"Painting guide/tutorial on BRUSHES " Topic

Hi folks,

A friend asked me for a little advice on what brushes to get his son who is starting out gaming and painting this Christmas, so I wrote a little article on my blog based on what I told him, in the hope it is helpful to other people.

The write up (with photos!) –

link

thanks
Chris

They may be good choices for large figures but I'd advise those painting smaller scales (say 10mm on down) to buy better quality brushes from the start – particularly the 'main ' brush.

Cheaper brushes for dry-brushing and undercoating I agree with, but I still go for cheap sables in both (£2-£3 each). My 'main' brush is a W&N Series 7 miniature size #1 but, now that I'm doing some 28mm, I tend to use an S7 #1 (non-miniature) as it holds more paint. Not cheap these brushes though You'll be lucky to see either much less than £8.00 GBP each.

I actually use worn out S7 Min #1 brushes for fine details – the central hairs left once the rest of the brush wears away are still stiff and springy, even though they don't hold a lot of paint.

Remember that, compared to what you pay for figures, the cost of the best brushes is trivial. Why make life difficult by 'making do' with cheaper ones ?

I agree. I never understand why people skimp on brushes. The difference between a Series 7 and your average craft brush is how long the better brush will keep it's spring and point. If you buy one or two a year, it's still comes to a tiny fraction of the money you'll spend on the hobby. I always have one 0 and a 000, I'm using for actual painting. For drybrushing, shading, metallics, I use the cheap hobby shop brands.

Agreed with Gildas and davey

I'll add my vote for W&S Series 7, an incredible value!

Series 7 are a staple, though recently I am starting to like the brushes from Warcolours (not related to me) from Cyprus: they are pure sable, have a great point and a great reservoir and their handle shape helps brush control greatly. And they are not too expensive either

Another vote for W&N series 7. Remember to store upside down (hair inside protective plastic tube!) after washing with brush soap, so moisture runs downwards.

W&N Series 7, either the regular or the Miniature. Only way to go.

In the U.S. pretty good prices can be found from Dick Blick on line.

Tom

I've painted over 850 Calpe Prussians with a W&N S7 and it's still going strong. Regular use of brush soap helps.

For a complete beginner I'm not sure that a W&N 7 is the right choice. You need to learn how much you need to keep a brush clean first. The 7s have come down in price due to retail competition, so I agree that they are cost effective. Perhaps after 6 months would be the best time to start using a 7. Acrylics are hard on brushes as they dry so quickly

Rosemary brushes are nearly as good as 7s and are much cheaper. Probably a good first buy.

@Chris – I don't agree with your undercoating brush. If you are talking prime, I would recommend spray. If you are talking base colours a size 2 brush might work better.

With sables, a size 1 or 2 brush for base colours is a good investment as you will learn how to control the point.

Chris – I really like your piece and restricting to 4 brushes is a great suggestion. I would also recommend the "2 pound" brushes as dry brushes as losing hairs on a dry brush is really annoying. In the US anyway, the cheap soft brushes are marked camel, although unfortunately, no camels are harmed in their making

John

John

I have a selection of Rosemary brushes and I'd agree that they are good quality and value BUT they are not as stiff or springy as S7 brushes and they do not wear as well either.

I stopped bothering with brush soap a while back. While I was painting figures for clients the time taken wasn't worth the effort. I could get a 1000 6mm out of one brush by just working the brush into diluted flow improver – that kept the brush clean and the ferrule free of dried paint.

For me it wasn't clogging that destroyed a brush but just simple wear and tear – I'm hard on brushes and the poorer quality S7 brushes around now tend to snap off the outer hairs a lot sooner than they did 6-10 years back.

I don't think a beginner needs telling more than once to look after tools properly – if they do then I doubt that they'll be painting for long. Too many start with cheap brushes and find they can't get them to do what they want – use S7 and it does what you make it do. I can't see any logic in starting with a difficult tool before progressing to an easier to use one.

+1 GildasFacit. If I had discovered the W&N S7 10 years earlier I would've made a huge dent in my lead mountain!

I'm doing my old fart impression, and repeating advice my father gave to me.. 'Only a poor workman blames his tools; and only a poor workman has poor tools'

The best brush you can find/afford is a great investment compared to the figures you are too embarrassed to put on the table, the shedding hair, the ruination of a lengthy paint job..

After even a month, buy his son a decent brush as a gift, and offer to give him a tutorial.. it's a small amount for most people, but it might keep him in the hobby, and a future playing partner is worth the speculative investment.

Personally, I have a small fortune tied up in dozens of brushes – but I keep coming back to the No 7 Sable.

I appreciate the discussion on 'which brush', I'll be sure to pass on the advice, and if I get the time I might write an article comparing brushes.

My advice was for the new starter, and I still think its sound. There seems to be some idea that a run-of-the-mill £2.00 GBP brush is somehow incapable of producing a good result.

Thats simply not the case. You can get a decent starter brush for £2.00 GBP these days from most shops. I know as I spend 6hrs+ almost every day painting with chiefly standard brushes.

I wouldn't recommend (especially in this case to my friend), any starter to pick up a £8.00 GBP brush based on two reasons –

Firstly, damage to the brush.
In my experience most new painters, especially younger ones, unless you sit with them constantly will undertake actions that damage the brush. When I had my shop, I had two painting desks set up just for this reason. I allowed people to paint there and I offered tutorials and provided a lot of the gear for free.

If I had provided £8.00 GBP brushes I would have been bankrupt just on teens murdering brushes painting 40k models.

Second reason is you dont know if the painter will stick with the hobby. Again, going back to my shop days, parents used to drop of brothers, people used to bring friends, some stuck with the hobby, some lost interest over time, some decided there and then it wasnt for them.

As there isnt much of a market for 2nd hand brushes, there is no point spending lots on brushes that might not ever get used.

That's largely the angle I was coming from when I recommended brushes. If you dont fall into a category like that, by all means – start off with better brushes!

thanks
Chris

8 quid? it's a pittance. Three coffees, less than a pub meal. My nephew visited today, he has no glue to do his German Grenadier sprues donated by yours truly, so of course I give him my Revell Professional bottle.. I can always get more, but making it easy is the gateway drug ;-)

£8.00 GBP. is £8.00 GBP To some it may be a pittance, to others its over an hours wage, to a young-un it might be two weeks pocket money.

I think I've stated the angle I'm coming from well enough.

If you want to get really pedantic, when I had my shop and tutored random kids and people, I used brushes I stocked, and which I got at trade prices. Therefore even cheaper ;)

I know this is a bit of a threadomancy but how do people feel about the new GW brushes? They are just easier for me to get at my local GS.