let's talk kit for a moment.

[zebbie]

Does anyone else have a favourite piece of gear? (brush, tool, mug, cd, whatever) that you will go out of your way to use in any way on any project? I used to talk to one of the guys at a GW store here in Sydney who was a bit like it with Chestnut Ink. Myself, personally, it's the plate I first used as a palette. Nothing else will do.

[appiah4]

I have this little glass I've been using for water to thin paints/clean brushes for, what, 15 years now?  I never thought about it until I read this thread.  Interesting.

[Gurth]

Sure, I always use the same knives, tweezers, pot of water, etc. but that’s just because they’re my basic tools — why would I not use the same knife? What I wonder about is why would anyone always want use a certain paint on a model? What if the colour is completely unsuitable for it?

[Chaeron]

I'm guilty of using Strong Tone and Dark Tone (since moving from Badab Black/Devlan Mud/Agrax Earthshade/Nuln Oil) on everything - because it works, but I think most people do.

 

I do like to use colours I rarely use, as a nice contrast - mix things up a little!

[Forté]

Wet pallet. Sounds silly but it's true.

[Subtle Discord]

For Building: Top quality half round file (Grobet #4 Half Round, if I could only choose one), 2 stiff plastic bristle brushes (1 with bristles cut short for extra stiffness), extra thin styrene glue (many brands, but i like Tamiya Extra Thin).

 

The file can handle 98% of the mould line and flash removal jobs, and Swiss made Grobet are precision tools that do it better then any of the many other files I've bought over the years. The often overlooked brushes (I like to use denture brushes from my local drug store) are essential for removing plastic burring from the file, and burnishing the surface to finish the job. The extra thin glue assembles the parts so clean, it's just a thing of beauty; paint on a tiny drop of this amazing glue to a seam between two parts, and capillary action pulls the glue right to where it's needed. You can also use the brush to paint and smooth areas with traces of this wonderful product.

 

For Painting: Top quality sable brush (W&N Series 7), wet pallet (so easy to make, and yet so useful), FloAid (made by Liquitex).

 

People can argue the need for a good brush; I'm a believer of the idea that a quality tool will not magically make you more skilled, but it won't hinder you either, because it works how it should when it should. A good brush (if properly treated and maintained) will help you paint better in that respect. If you're not using a wet pallet your making painting harder and more expensive; a wet pallet keeps paint at the right consistency longer and gives more work time for basic to advanced techniques. Paint can also last for days on a wet pallet with a lid, ready to use when you sit down. FloAid is a magical fluid you add to your mixing/thinning water (not directly to the paint) to, you guessed it, help it flow smoother. This. Stuff. Works. Again, it doesn't make you a better painter, but it makes the paint perform better which can help you paint better. It is especially useful when doing washes and glazes; when added to the process it will help stop 'ringing' of the wash as it dries along the edges.

 

Edit - Shameless personal plug: You can read my ramblings at length about what I consider useful and essential tools of the hobby in my Tools of the Hobby article.

[marine7312000]

A paper plate with paper towels underneath. Once I dip the brush into the paint pot, I run it across the plate a few times to get most of the excess off. Close the paint pot and dip back into the excess on the plate when more is needed until its gone or has dried. The paper towels alleviate spill damage and provide a good reference for how much paint is left on the brush for drybrushing.

[GrandMasterAralia]

I always use the same ole' mug for water when i need to clean pencils. I've had it for years, and it keeps me from having to ask the missus I she's got a cup for "paint-water" ;)

 

Oh and I was a "chestnut ink"-man myself, but sadly evil GW discontinued that colour, and left me with seraphim yuck sepia!

[Venemox]

I agree with Subtle Discord.  The half round file is my go to tool for any modelling project.  And it has to be the one in my kit with the red handle.  The other one doesn't seem to cut as well.

[Forté]

I still have my old 90's chestnut wash ;)

[Subtle Discord]

Yep, I still have bottles, at various levels of fullness, of almost every old-school Ink that GW offered. It's strange, with their expanded paint line that they left out the Inks. I use mine all the time to alter the Washes to the levels I want. Sepia works so much better as a tarnished Gold glaze with a bit of Chestnut Ink and one small drop of Black Ink.

 

Take heart if you like them but don't have any left, just have a look at a well stocked art store for Inks and you'll get essentially the same product. At the time GW was using the same ink that went into these other products. It might take a bit of searching to find an exact match, but the good thing is that they are usually very low cost so it's not too hard to give some a test.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

http://i.imgur.com/4R1Cvnv.png

 

Conical and chisel point clay shapers, my hobby blade handle(about 10 years old), the half-round file I use on everything(about 16 years old), and my pin vise(about 12 years old).

[Lucien Eilam]

My old mid-90s Citadel pin vice, with the hexagonal swivel top. I think they were rebranded from a company called Shesto.

 

Every so often I assume there must something more comfortable out there. I can't begin to tell you how much money I've wasted over the years on expensive, fancy-looking pin vices with rubberised grips that aren't nearly as smooth or well-engineered as the one GW sold me nearly twenty years ago. Seems like the only way anyone can make any money on pin vices any more is to charge ~£15 for the worst of rough, bargain-basement Chinese manufacturing, with rattly screw threads that somehow feel like they're clogged with grit.

 

At least I'm never short of bit holders for painting.

[Stercus]

I've recently discovered two bottles of old 'Ork flesh wash' in my paint box. They're the old hexagonal flip top bottles, so I'm guessing at least 12, probably 15 years old. They are the absolute best thing for doing a shading wash on anything red.

[Hyaenidae]

My dremel, bar none. That piece of kit has had some really heavy duty jobs, and was always up to task.

 

All the way up until recently, when I tried to convert a fourth pewter dreadnought. Cough, sparks, smoke, dead.

 

Rest in peace, little buddy.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

My Dremel has come in very handy as well, but I only got mine a few years ago. If I had one back in the old pewter converting days, it woulda made a lot of stuff easier.

[zebbie]

I always wanted a Dremel. But I never seemed to get around to buying one. I bought a cheap "hobby drill" i used it on one mini and not again. I tried to use it on a small job outside the hobby and the motor fried, Having said that the same company sold me the knives and pin vice I still use to this day. I even got a surplus of blades and drill bits for a glorious price when they got out of tools.

[GrandMasterAralia]

Oh I just today discovered the joy of wetpalettes! Add that to my "essentials"-list!

 

Oh and orc flesh wash for shading reds?! I've got to try that! :) still have mine from back when I got my very first warhammer models - monopose plastic fantasy Orcs and goblins.. Oh the nostalgia!

[Kierdale]

Another vote for the half-round file.

 

And I'm a recent convert to wet palettes.

 

Oh, and Tamiya Weathering Master powders.

[zebbie]

I have got the bits for a wet palette. Just need to get a worthy number of minis together. I haven't been this excited to start painting since I started. The much loved half round file is here too, although I generally only use files for metals, otherwise it's the aforementioned knife. I am yet to deal with resin stuff though.

[winterdyne]

Pretty much everything I have has been replaced over the years, with the exception of my favourite tweezers - swiss made jewellers ones I inherited from my late father. I think they're about 50 years old now (far older than I am!). They're absolutely superb and when I lost them (temporarily) in a house move I actually cried. I couldn't do without them, and I've not found a pair to match them.

[Firepower]

Hmm.  I've used the same shot glass as a water cup for years.  Not something I really go out of my way to use.  It simply hasn't broken, and hasn't left the desk, so that's its lot in life.

 

I rather obsessively use my Winsor and Newton brushes (because they work wonders) and lately I've taken to using one of those magnifying goggle headband visor things (I call it the chick magnet!).  The fine detail I can do with those two working together makes me look at my old work and cringe at the clumsiness I once showed.

[JeffTibbetts]

Where'd you get the magnifying setup? I've been thinking about picking one up since my desk mounted one almost lit my house on fire. Twice. 

[Firepower]

HAHAHAHAHAHAAAAHAHAA!!!!

 

Sorry, had to be said.  I can't recall anyone's hobby kits turning to EZBake ovens, so this is a new one on me. :lol:

 

Sucks for you, of course.  But take solace in the fact that I got some giggles.

 

I just bought some generic ones off Amazon if memory serves.  I went with one that has white LEDs on either side, for better lighting (helps a ton).

 

I think this is the same model: http://www.amazon.com/SE-MH1041LC-lighted-head-magnifier/dp/B001BL5NTA/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1412097408&sr=8-11&keywords=magnifying+goggles

 

Has an extra pair of lenses hidden in the visor which you can flip down for extra magnification, along with the spinny lens on the outside.  But truth be told, you are very unlikely to need either, unless you paint on the molecular level.

[JeffTibbetts]

HAHAHAHAHAHAAAAHAHAA!!!!

Sorry, had to be said. I can't recall anyone's hobby kits turning to EZBake ovens, so this is a new one on me.

Sucks for you, of course. But take solace in the fact that I got some giggles.

I just bought some generic ones off Amazon if memory serves. I went with one that has white LEDs on either side, for better lighting (helps a ton).

I think this is the same model: http://www.amazon.com/SE-MH1041LC-lighted-head-magnifier/dp/B001BL5NTA/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1412097408&sr=8-11&keywords=magnifying+goggles

Has an extra pair of lenses hidden in the visor which you can flip down for extra magnification, along with the spinny lens on the outside. But truth be told, you are very unlikely to need either, unless you paint on the molecular level.

Yeah, I can laugh about it now but it was pretty scary at the time. I wouldn't have shared it if I didn't want to expose myself to the humiliation it would surely bring. I don't mind. :D

As for the lense visor... Chick magnet is RIGHT. Man, those are cheap. I might pick one up. Thanks!