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Hello - Anybody got tips on what brushes are best and how to look after them?
I've in the past had a couple of citadel brushes which lasted years - but the citadel ones I've bought in the last 2-3 years are not lasting well at all. I've tried a couple of cheap brushes from the local art shop and a couple of more expensive but they all seem to be going the same way. The hairs fray out and most are developing a weird hook on the end.
Any hints and tips would be appreciated.

Kolinski sable brushes are top-notch quality; if you want a specific brush, Winsor&Newton Series7 (long bristled) is wonderful; daVinci's brushes are also great quality brushes, and a little more affordable.
Generally, natural bristles do not curl too much from normal use.

For the 'care' part (apologies for obvious tips):
When dipping brushes in paint, don't soak them too deep in paint, at most two thirds/half of them: too much paint "clogs" the ferrule, spreading the bristles and becoming difficult/impossible to remove
Clean your brushes with lukewarm water dlightly - if at all - soapy; after rinsing, restore the point as usual, turning it in your palm (or on a paper towel)
Lastly, always put the protective cap back on the brushes after cleaning them and store them vertically, points down (if you can "suspend" them, that's even better).

I hope this was useful.

I am currently looking into getting some series 7 brushes because, like you're describing, synthetics don't last long. I have, however, discovered some useful brush care techniques to make synthetics last much longer

First, clean your brush often, even if you are still using one colour, you don't want it it dry at all in the bristles. Also keep your water pot reasonably fresh

When I am finished a session, I use The Master's Brush Cleaner and Preserver(http://www.dickblick.com/products/the-masters-brush-cleaner-and-preserver/). It's pretty mush just some fancy soap that cleans your brushes. I'm sure regular soap would work fine as well, but this is made for brushes and won't dry them out. Lather the soap and clean the brush with the soap until you are satisfied.

After the soap, you can rinse it off, or you can leave a small bit on and it will preserve the tip for your next session.

For storing the brushes, make sure you keep the cap. When storing, you want the brush to be up-side-down, with the bristles on the bottom, that's why you need the cap. This will allow the left over water to drain out of the ferrule through the bristles. If left with bristles up, it could soften the glue keeping the bristles in, or rust the inside of the ferrule.

You can always get a brush cleaner/holder as well, like this one, http://www.dickblick.com/products/testrite-aluminum-brush-coil/. But I find that this might not be needed if you follow my steps and clean your brushes well. It does work well as a holder though

Anyway, hope that helps and I hope your brushes last longer now!

Biggest thing to remember with brushes: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

I love Master's brush soap and it does help loosen up old, dried paint, but it's not quite a panacea. If you really want to keep a nice tip, better to keep the ferrule from ever getting clogged. Frequent rinsing while painting and avoiding overloading the brush, as mentioned, are key.

I'm not quite as anal about storage as the others, though. Obviously, leaving them deep in a pot of water or cramming them tip-down in a jar will spell their end, but I haven't found hanging storage necessary. Tip up, on their side... doesn't seem to matter. Ferrules are generally nickel plated and the adhesive is wax-based, so a bit of moisture won't hurt them - brushes are expected to get wet, after all. Besides, a gentle drag across paper towel or a sharp flick of the wrist (my preferred method) removes most of the water, anyway.

I've literally just been revitalising a couple of old drybrushes that were a bit too dry shall we say

brush soap is something that I use after every single colour. Rinsing every few minutes while painting, and not overloading the brush will be the best things you can do.

You can revive a brush with Isopropyl alcohol (what Ive just used on my drybrushes) but its very harsh to natrual hairs. Shouldnt be done often. And you should use some hair conditioner on the bristles after to re-moisturise them before they go brittle and snap off. (like people hair conditioner... your mother / wife/ sister probably has some if you dont ( I just went through all of my brushes with a blob of John Freida Frizz Ease Conditioner so small theyd never even notice! - if lacking brush soap this works really well for that too ; as the hairs soak up the moisture, the acrylic paint stuck to it cannot grip anymore and will come off in bits as you work the conditioner out onto a paper towel) - conditioner every few months, and certainly before being put into storage is good practise to keep the hairs subtle.

I use Dynasty faux squirrel brushes and I love them.

I've never stored my brushes "tip down". I have a little cloth I set them on horizontally though. Brush cleaner/preserver is your friend, and if you get paint ANYWHERE NEAR the ferrule, go straight to the sink and wash it.

I like Citadel brushes and also The Army Painter ones. Have a few of each. They all serve me well. I did manage to ruin one of the army painter ones (the bristles mostly fell out until I got fed up and threw it away), but I always try to do what the above people said and keep my brushes clean during and after painting.

Hey - Thank you all very much for the help. It looks like my brushes are suffering due to my extreme negligence.
After use they get washed in week old (at least) dirty water, a quick wipe on the jeans and dumped where they land.

Assuming you dont currently have a dedicated brush soap / cleaner.
Liquid hand soap works well, work some into a brush an onto a paper towel rinsing it out bit by bit and wiping the soapy painty residue out onto the paper towel, keep repeating until no more paint flakes are coming loose. (as another note - do this after painting with red if you plan to go to white ever had pink white paint by accident? never again!)
Then do the same again with the nearest womans hair conditioner and your brushes will be revitalised ~ although large amounts of paint in the ferrule can prevent them from coming to a point and its really quite hard to clean that. it takes stronger cleaners, I use pure isopropyl alcohol for that as stated above, but it really isnt good on the sable.