Paints

[Pax]

So, I've been working from the start with GW paints. But the outrageous prices are just too much for me right now. As a university student I have to pay my rent, pay my gas and electricity bill. And buying a batch of GW paint bottles at 2 pounds a bottle just doesn't work well on my finances. But I can't live without my paints!

Does anyone know any good alternatives to GW paints that are better and/or cheaper? I've heard of Vallejo and the Foundry paints, but to be honest, I never used them

[Lowtardog]

Vallejo are very good, they also have a fantasy range called game colour which is an ever so thinner paint. Both are IMHO better than GW with the main benefit being they are in plastci tubes so you only need to put a drop on your pallet at a time and..they dont dry up like GW.

[WitchfinderGeneral]

Vallejo are very good, they also have a fantasy range called game colour which is an ever so thinner paint. Both are IMHO better than GW with the main benefit being they are in plastic tubes so you only need to put a drop on your pallet at a time and..they dont dry up like GW.

Absolutely right!
Sometimes you don't need a whole drop of paint but IMHO it's better to spend some more paint than have the paint drying up in the bottle (like it always happened to my GW paints).

I'm still using the GW metallic colours but will sooner or later replace them with Vallejo paints.

Vallejo have many many different colours, if you want to give them a try best ask your local dealer for the starter sets with 8 colours.
Either from the brighter "Game Color" or the more realistic looking "Model Color".

Both ranges of Vallejo are not only better in quality, you get also more paint in each bottle for a lower price than GW (you save 1/3 of the price).

[Drunkendwarf]

I have some Foundry paints (the flesh colours, red and a grey pallet), I think they work quite well but are a bit thick.
I'm thinking to switch to Vallejo, there is a shop nearby who sells them so it is easy to get them.

BTW can someone recommend some Vallejo colours which are a good startingpoint for painting Back of Beyond miniatures (Russian and Chinese).

DJ

[LeadAsbestos]

I've gotten so cheap in my old age that 50% of my paints are now craft store stuff, Delta Ceramcoat, FolkArt, etc. Sales run frequently for 3 bottles for $1USD  

If you know how to handle them, they are just fine and the price difference is just outrageous. Results are great, esp. for army-painting kinda stuff where you won't be doing a thousand blended layers.

[black hat miniatures]

Does anyone know any good alternatives to GW paints that are better and/or cheaper?

Can I recommend that you have a look at our Coat D'arms paints  (in an outrageous plug! :-) )

Our Fantasy range are the same paints that were originally produced by GW in the hexagonal flip-top lids.  They are 1.40 for 18ml of paint, and don't dry out!

see:

http://www.coatdarms.com/

for our shop.

[Westfalia Chris]

I´ve completely switched to Vallejo Color paints. IMHO, the main pros are:

1. Generally, better quality than GW (although some metallics are much inferior)
2. Fair to good availability here in germany, mostly of the Fantasy variation, but also some Model Color ranges.
3. Far superior value-for-money. VC paints contain 17ml, as opposed to GWs 12ml, and both cost around 2,50,- € here in Münster. That´s 1.4 times the amount of GWs pots, and because it is advisable to thin them, they last far longer.
4. Their varnishes, especially the matt variety, are infinitely superior to GW. I use artists gloss varnish for the first coat, but the matt coat is ALWAYS Vallejo. Reminds me, I have to buy a new bottle.
5. An enormous variety of tone, especially with the Model Color range. Alright, you don´t really need five variations of khaki, but the possibility is great.

On the downside, diluting takes some getting used to, and some of the paints dry more patchy than does GW, but since I use a combination of washes, drybrushs and layering, this is quickly covered up.

[warrenpeace]

I've gotten so cheap in my old age that 50% of my paints are now craft store stuff, Delta Ceramcoat, FolkArt, etc. Sales run frequently for 3 bottles for $1USD  

If you know how to handle them, they are just fine and the price difference is just outrageous. Results are great, esp. for army-painting kinda stuff where you won't be doing a thousand blended layers.

Um, yeah.  I'm with LeadAsbetos on this one.  Paying about $1 US for a big tube of craft store acrylic paint that doesn't dry up has been good for me.  If you want a big jar of good quality paint, the Howard Hues paints available from Monday Knight Productions in Vancouver, Washington are pretty good.

Warren

[Pax]

Thanks for all the hints and tips (not to forget the offer :p). I'll be getting my paycheck at the end of the week, so besides spending my cash on a batch of Copplestone mini's I'll be spending it on a coat d'arms tryout batch.

Damned Sir Arthur Conan Doyle got me wanting to do a High Adventure range