Winsor & Newton Series 7 brushes ....

[Helias_Tancred]

For the last few years I've been primarily using Army Painter Wargamer series brushes. I felt they were a good level of price vs quality. Lately I've been experiencing a lot of quality control issues with them. I'd be using a Wargamer: Character brush and it's great! Then when I have to retire it and get a new one, the new one is crap versus the one I replaced. This has happened multiple times over the past few months ....  So .... I decided to take a leap of faith and step up to a better brush, better at least from what I've heard people say. So I bought two Winsor & Newton Series 7 Kolinsky Sable brushes off of Amazon; a 1 and a 00. 

 

What are the best sizes for painting 40k miniatures? Should I get a 0, and maybe a 2 as well?

 

For those of you who have owned and used them, how are they? Am I getting a definite step up in terms of quality of brush for painting miniatures? 

 

Thanks. 

 

 

Edited June 18 by Helias_Tancred

[Firedrake Cordova]

The general rule of thumb is to use the largest brush you can get away with - the larger belly holds more paint (meaning fewer trips to the paint pot), and more moisture (meaning the paint won't dry on the brush so fast), and a good-quality larger brush will still come to a fine point. If I remember correctly, Darren Latham uses a size 2 for most tasks, and drops down to a size 0 for fine details.

 

I used Series 7's back in the early 2000's, and they were great. I have heard some complaints about quality control over the last 10 years or so, but I also haven't bought any recently following the frankly massive price increases, so I can't verify that (I bought a size 2 in 2016 for £10 - they're now £25). It's probably worth adding that Citadel Artificer brushes are Series 7's with some different cosmetics. I've also used Raphael 8404's which are great, but have undergone the same price increases. Rosemary & Co's Series 33 aren't quite as nice, but they're a lot cheaper.

 

I would add, it's important to take care of the Series 7s (or any other sable brush) - make sure you don't let the paint get near the ferrule, or dry in the brush whilst painting, as these will shorten the life of the brush (using metallic paints will also harm the brush). If you don't have any brush soap, I would recommend getting some - either a solid puck like "The Master's Brush Soap", or a liquid one like Jo Sonja's.

Edited June 18 by Firedrake Cordova

[crimsondave]

All I use is series 7 and that’s all I intend to use.  I use a #3, #1, and a 000.  You could get by with just a #1 or a 0.  I will never use anything else again.  They hold a point like nothing else I’ve used.

 

Firedrake is right about caring for them.  I’ve destroyed several over the years.  Masters Brush Soap is what I use and always, always, ALWAYS get your brushes to a nice point before you store them.  Using the covers that come with them helps.  I’m just not careful enough.  I’m hard on stuff.  I know some folks have used the same series 7 brushes for years.

Edited June 18 by crimsondave

[Helias_Tancred]

Fortunately I'm pretty caring for my brushes. I use Masters Brush soap on them. I store them with the plastic tubes on them, etc. 

 

[Ironwulf]

I will add as an alternative to W&N Series 7's, I've been using the Monument Hobbies Pro Sable brushes lately and find them an absolute dream to work with. The #2 is a workhorse for me and I love the smoothness. Just my two Imperial Credits.

 

[Firedrake Cordova]

11 hours ago, crimsondave said:

Masters Brush Soap is what I use and always, always, ALWAYS get your brushes to a nice point before you store them

If they don't come to a point when they're dry, it's an indication that the bristles aren't fully clean.

 

Personally, I have a puck of The Master's Brush Soap that I keep clean - when I go to put my brushes away, I apply some lather from the clean puck to them, shape them, and allow them to dry. This "trains" the point, and it also acts a little bit like a protective layer (like the gum arabic they're coated with from the factory). It does mean you have to wash the brush out before you can use it next time, though.  

Edited June 19 by Firedrake Cordova

[Bung]

After the price increases and my bad experience of quality control i switched to local produced synthetic brushes where i can get nearly the same performance for 1/4 of the price.

Over the last years synthetic brushes have greatly improved and after some tests i decided to buy KUM brushes and not going back to sable brushes even for display pieces

 

I use the KUM Memory point brushes with a round Size 2 for 5,20€

https://kum.net/shop/kum-memory-point/

 

(Its an old german company and KUM stands for Kunststoff- und Metallwarenfabrik and yes, their marketing team fully embraced the short name)

[Firedrake Cordova]

Urgh ... @Bung's post reminded me the DaVinci Maestro Series 10 (slimmer) and Series 35 (bigger belly) are really nice, too   (reminded on the basis of where they're produced)

Edited June 19 by Firedrake Cordova

[Bung]

On 6/19/2025 at 7:13 PM, Firedrake Cordova said:

Urgh ... @Bung's post reminded me the DaVinci Maestro Series 10 (slimmer) and Series 35 (bigger belly) are really nice, too   (reminded on the basis of where they're produced)

 

The only brushes i miss are the Brokentoad ones.

[WBRBloom]

I will second/third/fourth what everyone said here. I've been using W&N Series 7 for a while now, and also Rosemary & Co. (which are basically the brushes that Artis Opus buys from them and brands them as their own), and they are great: amazing return bounce of the hair, perfect point, etc.

 

Something I would add, and something that they've told me at a Cass Art store (UK residents would know them), always use a conditioner after you clean them (I use the Vallejo blue conditioner) and if you intend to store them for a while, without painting, dunk then in gum arabic (this is the same substance that all brushes come covered in when they come out of production) as this will help them keep their point while in storage and protect them from stuff like moisture, dust, etc.

 

 

[Dr. Clock]

A tip that I've taken up is to avoid using metallics or contrast or washes on your best brushes. Metallic pigments are 'sharp' enough to shred your bristles, and the shade and contrast mediums are too ready to adhere to bristles. I use my second stringers for those tasks now, and it's meant my workhorse #2 and #0 have kept a strong point since purchase.

 

I use a 2 for the first half of a project and then a 0 gets me to like 95%. I use old blunted 2s and 1s for the 'dangerous' tasks above... Since I use the 2 so much, I'd almost suggest getting a cheaper alternative so that you don't feel bad replacing it annually when you throw it into the contrast lane.

 

I've done Rosemary and Co. for years, but international shipping means I'll pick up something I see in-store on a lark if the price is reasonable. Last pick was a pair of Vallejo ProModeler and they've been better than I expected tbh. 

 

Cheers,

 

The Good Doctor.

[twopounder]

Odd question - is there a US based shop that's good for brushes? Amazon seems to only stock the knockoffs and my local shops only sell Army Painter. The non-gaming hobby stores sell the cheapest of the cheap brushes that are only really suitable for terrain.

 

I keep getting burned on bad brushes that literally curl right out of the package.

[Firedrake Cordova]

3 hours ago, Dr. Clock said:

the shade and contrast mediums are too ready to adhere to bristles

I thought it was that the more flowy nature of those paints meant they were more easily drawn into the ferrule..? Whatever the root cause, it's good advice.  

 

35 minutes ago, twopounder said:

is there a US based shop that's good for brushes?

I've seen Dick Blick mentioned in the past. I've also seen some people in the US saying ordering from Jacksons in the UK was cheaper than ordering locally. 

[Dr. Clock]

1 hour ago, Firedrake Cordova said:

I thought it was that the more flowy nature of those paints meant they were more easily drawn into the ferrule..? Whatever the root cause, it's good advice

Yeah that's the one... basically those paints aren't actually really 'water based' so they just kinda explode the tip over time by drying in the ferrule. If you could use water more liberally with those paints it might be okay, but the basic process is really risky for a good brush because the same properties that make them flow on the model also make them flow up the brush where they shouldn't be. On the plus side these are the 'splodge and sop' products that you aren't really likely getting too precise with, so you can afford to just use whatever cheap synthetic or second string #1 you have to hand. I have a pair of Rosemary and Co. #1s that are basically my contrast and shade tools because they've got a great belly still if no real point.

 

Cheers,

 

The Good Doctor.

[Volgon]

4 hours ago, twopounder said:

Odd question - is there a US based shop that's good for brushes? Amazon seems to only stock the knockoffs and my local shops only sell Army Painter. The non-gaming hobby stores sell the cheapest of the cheap brushes that are only really suitable for terrain.

 

I keep getting burned on bad brushes that literally curl right out of the package.

 

I've ordered some brushes from Monument Hobbies and the one I've used so far has held up well. Michigan Toy Soldier Co. also stocks Rosemary and Co 33s though rebranded under their own label.

[Khulu]

Monument Hobbies are US based and their sable brushes are fantastic. Mine have held up better than my W&N series 7s and they cost less than half as much so I'm much less afraid to actually use them. Their synthetics are good but not as good as the sable ones, I think. I've given Monument brushes as gifts to other hobbyists and so far no one has had anything bad to say about them.

Edited Tuesday at 03:04 AM by Khulu

[crimsondave]

If you watch Amazon you can catch W&N brushes on sale for under $20 sometimes.

 

On 7/14/2025 at 11:55 AM, Dr. Clock said:

A tip that I've taken up is to avoid using metallics or contrast or washes on your best brushes. Metallic pigments are 'sharp' enough to shred your bristles, and the shade and contrast mediums are too ready to adhere to bristles. I use my second stringers for those tasks now, and it's meant my workhorse #2 and #0 have kept a strong point since purchase.

 

I use a 2 for the first half of a project and then a 0 gets me to like 95%. I use old blunted 2s and 1s for the 'dangerous' tasks above... Since I use the 2 so much, I'd almost suggest getting a cheaper alternative so that you don't feel bad replacing it annually when you throw it into the contrast lane.

 

I've done Rosemary and Co. for years, but international shipping means I'll pick up something I see in-store on a lark if the price is reasonable. Last pick was a pair of Vallejo ProModeler and they've been better than I expected tbh. 

 

Cheers,

 

The Good Doctor.

 

I bet you that’s what’s actually destroying my brushes.  Metallic paint.  I never thought about that before.