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Do you prefer using flip-top paint pots or those that have an eye-dropper top?

Flip-top paints, because I am super, super lazy and prefer not to use a palette, for the most part.

Dropper Bottle all the way.

I love being able to consistently mix paints and thin them out on a wet pallet. Cant do that with a flip top.

darefsky wrote:Dropper Bottle all the way.

I love being able to consistently mix paints and thin them out on a wet pallet. Cant do that with a flip top.

You can do as I do it all the time. You just need a second brush for scooping the paint and then a third to mix it. :(

Drop Ball all the way. especially if there is a ball bearing in the bottle.

A. It mixes better with the ball bearing.

B. You can mix much much much better; more easily, more proportionality, and without any chance of mixing colors in your paint supply.

C. No spill, No mess; popping on and off those tops always gets paint on my figures compared to a twist top with a whole less then one millimeter exposed to paint.

D. Last much longer; the less exposed the paint is to air the longer it lasts. When used it covers the tip of the top, which will dry, but not the whole lid like pop tops.

E. Easy to apply in airbrushes. Drop drop right into the airbrush whole. Done.

Good thing about the pop tops, Some show the paint in the lid so it is easier to find the color you want.
You also don't need a palet, but without one you can not mix, thin, or texture your paint.

I use both, its a combination of what paint I want/need (be it GW or wal mart brand), and how much paint I need.

Flip-tops.

*Not* the GW ones though, P3-style ones.

I play for both teams

I dont care about the pots, all I care for the is the quality of the paints

Flip-top for me. Not so much due to a particular love of the style, more just that that's the style I've used most over the years, and therefore there's a degree of comfort.

Right now I am using dropper bottles because that is what I have invested my money into and I transfered all my GW paints to droppers. It seems that GW has fixed the lid issue on their pot though and I have heard very good things about the new line of paints and I have allways wanted to try the P3 line so I might be using both types in the future. I just really like the ease of use and measurement when mixing paints that droppers give you.

Definitely a dropper style bottle. I used to be a staunch believer in the flip top bottles myself, but once I made the transition from GW to Vallejo...

My god these are amazing! I've always had a problem with the flip top bottles where the paint would spill around the lip of the hole, and it would dry up. Plus the paint inside these bottles tend to have a habit of drying up, as I've recently discovered with my Shining Gold paint.

As an added bonus, dropper bottles are so much easier to put on a palette.

 darefsky wrote:
Dropper Bottle all the way.

I love being able to consistently mix paints and thin them out on a wet pallet. Cant do that with a flip top.

This.

I can't imagine why anyone who takes painting halfway seriously would consider a pot where you dip your brush into the source a good idea. It greatly increases the odds of contamination. Even if the post seals well (a consistent problem- fliptops tend to acquire accumulation on the lip that can prevent sealing and screw tops can get it in the threads, especially on the jar. Wiping and cleaning will prevent this, but since many users prefer these precisely because they don't like doing any additional work...), leaving it open to paint from dries the whole thing out more quickly. Shaking can be risky, too, with flip tops. And there is no way to get paint from the pot to another container short of pipettes.

The only problem I have found with droppers is that if the actual nozzle piece isn't tightly fitted, it can come loose and paint spills. Clogging with some nozzles can also be an issue. Overall, though, very minor nitpicks. As a system, though, droppers are far superior for miniature painting.

For painting my house, I still use big pots (cans)

Flip top all I know

Edit

I do take my painting seriously. Its called using another brush, or cleaning your existing brush, before going for more paint?

I prefer flip-top because if you get a pallet you can put the paint in that with the brush! also you can use the top bit after shaking for tiny bits of paint(for fine details!).

Eye dropper. Hardly any dried paint left over and it's easier to mix paints because you don't need more than one brush to get everything. Plus, the two eye dropper paints I use, Reaper and Vallejo give you 5ml more paint for the same or cheaper cost.

Reaper Master Series eye-dropper bottles all the way. I drop out what I need onto my wet pallet and go from there.

Except for washes. I love the GW paint pots for the washes. Being able to dip the brush into the pot and using the lid reservoir to remove excess makes it incredibly easy to use.

Dropper bottle.
There is just no comparison for me.
I even use empty ones to decant my GW paints into

Flip tops. They're more reusable, should I make a custom mix that I want to save. They're easier to use with an airbrush too.

 htj wrote:
Flip-top paints, because I am super, super lazy and prefer not to use a palette, for the most part.

Same.

In my beginner days the flip tops were perfect, but now that i'm advancing to a higher level I need the droppers to ease mixing and thinning ...the lids are just too inconsisent with it(the scoop method sucks)

I would say that i like the drop style bottles better than the flip tops ones, the flip ones are fine and well but you have very little control over how much amount of paint you want or need witch the drop bottles gives you a much better control over.

The main factor is the paint,

but that said I prefer flip top bottles (P3/ancient GW style, not recent GW style) as I find it easier and less wastefull than dropper bottles

but I do have both (and a few others eg screw caps and even one or two 'comes with built in brush' types too)

Flip top, the cleaner way forward!

A paint pot who's friggin lid stays open!

Who doesnt paint on Dakkadakka? :l

I hate using the new GW flip-top paints. When a little bit of paint gets in the upper ring of the lid, they stop closing properly, and they either:
a) Pop open when you're not using them and dry out
or b) Not close to the point where you have to squeeze them in both hands to get them to stay shut, and even then, they pop open again in your hands, and shoot about eight feet across the room, spraying paint everywhere.

GW, I hate you, and am THIS CLOSE to switching to Reaper. I've never used an eyedropper, but this can't happen with them, soo.....

Eyedropper it is.

The answer is "anything other than those awful GW pots" but since I've started buying army painter stuff I've developed a marked fondness for dropper bottles.

Generally the HMG-style flip top lids. Partly because of the comfort in using them since I started with the original GW paints, but also because when I need to use a very small amount (which is common) I don't need to waste a heap of paint on a pallete. I also find mixing easy. Just wash the brush as needed in between.

OTOH, I'm also completely comfortable using droppers. They are indeed a bit better for mixing.

I slightly prefer dropper bottles. It's a lot easier to accuratly mix paint using them.

 A Kvlt Ghost wrote:
anything other than those awful GW pots

What's wrong with the GW pots?

eye dropper for paints for ease of mixing, GW for washes