ochoin deach | 09 Sep 2011 2:04 p.m. PST |
I've always bought not-so-dear brushes.Use them & dustbin them pretty quickly. This is perhaps because, being a Scot, I'm careful with money. But I was given two sable items recently and am amazed not only on the ease of painting but how durable they are.I've since bought more artists' brushes at prohibitive prices but feel this is a good decision. Do you use cheap/expensive brushes? |
Angel Barracks | 09 Sep 2011 2:11 p.m. PST |
Cheap for terrain and so on. Less cheap for smaller more detailed models and I have a brush set aside for varnishing. Don't use expensive ones, £2.75 GBP max per brush. |
quidveritas | 09 Sep 2011 2:22 p.m. PST |
Your experience is essentially correct. Natural hair (kolinsky sable probably the best) offer the best tools for painting. That said, each natural hair (sable) brush is hand made and there is no 'consistent' product. Some are absolutely great while others can be disappointing. I use a lot of synthetic brushes for blocking and dry brushing but the detail work always gets a sable brush. mjc |
GildasFacit | 09 Sep 2011 3:25 p.m. PST |
They don't come much more expensive than W&N Series 7 miniatures – I couldn't do without my #1's and use a lot of them. Even paying £8.50 GBP a go it is still worth every penny. Most synthetics are useless for acrylics 'cos the points curve over almost instantly. They aren't even much good for dry-brushing either – except on terrain. I do mostly 6mm, maybe bigger figures are different. |
idontbelieveit | 09 Sep 2011 4:46 p.m. PST |
I use both very expensive brushes and very cheap brushes. In the middle isn't worth it to me. I use W&N Series 7 for painting figures. They are awesome and last forever. I had a #2 with a perfect point that I used for painting everything on a 28mm figure including eyes but after several *years* it finally wore out. I still use it for priming now! And I use cheap brushes for drybrushing, terrain work, and varnishing. I buy 4 of them in a bag for $3.99 USD at Hobby Lobby. They last a considerable time given the beating they get, but if one gets borked by heavy-handed drybrushing or failure to clean up well enough after varnishing, it's no great loss. |
Garryowen | 09 Sep 2011 5:13 p.m. PST |
You can get the fabulous Windsor Newton Series 7 miniatures (or Minis) for about half list price, maybe less, from Dick Blick art supplies. A good brush (in my opinion these are the best) makes painting so much easier and quicker. I use a #2 for almost everything on 15mm Naps, including the piping. I do use a larger cheap brush to slosh on my first apllicatoin of white which does trousers, lapels, if appropriate, and undercoating for red. Tom |
Agent 13 | 09 Sep 2011 5:20 p.m. PST |
You can get the fabulous Windsor Newton Series 7 miniatures (or Minis) for about half list price, maybe less, from Dick Blick art supplies. I heard that these are not true W&N brushes, that they are made specifically for being discounted at DB. As a result, lower quality. I use a different artist brand, so I cannot independently verify this. Do a google search on artist paint brushes reviews for a lot of good insight into quality brushes. |
KSmyth | 09 Sep 2011 5:22 p.m. PST |
I use Dick Blick's Master Kolinsky-0's, 00"s and 1's when I can get them. They stay pointy and don't curl ever. They do shed after heavy use. I like to think I get 8mos to a year out of them. Not cheap, currently about $7 USD a brush online with a ridiculous shipping charge. I like them better than the W & N 7's and they're cheaper. I just picked up my first Vallejo Kolinsky-#2 round, and haven't used it yet. I'm anxious to give it a try because I got at my local BMS and it would be a lot handier to buy brushes there. |
Karl von Hessen | 09 Sep 2011 5:22 p.m. PST |
I'm about to try Rosemary and Co. brushes. There was a favorable review by Wargameguru on them and several good painters have made good comments on them. Their about $3 USD to $46 USD usd, fairly inexpensive for Kolinsky
Just Google the name. And if your outside the UK you can deduct the VAT % from the price listed too! |
nycjadie | 09 Sep 2011 5:33 p.m. PST |
I use cheap Kolinsky sable brushes. Small sizes are less than $3 USD each at Utrecht Art Supplies. They last a long time. I would offer sable brushes through my website, but I can't find them cheaper than at Utrecht. |
ScoutII | 09 Sep 2011 5:40 p.m. PST |
Fairly expensive brushes across the board (except for applying glues). Depending on the paints I am using, it might be a natural fiber like sable or a synthetic. Quality synthetic brushes though can often cost more than the much lauded Kolinsky Sables (weasel butt hair). When I am using fairly watered down acrylics (quite often for figure painting) I use the weasel butt hair. It holds the paint very well, and it has good snap allowing the brush to be used for detailing as well as more broad strokes and popping back into shape quickly. When I am doing things like "inking" I like my squirrel brushes. They hold paint even better than weasel butt hair
but they are not as snappy. You can control the ink fairly well, and suck it back up like a sponge with a cleaned brush. If I have a big flat area to cover with paint
and I can't use an airbrush for some reason, I reach for my hogs hair brushes. They are pretty stiff compared to other brushes – but they do a great job at keeping their shape and spreading the paint very evenly. I use badger fan brushes for a lot of weathering on terrain, they have a good texture for moving colors around an blending inks on the surface to make it look suitably dingy. I use a few different Escoda Robusto Tekady brushes when I am working with pastes (doing bases, adding dirt to paint tracks and the like). I find that the stiff bristles work better for getting a natural look from those materials than a spatula. I also use a handful of synthetic mongoose brushes for general painting. They are a bit stiffer than a natural weasel butt hair brush, but they are not as good at holding paint. For working with enamels I use Escoda Prado Tame. I find they withstand the chemicals better than natural fibers and they have properties that are comparable to weasel butt hair. The quality brushes have all payed for themselves (compared to replacing cheap ones much more often). Not only that, it is a lot easier to get the desired results from them compared to a cheap nylon brush. |
ZeroTwentythree | 09 Sep 2011 5:57 p.m. PST |
Although I shop around and I'm picky about getting the right brushes, I don't spend much on them. There are excellent cheap brushes, and although I've taken a W&N7 for "test drive" I wasn't impressed enough to spend several times the cost of the brushes I've been using. |
Sundance | 09 Sep 2011 6:24 p.m. PST |
I go through fine tipped brushes like candy. I don't buy the cheapest ones, but I don't go very expensive either. I can get 60 or so figs – maybe more – for a $3 USD brush. I figure that's worth it. I use them 'til they die. They wear out, spring apart or have other issues. I have not been able to get a brush to last very much longer than that no matter what I do or how I treat it. |
Jovian1 | 09 Sep 2011 8:19 p.m. PST |
I get asked all the time which brushes I use – here is the link. There are two reasons essentially. First, they are amazing brushes with exceptional qualities at reasonable prices. Second, they have a LIFETIME GUARANTEE – JUST READ THE LABEL. So, the next time you ask which brush is best – I dare to see some other company back their product like they do! link |
Dasher | 09 Sep 2011 10:08 p.m. PST |
Robert Simmons White Sable. Pretty expensive, but fairly long-lasting and the quality is well worth the price. |
Ivan the Reasonable | 09 Sep 2011 11:37 p.m. PST |
Winsor&Newton series 7 miniatures for me too. BTW there is a difference between W&N series 7 and W&N series 7 "miniatures" Use the latter for figures. Matt. |
Mitch K | 10 Sep 2011 4:44 a.m. PST |
Rosemary & Co Kolinskys for virtually all of the figure work. I have a number of their pure sables in larger sizes (4-6) for blocking out. I have some old sable mixes I use for drybrushing, as I find this kills brushes at top speed. I use assorted cheaper brushes, up to and including decorators' brushes, on terrain. |
GildasFacit | 10 Sep 2011 5:45 a.m. PST |
If Rosemary did a brush series similar to the W&N minis I would probably use those. I got a batch of theirs recently and was impressed but they simply don't do one the same shape as my W&N S7 min #1. I have found that the Rosemary brushes are not quite as durable though and the hair is noticeably softer than W&N. The small flats they make are really good though and a very good brush for the price. I'm in the UK so Dick Blick is no use to me. Internet prices for W&N vary a good deal but I have tended to buy bulk from a local artists colourman, a bit dearer but supporting a local business. There is still a gap in the market for shorter haired brushes #2-#3 that have a good point but not the bulk that most such brushes have butthat still have the stiffness and spring of the #1. The W&N S7 mini brushes in these sizes are too short and bulky and lose their point too quickly for me. |
Grand Duke Natokina | 10 Sep 2011 1:54 p.m. PST |
Cheap brushes are for spreading adhesives, while I save my good ones for figures and detailing vehicles. |
Pat Ripley | 10 Sep 2011 6:10 p.m. PST |
a mix definitely. good for detail, rubbish for terrain or drybrushing |
wrgmr1 | 10 Sep 2011 8:14 p.m. PST |
Cheap dollar store ones for terrain, dry brushing and glue. Good ones I get at Opus art supplies here in British Columbia. 4/0 and up. |
Mitch K | 11 Sep 2011 6:29 a.m. PST |
Gildas, Having used both, I'd say that the Rosemary series 33 kolinskys are fully the equal of a W&N#7. I prefer the behaviour of the Rosemary brushes, myself, but I'm quite prepared to admit that there is a great deal of personal "brand loyalty" in brushes – I knew a bloke who said he'd rather never paint again than use anything except a Blick! Rosemary do a kolinsky "miniature" range (i.e. with a shorter bristle length for a given size), but there are fewer sizes than the series 33 (iirc), and I prefer a longer bristle that carries more paint anyway. |
HammerHead | 11 Sep 2011 2:54 p.m. PST |
I use Daler-rowney they last well i can be a bit rough with brushes. making up a workbench for paints an` stuff may then seperate brushes & get some expensive ones I`m happier with my painting, now climbing that curve.All the best. |
mskelly | 12 Sep 2011 8:03 a.m. PST |
I used to use W&N Series 7 brushes exclusively but inconsistency has crept into their quality in my experience. I now use Da Vinci Maestro Series 10 brushes – almost as good as W&N Series 7 used to be, less expensive and, crucially, utterly consistent. I've also tried a sample of Rosemary brushes and consider them good value for money. Lastly, another brush brand that I've heard good reports about are Raphael 8404s but I have no direct personal experience of them. |
HammerHead | 14 Sep 2011 11:16 p.m. PST |
msKELLY hi might be useful where do you buy your brushes? |
mskelly | 16 Sep 2011 11:03 a.m. PST |
I buy my Da Vinci brushes from the Cornelissen art shop in London when I visit town. They also have a website at cornelissen.com |
Tarty2Ts | 19 Sep 2011 6:41 a.m. PST |
Good brushes are a pleasure to use. Cheap brushes will get the job done, but makes it harder to get a good result I think. WNS7 are very very good, but I use nothing but Raphael now ( slightly softer which just fits my style better ) The two brands are as good as the other IMHO. Keep them clean and use a good conditioner at the end of "every" session
they will last a long time. WN did have some problems with quality control some time back it's true, they changed their sable supplier for some reason. However I heard they've gone back too their original source again, so all is good once more in the WN world. |