Can anyone recommend some brushes that are good for figures. And for anyone who knows, why are Winsor Newton 7 Series so expensive?! What could possibly make them cost so much and are they worth it? What are good brushes aside from 7 Series? I know nothing about figures.

Tamiya makes excellent brushes. I mainly use a variety of Imex brushes. One difference is the quality of the brush; i.e. how the glue holds up and how many uses the bristles are good for.

The Winsor & Newton series 7 are very high quality sable brushes. They are meant to be an investment, and if you take good care of them they will be. Having said that, there are a few good quality sable brushes out there that would work well. If you have a good quality art supply store, not a Michaels, ask them which sable brushes they would recommend and find something that suits your fancy and you budget. Remember that the tip or point of the brush is what you are paying for, so if it's not perfect, find another one.
Currently sable brushes are in short supply and high demand so prices are up for that reason too. Amazon has sable brushes, but buying online is a chance I am not willing to take, as you never know what kind of point you will get. Hope this helps. Cheers.

One rule of thumb to buying pointy brushes: wet the tip of the brush (but not with your tongue!) and flex the tip. If the tip returns to a nice sharp point get it. I've bought pointy brushes that look good in the store, but after one use the bristles become all splayed out - quite useless, unless for weathering. By all means DO NOT buy a brand called 'Zen' - they have a silver colored handle and are inexpensive. Worst brushes ever!

Why so expensive?

Here're a couple of little threads that might help answer that question:

Timelines::Forums::Sable Brush Article

Arcane Paintworks::Importing Kolinski Sable

Here in the US I think it's all political. The sables are prolific in the wild in China, so much so that they're a nuisance to farmers. Write your congressman if you think the US Dept of Fish & Wildlife have overstepped their bounds. (I have.)

As to are W&N Series 7 worth it? My answer is yes. Good luck finding any brush even close to comparable in quality at your local Michael's or Hobby Lobby - ain't gonna happen.

If you want really good quality brushes, you're going to have to shop at a real arts supply store, either local or on line. Unfortunately for me, the only fine arts supplier in my local area closed years ago, so it's on-line for me.

I general buy all of my paint brushes now from Dick Blick:

Dick Blick Art Supplies

W&N Series brushes are getting hard to find now, and supply and demand are driving up the price. You can still get them, but they aren't cheap. Take care of them, and they'll last a good while, but also remember that all brushes should be considered "expendables." They ALL wear out eventually, and trying to paint with a worn out brush is just frustrating. Be prepared to replace figure painting brushes periodically.

There are some good alternatives that are pretty much equal in quality, but they're also sable and suffering from the same (politically caused) economic price pressures.

Happy modeling!

Hi,

I'm currently using some sable brushes out of England by Rosemary and Company, not sure exactly where they are made, however they seem to be pretty good and the brush has a nice snap to the end. They seem to hold a point and hold a fare bit of paint as well, the fibres are a touch longer than other watercolour style brushes I have used. I'm working on a big paint project right now so we'll see how they last. Affordable as well.

I'm pretty hard on brushes so I do buy them every year. My rule of thumb is natural fibres for oil based product and synthetic for waterbased, as the acrylic will dry out the natural fibres, also clean them in cold water, warm water will soften the product and it will then travel up the ferrule and the brush will start to spread out.

Windsor and Newtons Number 7's, are not as good as they used to be, I read somewhere they are being made off shore although that would need confirmation. I have some 15 year old brushes that are as good as the day I bought them and some newer ones that didn't last a year. Buyer beware.

Below is from Dick Blick's site;

"Kolinsky Sable Brush Shortage

Due to regulatory issues regarding the importation of Kolinsky hair, we are temporarily out of stock on many of our more popular brush styles. Be assured that we are working with our vendors and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to remedy this situation as soon as possible. We appreciate your patience."

Although retailers can't bring them in individuals seem to be exempt. Weird, I had no trouble bringing mine into Canada and my understanding is that the import restriction is for the whole of North America.

I would go to some of the more figure based sites and see what others are using, that is what I did last year.

Hope this helps, feel free to send a note if you have any other questions.

Just noticed Mike mentions the same thing about the W&N brushes and the importing thing...there are some good links there.


Peter

I know I need to take good care of them so lets say for example I did buy a 7 series, when I put paint on my wet pallete and dip the brush in the appropriate thinner is it ok to use my expensive brush to mix the paint and thinner on my pallete or should I use another brush to do the mixing...would that hurt the brush?

I've had good luck with Da Vinci Series paint brushes...they are out of Germany and use Russian Sable. Price is more expensive then what you find in local Craft Store, but cheaper then W&N.

I used them on this bust:

Peter thank you for your wisdom...on a side note please don't tell me your a Canucks fan because then we'll have a problem haha lol...seriously though, thank you...

Winsor & Newton series 7, forever. No matter, by far the best ones.

Sorry Michael..I've lived in denial for a long time...I bleed blue and green man...there I said it...I'm a Canucks fan..and you're a Bruins fan?..I know several, they're okay people but I always have my hand on my wallet and my beer when I'm beside them....

Don't pass up places like Michaels or I guess Hobby Lobby?...for cheap synthetic brushes..you can get a pack of 8 or so in various widths and use them for washes etc..when they are ruined no big deal, you can pitch'em and not cry. Some of them are actually pretty good.

Regards from the West Coast,

P

Luca's point is well taken the W&N are great brushes, my experience is that the most recent brushes are just not as good as the older ones which leads me to believe something has changed in the production of the brush. This is just my opinion.

If you're using acrylics be sure to thoroughly clean your brush after every painting session. Acrylic paint will dry between the bristles near the ferrule and cause splaying of the bristles. I find 'Brush Plus' from Plaid Acrylics an excellent cleaner, not only for acrylics but also oils.

I've been using and liking W&N Sceptre Gold II. They are about a third of the price but is still a decent brush (be aware though, they are a sable/synthetic hybrid).
To be honest i havent tried a #7 but am thinking about getting one for christmas!

Oh, be sure to pick up a bunch of really cheap brushes for all your dirty work (mixing color, weahtering, dry brushing etc.). I find myself using those brushes way more than i use my fine pointed "expensive" ones

The Winsor & Newton #7 are great , but expensive . More than haft of the painting we do can be done with a cheaper brush . It's when you get to the details that they matter . Figure painting is asking for a good brush . So if you do invest in a #7 it should last a long time provided you take good care of it .