Author Topic: Brushes (Read 1936 times)

King · « **on:** July 08, 2008, 11:24:04 AM »

I don't know if this is supposed to be on this board, but does anyone happen to know good brush manufacturers selling on line, preferably in Europe? I use winsor and newton but they lose their point after a while and its very frustrating to paint with a bent brush than has no good point. I would like brushes that can retain their points and am prepared to pay a little bit more but have a good product, rather than a mediocre one especially with fine and very fine detail brushes.

PhillyT · « **Reply #1 on:** July 08, 2008, 11:34:00 AM »

Testors 0 and 0/3 brushes are awesome. They last a long time, keep their point, and are well priced.

Phil

King · « **Reply #2 on:** July 08, 2008, 11:58:39 AM »

Thanks PhillyT. Do you happen to know an online site link please?

Slow Painter · « **Reply #3 on:** July 08, 2008, 12:34:21 PM »

I actually prefer the GW brushes. They're super pricey (I think $8 US?) but last forever. I use the fine detail brush for almost all of my painting. I accidentally painted across some not-quite-dry super glue and ruined it about 2 weeks ago, and tried to replace it with a decent brush from a craft store. That new brush lost its point in about 2 days.

GW does not make a really small brush. I've had really good luck with a size 10/0 spotter from Loew-Cornell; you should be able to pick one up at Michael's Arts and Crafts or A. C. Moore or some such. I use this really tiny brush for lettering and eyes.

toastedtoad · « **Reply #4 on:** July 08, 2008, 01:57:26 PM »

yes i agree, I've tried a lot of different brushes and in the end came back to GW, my current brush set Ive had for at least a year and only one brush out of 4 (which i now use for mixing) has lost it's point.

toady..x

steveb · « **Reply #5 on:** July 08, 2008, 02:03:51 PM »

slow painter is correct, shop the craft stores, they have some really good brushes at very low prices and if you watch their sale notices you can even get a further discount on them, I usually dont pay more than a 1.50 USD per brush and they last for ever, A wise investment is also a bottle of brush cleaner for acrylics, it will wlean all the paint thats dried in the top end of the bristles and allow you to repoint the brush. Do not leave the brush/es in overnight as it will remove the the paint from the handle also and dissolve plastic handles, (dont ask) I you are experiencing bent brushes I imagine that you are letting them rest, bristles down in your rinse water, if so, that is a no no! dont let the brushes rest bristles down dry or in water lay them flat or store point up. If your significant other has hair conditioner, you might try using a little to restore a fuzzy brush and when rinsing a little dish soap in your water (just a drop) will do wonders for cleaning your brush, and the old painters trick of using saliva to repoint a brush befor you put it away is a good one to remember (make sure the paint is gone, again don't ask). To summarise, brushes are like many of the other staples we use in our hobby, you can pay$$$$$$$$$ for convenience and name brand or you can go out and keep your eyes open and search for those bargains and spend cents instead of dollars.
I hope some of this helps, good luck in your search for brushes. steveb

Siberius · « **Reply #6 on:** July 08, 2008, 08:08:43 PM »

Steve, that is some wonderful tips there. I've always loved GW's brushes but even they lose their points after a while, maybe I can try some of those restoration ideas to try and get them back to how they should be!

offroadfury88 · « **Reply #7 on:** July 08, 2008, 09:53:45 PM »

Im sure many of your large craft stores in Europe have online stores. Check those!

I also get really cheap, but quality brushes at local craft store sales.

fbjorn · « **Reply #8 on:** July 09, 2008, 08:21:32 AM »

I have used my Windsor & Newton series 7 (0/3) for three years now.
It's better than all I tried so far, including GW but I haven't tried those lately. Maybe they have improved.

f bjorn

Obi · « **Reply #9 on:** July 09, 2008, 09:37:16 AM »

I use GW and most of the tips steve mentioned. They have lasted for about 7 years now.

katzbalger · « **Reply #10 on:** July 09, 2008, 11:50:22 AM »

I've got a couple of Winsor & Newton Series 7's for really fine stuff, but mostly G.W. brushes do just fine. At £2.50 for most of the commonly used ones they're really quite reasonable and (as steveb and others have said) if you look after them they'll last you ages.

Mystic Force · « **Reply #11 on:** July 09, 2008, 02:46:40 PM »

I have finally discovered that the best way to buy brushed is to check their point before purchasing. It doesn't seem to matter the cost just look for an individual good brush.

steveb · « **Reply #12 on:** July 10, 2008, 02:54:17 PM »

I just thought of a couple of more tips, the first one is for the new guys; most brushes come with an adhesive type of stuff in the bristles of the brush, if you bend or otherwise manipulate the bristles you will actually be breaking some of them and doing damage that will crop up later, what you need to do with a new brush is to swish it around in warm water with a drop of dish soap until the adhesive is dissolved, then you can paint with it. Second for the new guys, don't dip the brush all the way into the paint, that will get paint into the dense part by the metal ferrule, that is very hard/almost impossible to get out, some people will not even dip the brush into the bottle, but will put the paint onto a palette surface so that they can better control the consistency of the paint and how much they are picking up. If you have to dip then just dip the tip only and then wipe off any excess. Do not use a good brush to push paint into hard to reach places, that will just make them into porcupine brushes with spikes pointing everywhere. If you can afford it, have one brush for metallic and one for all the other colors, the metallic pigment that gets into the brush will sometomes come back out when you don't want it to, like when you are putting the finishing touches on a characters face. If you cant afford it, just be careful and at least use different container of water for rinsing cleaning and thinning of the metallic paints.

For the experienced painters, some one PM'd me about the acrylic brush cleaner and how to use, I put about an inch into a small juice can, then I use a plastic can lid in which I have made several slits. X style with my xacto. I then push the handle of the brush through the slit X and then put the brush into the juice can with the lid resting on top, this keeps the brush from resting on its bristles and acquiring a permanent curve or wave, I usually let them sit for an hour, or till the end of my painting session and then take them out and clean them with warm soapy water, repoint them and store them up right. I do reuse the cleaner, it is good for quite a number of times. I hope that answers your question. steveb

ZeroTwentythree · « **Reply #13 on:** July 10, 2008, 04:18:53 PM »

I'm another cheap brush user. I don't know about matching steveb's $1.50 per brush, but I generally don't spend much at the craft store. His tips are excellent.

However, I actually do like to have a slight curve to some of my brushes. It's sort of like sculpting tools that come in different shapes - sometimes it's useful to have a curved shape to a brush.

As far as metalic paints, I do not use my rinse water cup for metalics, and although I use the same brush as for other paints, I immediately wash the brush in the sink and make sure all the metallic paint/remnant is gone.

Also, I have noticed that some painters try to always use the smallest brush possible. I'm frequently the other way around, if I can get away with using a larger brush, I will. IMHO it helps teach control and speeds things up. (I think this is something I picked up from painting "traditional" watercolors & acrylics, something that I believe helps give a different perspective on miniature painting.)

Mathias · « **Reply #14 on:** July 10, 2008, 04:38:59 PM »

Quote from: ZeroTwentythree on July 10, 2008, 04:18:53 PM

Also, I have noticed that some painters try to always use the smallest brush possible. I'm frequently the other way around, if I can get away with using a larger brush, I will. IMHO it helps teach control and speeds things up. (I think this is something I picked up from painting "traditional" watercolors & acrylics, something that I believe helps give a different perspective on miniature painting.)

I want to second this. I started doing this a bit ago and it is definitly a good practice to get into. Larger brushes generally handle paint better also (stay wet longer). But don't use a larger brush as an excuse to get sloppy either. Keep the quality of the painting the same.

Lord Quiran de Lancastre · « **Reply #15 on:** July 10, 2008, 04:59:04 PM »

I use cheap brushes that come in packs of 2-5. My mandatory sizes are 10/0 1/0 and 0. For eyes and whatnot I have a 20/0 that I shelled out about $8 for. The 5 packs cost around $3-5 and I've gotten those brushes to last for a year or more.

Supposedly you aren't supposed to use the same brush for red and grey, not sure why. I do and haven't noticed anything wrong, perhaps it lowers the life of the brush.

I tried using expensive brushes for a while, but several things put me off of them:
Cost of course
The quality in my painting didn't increase
I hated having to replace them
My kid likes to run off with a brush every now and then

If I use the cheap ones, I'm not worried if my son decides to basecoat the dog with my 10/0 brush.

King · « **Reply #16 on:** July 11, 2008, 09:00:51 AM »

Thanks for all the replies friends. I have settled for the GW brushes in order to give them a try. They seem fine but I will see how they stand the test of time

Moriar · « **Reply #17 on:** July 11, 2008, 09:31:10 AM »

I got some german brushes that says Echt Rotmarder, meaning Real Red Marten. Thats an animal if someone didnt know(ive never heard the english word for it, but the Norwegian translation is Røyskatt anyways). Those are the best brushes ive ever used. The company is TSI or something, but i cant find any hits on google for it. I buy them at a local hobby store here in Norway.

I bet im gonna be slapped by some PETA guys for this!

Pistol Pete · « **Reply #18 on:** July 13, 2008, 03:13:48 AM »

I'm fond of GW's drybrushes because they are designed for hard use and wear well. I've heard thier other brushes are not as good as the alternatives, and there's probably something to that (GW likes to take a readily available item and double the price on it,

).

katzbalger · « **Reply #19 on:** July 13, 2008, 11:27:34 AM »

I would like to second (third?) ZeroTwentythree and Mathias. Always using the biggest brush you feel you can is a really good habit to get in to. It speeds things up and helps you get better at neatness - or at least that's what I've found.

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Author Topic: Brushes (Read 1936 times)