Paint Brushes; what is necessary?

Are we talking about the Da Vinci brushes? The ones I hold dearest are Kolinsky red sable, like the Maestro Series 10 and Series 35. But they have lots of different styles and materials. The ones most similar to the W&N Series 7 would probably be Da Vincis Series 11.

The last year I have been trying out a new synthetic hair brush from Da Vinci, called Casaneo. They hold paint very well, close to natural hair, and have a great feel to them. They are not as good as red sable, but they are the best synthetic brushes I've tried so far.

What material are they made with? Red sable?

I love good brushes, and yes, it's fun to buy them. :) Good brushes are a great help in my opinion. As with all tools, cheap is usually frustrating. I have tried most brands and lots of different models. For years I used W&N Series 7. Mostly because they where considered to be the best. Today I use mostly DaVinci and Raphael, but I will probably drop the Raphaels, since, as with W&N, I don't feel that they are worth the premium price. IMHO the Da Vinci Maestros are about as good, but cost something like 75% of the other top brands.

BlackSheepTwoOneFour

You find that addicting too, huh? Me too. I hate being OCD figuring out which ones are the best. LOL!

 

Clear on that.

 

You find that addicting too, huh? Me too. I hate being OCD figuring out which ones are the best. LOL!

I'm also in the preferring better brushes camp.

I believe my hand brushing began to improve when I stopped buying hobby brushes (i.e. Testors white handle hobby brushes) and started shopping in the decent artist brush section of Hobby Lobby (or your favorite art/hobby/craft store). They have lots of sales on brushes too.

And I also found that shopping for brushes is fun and slightly addicting.

 

stikpusher

The bigger ones, #5 and up, are very useful for dusting off models.

 

Airbrushes are also great for dusting models. I run it for a minute to make sure no thinner (or paint) is in it, with bottle off (I use suction feed but I am sure an empty cup would do as well), then dust away with air pressure.

 

I still hand brush only on small areas. I think good bristle material is important as well. I've always heard Red Sable are the best. Then again everyone has their favorites. 

The bigger ones, #5 and up, are very useful for dusting off models.

I have a range of brushes from 10/0 up to size 6. I don't use the larger ones often, but they are still handy to have. I tend to go for the mid range price rise, fom £3 each up to about 6.

I enjoy handbrushing as well. Part of your choice of brushes that you will need depends upon what you will be painting. If your into figures or other small fine detail work, obviously smaller types are the way to go. if you plan on doing larger subjects or areas, you will need larger types. I prefer natural bristles over synthetic, and although I tend to be as frugal as possible with costs in this hobby, in the case of brushes, try not to be. In addition to the recommendations of sizes listed above, I would suggest at least a #1 and #3 rounds, and perhaps a #5 as well, if you will be working on large areas.

Since I only use brushes for small areas, my brushes tend to be the smaller sizes. I airbrush the larger areas.

I do use one of my largest brushes for dry brushing.  Since dry brushing is hard on bristles, I have to frequently replace that one. I use one about 1/8 inch wide for drybrushing.

I get my brushes from the crafts area of craft stores rather than the expensive oil painting section- cheaper.  I select visibly instead of worrying about which number.

Note that there are synthetic bristle brushes that are fine for waterbased paints (acrylic) that are not for enamels and lacquers that use strong solvents for thinners.

For very small detail I use the end of one of those sharp double ended toothpicks.  Works great.

 

 

I'm a fan of a good brush. Three round and three flat are a good start.

For round, get 000, 00 and 0.

For flat, get 1/16", 1/8" and 1/4".

Keep them clean and store in a holder so they don't get bent.

I find nylon to be fine, natural bristles ok too.

I like a brand called Robert Simmons.

Expect to pay $ 7.00 to $ 10.00 for anything with any quality.