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Im considering switching to Vallejo, however the main thing that irks me is that Gw paints come in "jars" that you can open and dip your brush in, while Vallejo come in bottles, which assumes you need to squeeze some paint out etc.
My worry is that i will feth up with measurements - getting too little (and so having to take out more, remix colors, and end up with different hue), getting too much (and spilling or letting it dry out), having no room on my pallette for more than X colors, etc.

Any thoughts or comments on this that could help me out?

Also, how are vallejo compared to Citadel lately? They seem quite cheaper (£1.9 for 17ml compared to £2.1 for 12 ml), but what about their quality?

Actually it makes it a lot easier to measure. You can go by drops. Mixes can be come "X drops of Y, A drops of B". I can never go back to pots after using dropper bottles.

Vallejo is also great quality. Citadel is overpriced in nearly everything, even if their stuff isn't bad. Would highly recommend at least picking up a bottle and trying it out for yourself.

 Evertras wrote:
Actually it makes it a lot easier to measure. You can go by drops. Mixes can be come "X drops of Y, A drops of B". I can never go back to pots after using dropper bottles.

Vallejo is also great quality. Citadel is overpriced in nearly everything, even if their stuff isn't bad. Would highly recommend at least picking up a bottle and trying it out for yourself.

What about washes? I heard new Citadel washes were terrible in comparison to previous ones... However Vallejo washes seemed to do even worse in reviews.

Once you go vallejo you never go back

Army painters Strong tone is 95% like Devlan mud.

I use oil washes. They're super easy to make and do a great a job of getting where they need to go, plus they're easy to clean up on the fly. I've tried both Vallejo and Reaper washes, and I just keep going back to oils anyway.

I do have a single Shade from Citadel, and it's been handy on occasion as I needed that dark green tint specifically.

You can also try making your own acrylic washes with Les's recipe, which is posted up in the tutorial forum.

Im afraid i will have to skip on Oil as i prefer to stay away from both oils and paint thinners due to where i live. Of the non-scratchmade washes, which range would you recommend most?

But oil washes are soooo goooooooood, and odorless mineral spirits are harmless... :(

Of the ones I've tried, Citadel wins so far, but I don't have a whole lot of experience with them.

I'd definitely recommend trying out some Vallejo paints, at least. Like any range, the working properties vary, somewhat, from color to color. I've found their behavior to be similar, at least, to Citadel paints (right down to the types of issues I have with their respective problem paints, even if they're different colors), on the whole. Their products are generally trustworthy, though, and definitely have a leg up on GW in terms of value. When you add in their various lines - VGC, VMC, VMA, "technical" (texture pastes, mediums, varnishes, etc.) - the sheer volume and variety of their catalog is downright staggering, too.

Regarding the bottles, as mentioned, the ability to measure by drops makes mixing and thinning simpler, if you're the type who needs recipes. Personally, I think that both should be done by eye/feel. Yes, it's a skill that requires development, but once you're comfortable doing so, you'll be a better painter for it. You also don't have to apply a whole drop to your palette - you can drag the tip on the surface while gently squeezing to apply miniscule amounts, if desired - so wastage is no greater than when pulling from a pot. Actually, it's less, since you don't lose anything to the transfer brush. Besides, you can always add more, especially if you're mixing on the fly. If you insist on rigid ratios, wastage and consistency are dependent on your ability to estimate, same as when pulling from pots.

As for the VGC washes, they tend to feel a bit heavier than the previous GW line (no experience with the new stuff), tint surfaces more readily (as opposed to settling exclusively in recesses), and dry more glossy - generally, they behave more like a hybrid pigment wash and ink glaze than an old GW wash. Granted, that's only if you use them straight out of the bottle. If you're willing to mess around with them, a bit, they're actually more flexible for it. If you just want to slather them on and be done with it, look at The Army Painter's offerings - Strong and Dark Tone are apparently very close to Devlan Mud and Badab Black, respectively (Soft Tone seems like it'd make a decent Gryphonne Sepia, as well).