ARMY PAINTER BRUSHES
The Army Painter
In the package sent to me from the Army Painter were three bags of 12 brushes each -their Hobby Series (Red) Basecoating, Highlighting and Precise Detail brushes. The top of their line in brushes, the “finest quality Toray synthetic hair”, each brush tip was protected by a tube of plastic to preserve the tips. Each type of brush is designed with longer bristles, a significant advantage over shorter bristled brushes – over time, paint build up on shorter brushes appears to more easily disrupt the integrity of the brush, thus ruining the sharp tip.
The Basecoating brushes are BIG and I used mine for the large area of color. The big brush gave great coverage with very good control. Despite being big, they did not miss any spots on the miniature. I did notice that I used these brushes less than the other two, however, they were a necessary part of the brushes I used (well, now, use!) Using smaller brushes is time consuming, inefficient and a waste of their small, well formed pointed tips.
The Highlighting brushes were very useful for putting paint on more specific areas that required more detail. They also did an excellent job. I did not use them for “highlighting” as the Precise Detail brushes served that purpose best.
The Precise Detail brushes were just right for painting face detail, highlights on clothing, buttons, firearms, epaulettes, etc. I was able to substitute the regular brushes I use without a hitch. They held just the right amount of paint on the tip to add the specific details that I needed on the figures.
In spite of the brushes looking bigger than those I normally use, the tips, when wet, come to a remarkable point – and that is the main thing for which I am looking when it comes to paint brushes. These brushes held their tips well and the results I got were just the same as compared to the brushes I normally use. The packs of 12 bring the costs down considerably, as well. Having seen the Toray synthetic hair described as “high quality” synthetic hair, “almost as good as sable”, $3 for an almost sable brush is well worth the purchase. When you see the final, painted figure, you will appreciate the quality of the Army Painter brushes. Now, I wonder just how “insane” their Insane Detail brushes are – I have got to get one of them to try out!
Price: $35.70 for packages of 12 – about $3 each (as advertized on the War Store)www.thearmypainter.com

I have included picures of the brushes I have been using for some time to give an idea of how well the tips are holding up. Because photos of paint brush tips are boring, I have included some shots of figures painted with these brushes: Warlord Games' free giveaway ECW figure and Brigade Games' Trotsky's Guard.