Arcylics

[Guest Bromgrev]

After many a year of dreaming about it, I've finally got to the stage of being able to get back to model building. Thing is, I used to use the old Humbrol enamel paints (hangover from my military modelling days), and I mostly used brushes. I don't really want to get back into airbrushes at this stage, but it looks like I will be using acrylics from now on.

My question is, how do you guys get on with brush-painting using acrylics? Do they cover well? Do you get brush marks? Do you thin them or use them straight out of the bottle?

Any information at all will be appreciated!

[mustang1]

Hey there!

It is great to hear that you are building again. I am new to the forum but I have been building for years. The best advise I can give is never paint brush with acrylics . It is very messy and the outcome always looks clumpy.If at all possible invest in an air brush set. I know that you really don't want to get back into that but it is the best method. However, I found that just adding a little bit of water to thin out the paint (since it is water based), will do the trick a little smoother; less clumps.

Good luck and post pics of the completed kits!

J.

Edited August 27, 2007 by mustang1

[Straycatt]

And while I am new to the forums, I am not new to acrylics..... The quality of the brush painting is going to depend on the quality of the paints, but it is possible to paint large models in acrylics without an airbrush. It requires a good primer coat, and thinned paints applied in multiple coats. I will try and throw up some examples of stuff I have done (although they will be OT models...) You will not have the workability that you did with the humbrols, but depending on the brand of acrylics you go with, you should have decent coverage. I personally use GW acrylics, and have friends who swear by both Vallejo and Reaper master series. I have also used Tamiya and model master. The tamiya does not apply well with a brush (the thinning agent is too effective IMO and attacks the previous coat) and I the model master acrylics didn't really leave an impression one way or the other.

So, yes, you can brush paint with the acrylics, but it will take significantly longer to achieve a solid smooth color coat than if you use an airbrush.

-Adam

[big F]

Well I was gonna say the same as the others. Tamiya is not very brush friendly, its ok for small details etc but rubish for area painting.

I have had some nice results with the Games Workshop acrylics, although the colours sway more towards armor and metalics and orcs blood they do coat well and I have used them on some large figures etc.

[do not disturb]

i've been using acrylics(games workshop) for some time now and haven't had any real issues with it.

the only problem with acrylics is how fast it dries....almost too fast.

if you need to apply multiple coats to something or need to cover a large area, it definitely helps to thin it down with a little water. its dries fast and thick if you're not careful with the brush but as a general rule, i always thin it down a bit to get one clean smooth coat before going willy nilly on it.

[warpaint22]

I find that acrylics are great paints but hopeless for brush painting. If you are going to brush paint with acrylics then go with the other guys and use Games Workshop paints as they are designed for brush use. After that I find Gunze Sangyo to be the best to get a cover with a brush.

Tamiya acrylic seems to turn to a gritty mess when you brush paint leaving you to heap the paint on and try and spread it around it's awful but good to airbrush.

IMO Games Workshop paints seem to be the best for brush painting and it has the only white that covers in a couple of thin coats. Just don't thin it with acrylic thinner as it turns into a clumpy mess like jelly, just use water to thin as advised.

[thegunny]

I've been using Tamiya paints for years and they brush just fine (some of the lighter colours need finessing). Vallejo is good for brushing (their air brush matt clear is great) and GW for the most part is acceptable. GW paints dry out in the bottle too easily and become thick (especially if you live in a warm climate) so put them in the fridge to prolong their life.

But having said that it's more of a case of horse for courses and each to their own. Contrary to other replies I can only say that in the 30+ years I've been using Tamiya and having tried just about every paint out there I'll use it above any other.

BTW the paints you get from some of the cheap stores & craft stores do a pretty good job and don't cost an arm and a leg and you can get some pretty funky colours.

If you're worried about drying time you can get products that when mixed with acrylics give them similar drying characteristics to enamels. Flotrol is one of them but as I'm in Australia I don't know if its available elsewhere and what it would be called.

[Guest Bromgrev]

Hokay, that's a lot of information to be getting on with - thanks, guys! I'll have to go and get some trials going, to see how I get on. Unless, that is, I find a place with a good supply of enamels ...

[Duymon]

All depends on what brand you're using.

Tamiya is a big nono for me. It dries so fast that I've gotten streaks on the second stroke!

Testors / model master acrylics require a lot of mixing to prepare them and even though they level out very well, but can only look consistent through an airbrush. If done througha brush on broad surfaces, flat/matte testors paints show a lot of slight silvering if you don't do it right. Oh, Testors also dries slow

Mr. Hobby from GS is the BEST acrylic paint on earth! Only because it is thin, it self levels almost as well as future, and the pigment is just right so that even one thin coat is opaque. Unfortunately, Mr. Hobby also seems to be alcohol based and dries out almost as fast as Tamiya. You can get one great coat on and hope you don't miss a spot because if you do it'll show when you patch it up >_<.

[MechTech]

I know you don't want to hear this but...airbrush. That's why I went to one; smoothness. I've heard of chemicals you can add to acrylics to slow their cure speed down. Check out your local art store. More and more artists go for acrylics due to less hazards and smells. The old schoolers had the same problem, drying / working speed. - MT

[azrael]

Using regular brushes with acrylics is not that hard. It just requires some good technique and some control. Sure it dries fast, but as long as you don't apply it like it's gonna dry as soon as you open the bottle, then it's not going to be a problem. It also helps to buy non-cheap brushes, like ones that use real hair and not synthetic stuff.

[David Hingtgen]

IMHO everything varies. Color by color, brand by brand. I personally like Tamiya white for hand-brushing better than most whites. Just try a bunch.

PS----Pollyscale. Probably the best overall acrylic, certainly for brushing. Available in MANY colors, but usually only found in the railroad colors.

[Straycatt]

Oh, and one word of caution on the acrylics... A miniature painting friend of mind found out the hard way that the non-toxic label on acrylics may not be accurate. At least one acrylic paint company uses carcinogenic 'hard metals' to create the colors......

-Adam

[jardann]

I second David's opinion about Polly Scale paints. Those are the best I have found for hand brushing.

The non-toxic label for many acrylics applies to their dry state I think. They can still have noxious fumes and when airbrushing, you still do not want to breathe in the fumes and airborn paint particles. But we're trying to avoid that in this thread anyway aren't we.

I reread your post Adam. This sounds like you have a friend who has cancer. Does he really believe that his cancer was caused by the paints he was using? Was he ingesting the paints in some manner? I haven't heard of this happening before. I hope he is better now.

Edited August 30, 2007 by jardann

[Straycatt]

I reread your post Adam. This sounds like you have a friend who has cancer. Does he really believe that his cancer was caused by the paints he was using? Was he ingesting the paints in some manner? I haven't heard of this happening before. I hope he is better now.

Actually it was a she, and she contracted an age specific type of cancer 20yrs before she should have ever been at risk. As for the cause, like me she is a miniature painter and would reshape the bristles of her brushes by placing the brush in her mouth, sometimes referred to as brush licking. While the ingestion of paint through brush licking hasn't been conclusively proven as the cause, the paints are the only things that raised red flags when subjected to chemical testing...

-Adam

[warpaint22]

I have always been told to use a good quality mask while airbrushing as atomised paint is deadly as it sticks to your lungs limiting the amount of air you can breath over time.

Airbrushing is the best way to go if not just easier to get a good finish, but I have met some paints over the years that can brush so well you would think it's airbrushed. If you can master brush painting it can be so relaxing and fun, I have at times brush painted models just because I didn't feel like all the clean up with the airbrush.

[jardann]

Adam, My best wishes for your friend. I hope her cancer is treatable and that she attains good health soon.

Warpaint, I'm right there with you about how relaxing brush painting can be. When I airbrush (still not very much, have a lot to learn) I always feel as if I'm rushing to make sure no paint dries in the tips, the setup and cleanup time annoys me too. And I still have no idea how some people airbrush tiny spaces like cockpits and wheel wells. It just seems like so much work to paint two square centimeters of model. It just seems like I have to plan and prepare so much to be able to do some airbrushing (no paint booth so must work outside). When I'm ready to brush paint, I can just open a bottle and go. But I am definitely tired of the lower quality finish from brush painting.

[big F]

As for the cause, like me she is a miniature painter and would reshape the bristles of her brushes by placing the brush in her mouth, sometimes referred to as brush licking.

-Adam

Oh crap I do that

[Noyhauser]

Adam, My best wishes for your friend. I hope her cancer is treatable and that she attains good health soon.

Warpaint, I'm right there with you about how relaxing brush painting can be. When I airbrush (still not very much, have a lot to learn) I always feel as if I'm rushing to make sure no paint dries in the tips, the setup and cleanup time annoys me too. And I still have no idea how some people airbrush tiny spaces like cockpits and wheel wells. It just seems like so much work to paint two square centimeters of model. It just seems like I have to plan and prepare so much to be able to do some airbrushing (no paint booth so must work outside). When I'm ready to brush paint, I can just open a bottle and go. But I am definitely tired of the lower quality finish from brush painting.

Thats exactly why I went back to paintbrushing from airbrush. I don't have the time anymore to spend several hours on setup, so I'd rather work my hand skills to the point where I can reproduce similar effects. I don't think its possible for 1/35 scale military stuff, but I think that paintbrushing works well with aircraft, particularly when semigloss/flat is generally the effect one is trying to reproduce.

[Guest Bromgrev]

If you can master brush painting it can be so relaxing and fun, I have at times brush painted models just because I didn't feel like all the clean up with the airbrush.

"Relaxing" and "fun" are the key words, there - I'm supposed to be doing both here, after all!

I have used airbrushes in the past, but I just hated the clean-up. Since I don't build planes now, I think the smaller and more complex surfaces of vehicles and mecha can cope with my brush-strokes. Oh, and I have now found some places with enamels ... so this topic may be moot as far as my paint supply is concerned ...

Adam, I hope your friend recovers - and thanks for the reminder that even apparently innocuous substances can be hazardous.

Edited September 2, 2007 by Bromgrev