend more time reading here than painting .

I mainly use Tamiya. Started out with it because it works well for airbrushing although currently I use them a lot more for hand painting. I had a handful of GW paints as well, but thankfully I've replaced most of those as I can't stand them anymore, so thick. Last one I need to replace is Scab Red (thanks for the info, Tek). I also just started washing with the Liquitex line via http://www.dakkadakka.com/wiki/en/The_Secret_Ingredient:_Paynes_Grey_%28by_Iffy%29. Works pretty well and dirt cheap for how much you can do with it.

I have been thinking about getting some of the Vallejo line. How do most people buy them? I haven't found any in my area and it seems a little expensive to buy it by the bottle when I see they sell them by the case with the full range all in one. Does anyone do this? Also, has anyone had any experience with airbrushing Vallejo paints? I'm wondering how comparable they are to GW or Tamiya.

thanks alot for the link i read some of it i'll read it when i get home i gatta get ready for work i have seen Liquitex at the craft store i haven't seen any packs of paint there i usually just go through and buy one color that i need every so often the cheap white paint destroys a model that's what iv learned and im definitely going to try to find a better white .:(


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Iorek wrote:There's also a Dakka Article with a broader color comparison chart between lines.

I've been using Vallejo with a wet palette for about 4 years now, and have been MUCH happier than I ever was with the GW paints. The paints don't dry out and it's much easier to thin them out to the proper consistency.

I do use the GW Foundation Paints and the new GW washes, though. Good stuff.

That chart is going to come in handy thanks a lot for the link.

From a fellow craft paint user, I have used apple barrel paints since I got back into the hobby last January. I previously used a mix of Vallejo and craft paint. The craft paint I only used on my terrain/bases. I painted a Green and Yellow Warmachine Menoth army before. The more I got used to painting details and blending colors for my terrain using craft paints, I started trying to use them on my figures with result that were comparable to the Vallejo paints. It did take more time and more layers to get the blending right but it worked nonetheless. I used more craft paints and less Vallejo which I reserved for details only. Thus, it became my cheaper alternative.

Fastforward three years later, in this economy, it was a bad time to get back into the hobby. I just needed some entertainment in between jobs and I started painting Space Marines with just craft paints. Glad to say it came out pretty good for my standards. It did go on thick but it made my White Scars army look dirty in a good way.

Now I am painting my Tau army and well, feeling a little relief from this bad economy I started using the Foundations and Washes from citadel. And the difference is night and day. Where my craft paints needed three thin layers of paint, the foundation only needed one. Also, when they dry, they do not look as thick as the craft paint and come out more evenly layered. This is perfect as the Tau are clean looking versus my White Scars "dirty" look. Anyway, I may get back into the Vallejo paints if I find a good deal but in the meantime, I am using a mix of Craft and Citadel Paints. Foundations paints for base color and Craft for blending and shading.

My paint collection is all over the place. I have a lot of Citidel and P3 paints, I have some craft store brands, a little Reaper, some India Inks and one Tamaya paint.

These paints all work together well. There is a trick to craft store brands- sometimes they are great paints, and sometimes they are terrible. Some craft store brands are better than other (one of the better ones is creamcoat) but even with a good brand, the quality is not consistent.

With the game store brands, you will get a far more consistent quality, but your prices will be far higher (you'll pay quite a bit more for quite a bit less paint). If saving the money is worth it to you, go ahead and grab yourself some craft store paints and start experimenting (there is a very wide selection of colors at any craft store).

I sooo desperatly wwish GW and PP would do dropper bottles, It would make mixing so much easier, I'm painting WHFB goblins ATM, I have 80, with 4 layers of green to mix consistency is hard

Welcome to the hobby!

When I first started my miniature painting hobby, I used Apple Barrel Brand Acrylics (Standard, cheap hobby store paints). They ran about 85 American cents per bottle. If you use these, you should really water them down, or use acrylic flow extender (also found at hobby shops). If you don't, the paint goes on too thick and chalky.

I now use Reaper Master Series Paints and Games Workshop washes (Ogrin Flesh, Badab Black, and [something] Brown). The difference is night and day. Consistency is much better, and the Reaper Masters Series paints come in the eye-dropper bottles, which I prefer. The bottles look small, but they go a long way.

For the reaper paints, I drop in 1 part flow extender to 5-6 parts paint. The exception being Reaper's metalics, which I never dilute.

For primer, I use Krylon Black Primer and DuraCoat Auto Primer (Matte black). I currently prefer the Dulcoat auto primer. Every now and then, I use Krylon White primer, but most of my miniatures are dark.

I ALWAYS spray my minis and vehicles with Krylon Matte Finish as a protective coat after painting. I handle and transport my Warhammer 40k and D&D minis too much to not protective coat them. Just make sure your protective sealant is matte finish.

Also, never prime or protective coat on a rainy day. The spray will bubble up on you, giving your mini a terrible finish.

Warlord Imp wrote:From a fellow craft paint user, I have used apple barrel paints since I got back into the hobby last January. I previously used a mix of Vallejo and craft paint. The craft paint I only used on my terrain/bases. I painted a Green and Yellow Warmachine Menoth army before. The more I got used to painting details and blending colors for my terrain using craft paints, I started trying to use them on my figures with result that were comparable to the Vallejo paints. It did take more time and more layers to get the blending right but it worked nonetheless. I used more craft paints and less Vallejo which I reserved for details only. Thus, it became my cheaper alternative.

Fastforward three years later, in this economy, it was a bad time to get back into the hobby. I just needed some entertainment in between jobs and I started painting Space Marines with just craft paints. Glad to say it came out pretty good for my standards. It did go on thick but it made my White Scars army look dirty in a good way.

Now I am painting my Tau army and well, feeling a little relief from this bad economy I started using the Foundations and Washes from citadel. And the difference is night and day. Where my craft paints needed three thin layers of paint, the foundation only needed one. Also, when they dry, they do not look as thick as the craft paint and come out more evenly layered. This is perfect as the Tau are clean looking versus my White Scars "dirty" look. Anyway, I may get back into the Vallejo paints if I find a good deal but in the meantime, I am using a mix of Craft and Citadel Paints. Foundations paints for base color and Craft for blending and shading.

that S a smart idea actually, cause the details what really matters and the craft paints aren't that great for doing that job its nice to know someone knows what im dealing with


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kronk wrote:Welcome to the hobby!

When I first started my miniature painting hobby, I used Apple Barrel Brand Acrylics (Standard, cheap hobby store paints). They ran about 85 American cents per bottle. If you use these, you should really water them down, or use acrylic flow extender (also found at hobby shops). If you don't, the paint goes on too thick and chalky.

I now use Reaper Master Series Paints and Games Workshop washes (Ogrin Flesh, Badab Black, and [something] Brown). The difference is night and day. Consistency is much better, and the Reaper Masters Series paints come in the eye-dropper bottles, which I prefer. The bottles look small, but they go a long way.

For the reaper paints, I drop in 1 part flow extender to 5-6 parts paint. The exception being Reaper's metalics, which I never dilute.

For primer, I use Krylon Black Primer and Dulcoat Auto Primer (Matte black). I currently prefer the Dulcoat auto primer. Every now and then, I use Krylon White primer, but most of my miniatures are dark.

I ALWAYS spray my minis and vehicles with Krylon Matte Finish as a protective coat after painting. I handle and transport my Warhammer 40k and D&D minis too much to not protective coat them. Just make sure your protective sealant is matte finish.

Also, never prime or protective coat on a rainy day. The spray will bubble up on you, giving your mini a terrible finish.

thanks a lot for the welcome

and i do use apple barrel you get a lot for very little and you have to layer many times to get the color to show right, the white really sucks in the cheap paints iv bought four different brands and its like im using chalk i do use the flow extender biig help

thanks a lot for all the names of everything and the tip about the spraying protective on a rainy day that would suck to get done after hours of painting and screw up then .

I just use water-based acryllics from Wal-Mart. It's the same thing as GW, but thinner and in high quantity.

I use GW for flesh-tones and washes though.
Does anybody know how to get/make non GW washes?