Brushes, what do you use?

[Nova_chron]

So recently I "missplaced" all my brushes and got to thinking, what other options do I have for brushes as the GW ones are not the most comfortable to use for me being so tiny. Here is my question to you all. What brushes do you use and why.

[Black Templar 307th Comp.]

I've really come to like these brushes recently:

 

http://www.amazon.com/La-Corneille-Miniature-Detail-Cornell/dp/B007Z1NLW6/ref=sr_1_3?s=arts-crafts&ie=UTF8&qid=1398275347&sr=1-3&keywords=loew+cornell+brushes

 

And these, too:

 

http://www.amazon.com/La-Corneille-Miniature-Detail-Cornell/dp/B007Z1NLW6/ref=sr_1_3?s=arts-crafts&ie=UTF8&qid=1398275347&sr=1-3&keywords=loew+cornell+brushes

 

Both are great for detail work, some of the best I've used. Much better than the GW brushes. In fact, my GW brushes are the least favorite I own anymore.

[Fibonacci]

I have a ton of GW starter brushes that were given to me by a friend.  I use those for base coats and for dry brushing in small areas.  That's it for GW's stuff.

 

I have used Army Painter brushes, Master's Touch, Windsor & Newton and some like what Templar linked above.  I think the best value for quality to me are the W&N brushes.  Hobby Lobby usually has them for 40-60% off so don't pay full price; just wait for the next sale and stock up then.

[Daevyll]

Well, I have some highly expensive W&N Series 7 brushes, but to be honest the ones I use most are my cheapish Army Painter ones. The only GW brush I really like is the medium drybrush which has a unique head of hair so to speak.

[Dosjetka]

If you have access to some Pro Arte Connoisseur paintbrushes, they're perfect for your day-to-day painting (basecoats, washes, glazing, etc). However, if you're looking for brushes for crisp fine highlights, the Winsor & Newton Series 7 are excellent.

[Black Templar 307th Comp.]

If you're gonna invest in those fancy W&N S7 brushes, I recommend grabbing some Master's Brush Cleaner. Hell, I recommend some Master's Brush Cleaner anyway. It'll extend the life of your brushes dramatically.

[Grim Dog Studios]

I use army painter brushes. They're easily the most comfortable brushes I've ever used and come with a triangular shaped handle which makes them easier to hold I find compared to your 'standard' round handled brushes.

[Fibonacci]

I never realized how much I rolled the brush when picking up paint from the palette unitl I bought one of those.

[battle captain corpus]

I use the GW range, mostly as I am soooo comfortable with them.

 

I also use the Eavy Metal ones....which coincidently are actually W&N series 7's.

 

BCC

[Fibonacci]

I use the GW range, mostly as I am soooo comfortable with them.

I have heard more than a few people lately that have gone back to GW brushes.  I may have to give them another shot. 

 

They were once very nice but then a few years ago (5 or 6 maybe?) they started falling apart.  Tips that would curl on first use or bristles falling out completely in a very short amount of time.  It was back then that I started looking for alternatives and found the W&N brushes along with their generic knock-offs to be comfortable in my hands.

 

The starter brushes I have now all came from AoBR boxes.  I might have to pick up a fine detail brush or two and see how the feel.

[Kilofix]

Kinda weird but I only use two brushes nowadays:

The Large GW brush

The Standard GW brush

 

All my layers, washes, drybrushing and even the texture for basing are done with the former. All my edges and small detail are done with the latter.

 

I find it more convenient to change the angle of the Large GW brush to paint larger or smaller areas than to use different brushes.

 

My base coats are otherwise done with sprays and airbrush.

[Nova_chron]

I will say the GW brushes have gotten better but they have never been comfortable in my hands, I am always afraid I will break them. ( I have hands big enough to cover edge to edge on a dinner plate) looking for something that feels sturdy and fits a little better

[Fibonacci]

Try looking at the Liner brushes for whichever brand you like. 

http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/size-1-mini-kolinsablon-liner-brush-720722/

I used one like this a lot and still have the 20/0 version for eyes and putting the fleur de lis on the sister superior's cheeks.  The handle is about the size of a Sharpee pen.  This is also very similar to the ones Black Templar linked in the 1st reply.

 

The down side is they only come in small bristle sizes. 

[Kaedes Nex]

Army Painter brushes. A lot of these can be both pro and con depending on your taste.

 

Pros:

- Super cheap ($5 per brush) without being complete garbage like other cheap brushes

- Synthetic

- Soft bristles despite being synthetic

- Holds point well

- Triangular handle

- AP product

- Long lifespan for a cheap brush

- Useful size and shape similar in that you will only ever need two brush sizes for infantry, one for general use and one for details, much like how you can use a single size 0, 1, or 2 sable for all applications

 

Cons:

- Lower quality than sables

- Pure synthetic, not even a sable blend like Citadel's non-sable brushes

- Low snap. The small brushes feel like limp noodles and the thicker ones are not as stiff as higher quality synthetics like W&N

- Will shed/bristles stick out and you are forced to pull them out one by one over its lifespan

- Cannot hold a point naturally or on its own while dry, must be wet or use brush soap

- Small belly size in the smaller brushes, but all non-sable brushes have this problem because they cannot achieve such fine points with high bristle counts

- Triangular handle may be too thick or angular for some

- The white handle will become discolored if you dip it too deep in your water pot

- AP products can be hard to find

I still recommend a good $10-20 sable but for those who cannot afford it, Army Painter are the ultimate budget option. Cheaper brushes are far inferior quality, and Citadel brushes cost more. Once you go any higher than $5 per brush you are approaching Citadel/cheap sable territory anyway.

[Larkyn]

I use Army Painter brushes mostly. Granted I'm not so great at painting anyway, but I feel like I had a major leap in ability once I switched over from GW brushes. With that said, I still have GW brushes, which I mainly use for drybrushing, PVA application, and texture paints.

[Thunderhawk3015]

I use a mix.  Army Painter for basecoating then switching to GW's brushes for detail/cleanup work.  I've hear great things about W&N's brushes but with what I do on occasion to my brushes I'd rather spend a little less.  I will second the W&N brush cleaner is great for keeping any brushes you have clean/conditioned and will help them last longer.

[Moonstalker]

Army Painter brushes. A lot of these can be both pro and con depending on your taste.

 

Pros:

- Super cheap ($5 per brush) without being complete garbage like other cheap brushes

- Synthetic

- Soft bristles despite being synthetic

- Holds point well

- Triangular handle

- AP product

- Long lifespan for a cheap brush

- Useful size and shape similar in that you will only ever need two brush sizes for infantry, one for general use and one for details, much like how you can use a single size 0, 1, or 2 sable for all applications

 

Cons:

- Lower quality than sables

- Pure synthetic, not even a sable blend like Citadel's non-sable brushes

- Low snap. The small brushes feel like limp noodles and the thicker ones are not as stiff as higher quality synthetics like W&N

- Will shed/bristles stick out and you are forced to pull them out one by one over its lifespan

- Cannot hold a point naturally or on its own while dry, must be wet or use brush soap

- Small belly size in the smaller brushes, but all non-sable brushes have this problem because they cannot achieve such fine points with high bristle counts

- Triangular handle may be too thick or angular for some

- The white handle will become discolored if you dip it too deep in your water pot

- AP products can be hard to find

 

I still recommend a good $10-20 sable but for those who cannot afford it, Army Painter are the ultimate budget option. Cheaper brushes are far inferior quality, and Citadel brushes cost more. Once you go any higher than $5 per brush you are approaching Citadel/cheap sable territory anyway.

 

This is not entirely accurate.  I've been looking at replacing my brushes lately (I used to use W&N, but having stored them improperly for several years, their tips are all messed up and now I need new ones), and some of the army painter brushes are sable.  Specifically, the Regiment, Character, Detail, and Insane Detail brushes.  The rest are synthetic, which I think is okay - I don't want to pay for a sable drybrush that I'm going to kill in only a few months.  I'd rather have something cheap and synthetic for those tasks.  The Army Painter brushes are smart in that regard.  However, they are 'Rothmarder' sable, not Kolinsky, so... still not as good.  I think Rothmarder is a kind of red sable, but it's not synthetic, so there's that.

 

But anyway, W&N are pretty much the go-to brushes.  Rosemary and Co work, too, since they supposedly offer similar quality at a bit better prices.  Raphael 8084 is another good brand.  Any kolinsky sable brushes you can get will probably work.  A size 1 and size 0 round will probably be your go-to brushes for infantry.  You can often get better prices online, but being able to go into a craft store and actually look at the brushes beforehand is good - you don't want to spend 10 bucks on a brush and then, when it arrives in the post, the tip is already split because it was damaged during shipping or something.

 

For their mix of price/quality, I'm going to go with Army Painter brushes.

[Warpsmith_Johnson]

People might call me a dirty blasphemer, but I use a mix of gw and wally world brushes. I also use pluck foam, so maybe my tech-heresy is unforgivable... I use gw brushes for basic stuff, then I switch to the wal-mart brand for detailing and line work. The pluck foam is for spongepainting, as using it in alternating layers with washes makes for a good corroded effect for when you want the look of a hulk that has been in a field for years.

[Nova_chron]

Thanks for all the info guys on Friday I will be up at my FLGS, so I will look and see what they have.

[Secretpaintgeek]

I use a mix of GW and W&N Series 7 mostly. GW for all the messy stuff like applying weathering powders and so on as well as using them to slap down the basic blocks of colour. Then i switch to the series 7 for all the detailing.

The basic reason foer this is that you get what you pay for. The cheap GW stuff is fine for the Basics but the quality is pretty poor. The series 7 on the other hand are fantastic brushes and although quite expensive they will last you for a long time if taken care of. As someone said earlier, Its certainly worth investing in some brush cleaner if you are going to splash out on some of the more expensive brushes (I dont bother too much with the GW ones if im honest)

[Fang of Morkai]

I use Raphael 8404 No 0 for most of my jobs.

 

I also have W&N and other cheaper stuff for dirtier jobs.

[Kaedes Nex]

This is not entirely accurate.  I've been looking at replacing my brushes lately (I used to use W&N, but having stored them improperly for several years, their tips are all messed up and now I need new ones), and some of the army painter brushes are sable.  Specifically, the Regiment, Character, Detail, and Insane Detail brushes.  The rest are synthetic, which I think is okay - I don't want to pay for a sable drybrush that I'm going to kill in only a few months.  I'd rather have something cheap and synthetic for those tasks.  The Army Painter brushes are smart in that regard.  However, they are 'Rothmarder' sable, not Kolinsky, so... still not as good.  I think Rothmarder is a kind of red sable, but it's not synthetic, so there's that.

 

But anyway, W&N are pretty much the go-to brushes.  Rosemary and Co work, too, since they supposedly offer similar quality at a bit better prices.  Raphael 8084 is another good brand.  Any kolinsky sable brushes you can get will probably work.  A size 1 and size 0 round will probably be your go-to brushes for infantry.  You can often get better prices online, but being able to go into a craft store and actually look at the brushes beforehand is good - you don't want to spend 10 bucks on a brush and then, when it arrives in the post, the tip is already split because it was damaged during shipping or something.

 

For their mix of price/quality, I'm going to go with Army Painter brushes.

 

Oh, I wasn't aware of that. Given that the synthetic and sable brushes do have different handles and labels, IIRC, I should be using the higher end brushes with sable, in the Regiment, Character, and I think either Detail, Insane Detail, or Psycho which I haven't even opened as the Character brush is good enough for helmet lenses.

 

I was wondering why they felt so soft and like sable. I assumed since they were so cheap they couldn't possibly be sable and were just really soft synthetics.

[reckoning]

For everyone using W&N Series 7 brushes in the US: can you get them at Hobby Lobby? I couldnt get an answer from their website.

[Black Templar 307th Comp.]

Out of curiosity, for those who use those fancy W&N S7 brushes, which makes/sizes do you recommend for someone looking to take one or two for a test spin. I finally feel good enough about my painting skills to consider seriously investing in them.

[Hemal]

Second teh W&N brushes - absolutely awesome.  I'd always opt for brushes with a shorter tip because that's what I prefer, but WN are by far the best brushes I've ever used, and will never go back to GW brushes (incidentally its what the Eavy Metal  branding is applied to use as well... just branded W&N..)