[BlueShirt]

I'm looking to start painting some of my figures, but I've never held a paintbrush before. I've read loads on preventing rub and prepping and painting, but I'm looking for a personal recommendation on which paints to buy as I'd like to buy an assortment online, and have nothing available locally. Between Tamiya, Citadel and Valejo, which are my best option for a good, durable and long lasting finish with a good smooth look and feel?

Any help would be great.

[Yeet]

As a guy who used to build a lot of model airplanes, I must say that the greatest help in painting is masking parts and using an airbrush. It makes a world of difference.

[RazorMurphy]

You probably know this already but make sure you’re using Acrylics and not Enamels. Enamels never cure completely on figures and remain tacky. Acrylics are water based, so simple cleaning and thinning with water is a bonus.
To answer your question I’ve used both Tamiya and Citadel. I found Citadel easier to work with on customs. To me Tamiya seem a little ‘runnier’ than Citadel. I found i needed more coats of Tamiya than Citadel. For a beginner i found Citadel far more forgiving in terms of covering areas easier and quicker. Regardless you will get a decent finish with both types. As for durability I’d finish with a spray matt coat to seal everything and they wouldn’t do much apart from sit on a shelf so others might weigh in on chipping.
A basic Citadel set would be a good start, for base colours such as black, white etc.
I found the Citadel figure painting guides very helpful. Tips and tricks for painting eyes etc.
Lately for metallic areas I’ve been using Sharpie metallic permanent markers. Great for small silver and gold areas and no messy metallic pigment to remove from your brushes.
Hope that helps and good luck.

[Yeet]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RazorMurphy

You probably know this already but make sure you’re using Acrylics and not Enamels. Enamels never cure completely on figures and remain tacky. Acrylics are water based, so simple cleaning and thinning with water is a bonus.
To answer your question I’ve used both Tamiya and Citadel. I found Citadel easier to work with on customs. To me Tamiya seem a little ‘runnier’ than Citadel. I found i needed more coats of Tamiya than Citadel. For a beginner i found Citadel far more forgiving in terms of covering areas easier and quicker. Regardless you will get a decent finish with both types. As for durability I’d finish with a spray matt coat to seal everything and they wouldn’t do much apart from sit on a shelf so others might weigh in on chipping.
A basic Citadel set would be a good start, for base colours such as black, white etc.
I found the Citadel figure painting guides very helpful. Tips and tricks for painting eyes etc.
Lately for metallic areas I’ve been using Sharpie metallic permanent markers. Great for small silver and gold areas and no messy metallic pigment to remove from your brushes.
Hope that helps and good luck.

^THIS. this is pretty much all you need to know

[germ]

Honestly from all my experiences, I find citadel to wear off fairly easy and don't recommend it. Maybe its cause I play with and pose my figures a little more than others but it certainly does chip off easy.

I HIGHLY recommend using MODEL MASTER ACRYL. I think its by Testors. When I got into customs about ten years ago, I asked all the pros on here and they all recommended this and I've been using it ever since. Works great for me and doesn't chip off.

[Rangeviper88]

Citadel is good, but very expensive for the little bit you get. Also the tubs are horrible and made to fail. They never seal right so your paint drys. I would stay away from this paint unless you find a color you really like. Then just buy that color.

Vallejo is my favorite go to paint. Works good, paints smooth, good price and has dropper bottles.

Tamiya is made more for spray on paint. You can brush it on, but I didn't like the way the paint flows and it stinks of fumes. I would avoid it.

Reaper paint is good. Dropper bottles and size/price is good. It's just hard to find.

Army Painters is ok, but the light colors are horrible. These come in dropper bottles so that's a plus. These tend to run a bit cheaper than other paints, but not by much.

Model Masters- A lot of people swear by this brand and love it. It comes in glass jars. I found it to be very thin and harder to cover. I will maybe someday go back to try it again.

I recommend whatever brand you pick to buy a starter set with all the main colors.

Most have good starter packs.

[packerbacker180]

I like Model Masters Acryl mostly because I can get it cheap locally at Hobby Lobby, but I also use a lot of Citadel because there's a much wider variety of colors. Not a huge fan of Tamiya myself. Just make sure you buy acrylic and not enamel if you go the Model Masters route, because they do sell both and look similar in the jar.

[Goin' Commando]

My favorite is Citadel. I’ve also had some luck recently with Apple Barrel acrylic from Wal Mart and its only $1-$2 a container. I’ve been using those in my Airbrush after watering them down a little bit. They’re thick and work well with a brush but too thick to spray. A little water and they’re just right.

[bluemax]

The citadel paints do look nice, but if you are new to painting and wont be doing this very often, I would not recommend them. The price and the bottle flaw are not what you are looking to start out with. Vallejo will keep for years as long as you keep the caps on the bottles. I have bottle of Vallejo that bought 10 years ago still usable I also like Tamiya paints as well. I will say the vallejo metallic colors look like crap. There are some great videos on youtube for what paints and brushes to start off with. When you are just starting you dont need the "BEST" paints. Dont get discouraged, you will make mistakes. Dont go crazy and buy an airbrush without understanding what it takes to use (it can be very rewarding but challenging at first).

The Vallejo basic set:
https://www.amazon.com/Vallejo-Basic...s%2C138&sr=8-3

Base citadel paint set:
https://www.games-workshop.com/en-US...Paint-Set-2015

The apple barrel stuff is discount paint, maybe best used for dioramas, but not really good for figures. However in a pinch they are easy to get and cheap. Its thick and needs thinning.

Brushes:
Get a decent set of brushes too. A nice starter set like this:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It even has instructions for cleaning them if you are new to this.

[BlueShirt]

Wow, thanks for all the great advice guys. It sounds like Citadel might not suit if they don't store well, as I'll be doing just a few figures casually over time, and they do get played with/posed and I want maximum durability.

I'm definitely not buying an airbrush (for now at least).

I'll try and find Model Masters or Vallejo here in the UK then.

My questioning then in on spraying them with a matt finish... what product should I use for that, and are they literally just hosed down lightly with a spray can after they are finished, or are we talking disassembly, or is this for use in an airbrush??? Sorry of this is a stupid question, I know nothing at all about painting,