Best pointed-round art paintbrushes according to redditors

I want to start off with this very important thing to remember, "take your time" while doing this model there was times I only sat down for a few minutes and times I was there for over an hour.
I would recommend practicing the techniques listed below on the sprues (the frame surrounding the parts of the model)

I over do the details,(lot of it you can't see in the pictures. I post) but I enjoy the painting and get satisfaction off of it, it can be toned down and still look good

I normally look over the book, Google the characters/vehicle down load multiple pictures to refer to and get an idea what colors I want before getting started. I also watch YouTube videos to see if there is something difficult I need to be aware of.

Sometimes it is easier to paint some of the details while the parts are still on the sprues, see the black in the chest plates I painted them before I cut them loose, it was easier to do them that way. But I always waited until I put section together (ex: chest, waste , arms , legs and head) to do the wash "weathering" this way they all blend together. With this one, I want it to look more weathered at the bottom and less as it went up

Some definitions:


Wash "weathering" this is how I made the "dirty look" i did not let it set for 10 mins. I applied small sections and wiped off what I did not want with a Q-tip. The darker parts, I just applied small amounts with with a fine tip brush.

Dry brush

As you can see here Dry brushing really gives the look of age /worn out.
you would be better off going to the link I provided and watching a few videos.

Variety of brushesif you buy the dirt cheap brushes, you will get a cheap paint job. The ones I linked are a good set to start with, they give you a wide variety of choices. Main thing to do is CLEAN...CLEAN CLEAN...them after each use. With thinner and soapy water. Do not leave them setting in the thinner or water, the points and edges with get messed up quick. Wipe them off with a paper towel, reform the ends when done.

Magnifing head set is the best way to get the small details, i have this set and they work okay, there are better sets out there.

Hope this helps

Reaper triads all the way.

There's no non-wasteful way to put paint onto a palette from a GW pot and it's also hard to mix GW paints in consistent proportions between sessions. GW paints also tend to dry out in storage and there's always some amount of crust around the lip of the container.

Reaper Master Series on the other hand has none of those problems plus with the triad system you don't even really need to bother mixing paints in the first place. RMS last longer in storage (I just took mine out after a year of being in storage) and I can easily just put two tiny drops of paint onto my palette and mix with an equal amount of water. I also like the "play" of RMS paints too; they tend to flow better off my brush and I just think I get better results with them.

But the biggest advantage I found with RMS is the time saved not fucking around with mixing colors, dealing with dried out pots, and not cleaning a shitty brush used to load paint onto the palette.

In your shoes I'd buy a triad of each of the following:

• red, orange, yellow, blue, purple, green, gray; that's 7 colors with 3 shades of each color so 21 paints
  
• pure black, pure white so 2 more paints
  
• brown triad for dirt, brown triad for leather / clothing so 6 more paints
  
  Then two each (one dark, one lighter) for each of the basic metals:
  
  
• silver, gold, bronze so 6 more paints
  
  I also find it handy to have a pinkish tone and a pale or linen-white color so possibly 2 more paints there
  
  If I can do math correctly that's 37 paints at ~$3 ea so a ~$121. I order my RMS directly from them and was very happy with my purchase. If you know for a fact you won't be doing any green then don't buy it, but from experience the primary and complementary colors, two lines of browns, greys, metallics, pure black, pure white, a pink, and bone coloured white are always useful.
  
  I also highly recommend each of these:
  
  
• Raphael Kolinsky Sable size 2 Despite owning ~8 Winsor Newton S7 brushes, another 8 or so Raphael brushes, and half a dozen Rosemary & Co brushes I do all my non-destructive painting with a Raphael size 2. I can do large pieces like banners and the tip is sufficient for pupils and line work.
  
• Pink Soap It works and is convenient to use; I've been using the same bottle forever.
  
• Paint Brush Washer Cleaner I'm not sure if this is the exact one that I have and there's another on amazon with bad reviews but I love mine. It easily cleans all the paint off your bristles during your session and at the end you can hang your brush to dry tip down.
  
  And here's my three beginner pro tips:
  
  1 Always take the time at the end of your session to wipe the paint out of your palette. If you let paint build up in your palette over months of use then any paint you put in the palette will tend to dry out quicker.
  
  2 To clean your brush(es) at the end of your session put a little pink soap in an unused palette well, swipe the brushes through the soap, and then paint the palm of your hand to clean it. Repeat if necessary. Then paint your palm under running water to rinse the soap off the brush. Use paper towel plus the remaining pink soap in the palette well to clean the palette and then rinse it as well. Never let paint into the ferrule of your brush; clean it immediately with the brush cleaner/washer screen I linked above if this happens.
  
  3 Raise the miniature to eye level while painting. This is to save your posture and prevent you from hunching over or straining your neck. Most people try and hold the miniature in one hand right in front of their face but this makes detail work very difficult. I find it much easier to put my miniatures on something about as tall as my forearms (I use two Reaper paint carriers stacked on each other but a kids sand bucket would probably work too). Then I can rest my elbows on the desk and my minis on the "platform." I try to always keep the mini base in contact with the platform or, if I turn the mini on its side or upside down, then I hold it in my palm and rest my hand on the platform. Typically I rest the ridge of my brush hand on the platform as well and I almost never make a mistake with my brush because using a stable surface at eye level with my elbows and hands resting on stable surfaces keeps every thing still.

I personally use Raphael 8404 kolinsky sable brush, size 0 image, another. And I have been happy with it.

They have very pointy tip and quite big "body" (also known as paint reservoir) which keeps paint wet, so it does not dry onto bristles.

Key things with text painting for me have been to use very tip of the brush and have paint that flows easily. I use Vallejo black ink, but any other paint will work too when thinned enough. (thin your paints :) )

I strongly encourage you to use acrylics for the majority of your painting. There are some enamels that are good for metallics, but generally acrylics are superior for 28mm mini painting for a large number of reasons, and are also safer to use.

Also, DON'T use enamel paints with a nice brush like a Raphael brush, they will ruin those brushes. You can get cheap synthetic brushes. Also, you can't properly thin enamel paints with water, you need special spirits. Another reason you should switch to acrylic. Vallejo Game Color has an excellent starter set I recommend. That and a couple GW washes (nuln oil and reikland fleshshade), and make yourself a wet pallet, and you should be off to a much better start.

I'd likewise recommend Raphael kolinsky 8404, Rosemary Co., or Windsor & Newton series 7 brushes for acrylic paints. Keep in mind there is no standardized brush measurement system, so one company's size 1 is going to be different than another ones. That said, I'd recommend a size 2 Windsor & Newton or size 1 Raphael.

Also, a lot of people find they have more stability when using they have a handle or some other thing they can stick the mini to (like a large pill bottle or citadel handle) in terms of detail work. Personally, I get the most stability from keeping my elbows on the table and holding the mini by not only the base but also the top (but you gotta wear a latex glove in your holding hand for that otherwise you'll rub your paint off).

Other recommendations:

1. Watching/listening to some of the pros on Youtube talk about the craft
   
   
2. Practice, practice, practice
   
   
3. Patience

Excellent choice.

On the painting and hobby side of things...

• Citadel Essentials set... Classic Style miniature painting set with glue and snipers to get you started. https://www.miniaturemarket.com/gw-60-12-13.html
  
• Sanding Twigs to cleanup the model during assembly. Get rid of any burs or mold lines from the sprue/packaging. https://durasand.com/products/sanding-twigs?variant=4308092747787
  
• To prepare for painting, after assembly, you'll want to hit that plastic with a primer first. A standard bigbox/hardware store flat white or flat grey plastic safe primer will do. Krylon or Rust-Oleum works good enough. Especially for your first set of models.
  
• Some cheap Pallet Paper to help you work with and thin the paint. https://www.amazon.com/Langnickel-Disposable-Palette-Sheets-Acrylic/dp/B004SYOI0W/
  
• Some cheap throw away brushes to get you started. https://www.amazon.com/Pointed-Painting-Drawing-Acrylic-Watercolor/dp/B0776BTS5B/

I took a class and the teacher uses these because they are cheap and he can just toss once no longer useable.

I have these now (yet to use) but also cheap craft brushes and reaper master brushes - davinci which I use the most, especially for fine work. But expensive so I never touch bottom of container when washing out. Never use roughly. Now have brush cleaner. And I baby them. Craft. Or cheap sale art brushes for everything else.

Edit: correctives link

Aww thanks! I had no experience, completely self-taught. I just bought a cheapo watercolor set, some round brushes, and watercolor paper, then watched a few Youtube/Instagram tutorials. It's easy to pick up, I would recommend it!

Sorry, I'm not familiar with Army Painter brushes. All I know are the numbered sizes. I would assume that Army Painter would have appropriately sized brushes, though. Maybe someone else here can comment on that.

This is what I bought. They're probably not the greatest, but they've done well, so far.

Best of luck, and I hope to see some more work from you. :-)

I hate to sound like a Amazon Ad but iI got it on Amazon

Vallejo has a really nice starter paint set, 16 colors for $40 US. They're bigger bottles than most (17ml) and in dropper bottles, too. Something like that will be much cheaper to start with than buying Citadel paints individually, and is still a better deal than the Citadel starter set.

Citadel brushes and tools are also mostly overpriced. This brush set costs about as much as one GW brush, and clippers/glue/knife/mold line scraper can all be had for a fraction of the Citadel price too.

I think if you get these you can already paint almost everything:

For details: number 8 synthetic, I use this a lot:

https://www.amazon.com/Escoda-PERLA-White-Toray-Synthetic/dp/B005SBJHSM/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1511284818&sr=8-11&keywords=escoda

For washes, mop brush. Haven't used this particular one, but their brushes are generally pretty good:

https://www.amazon.com/Escoda-Ultimo-Tendo-Synthetic-1530/dp/B00CM3ZHM4/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&qid=1511284818&sr=8-14&keywords=escoda

https://www.amazon.com/Premium-Synthetic-Miniature-Brushes-Painting/dp/B01FWIC124/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=fire+in+me&qid=1562022608&s=arts-crafts&sr=1-2

I got one of these that has some okay brushes for drybrushing the smaller spots. I got mine for liek 14$ tho, not 20 so maybe look around for a cheaper set?

I personally use Raphael Sable Kolinsky Brushes, sizes from about 0 to 2 depending on what I'm working on. They're fairly priced for their quality and you can definitely feel the difference between this and a cheap brush when painting.

If you make an investment in some nice brushes that you get something to clean them with and keep them in top form. Personally I use the Master's Brush Cleaner.

For the ONE HAPPY CHOICE 🥳🤩🤪 brushes, are you talking about the miniature brush set?

50 Pcs Pack of Synthetic Sable Fine Detail Paint Brushes Set for Miniature, Scale ... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B073YDKWWP/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_c_api_i_8NC1Cb6Y2DJBR

Arches paper is my one splurge, everything else I use is relatively cheap. Thanks to /u/Nunya623 for the suggestion to use ink before watercolor.

Paints:

• MozArt neon watercolor
  
  
• Foldable travel watercolor set
  
  Paintbrushes:
  
  
• Transom round brushes
  
  Inspiration:
  
  
• Vintage herb prints
  
  EDIT: I've only been doing watercolor for a couple of months, this is only the 2nd thing I've painted that I didn't throw away.

https://www.amazon.com/MEEDEN-Professional-Sable-Detail-Paint/dp/B01JYVI9RQ/ref=mp_s_a_1_14?crid=1QBYEIQELDU7R&keywords=kolinsky+sable+brushes&qid=1550882304&s=gateway&sprefix=sable+bru&sr=8-14

And a tub of master's brush soap.

I use Army Painter Quickshade Inks (the eye droppers) over a colored primer, then tweak and highlight with hobby paints.

These cheap brushes are good for advanced tabletop and general abuse. (: : https://www.amazon.com/Synthetic-Brushes-Miniature-Painting-Watercolor/dp/B073YDKWWP/ref=sr_1_3?crid=NPEE0P0J41CW&keywords=one+happy+choice+brushes&qid=1567033046&s=gateway&sprefix=FZ-R45HFU%2Caps%2C211&sr=8-3

For basing, glue and playground sand. Add a tiny amount of static grass or Army Painter tufts. Amazon prices are on the high side, so patronize your FLGS!

Don't worry about how good it looks up close. While our gaming group likes painted miniatures, they don't look at them up close during play.

I use these and masters conditioning soap for all my brushes

It is a 10/0 acrylic brush. For example, like this one.. It takes time, but it makes it look nice.

EDIT: I apologize, I didn't see that you wanted to see the brand. It is an Artist's Loft Brand 10/0 Brush

I would like to purchase the Start Collecting! Astra Militarum box, but I thought I would need to buy the full hardbook for the rules and codex? While I would like the Space Marines from Dark Imperium, I don't have much interest in the Death Guard models.

​

Are there any brushes you might recommend? Been browsing around Amazon using this one as an example. https://www.amazon.com/Premium-Synthetic-Miniature-Brushes-Painting/dp/B01FWIC124/ref=sr_1_9?keywords=miniture+paint+brush+kit&qid=1558220257&s=gateway&sr=8-9

Just saw your post buried. I have a few tips. What is great about my prints is they are resin, so once primed they paint great. Basically make sure to use very small brushes. Like 00 or 10/0 if you have them. Also thinning your paints is key. Not too watery but enough so that you have to do more than one coat to get the color you want. Also you can watch any warhammer painting videos on you tube and apply the same theory and craft for shading.

I really like this brush set. [Virtuo - Pro Series 902L Detail Paint Brushes for Oil, Acrylic and Watercolors, Long Handles ] (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CZ4M32G/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_.iWHyb3Y3RH79)

And I use game color paints from amazon.

Show me how it turns out!

https://www.amazon.com/Winsor-Newton-Cotman-Sketchers-14-Pieces/dp/B00004THXI

https://www.amazon.com/Winsor-Newton-Kolinsky-Pointed-Brushes/dp/B015TAVH0M/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?keywords=winsor+%26+newton+series+7+size+1&qid=1565800268&s=gateway&sprefix=winsor+and+newton+series+&sr=8-1

https://www.amazon.com/Royal-Talens-Rembrandt-Watercolor-140lbs/dp/B00R2B14SC/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?keywords=watercolor+paper+rembrandt&qid=1565800332&s=gateway&sr=8-4

If you feel you're going to use the paints get the paints. It's better to have them and not need them then need them and not have them. Vallejo is good with muddy tones, especially their amazing greens. Army Painter is great with warm colors, pastels and creamy brights. So I'd say it depends on weather you want your models to look warm or cold in a general sense. Ultimately, I'd choose both. They're both great paints for the price.

Yeah chances are even if we had the brands of brushes you're used to they wouldn't be the same kind of value you had back in Europe. I got a set of synthetic brushes a lot like these nearly two years ago.

https://www.amazon.com/MEEDEN-Professional-Sable-Detail-Paint/dp/B01JYVI9RQ/ref=sr_1_45?keywords=Synthetic+Sable&qid=1566600966&s=gateway&sr=8-45

I've just started to splay my 0 brush and the rest are looking pretty rough. But it was a good investment overall.

What would you recommend as a good middle range brush? I got a pack of Meeden Sable brushes from Amazon. Their usefulness and lifetime varies wildly.

Raphael Kolinsky Sable size 0 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004Z7743U/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_ja4RCbTC0Z5NX

This one?

Windsor and Newton 7s are the best brushes that I've used. They're also the most expensive brushes that I've ruined (screwed up my last two by not waiting long enough to start painting after a superglue repair and glued the bristles together with the fumes) so I also have a number of less expensive, good quality brushes.

Blick's red sable brushes are a great bargain brush. When you buy them online they're about $3/per. They're a little more temperamental than a W&N, but they're good brushes once you understand how wet is too wet and you can't beat that quality to price ratio.

I recently picked up a few of these Rautloff Kolinsky Sable brushes, my initial impression of them is favorable. I've painted a grand total of one 28mm figure with mine, but it feels like I'm painting with a good quality brush. The bristles are longer and thinner than you would expect from a brush of their size rating (they're closer to a "liner" style brush) which is worth keeping in mind if you're looking for specialty brushes. The link is for a Russian importer though, so expect a long delivery time.

Also keep in mind that you want to have a decent stock of lower quality synthetics for tasks that cause heavy wear or for materials that could damage natural hair (resin medium based paint, glue, etc). Specifically, I like Royal and Langnickel's Zen brush line for flat drybrushes, they have a decent stiffness and they're about the right length as well as being readily available. Michael's Artist's Loft Vienna series brushes are passable, they are synthetic so they will hook, but they're the best in-store brush I've been able to find short of those Blick Masterstrokes.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B016JR44A4
These are good, esp for the price