Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Gw paint is too expensive what cheaper alternates are there in the UK also a m I right in thinking.the type I need is Matt

There's no shortage of advice on specific ranges out there.

Here's a great chart showing colors that are close:

http://www.dakkadakka.com/wiki/en/Paint_Range_Compatibility_Chart

Myself? I really like Reaper Master Series. The triads generally give you a shade, tone, and highlight for every color.

I'm switching to Vallejo. Their 17ml bottles cost less than GW's 12ml ones. No-brainer really.

Do not consider pot cost when choosing paint, unless you're painting a table. You dont use that much. Its all about quality and suitability for the purpose you have in mind. Some paints In certain ranges are better than in other ranges, it really does vary that much. Decent miniature paints are all roughly the same. Check out Vallejo Model Color or Game Color though, theyre pretty good. And they're consistent.

I use GW for everything apart from red, where I use vallejo. I agree with the above post above cost, a 12 ml pot will cover so many mini's then cost is just void. Also, if youre spending all that money on great models, why try and save 10p per pot of paint for a lesser quality just because its slightly cheaper. I think GW and vallejo are best. Although saying that I used reaper master series on my Salamanders and they were great!

GW paint is great.

Fan of Reaper myself, got the whole set and I've been pleased. Vallejo tends to be the #1 choice and I think that's a lot easier to get in the UK anyway.

 EvilTea wrote:
Gw paint is too expensive what cheaper alternates are there in the UK also a m I right in thinking.the type I need is Matt

I wouldn't stress about price too much, most of the popular ranges are all pretty close price-wise. However, there are plenty of choices: Privateer Press P3, Reaper Master Series, Vallejo Model Color, Vallejo Game Color, Vallejo Model Air, Badger Minitare... Those last two are "airbrush paints" but work perfectly well on a brush. If you really wanted to, head down to your local arts & craft and buy some of their paint. It isn't the best, but it works.

/thread

You can't /thread your own answer Scooty. It's lame and gives you no credibility what so ever.



I use GW and Vajello. The latter is good because it comes in dropper bottles. This fact alone pretty much makes it worthwhile. It is also cheaper then GW paints and you get more per bottle so thats a bonus.

 Snrub wrote:
You can't /thread your own answer Scooty. It's lame and gives you no credibility what so ever.



I use GW and Vajello. The latter is good because it comes in dropper bottles. This fact alone pretty much makes it worthwhile. It is also cheaper then GW paints and you get more per bottle so thats a bonus.

There is this new thing on the Internet called "sarcasm"... I don't know if you have heard about it yet, but I think it might really catch on!

On a more serious note, I'm not sure what credibility has to do with anything, but that question gets asked at least once a week (almost as often as "how do I get started in airbrushing?") on this forum since people never use the search function. So the question was asked (again), the question was answered (again), end of discussion. Also, lighten up!

I personally use Reaper's paint, but I use Vallejo primers and finishes. In the UK, Vallejo should be easy to get, as well as Coat D'arms (the original GW paints).

 ScootyPuffJunior wrote:
I wouldn't stress about price too much, most of the popular ranges are all pretty close price-wise.

That's not really true. Most of the other ranges are not only cheaper than Games Workshop, but you also get 50% more paint. Vallejo, Coat d'arms, P3 all come in 17-18ml bottles GW is only 12ml, so it works out at least a pound more expensive per pot. I personally find that 12ml is not enough. I like mixing my own colours and airbrushing which tends to use a lot of paint, and there can be a lot of waste sometimes. 12ml pots are stingy, and even if you have any paint left after mixing a few shades, it is doomed to dry out in the pot.

For the OP... I've tried Coat D'arms, P3 and Vallejo. They are all about as good as each other. Coat d'arms is generally the cheapest (probably my favourite). P3 is very much the same as Coat d'arms, made by the same manufacturer. It is supposed to be better quality, and costs more... But I honestly can't tell the difference. Vallejo is usually a fraction more expensive than Coat D'arms, but the bottles are really great for avoiding waste, and they have a huge range. My biggest gripe with Vallejo is they need a lot of shaking.

If you want to go really cheap. I would recommend picking up some Vallejo Premium Colour in 60ml bottles. If you get Black, White and 3 primary colours, you can just mix your own paint pots. You can buy 12ml pots and dropper bottles on ebay fairly cheap.

If you go that route it works out about 90p per 12ml pot of paint, and you have complete control over the shades. So you could do 5 shades of main army colour from light to dark; makes highlighting a breeze.

If not I would probably recommend Coat d'arms and Vallejo. Vallejo you can get anywhere really. The best place for Coat d'arms is Wayland Games (if they have them in stock, otherwise avoid). And the troll trader on ebay (though you'd need to buy a few to make the postage worth while).

Most paints are 'matt' you probably want matt because it's easier to see what you are painting (no shiny reflections from your lamp). If you want things glossy you can just put gloss varnish over the top. If you accidentally buy gloss paint and want matt, you can mix in some matting agent, or cover with matt varnish. I wouldn't worry about it too much. Matt/gloss finish is very easy to control

Hope that helps.

smacks, out of those ranges which would you recommend for airbrushing? i am getting my first airbrush next month and have heard GW paints are not ideal for airbrushing.

 Blazesnake wrote:
smacks, out of those ranges which would you recomend for airbrushing? i am getting my first airbrush next month and have heard GW paints are not ideal for airbrushing.

All of them are a son of a b***h! lol. Acrylics dry so quickly it's really easy to gunk up the brush. Try to get an airbrush that comes apart easy so you can get right inside if you need.

Of the 3 I would probably recommend Vallejo because of the dropper bottles. Though if you are willing to transfer all you paints to dropper bottles, then p3 might be the better choice. Theoretically it is supposed to use liquid pigment which is much finer... Though in reality there is probably little difference.

Vallejo also do a model air range which is designed for airbrushing. They don't need diluting or anything. I have some and they work fine, but I don't think I will buy them again. They cost about the same as regular pots, but you can't paint with them at all using a brush, they are just like water. All things considered I would rather just water down my own paint.

I'm using GW for metal and am switching over to Vallejo for the rest of my paints.

Fan of Reaper. Tried out Vallejo and hated them. Clogging droppers and horrible paint separation. Have had none of those problems with Reaper. If you have a choice between Reaper and Vallejo, go Reaper.

 Smacks wrote:

Vallejo also do a model air range which is designed for airbrushing. They don't need diluting or anything. I have some and they work fine, but I don't think I will buy them again. They cost about the same as regular pots, but you can't paint with them at all using a brush, they are just like water. All things considered I would rather just water down my own paint.

Hmm, my experience with VMA colors is that they work wonderfully with a brush. If you want something thinned well they work great, if you need a little more opacity, then water your own. Of course the VMA line is limited in its color choices and what you will most likely buy (unless your going for a WW2 style) But some colors are worth picking up. Do note that even though some colors in VMA have the same name as colors in the VGC line, they are not the same color at all. Scarlet red comes to mind here as VGC is a bit darker than VMA when done in an airbrush or just regular brush.

I switched from GW to Vallejo about a year ago. I really like the dropper bottles, because mixing colors is a lot more consitant and in my opinion its all around a better product.

Paitryn wrote:

 Smacks wrote:

Vallejo also do a model air range which is designed for airbrushing. They don't need diluting or anything. I have some and they work fine, but I don't think I will buy them again. They cost about the same as regular pots, but you can't paint with them at all using a brush, they are just like water. All things considered I would rather just water down my own paint.

Hmm, my experience with VMA colors is that they work wonderfully with a brush. If you want something thinned well they work great, if you need a little more opacity, then water your own.

Hmmm interesting... You mean with a bristle brush? Admittedly I only tried it with a couple (one of them being gold) and they were very watery, not unlike GW wash. So I didn't really bother trying to hand paint with them after that. Maybe I'll give them another try... Cheers.

 Smacks wrote:
Theoretically it is supposed to use liquid pigment which is much finer... Though in reality there is probably little difference.

The "liquid pigment" is sort of a derp-derp thing. Most modern paints use what is occasionally referred to as a liquid pigment, though it is really a solid that is ground so finely that it has properties that are comparable to liquids. If you have ever used graphite powder to lubricate anything like a lock or skate board wheels - you will know what I mean.

There are actual liquids that can be used to add colors - though those are dyes. It is sort of one of those technicalities which don't really impact most people, but a dye is soluble in a solvent (like water or alcohol) where as pigments are not (which is why you have to shake your paints). Some washes have used real dyes in the past - though I can't think of a specific hobby paint off the top of my head which does now. I would need to double check, but I think a few of the model paint companies do use dyes in things like their clear paints...and of course you can purchase dye based inks from art supply houses.

Hmmm interesting... You mean with a bristle brush? Admittedly I only tried it with a couple (one of them being gold) and they were very watery, not unlike GW wash. So I didn't really bother trying to hand paint with them after that. Maybe I'll give them another try... Cheers.

A lot of people actually prefer to paint with really thin paints. Some people don't. You get different results, and you can do different techniques. If you are looking to paint quickly, you generally won't like the watery paints like a lot of airbrush specific paints are when used from a regular brush. If you don't mind doing 3, 4 or more coats to get an even color coverage - then they will probably be right up your alley.

To the original topic, I didn't see anyone mention Foundry specifically (though I might have missed it). They have a huge range of colors and are based in the UK - so you should be able to get them a bit easier than some other paints like Reaper (which I also like a good bit). They sell them as singles, but also as color sets with a shade/midtone/highlight in each set. The bottles are 20 ml which is bigger than most and you can get them for around $12 per set of 3 paints (bit more per bottle than GW - but you get a lot more paint).

VMA paints are great for layering with a brush. You need to work on your brush control. If paint is 'running', you have way too much on the brush.