Hello Mr Ed here....... what paints do you use?
At risk of posting highly flammable topic
I want to gauge the general consensus regarding paint quality nowadays,
what has prompted this post? .....well my dissapointment with some
brands (or
particular colours within a range) of paints in recent years, am I
alone, what do you think?
Most of you probably have a selection
of brands as I do and maybe like me you may have multiple generations of
a particular brand. It is claimed, rightly or wrongly, that certain
brands suit particular styles of painting so perhaps you may have an
opinion regarding suitability of brands based on this assumption. There
is a lot of hearsay and Chinese whispers within the hobby regarding
formulations of paint brands which promotes speculation on their quality
and usefulness, I'm really more interested in personal experiences not
the "I was talking to someone who new a bloke that was mates with a guy
that worked for........"
I'm interested in hearing/reading what
your thoughts are regardless of your experience, style and what you
paint for (table top, display etc) if I can decode a general trend I
will try to write up your combined thoughts as an publishable article.
Let me provide a bit of background as to my own paint collection. No matter what the age if the paint is still viable and
behaves as it did when I first purchased it I still own it, this makes
my paint collection look a little like a museum, I have no shame. Big
old glass jars, tiny 80's Humbrol white plastic pots and tinned enamels,
every type of citadel pot, Ral Partha/AD&D fat screw tops etc. Of
course many more have been tossed than survived the years as the climate
isn't kind to paints that haven't been carefully watched what was
liquid last week might well be hard as rock the next. As far as style
goes, well to be honest, for many years it has revolved around painting
15mm historical armies (lots of figures) so layered dry brushing was the
most effective way for me to produce good results on small miniatures in
quantity although generals or personality figures would get thorough
treatment with carefully layered highlights and shading. The last year
18 months has seen me move to 25-32mm with an eye to eventually painting display
miniatures mostly utilizing dry layering and if I'm feeling bold or
confident I use the transparency (well diluted) style. Surprisingly
enough it is the transperency style and a very old Humbrol acrylic which
started me thinking, I found I was having enormous trouble getting the
right result with GW and Reaper (both new pots) paints and as a last resort
went to an old Humbrol, in good condition and close to the right shade,
success. No plasticky (it's a word) finish, no shiny shiny. no breaking
down of previous layers, no chalkiness, in short other than slightly courser pigments a
nice even matt finish. Now no doubt some of you may be thinking "hey Paint Pig you like a shiny finish to your miniatures" too true, but not half way through the paint job. The plastic shiny finish some brands leave make it very difficult to add subsequent washes or layers and quickly lead you down a slippery slope.
To avoid overly long comments you may send your thoughts via email and I will post them in entirety or relevant sections on the blog. Please dont use this as an opportunity to overtly diss a particular brand, constructive useful criticism or praise works best.
thanks for reading
Dave
