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The choice of brushes and paints available to the modeller today is mind boggling! What materials and equipment you use will depend on what you are painting and what effect you want to create. This is a rough guide to what there is and how to use it.
The traditional modellers paint is cold seting enamel and the most recognisable of these is undoubtedly the Humrol range of small tins. These paints are made by mixing a powdered pigment into an oil based medium. Obvously care should be taken when opening the paints and they should be resealed tightly, otherwise a skin willl form on the top. The tins are air tight and the paint starts to dry as soon as it makes contact with the air in the same way as household paint or nail varnish. Because the pigment is denser than the medium it tends to sink to the bottom of the tin. This means it is essential to stir the paint really well before you use it, with something like a matchstick or back of a brush. It is always a good idea to experiment with anything new you are trying whether it is a technique or a new material so try out the paint on a scrap model first to save ruining your current work of art! These enamels are known to vary in their colour density. The gloss enamels will take about an hour to dry on an average day. Whilst they are drying they become tacky and are terribly prone to attracting dust and specks of things from everywhere, so if you are painting a large area, like a wing or a large flat surface, try and shelter it from any invading specs, insects,etc.A good tip is to place a plate or mixing bowl over the model while its drying- this will keep away any unwanted dust! It is probably best to wait until you are really sure that its dry befrore handling it.Theres nothing more annoying than a perfect thumb print in the middle of a wing section!
The two pots on the left are acrylics, the right enamels
The drawback to enamels is that they are oil based which means that you have to clean them straight after with a relevant solvent. If you leave it too long the paint will dry on the brush and ruin it. A little white spirit in an old jar works well as a cleaner although any petrol based solvent would work. Be careful not to choose a solvent that will disslove the adhesive that holds the bristles together or when you shake it in the jar the bristles come out! Always put the lid back on the jar to avoid splilling it and to stop the fumes getting everywhere. The cleaner will become dirty the more you use it, so when it gets too dirty throw it out, dirty thinner will leave you with a dirty brush. A dirty brush will do two things. Firstly, it will contaminate the next colour you apply, so if you are painting white, for example, and it looks dirty or pink, the problem is probably contamination from the brush. Secondly, because the "dirt" on your brush is actually small particles of paint, it will wear out more quickly. The paint eventually dries right into the base of the brush which starts to push the bristles apart and you end up with odd hairs sticking out at angles! You then end up with "brush-a-la-hedgehog".
If you have a fine pointed brush, once you have cleaned it, stroke the hairs back into a point and store it upright. Avoid putting it in your mouth to revive the point as it tastes horrible! If the brush came with a clear tip protector put this back on the brush!
Acrylics are a relatively new introduction to the modeller and they offer a very satisfactory alternative to the oil based enamels. Most model shops will stock at least one range of these, probably made by a model company like Tamiya and they all have a wide range of colours. The first difference is that acrylics are a water based paint which means that there is no solvent involved so for cleaning use clean water. Again they are air drying and, technically, are closely related to water based household emulsions. The second advantage is that they dry very quickly, ten minutes not being an uncommon drying time. There is a drawback to this, however,because the paint will dry in the brush hairs much quicker than the enamels. This means that you should thoroughly rinse your brush regularly during use. Again it is good practice to remove any excess with a tissue or cloth first and to keep the washing jar clean so change the water regularly. This is obviously cheaper than replacing the thinners for the enamels as the solvent comes out of the tap! If you do not the paint will dry and the brush will "bush out" much more quickly. Because these are water based colours they dry with a matt finish and tend not to have the adhesive quality of enamel. One advantage of this is that one can scrape off small areas of dried acrylic from areas where it is perhaps difficult to paint accurately on a small scale, like an aircraft canopy.
Brushes come in two types; synthetic bristles or natural bristles. They both have a different feel and its probably a good idea to try one of each to see which you prefer. There is a lot of discussion about what brush you should use for what job but you will get the best result by using a brush you are happy and comfortable with, its all a matter of personal preference. You can spend anything from under £1 to an absolute fortune for a paintbrush so make sure you look around before you buy. There are several really good ranges available for the modeller so make sure you have a good look round.
A selection of brushes. Notice the top "cut down" brush used for stippling effects.
Brushes will all eventually wear out, no matter how well you look after them but dont throw them away because they can still be useful. When you can no longer use a brush it will still make a good stirring stick or useful tool if you sharpen the end. It can be used for sculpting, scraping back overpainted areas,etc. Also, most modellers I know have a least one brush that has bushed out as they use it for different techniques like stippling or weathering. It is also not advisable to use a new brush for dry brushing as this method is known for killing brushes.
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