You are all going to have to pardon my ignorance when it comes to paints.... I've been doing a lot of reading and oil paints seem to be very popular, what are the benefits of oil paints vs the others (acrylics & enamels)? Thanks in advance for the assistance!

Howdy SFC,

First, a warm welcome aboard!

Now, to your question. There are certainly more learned painters here on sight but I'll toss in my Farthing's worth.

Qoute..." what are the benefits of oil paints vs. the others?"

To answer your question specifically as asked, one of the major benfits of oil paints (IMHO) is control. Put simply, oil paint blends the best of either enamel or acrylic (acrylic hardly blends at all). Plus it's drying time adds to the 'control' factor. It allows you to apply your paint, do you thing, and then step back and look at it for awhile..........................then, go back and change it if you wish! Additionally if you use a good quality oil paint, when you use it for your washes, it 'flows' very nicely, as even enamels begin drying fairly quickly, especially if you are working on large surfaces.
If you look around this site you will find many good articles on paint techniques written by some of the very talented people who hang their hats here. :-)

For what it's worth, I generally prime in enamel, paint in acrylics, wash in oils, weather in all three, dust in pastels or pigments, and coat in lacquer.
hth

Tread.