Hi All,

Several weeks ago, I posted about Adam Wilder videos, and how impressed I had been with them, even though they didn't demonstrate anything new for the vast majority of you. I still found them great!

I'm about to try my hand at doing some of the small detail painting (the 'fake' shadowing, and multi-color oil dots), something I have never tried before. I bought some Winsor & Newton brush cleaner, and a number of excellent quality ultra fine brushes, l(000 sable brushes) and similar. I am, honestly, quite terrified of using these new brushes, as they were outrageously expensive, but I know that these brushes are necessary to do the kind of work that I want to do.

I wanted to ask you experienced folks if there are any special methods you would use to clean/maintain these ultra fine brushes, besides using the cleaner/restorer. I plan to use the brushes for oils, enamels and acrylics, so, are there differences in how you clean and care for these delicate brushes when painting using these different types of paints? I am most interested in any specific methods you use on these ultra small brushes. Given that I've paid close to $20 for some of these brushes, I want to keep them as perfect as possible for a long, long time. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!!!

I'm no expert on the matter, but what I do:

Try and keep the brushes for a specific medium, i.e. if you used one for acrylics, only use acrylics with it. Acrylics are tougher on brushes and I usually only use a synthetic brush as you get the same result at less cost overall.

Do not leave the brush point down in any fluid, and don't leave them vertical when finished as gravity will draw any residual downward. Clean them, dry with paper towel, make sure the point is repaired and then put the brush tip protector one and store in a container. I use one of those traveller's toothpaste and toothbrush holders.
Someone once told me to use hair conditioner after cleaning my brushes. You use it the same as on your head - apply, leave for a while, rinse off. I do find the brushes seem to last longer and keep the point longer... but maybe I am just imagining it.

I'm certainly not an expert and I don't even play one on TV...
I would just like to add that fixing the bristles after cleaning has been an important factor in making my expensive brushes last longer. After a proper cleaning I use a brush conditioner from an art store to help form the bristles back into their original point and then place a tip protector over the end. It is important to ensure that you do not twist the brush when you clean it or especially when you form the bristles into a point. I have done this and was not able to save the brush from becoming my next expensive liquid glue applicator
Most of all, don't be afraid to use your brushes. For me, a good brush makes all the difference, especially in figure painting.
Best of luck and happy modeling.
Andy

Hi Curt,

I would recommend that you use one brush for one medium (one for oils and enamels (if you can afford it one for oils and one for enamels) and one for acrylics). I would also recommend to keep a brush just for metallic paints since it is very difficult to get rid of the metallic particles present in the paints.

I know that some people are even more obsessed with paints and have some brushes for certain colors (one for greens and one for reds) and some for the rest of the colors. From my experience I have had a harder time to clean green paints than the rest.

I would recommend that the smallest you get is number 1. When they are good brushes they have a very pointed brush and you can paint as fine details as smaller brushes but you are going to have enough paint in the brush to do the job. With smaller brushes paint dries too fast and you might find yourself not being able to paint anything at all, specially with acrylic paints which dry too fast.

Regarding the cleaning use the solvent that you use for each medium to clean the brush. Secondly use some warm water and hand soap to clean the brushes. Afterwards use "The Masters" Brush Cleaner and Preserver to clean again the brush (maybe you will have to do that a few times until you only get clean soap) and finally use it again to keep the pointed form of the brush.

"The Masters" Brush Cleaner and Preserver is an excellent product that I highly recommend because the first time I used it it clean a synthetic brush that had the hairs tinted green after using a Vallejo green that was used many years back. You will find that no matter how much you clean a brush this product still will clean more the brush.

Once you have finished with the cleaning and you have put the tip protector leave them with the tip in the bottom so that all the liquid tends to go to the hair instead to the ferrule. Since you have the tip protector the tip won't be affected or deformed. If you don't feel at ease you can buy an artist brush holder which will let you put them in that position without touching anything but if you don't want to buy one it is better that you put them horizontally instead of vertically with the tip on the top.

Hope this helps you,
Angel

I Quotes 100% Anmoga, The Masters Brush Cleaner and Preserver is excellent with acrylics,oils and enamel fresh and dry and for you it should not be difficult to find as it is produced in USA, I have a set for acrylic ,one for oil and enamel and 2 brushes Only for metallic, I personally use the 00,0 and 1 of the series 7 W&N but it is true that with a good brush you could do any detail with a 1 or 0, if you treat them well they last even years,I use new ones for enamel And oils, the "old" ones for acrylics that ruin brushes faster and however i only use for base colors not for details,I clean the brushes first with the thinner then quick with laquer thinner and then warm water and "The Masters" soap, finally dry up and always with" The Masters "i make the tip, tip protector and put them away

A very important thing is how to use the brushes, I have a little "heavy" hand and last less than others, never ever dip to the tip entirely but only maximum halfway, painting should never Touch the ferrule because the brush ruins very quickly, after clean completely the ferrule is almost impossible without damage the brush

http://www.generalpencil.com/the-mastersreg-brush-cleaner-and-preserver.html

Thank you so much to everyone for these valuable replies!!

I noted the comment about not getting more paint on a brush than about the middle of the bristles. I had heard that for years, but oddly enough, in many, if not most of the painting videos I've watched, the experts seem to ignore that completely, and seem to dip their expensive brushes into paint well up onto the ferrules. I wonder why. Perhaps they are in a hurry to get the videos done, and not taking enough time to do it 'right', but that is certainly not setting an example for those of us who are still learning.

Also, a follow-up on brush sizes. I got a set of the Flex-i-File Ultra Fine brushes, 10/0, 5/0, 4/0, 3/0 and 2/0. I gather the recommendation made by Anmoga to use brushes no smaller that a "1" to make sure the brush holds enough paint, makes me wonder how a "1" would compare to the sizes that I got in my set. Would a "1" have more bristles than the largest brush in my set, the 2/0? That 2/0 looks pretty 'big', relatively speaking, to make those ultra tiny scratches that Wilder makes in his videos.

Hi Curt,

Tomorrow I will post some photos with the different sizes so you can compare them. I think I have from Winsor & Newton N 7 sizes 2, 1 and some smaller and I am glad I only bought one of the smaller since afterwards I tried painting with a smaller than 1 from another brand and I had the problem that it held too little paint.

Be aware that different brands same number have different size.

From Winsor & Newton N 7 don't buy the miniature brushes. Tomorrow I will post a photo of a normal nº1 and a miniature nº1 so you can see the difference.

Hope the photos will help you to get an idea how they are in size. I will try to include an american coin so you get a better idea of the size.

Regards,
Angel

Angel,

It would be fantastic if you could post some pictures of brushes so I could compare. I would greatly appreciate it!

Curt

Hi Curt, I have been a landscape painter for the last 15 years or so (for a while Full time) and also use the same brushes for modelling. I have used many different types of paints, and I have always used the best brushes I could afford, and other than brushes that I simply have worn out from use, I still have almost all of them. I have to say that in my experience, what has been previously said about not getting paint into the heel of a brush (the part next to the ferrule) is IMHO the most important rule in taking care of a brush. The reason being, if you get paint jammed in there, no amount of cleaning is going to get it out, and as a result the bristles will start to separate from each other, permanently.

Another tip that I can offer is, no matter what cleaner you use, Laquer thinner, turpenoid, mineral spirits, whatever, I follow this up at the end of every session by washing them out with warm water and plain ivory soap. Run the brush under water and then gently rub the brush on the bar of soap, being very gentle (don't kink the bristles!). You will see color coming out of the brush (that you thought was clean), on the white soap, then rinse. Do this a few times, until there is pretty much no color coming off on the soap.

When cleaning is finished I lay the brushes down on a paper towel so the bristles are gently touching the towel, but NOT bending them. this will wick the remaining moisture out of them so the handles won't swell and loosen the ferrules. This will also show how well you've cleaned them, if color wicks out on the white towel, they are not clean.

I know this has been a little long winded, but when I was painting full time, my brushes were my life, so I took care of them, and still have almost all of them!

Hope this helps - John

Curt. The brush is a tool like any other. If you don't use it, you can't get the performance you intended. My father worked for a surveying company. The owner bought a new truck for the crews. A week went by and the truck remained in the parking lot. The boss asked why the truck wasn't being used. The guys said they didn't want to scratch the new truck by taking it out in the woods. The owner took a hammer and put a dent on the fender. The next day the truck was out on the road. Moral of the story. You will use and replace brushes over time so there is no time like the present to get started.

John, Greg,

Both of you provided VERY interesting and pertinent thoughts, especially to/for me. I tend to always want to get the best 'stuff' in all things, but then, I often find myself afraid to use them. Perhaps the worst (or best) example of this was a 1989 Pontiac Trans Am car that I bought, in an emotional rush after another car was stolen. I had the car several years, and it literally had 400 miles on it when I sold it. A perfect example of my odd affectation with 'things'.

Brushes are another of those, albeit much less expensive! You folks are right. First off, I'll never get good at doing what I bought the brushes for, if I don't use them. Secondly, I am extremely fortunate that I am not broke, and I have the means to replace brushes should I need to. It gives me great confidence, though, to hear from someone who used those brushes a lot, and preserved them well, when taken well care of. I think tomorrow, I'll start using those expensive little guys! Thanks for adding to my confidence in moving forward!

Hi Curt,

I've just taken the photos. I will see where I can upload them to include the photos. I used before photobucket but with the new policy I cannot include them to appear in the chat.

Regarding acrylics, specially Vallejo, it is a good idea before starting to deep the brush in water and then touch a cleenex or cleaning paper so that most of the water is left on the paper. Afterwards you can start painting and remember to clean after a few minutes of use in clean water, touch the paper and continue painting. In this way less paint will go to the ferrule and dry there since it will already be wet from the start and capillary action won't take that much paint to the ferrule and since you are cleaning it every few minutes you are getting rid of most of the paint that gets there besides you are keeping it wet until you finish and clean the brush.

Now I am going to have lunch and afterwards will see how I will post the photos.

Regards,
Angel

Angel, try an Imgur account for your photos, I like it very much, it is simple and easy to use.

Good tools were made to be used Curt, it's a shame not to use them, take care of them and they will last a long time.

http://s1266.photobucket.com/user/anmoga/slideshow/Brushes

You can see the photos in the above link.

Each one is about 5 megas so if someone wants to see them in more detail post me a private message with your e-mail so I can send the original size photo.

In one of the photos can be seen a comparison of W&N 7 sizes 2, 1 (normal and miniature series), 0 and 00. In another can be seen the W&N 7 on one side of the ruler and Rembrandt (Red sable) sizes 1, 0, 00 and 000 and Van Gogh (synthetic) sizes 2, 0, 3/0 and 5/0 brushes on the other side. In another photo can be seen together same sizes of the different brands.

Regards,
Angel

Angel,

Great pictures! Extremely helpful! Private message sent.

If somebody else is interested send me a private message.

Regards,
Angel