What brushes do you use?

Heya, I was just thinking of getting some brushes and was wondering which brand you use.

I switched from Citadel to Pegasus some time ago and are quite content with them up to now.

I use Russian brushes called "Chernaya Rechka" in cost less then 1$ per brush and they are better then GW ones Use 2 tipes - Synthetic and Kolinskiy

Lately I've been using Loew-Cornell and Royal Gold brushes. However, I don't shop by brand. I just cruise the brush aisle of the art store for a brush that's just right. I typically go for brushes with some length, about 1 cm long. I find that these create a nice point which keeps over time. My favorite brush at the moment is a 1 cm dagger. I'm able to get really straight lines with it and the brush can hold plenty of paint.

I'm the same as UnderBheit, normally just a random brush from an art shop.
But I do like using the tamIya ones now and then.

-Foot

I use reaper's brushes, Windsor & Newton Sceptre Gold, W&N Series 7, and Utrecht Kolinsky for most of my nice work, and a selection of cheaper Utrecht sable, and some Utrecht Synthetics for base coating etc, and DaVinci for freehand / eyes / etc.

i use a standard GW brush for base coating and washing, i use a citadel fine detail for painting my complete model and i have a custom trimmed revell brush for dry brushing my 1:72 mini's

I've been using the Loew-Cornell & Royal red sable brushes lately along with their bristle brushes for terrain dry brushing.

I use GW brushes, one 'Van Gogh' brush, and two 'The armypainter' brushes.

used GW for 2 decades now, and can't complain
got a Winsor Newton, but the point went crooked rather rapidly (probably my fault of bad use ?)
and been trying a Red Kolinsky sabre from the UK Creative brushes for some weeks now, and am rather pleased with it.

One important question though ; I need some tips on brush cleaners.
In the past I just washed them out with plain water (A LOT !)
I wanted to take maximum care of my brushes so they would last longer, and bought the Vallejo Brush Cleaner and Restorer. I think it's not really for acrylic paints, but it's the only one they got. I find it doesn't do much cleaning on little paintflecks / residue that stays in my brush (even after frequent rinsing with water while painting.)

What do you guys do for keeping your brushes in the best state for the longest period of time ?

thanks for any replies

I use GW brushes and am pretty content, but I don't seem to find any good drybrushes I like. What brushes do you use for drybrushing?

I always use the newest brushes for my models and when I think they are starting to split they are 'promoted' to scenerybrushes (or in the worst case scenarios to mixing brush)

for cleaning I use cold water in between sessions and after each day or session of painting I clean with cold water and soap, just plain o' regular soap. The soap really helps with dryed up paint

mmm.... we definitely have to meet, talk & watch eachother's way of working !
I didn't know soap dissolved acrylic paint flecks ?!
About technique ; do you just rub the bristles between thumb and finger, or do you squeeze from the shaft outward to the end of the bristles ?

now drybrushing is heavy on the brushes, even the drybrush brushes

same as with the regular brushes ; been using GW for decades (not bad I think), tried some from an art store (the names went off the handles, so I can't tell you, but they came from Schleiper : 3 different brands), and recently got some Vallejo Paint Masters (the flat rectangular ones)

In the past, I made the mistake of drybrushing too long ; the paint dries up rather quickly, ruining your brush. So what I started doing is using 2 or 3 drybrushes ; use one for X strokes, rinse with water, another X strokes, rinse and set aside ; start with 2nd brush, etc. Just using them for really short bursts to prevent the paint from drying in the bristles.
Ofcourse there's a big difference in drybrushing parts of a mini, or doing it on a building. For a building I would use much cheaper brushes (that don't matter if they're ruined after 3 weeks or so.) (don't know the brand, but they have bare wooden shafts; not painted or varnished)

Captain Bernhardt wrote:

I use GW brushes and am pretty content, but I don't seem to find any good drybrushes I like. What brushes do you use for drybrushing?

I always use the newest brushes for my models and when I think they are starting to split they are 'promoted' to scenerybrushes (or in the worst case scenarios to mixing brush)

for cleaning I use cold water in between sessions and after each day or session of painting I clean with cold water and soap, just plain o' regular soap. The soap really helps with dryed up paint

My friend is as close to a master of the drybrushing technique as I've ever seen. Most people drybrush early in their painting careers and then move on to more difficult techniques as their skills progress, but my buddy instead decided to work on his drybrushing skills alone. He can do some really cool and good looking things with his advanced drybrushing style. Anyways, one of the things he taught me was that you can make a really effective drybrush by snipping your old paint brushes that have lost their point. He makes his remaining bristles extremely short so they are stiffer than hell. I've been using that same method since and I haven't bought a drybrush in years. Honestly, I feel you can make a better one yourself than anything they sell on the market.

Regular brushes I tend to find by just browsing an art store. I'm not picky about brand, I just want something with a nice point that can load a fair amount of paint in one go.