Thanks for watching! If you want to grab some of the cool Ravaged Star models like the one I painted, here's the link to the preorders: gamefound.com/projects/miniwargaming/ravaged-star-tabletop-miniature-wargame?refcode=QGKNFrs0PkOclgG6q7G0SA Also, here's the link to the exact paint set I used in this video: geni.us/cheappaints
I usually ift this as a counterpoint when people say "don´t buy expensive art material when startting out" that it is correect as in so far that there is no point in going to the top tier stuff. But one should not scrape the bottom either because it might make the journey needlessly hard.
I started off using basically these fairly generic craft-quality paints. You CAN learn with them, but they can also lead to bad habits like not thinning paints. After all, if these are so sheer as it is, thinning them down doesn't make quite as much sense. If someone did want to start with them, painting larger, somewhat less structurally detailed models like dinosaurs and animals would be a better start than jumping straight into high-detail super tiny figures
You don't NEED the highest end stuff as an artist. Dudes make amazing works of art with charcoal, chalk, and other cheap stuff. Imagine being a master with "crappy" and "cheap" art supplies. I think that's more impressive than using expensive supplies.
Fun fact: one of the best miniature painters in my local area had all his citadel paints go bad a couple years ago, and he decided to no longer buy citadel paint. He EXCLUSIVELY used Walmart craft paint on all his miniatures and they do in fact look amazing. He taught me how to get better blends and brush control and NMM and he does it all with apple barrel. Mad lad
@@Junbav The color for my Apple Barrel black is good, probably my favorite that isn't specifically primer, but it has the same issue rubbing off as Guy experienced with the Fantastory. I use my Apple Barrel set just to avoid having a gray army, and later I'll use Army Painter or Vallejo. Amusingly, there's a blue I used on some space marines without any primer, and it sticks about as well to bare plastic as the black does to a primed model.
Love the long winded disclaimer at the end because I agree with everything you said, it’s like you stole the thoughts out of my head while watching the video, but I think that everyone should start with paints like this. It makes you struggle and learn and then, you buy some proper mini paints and are already familiar with junk paints. So I think these would be great for terrain, and not a bad place to start when entering the hobby.
I would have liked to have seen that colour card chart with other brands like Citadel to see how the more expensive brands compare in terms of opacity/coverage etc!
About the opacity: It's worth noting that as they're aiming to be 'artists' paint it's perfectly normal for the opacity to vary, and it's something that's very normal for us on the more traditional art side of things because we tend to lean towards starting with single pigments then make our own mixes from there. If you go on to a major art store like Jacksons you'll notice that their UI is even designed to make the pigment information super accessible Some pigments are just more transparent than others, hence the pthalo blue being very transparent while the yellow ochre/raw sienna being much more opaque. They seem to have pigment information on the labels (it's the P[another letter][number] bit) so you can use that to look it up and get a feel for the paint will likely behave before it's even out of the bottle, personally I'm a fan of artiscreation's database. Some of your other paints probably have that information available too (though it might be online) so you can even compare them - it's pretty handy information to know when you're picking out paints
Started using just citadel stuff(wanted to support my local gw store as the owner is super open to me bringing my son by once a week. He's autistic and getting him to socialize is darn near impossible. But if you get him talking about his ultramarines he'll never stop. I take him once a week for him to socialize with people.) Expanded into a ton of different brands since but yeah, Their naming conventions for these paints is effing annoying.
I talked with them at Adepticon this weekend and really like the detail of the designs. And they did really just freaking hide those mold lines on one piece models! The Dominiran are like Chaos Sisters of Battle, Gorkog are another Tyranid hive fleet, and the Immari are a better version of Votann.
An under-appreciated aspect of these cheap craft paints are the bottles! Flip the cap to get a precise dropper like Vallejo paints, or unscrew the whole cap to dip your brush like GW paint pots.
Its a standard cap for 60ml and higher, its also not as precise as a dropper. Funny enough its the norm in craft/budget paints where Vallejo and Citidel are the freaks.
Man I've got twins as well (and an older one) and seeing your lil 'unz join you in the hobby just makes all the happy things go "brrr" in my brain. My son just recently started reading his first Warhammer Adventure novel, and my twin girls always snatch the GW shop's free mini right out of my hands. I might actually purchase this kit of paint for them to use on their own leisure. Regards from Germany!
@@MidwinterMinis Except for the fact that bringing your three kids into one of the hobbies that isn't exactly what I'd call "on the cheaper side of things" may not be my smartest move. Luckily, your DIY videos are there to save the day. And the bank account. ^^
Man, I love those dwarf minis. I wish GW would lean more into the fantasy aspect of science-fantasy the way that dwarf does. Great vid, Guy! I definitely agree that a new painter wouldn't be able to replicate that paint job. I always suggest waiting for a starter set from Citadel/Army Painter/etc goes on sale. There's a lot you can do with half a dozen good quality paints.
Honestly, this is a wonderful video that had a bit of a smirk on my face the whole time. When I first started Mini painting, I didn't have the money for proper paints, so I used a similar style of paints that my mom owned for all of her ceramic and craft painting. They were.... Okay, but they did the job. ;) Y'all, if you need a starting point for the painting side of the hobby, these are a wonderful place to start and just upgrade singles as you go along. If you take your time, "okay" paints can take you a long way. Thanks for this video!
As a former pro painter, I got gifted a set that looks like this lol. I haven't used it on any minis, but for a few xmas gifts it worked out pretty ok. When I was a kid I DID use Americana craft paints for my first couple armies!
Okay the paint wearing off like that is kind of a win, if you tint over it then you can just have a colored battle scar weapon, if you leave it like that its just a black and silver battle scar weapon it actually is pretty cool how it looked honestly
I like how you identified weaknesses in some of their paints, like the ones with poor opacity, then used those as strengths, like using them as glazes. The other related thing I want to mention is you comment on how beginners will need to learn techniques to get the same results - even more than that they need to develop understanding of how light and shadows fall, how the eye perceives edges, motion, etc and use that knowledge to guide where to apply techniques. A painter with a good eye for these things will get better results with just a drybrush than a painter that knows all the techniques but not where and when to use them.
These types of cheap paints can be very good depending on what you use them for. I like to use them to paint bases as I can use poor covage as different ground texture and they last a lot longer than normal mini paints. My dad who makes vintage style toy soldiers (very simple bright paint schemes with high gloss finishes) uses these types of paints straight out of the tube with no thining and has gotten really nice results. Watching this I am tempted to get a set to see how well they act as glazes.
I like the effort, on trying the best out of this paint set, but I loooove the ending. Me too, I tend to use the less usable material as a reason to do handcraft with my kids. Huge priceless quality time!
Hey Guy, straight up. Craft paints and mixing mediums is my secret weapon. Especially my metallics. Mixing colour mediums like that sometimes you can get some cool effects.
I did a lot of mini painting when the UK went into Covid lockdown in early 2020 and one issue I found was that I was quickly running out of certain paints particularly black as I tend to use it to paint all my base rims. As I was unable to get more at the time I resorted to trying cheaper acrylic paints I could get from the stores that were allowed to be open. Like you I found them best for larger terrain pieces and they are ideal for things like base rims as it saves using much more expensive paints for something so simple.
I use these for base coats before speed paints. They will help hide lines on prints. You can also use them as contrast paints if use mix them with flow medium. I use them quite a bit on huge minis and terrain.
Don't use cheap paint for expensive miniatures unless you really know what you are doing. DO buy cheap paints for kids (and clients/patients who have the mental state of kids). Painting is an absolutely amazing hobby that makes people happy on a lot of levels. I love to paint with my clients. They like the bright colors, the creativity and the fact the table gets all messy and at the end they have something they are proud of and want to hang on the wall. This set seems like a great deal, 1 purchase you get all the colors and they'll last months.
I got these paints for terrain painting and can confirm they're more than up to that job (and are good 'decoy' paints to give to the kids when they want to paint along but are of an age where they're capable of emptying a pot of citadel in a single sitting!) 😀
New subscriber as of this video which popped up in my feed and I am getting ready to embark on painting for the first time. More for pleasure than gaming. My 3d printer will be going burrrr soon. I really enjoyed your commentary on the cheaper paints and under stand your skill level is way above average. If you do another video like this. I would like to see a comparision between cheap paint versus your favorite paint. To see the difference in the model. Even if you dont show painting the 2nd one. I just think it would be cool to see. Thanks for your time and sharing your skills.
I wouldn't worry too much about it, it is an incredibly cheap way to find out if you, or your niece, in this case even enjoy miniature painting. Also, keep in mind, Guy is a professional painter, so I bet he is awy more critical of the products he use than your niece might be.
I bought these paints when I returned recently...yeah. I struggled and have had far better results with citadel which were just easier for me to use. You did such a great job though, it's awesome to see what an experienced and talented painter can do with them!
I have definitely watched the whole video before commenting, yes! Great work! Edit: Got to the end, you should definitely paint a gorkanaut in the colors your kid used.
As I've noticed with some similar videos from other creators, the effects you get using the non mini hobby paints can be quite interesting. In this case I would say that the final result has a very comic book look, far more than some comic book style paint jobs I have seen done with proper hobby paints.
Painted my first ever army this year with amazon paints. I think I paid a little more than this. Most of them coated really well. There were a couple that I needed to put a base coat down of a close color before coating with that color, but it wasn't terrible. I can imagine the experience would have been better with more expensive paint, but my models turned out great. Might have just saved time with high end paint
The set I used was HissiCo...64 paints for $38. It included iridescents and metallics along with the normal colors. I originally bought Abeier iridescent paint which worked great in my airbrush, and the iridescent black worked great as a darker gunmetal look. I don't know how the iridescents in the hissico set look.
I think the most important take away from this is when you say '...I don't want to sound up myself, but I am a VERY experienced miniature painter...', as there is the key. Even so, I - as a intermediate painter - have started to introduce 'cheap' craft acrylics into my tool kit as I don't always need top quality modelling paints, I mix both, often finishing with the better quality ones. Excellent video, thank you.
Great help. As someone who is just starting it's a lot money to buy even mid tier paints. This kit comes also in 36 pcs(which I got but still didn't even open😂). I'm planning to replace in time single colours as and when needed. Thank You for this video showing that I did not wasted my money😁
Folkart Satin black is a fantastic primer through the airbrush if you thin 1 - 1 - 1 Paint to thinner to retarder, especially if you are doing slapchop/contrast paints. The satin finish is just smooth enough to prevent massive chaulking from the whites and greys of your zenithal/drybrush step without looking glossy. It is a medium black that is very easily shifted warm or cold with just a bit of brown or purple, and it has amazing coverage for a black that versatile.
For opaque acrylics I use almost exclusively craft paints. I use Army Painter Speed paints, Green Stuff World Dipping inks, acrylic artists inks, and artists oils, I have a 20 year old set of Vallejo Game Color paints that I almost never touch and they're probably bad/going bad, and with the exceptions of skin tones which I struggle to blend from craft paints I don't plan to replace them.
Extremely lovely video. One thing I'd like to add from my own limited experience: Primers can be a very no-no thing. I bought a rattlecan primer recently that just peeled off when removing some mild masking tape, ruining the work I had done up to that point. Well, I saved it since my paintjobs are always more on the wartorn and sludgy side, but still. If the model was oily in those parts from my fingertips or if its a general issue with models (basicly a big flat surface on a leman russ), I am not sure. All I'm trying to say is: Make sure you are getting a good primer, no matter if cheap or expensive. Don't just go and get some. Do some research first, or your next favorite project might turn sour at some point. I for one only use car primer in the future and will clean ALL my models with soapy water before priming. And yes, the model was plastic.
Jay from EOB put me onto using black craft paint exclusively and ive never looked back, ive got plenty of almost black to dark greys from miniature lines but my pure matte black always comes from the cheap big bottle now
I think that you definitely managed to elevate these paints in a way that I, a less experienced painter, probably wouldn't be able to. Also, as someone who has both invested in the Veil-Touched and Immari, You're getting me stoked for my short boys to come in and give me some ideas about how to best paint my chaos soldiers.
Id be interested in a sequel where you paint with this set again, but try to make as good of miniatures as possible by substituting only a couple paints. I imagine that's how many beginners' paint selections will start out (like me, currently)
ya! cheap hobby alternatives. I like using cheaper paints for terrain for sure and of course painting with my niece and nephews :) Technique is always the most important thing, fancy paints just enhance that process and make it somewhat easier.
Just like the craft paint called "Pebeo" sold at my local "The Range", I have a lots of them. The paint is great for large areas such as landscapes and buildings, I also agree stop it with all the silly names, some people also paint real world figures such as Napoleonics or Ancients.
I've been painting larger models with slightly more expensive (But still pretty dang cheap) DecoArt crafters acrylic for a while now. I usually cheat a little and use a decent Gesso as my white. Works pretty okay. You're usually paying more for convenience, and my limiting factor at the moment is money, not time.
Metallic craft paints are great and at least equal. The downside of craft paints is theyre usually less pigmented and you cant water them down, but for metallics pigment doesnt matter because they dont water down anyway
Excellent idea to paint a board with all the colors in two layers! That is a nice and useful way to make a look-up or reference palette for any paint set. Next, when I see that kind of curve on the tip of my brush I just use my hobby knife to cut it pointy. It works usually. If not, I cut it flat and I use it as drybrush, or paint mixing brush. Or throw it out, nylon brushes are extremely cheap.
I regularly buy artistic acrylic paints, for drybrushing for example. They have exceptionally good pigmentation and coverage and cost much less per ml, because they are... paints, not a thingies for miniature world geeks =) For example Pebeo High Viscocity line, so good.
I've been experimenting on getting cheap craft paint to cooperate more like the expensive hobby paint. I've come VERY close with adding a couple drops of Liquitex flow additive acrylic medium to the paint on the palette. This definitely makes it flow better, but I've noticed it thins it enough where I can get a decent finish on my terrain without gross brush strokes. I've had good results. but the chalky texture can still be there along with the paint rubbing off easily. It looks normal when I shade and highlight though. Very interesting results.
I use this colors for my tabletop stuff BESIDES minis or when I paint something, that i will not use that often. - Then it works okay-ish. It's the price which made me buy it. ^^
So before i see what the model looks like (im at 5:16) I have the original ravaged star the sulpts are just amazing and my friend bought us this box set of paints for christmas. She is not a model painter and researched which would be good for models. When asked if they were good for our models we said yes because we can use them for scenery, we've a load of hexaganal citidel paints plus the newer ones and a 72 set of model game colour from vallejo. Hubby got me into GW chaos back in 94, he also worked at our local store for a year. I hope they do these models some justice but after seeing the colour swatch im really not holding any hope :)
I think that paint set would work for a new young person getting into the hobby or as scenery paint. You don't want to spend a lot of money when your teenager want's to start in the hobby because its a learning curve you want to know they are willing to push threw. Toss a bunch of cheap minis at them and when they start having those breakthroughs introduce them to the good stuff step by step. Back in my day I bought one of boys a case of unpainted Mage Knight figures and a similar quantity of craft paints. After he got halfway threw that case I started getting him better paints and brushes. Nowadays 3D printers make getting those minis in the hands of the youngbloods a LOT cheaper and you can print specific minis to teach skin, fur, leather, armor painting techniques. As for painting scenery, who doesn't want to save money over regular GW paint prices when you are painting something that by default is going to take a fair amount of wear and tare? This goes exponentially more so when you have a store because as we all know there will always be "those guys" who just don't take good care of store provided scenery. I wish that was not the case but sadly it is. I know that whenever I made scenery for my own store or as a group at my local store we always painted pieces in several layers and put many coats of sealer. High end paints might give better looking pieces but at the end of the day they are the things that you fight over not dioramas.
Nice video. These paint looks like they are for paining art and such. Definitely nice to have for scenery, please if possible video of them for that. Looking forward to the next video. Keep up the good work.
Seems like these paints can get some decent results if you're willing to put the work in to make them work like you did here, and at the price point, they might be a good option for someone getting into the hobby or for a hobby night with a bunch of folks. I'm far too invested in the pricier paints, but if I had known about these when I was starting out, I might have dropped the $30 for them.
Love the channel Guy. Kids are growing like weeds. Enjoy it bro. My Daughter is almost 25 and I swear she was just born last year. LOL. Keep up all the great content. Hi Hattie.
After getting into dry brushing by using cheap makeup brushes, I don't think newbies should jump to using the cheapest stuff. They certainly should be money conscious, but still get good stuff. I tried using many different cheap brushes, and it was sooo horrible. I felt like quitting painting after dozens of failed sessions and multiple minis were stripped and reprimed. All of the pros used cheap brushes like wizards, but that's because they're pros. After getting a good set of army painter brushes, I succeeded first try. Completely cheaping out will give you what you pay for unless you're already very talented. I probably could've gotten the bad makeup brushes to work, but man oh man it took so much less time to just pay an extra 8 bucks for good brushes that'll last a long while.
Glad you mentioned experience in your summary. By the time you’re good enough to have these paints give a decent result, you’d have already invested time and money into better alternatives designed for the task. Fun challenge but not a realistic alternative, especially for a beginner who would be very easily discouraged by both the outcome and having to fight with the paint.
If any beginner tries to buy this paint set and take this video as their tutorial on dvanced painting techniques (for some reason) they'd be running the Most dangerous gauntlet in the hobby! (maybe) I still struggle to even get my Skitarii to look like the one from MM's painting tutorial from years ago so that's definitely not me! To any would be madlad, I salute you, godspeed.
Honestly, I don't even paint minis anymore, I was just really curious to see how bad these paints could possibly be 😂. Nice work on the vid, by the way!
Hi midwinter minis. I just wanted too say thanks too you and your painting tutorials. Even though i dont even own any models yet. I hope too get some. Someday
I've decided to invest in some painting supplies after painting for so long at my local game store. Getting started is so expensive. Im on a fixed income (disabled) so its almost impossible to save for stuff. Cheaper paints would be nice to have.
I have used dollar store paints for years. The ony difference with "pro" paints is that you need to apply more layers to get the same results. And my brushes are also cheap ones, well cared and cleaned they works perfectly, and you dont need to sell your kidney to buy them.
You really highlighted the friction with beginners trying to dip their toes into a new skill and trying to do so as inexpensively as possible. You might not want to or be able to invest in the best quality stuff, which would help beginners the most to give them the best chance of success, and instead those low cost tools end up negatively impacting their experience. And then highly experience people can make those cheap tools shine, but theyre already invested and dont want something hindering their ability.
lol here in brazil our cheap acrylic paint is the same price as citadel paints are to you =( on a simple exchange, we pay almost 12 pounds for a pot of citadel paint here, vallejo, ak and ammo are more affordabel over here lol
