Paints

[mps42]

As you may or may not know, I have been trying to teach myself to paint minis. As of right now I am painting with craft paints and am wanting to upgrade to better quality paint but can't afford the REALLY good paints. (Vallejo, etc)
What would be a good middle ground for paints? Should I go with Games workshop? Are there others I should consider?
HELP!!

 

[pogre]

As you may or may not know, I have been trying to teach myself to paint minis. As of right now I am painting with craft paints and am wanting to upgrade to better quality paint but can't afford the REALLY good paints. (Vallejo, etc)
What would be a good middle ground for paints? Should I go with Games workshop? Are there others I should consider?
HELP!!

Look at Reaper Pro. They are level below Reaper master paints, but are very nice paints. They also come in the "learn-to-paint" kits, which are not a bad value.

 

[The_Universe]

We mostly use Citadel Colour pots (the Warhammer brand), but I've used Reaper Pro pots and Master Paints squirt bottles as well.

The Reaper Master Paints are the most convenient, followed by the Citadel pots, and then the Pro paints series stuff. On the other hand, IMO, Propaints tend to be a bit thicker, and cover better on a basic paint job than similar colors from the other two series/brands.

Still, the Citadel paints are BY FAR the easiest to find, and they're certainly good enough to get you through almost anything.

 

[D'karr]

As you may or may not know, I have been trying to teach myself to paint minis. As of right now I am painting with craft paints and am wanting to upgrade to better quality paint but can't afford the REALLY good paints. (Vallejo, etc)
What would be a good middle ground for paints? Should I go with Games workshop? Are there others I should consider?
HELP!!

Don't let the price of the Vallejo paints fool you. When you compare the price of them with the Citadel Paints you are not paying that much more and you will be better off with the Vallejo.

Vallejo Paints have some of the best pigmentation in the industry. They come in an easy to use dropper style bottle that allows you to dispense just the amount of paint you want to work with. This keeps your paints, clean and it also prevents the paint from drying out in the bottle since you only open the bottle when you actually dispense paint and it remains closed while you paint.

Reaper Master Paints are a very good value. They are slightly cheaper than the Vallejo and have the same advantages as the Vallejo paints when it comes to paint life since they use the same style of bottle. In addition, Reaper is constantly adding new colors to that line, so the variety is vast. One cool thing about the Reaper Master Paints is that Reaper produces paint "Triads" (three similar colors). When used as a set allow you to have basecoat, shadows and highlights for the same color tone, without having to mix your own paint. If you are just starting on your painting expedition this will probably not be anything you have to even look at initially. However, as you start to really get into the painting you'll probably like the idea.

The Master Paints have a sister-line of paints called Reaper Pro Paints. Reaper Pro Paints are also a good value, when compared to Citadel Paints. I believe they are still slightly cheaper than Citadel. The Pro Paints mix is slightly thicker than any of the other paints. This has advantages and disadvantages. The disadvantage is that you will have a "thicker" coat of paint when applying directly. This gives great coverage over a mini but can, over several coats, cause the miniature details to look "gloppy". The advantage is that when you thin out the paint you still have very good coverage and the paint will last you a lot longer. However, Pro Paints come in a screw-top container and they will dry out quicker than the two paints mentioned above.

Then we come to Citadel Paints. I have a love / hate relationship with these paints. Don't get me wrong they are very good paints. I just believe that they are way too expensive when compared to the others. GW also made the mistake of changing their packaging a few years ago to screw-top bottles. They were horrible. They would easily dry out even if they had never been opened. That soured me enough on Citadel Paints that I have not bought any in over three years. However, I believe that they have gone to a flip-top bottle that is much easier to "seal" and works better for dispensing paint. However, both the screw-top and the Flip-top caps will allow the paints to dry faster in the pot than the dropper style bottles.

The biggest advantage for Citadel Paints is availability. Most hobby and game stores will stock Citadel paints even if they do not stock the other three. I've noticed that trend changing dramatically with Reaper Paints. They seem to be popping out everywhere and I've noticed that they are as available as Citadel paints. Vallejo Paints are still not as available as any of the others. However, if you purchase online you don't have to worry about the availability as they are all easily found.

When you look at it, your best value will be what works best for YOU. Personally, I recommend the Reaper Master Paints as the best value for your dollar. They have all the advantages of the Vallejo paints, except that they are slightly cheaper. And they have none of the disadvantage of the Citadel or Reaper Pro.

You could also find a good online store (The Warstore) that has the "starter" kits for any of these paint manufacturers. A "starter" kit is usually a pack of 8-16 paint bottles with an included miniature, a cheap paint brush and a paint guide. I know Citadel and Reaper Pro Paints both have these. I vaguely remember that Vallejo had something like them, though they did not include any miniatures. I don't recall if Reaper Master Paints had something similar.

Good luck and good painting.

 

[Finster]

As an artist, I feel your pain. Art supplies are very expensive. To save money I have reduced the number of colors I work with in both miniature painting and Painting painting.

My advice is to purchase the highest quality paint possible and disregard the price. If you find that the highest quality is too expensive, then limit your variety of colors and mix your own.

A minimum set of paints would look like this: two of each primary color (red, blue and yellow) one cool and one warm, a black, and a white. This is a total of 8-10 paints that are absolutely neccessary. Any other paints you purchase are just variations on these colors meant to save you time mixing them, or specialty paints (metallics, and flourescents).

I would also suggest finding a good set of burnt and raw Umber paints to mix greys.

 

[Pbartender]

I vaguely remember that Vallejo had something like them, though they did not include any miniatures.

The War Store (thanks for that link, by the way) has a Vellejo Suitcase, 72 colors, 3 brushes and a plastic carying case for $180, and Vallejo Themed Collections, different packs of 16 colors for a little less than $40.

The Basic Color Pack would probably be a good start, and would cover the sort of basic set Finster's talking about.

 

[D'karr]

The War Store (thanks for that link, by the way) has a Vellejo Suitcase, 72 colors, 3 brushes and a plastic carying case for $180, and Vallejo Themed Collections, different packs of 16 colors for a little less than $40.

The Basic Color Pack would probably be a good start, and would cover the sort of basic set Finster's talking about.

Thanks Pbartender, that Basic Color Pack was what I was thinking about from Vallejo. I still have not seen a starter pack for the Reaper Master paints. It does not mean that they don't have one, I just haven't found one.

I did find a starter pack from Vallejo that includes the brushes and miniature. I noticed that both Paizo and FRP Games had them. Though FRP seems to be significantly cheaper.

If you're not interested in the "starter" set both of those boxes show which colors they contains so you can purchase the colors individually. Though sometimes purchasing that way usually means a more costly purchase.

Shop around for the best prices and always look at the shipping costs. I know that "The Warstore" has a flat shipping rate of 3.95 for UPS Ground or USPS Priority, whichever is cheapest. Usually that price can't be beat. BTW, I recommend the Warstore a lot as I've had fantastic shopping with them for years. I have also bought from the other two stores FRP Games and Paizo in the past and I've been pleased. Though Paizo is a little pricey.