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id like to start painting and have absolutely nothing.
can anyone recommend a starter set (if there is one) that will get me started at the best price?

ive been considering an airbrush but ive only tried one once and it was aerosol. i dont remember having much luck with it.
for 28mm human sized models how beneficial is an airbrush?

Airbrushes are great for 28mm models. But they are not sufficient - you'll need regular brushes and gear as well. Personally, I would recommend learning the basics of brush painting first. Having a decent arsenal of techniques to pull from will help considerably when you make the jump to an airbrush.

As far as a starter set, I dunno. GW makes one but it really isn't everything you need. I think what I'd recommend is going your local hobby store and pick up :

- a size 3, a size 0 and a size 3/0 cheapo brush(es)
- a plastic palette thingy
- a 3-well water pot
- a small cheapo set of dropper bottles
- a couple of models of Vallejo Model Color appropriate to what you want to paint. Citadel paints are just fine too, but you're less likely to find those in a general hobby store like Hobby Lobby.
- a hobby / Xacto knife
- a tube of plastic cement. That's plastic -cement- mind you, not plastic -glue-.

That'll get you rolling to start with. Also, make sure to thoroughly do your googlework before you do anything Lots of painting tutorials and whatnot out there.

Best bang for your buck is the airbrush ready Minitaire set but it's less ideal to brush with I've found so probably not your best bet if you're just starting in the hobby. ~80 30 ml paints for ~$160 from Amazon iirc (ie. including 40% discount). $2 for 30ml compared to ~$2-$2.50 for 17 ml most hobby paints and $4($6 in Aus) for 12 ml GW paint.

Make sure you get a set that suits your purpose though. Minitaire and Vallejo Game Colour are both vibrant sets for sci-fi and fantasy. Vallejo Model Colour and Vallejo Model Air are both more muted, realistic colour ranges more suited for historicals, camo and general use. Best bet is to pick the set that will give you the best base to work from, and then cherry pick colours from all ranges as you need them.

Minitaire and VMA are both pre thinned for airbrush use, but VMC and VGC are both great to airbrush with too, they just require a little thinning. They all use bottles though so you don't have to struggle with tubs which always helps when airbrushing.

If all ranges had the exact same colour, I'd choose VMA for it since VMA is a beautifully thinned, smooth range that is great to both brush and airbrush on. It also has generally the best range of metallics, especially silvers, doubly so for airbrush use.

thanks guys.
so lets set airbrushes aside and talk paint sets.

i know GW has one but im not too sure i like their paints and its expensive.
are there any other sets out there that a re a good starting point?
is there anything wrong with the stuff i see in walmart for .99 cents?

army painter warpaints is putting the others to shame at the moment in my opinion.

kb305 wrote:
army painter warpaints is putting the others to shame at the moment in my opinion.

Would you say these are good value?

http://www.warandpeacegames.com.au/Army_Painter_Starter_Sets_Warpaints_Warg_p/ad-wpsps01w.htm paints, brush and primer $60

http://www.warandpeacegames.com.au/Army_Painter_Mega_Hobby_Set_p/st5106.htm Everything you could possibly need (seemingly) for $195

I'm in the same boat as usernamesareannoying and I'm not sure where to start

Of those two, dalloskid, I'd go for the smaller. Hobby tools can generally be had cheaper if you move away from hobby brands (GW, GF9, etc.). Basing materials are an even worse value, especially considering how much can be done with free materials. If you want tufts, static grass, etc. you're better off buying larger quantities from Woodland Scenics, Knoch, Silflor, and the like.

My main gripe with paint sets is that they contain too much - any bulk savings you see gets eaten up by bottles you'll rarely, if ever, actually use. Better to start small, in my opinion, and expand piecemeal, as you see a need for particular colors. Warpaints, though, are a great value, and that set contains a good, concentrated core - black, white, brown, and the primaries, plus a green, silver, fleshtone, and wash. All good colors to have, and grant the ability to mix many more. A solid option for the OP, as well (The Warstore has it for $22 - $2.20 per bottle plus a free brush isn't a bad deal, especially since everything is likely to see frequent use). You'll need some brushes and tools beyond it, but those can likely be had from the same websites for a decent enough price, if not sourced locally (or, failing that, on Amazon/Ebay) for less.

Alright thanks

I do have some left over paints from a few years ago (citadel) but they've gone really horrible and some have dried out. So I'm just going to wash them out and use the jars for other things.

I think I'll go the 2nd one, I've got to order the Black Templar frame from them anyway (no where can I find the upgrade frame that's not full price but there!) so it wont cost much extra shipping. I'll just scavenge round the local stores in search of clippers, a knife, some brushes and files.

I've used sand just straight from the beach before, but not as a basing. I may as well try it seeing as its free!

Yeah, as oadie says, graba set that contains a good, concentrated core - black, white, brown, and the primaries, plus a green, silver, fleshtone, and wash. All good colors to have, and grant the ability to mix many more.
Also grab a few paint colour charts from various companies.
As you find yourself mixing certain colours again and again then it's probably worth picking up the nearest equivalent pot.

I'm tempted to just go to the nearest Cheapo store that has craft stuff and buy some of that. Couldn't cost more than $2 for a massive pot or tube, and I could just mix colours to suit in old Citadel Pots. Cant go too wrong with that kinda price IMO.

Anyone had experience with using those kinda paints?

EDIT: Also, I was thinking of using one of those cheap spray cans from Super Cheap Auto as a base coat/primer. I've used the black matte before and it was fine for me (white was really grainy though) and I'm going to try grey. Is there anything wrong with this? like specific sprays having affects on models and whatnot?

Craft paints are definitely a good value in the cost/volume sense, but the quality generally leaves much to be desired. Any paint line of sufficient size is bound to have a few gems and a few duds - craft paints are no exception. The balance, however, is shifted much more heavily towards the latter and the average is much lower.

The reason they cost so much less than hobby brands is that they use cheaper medium and pigments (sometimes rather coarsely ground). They're fine for slapping a nice, thick coat over a birdhouse, but things start to break down when you try to dilute them for miniature use. Lots of folks keep some around for basing and terrain use, but comparatively few rely on them heavily for painting their actual minis.

With all that said, they certainly can be used successfully, through a combination of research, luck, and perseverance. With so many brands out there, the odds of finding a decent paint in any given color are increased, as formulations vary from line to line. If you're patient, weak pigmentation can be overcome by increasing the number of applied layers. If you're careful with your application, you can avoid gunking up all the details while using somewhat thicker paint. There are also a few brands that are generally regarded as consistently better than others - Delta Ceramcoat, for example.

The same applies to budget lines of artist's acrylics - they're generally weakly and coarsely pigmented, compared to the good stuff (which costs as much as hobby paints). Heavy body paints are also more common in art lines, which require serious thinning to be particularly useful to the miniature painter. They're meant to go on thick, right out of the tube, so they're generally quite weak once thinned down sufficiently.

On cheap sprays... I say grab whatever color you want and test it on some scrap. Regular old enamel spray paints are sufficient for plastics, in my experience - I've been using ColorPlace, the super-cheap house brand from Walmart, for years. Note that white sprays seem to be more problematic than black, across the board (something to do with the pigmentation?). Before you give up on a brand's white, try changing up your spray technique. Chalky finishes mean that the atomized paint is starting to cure while in the air, so that little blobs of gooey paint are landing on the surface, instead of a fully dissolved liquid. Spray closer to the model than usual, moving quickly to avoid excessive buildup and drips (higher concentration of paint at the base of the spray cone). As always, thorough mixing beforehand is a must.

As a person with extensive experience in craft paints (terrain, kids projects, small woodworking projects) AND many varieties of hobby paints (polly S, gw, vallejo, p3, reaper, minitiare, etc.) and actual artist paints (golden, liquitex, grumbacher, windsor and newton) for actual "art" I can basically say... what Oadie said!
(he summed it up well).

I can just say this - yes, you can use the craft paints - but honestly,once you get a bit into your form a bit, and more experience you will indeed be able to tell a difference between the craft paints and hobby paints (for all the reasons listed above).

The prices differences hear are not like "designer" jeans or some junk like that - its about better quality pigments, mediums and other times even finer ground pigments (which affects how they paint).

I hate to say it, but if you are going to invest the time in painting models - invest in better paints - even if you only pick up one or two bottles a month.

(If you live in the north texas area, shoot me a PM, I have an extensive collection of almost all the paints even considered here, and would be more than happy to let you try any of them).

The main problem I have with craft and artist's paint is that it takes experimenting and extra prep. I find they are hard to get on a model with satisfying results in their natural state so they require manipulation and I've found that even colors from the same brand require different ratios of dilution and mediums for good brush painting.

Purpose built hobby paint are thin tend toward opaque and only ever need a little water to assist them in performing in different ways.

I think it's more of a philosophical question because if you have more time than money maybe working with a cheaper paint and finding a good working ratio for painting is worth it.

I tend to want to just sit down and paint since I have less time so I prefer paints that behave predictably even if they cost a premium so I can focus on the part I enjoy, painting a miniature.

I would advise a new painter to buy a basic, quality set. Like the vallejo Model color basic colors set. I would also recommend buying the best kolinsky brush you could afford and maybe a cheap large flat synthetic hair brush. Total starting cost probably Around $45 American.

I have the Army Painter kit, and the Reaper mini's "build your own paint kit" box. Both are awesome, but I really prefer the Reaper one for quality work (the Army painter is great for mass models, troops and such).

Of note about Reaper, they sell a lot of their paints in sets of three, a base color and it's complimenting highlight and shade.

I bought the GW Warhammer paint set a few years ago, and later the small Army Painter starter set, and found I used the latter more for painting Empire troops.
I got most of my paintbrushes in sets from a craft outlet, they're Royal and Langnickel synthetic bristle, and have a couple of Winsor and Newton for fine detail.

You'll need a water pot (I use a mug) and a palette as well. The real thing is nice to have but a white ceramic food plate is just as good.

For primer I use automotive acrylic spray primer and you can get that dirt cheap, but quality can vary widely as has been said before.

One thing I liked about Army Painter is that they were heavy on the 'mixing your own paint' ethos so you don't have to buy a whole bottle of paint for one job.. You can download their mixing guide and painting guides here:
http://www.thearmypainter.com/

I found lots of dirt cheap acrylics from some stores, but I'm wary to use them for the models - I'll probably just use them for terrain.

If I were to start with Army Painter stuff, would it be a bad idea to buy their tool set/s? If not, which would be good to get?