When you’re getting into painting miniatures, finding the right brush can feel like a daunting challenge. Too often I see new painters buying or using brushes that aren’t well-suited to what they’re doing, and fear that they’ll end up feeling turned off the hobby when things don’t go so smoothly. There’s no substitute for practice, but having the right tool for the job makes painting a lot easier and more fun. Hopefully, this article will give you some new insight into the types and brands of brushes we currently carry here at the store and help you find the brushes that are just right for you and your models!

Unsurprisingly, paint brushes come in all shapes and sizes. Not all of them are well-suited to painting miniatures – different artistic techniques and mediums have different requirements for brush material and type. The material used for the bristles is a key factor in how the brush behaves. For our purposes, there are two major groups: synthetic and natural hair.

This type of brush uses bristles made from nylon or similar artificial fibers. The color of the hair is sometimes a giveaway, like the bright white and yellow bristles on synthetic brushes from the PMX range. Note, however, that this material is often dyed and can appear the same color as a natural-hair brush.

Synthetic brushes offer advantages in durability and cost but don’t hold the same point or flexibility as good natural hair. They’re often used in large or flat brushes where the ability to hold a fine point is less important.

Synthetic brushes can certainly be used for detail work, but they won’t hold up as well over time. Especially in smaller brushes, they have a tendency to bend or “hook” near the tip of the brush which can degrade performance. However, especially for a painter just starting out they can be a better choice than a natural-hair brush at the same price point and should do a fine job while you’re deciding what works for you and how you want to expand your hobby.

There’s a wide variety of animal hair used in paintbrushes, but most of the ones you’d see in an art store aren’t great for painting miniatures. The ones we’re focused on are usually made from the fur of small rodents like squirrels, that have pointed, springy hair that will keep a nice point and hold paint well. Good-quality miniature brushes are made with sable fur – a small weasel-like creature native to Siberia. Its fur naturally grows very straight and has excellent flex.

The very best paintbrushes are finely made with high-quality “Kolinsky” sable, usually made originally for watercolour painting. Their biggest downside is the price, typically costing 2-3 times more than an average-quality brush.

When it comes to painting miniatures, most brushes you’ll use are round and pointed (which makes sense, considering the size and detail of what you’re painting). Slightly larger flat brushes can also be useful for covering large areas, especially on big models like tanks, monsters, or terrain pieces. Finally, there are a few unusual brushes that are used for specific techniques or jobs beyond regular painting – we’ll talk more about these in their own sections.

Pointed round brushes are the bread and butter of miniature painting. Many different sizes are available, but it’s worth remembering that you don’t need tons of different brushes when painting miniatures. For most painting, a moderately sized brush (size 1 or 2, aka Medium depending on the brand) and a smaller one for fine detail (0 or 00) will do just fine. When working on small details, you don’t need the absolutely tiniest brush – the quality of the point on the brush is more important than its overall size. Really small brushes can also suffer from “dry tip”, where the tiny amount of paint the brush can hold will start to dry before you can apply it to the mini.

Let’s walk through the different series of brushes we have here at Sentry Box. This is certainly not an exhaustive list, but it covers the ranges that we sell individually. Brush sets, in particular, aren’t covered here (there are a few other brands we only carry a few specific sets for) but perhaps we can take a look at those in a later article. Remember that these notes are opinions from my own experience – please feel free to find what works best for you and disagree with me!

Made By: Leon-Hardy Material: Synthetic Shape: Pointed round Sizes: 0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0 5/0 Pros: Inexpensive, good for beginning painters Cons: Tend to wear quickly, don’t hold as fine a point

A synthetic alternative for small details, the WH series is inexpensive and a good choice for those starting out. They have the typical synthetic tendency to “hook” near the tip and don’t have the snap and flexibility of natural hair, but do the job decently well and are about 40% less than a middle-of-the-road natural brush.

Made by: Leon-Hardy Material: Synthetic Shape: Flat Sizes: 4, 8 Pros: Good for covering large flat areas, fairly cheap Cons: Imprecise

A handy flat brush for large areas, that offers a bit of a saving, compared to something like the Citadel Base brushes. Not precise, but that’s not what it’s for. Like most flat brushes, they can wear out faster if used in tight areas where the bristles get pushed out of their neat flat shape.

Made by: Leon-Hardy Material: Synthetic Shape: Round Sizes: 6 Pros: Good for covering large flat areas, fairly cheap Cons: Imprecise, rough bristles

A round synthetic for basecoating. Similar in construction to the PMX-GF flat brushes, but the fiber is a bit stiffer and rougher. It doesn’t really hold a point. It’s alright at getting into tight spots and is better than a flat brush, but I prefer something softer like a Citadel Medium Shade.

Made by: Leon-Hardy Material: Whatever was lying around on the floor Shape: Round Sizes: 6, 2, 1, 0, 2/0, 3/0 Pros: Dirt Cheap Cons: Almost useless

Good perhaps for spreading glue or somewhere you don’t want to use anything more valuable, the only thing that recommends these is that they’re really cheap. Rough, fibrous bristles and has no idea what a point even is. Please don’t try one of these as your first brush just cause it’s the cheapest option, you’re gonna have a bad time.

Made by: Leon-Hardy Material: Red Sable Shape: Pointed round Sizes: 2, 1, 0, 2/0, 3/0, 4/0, 5/0 Pros: Decent quality, reasonable price Cons: Hair is a bit too soft, not quite as well-made as some other brands

An alternative to the Citadel layer brushes. The biggest issue I see is that they’re not especially nice nor especially inexpensive – nothing really wrong with them, but I would rather invest in a higher-quality brush. The triangle handle may be a pro or a con for you.

Made by: Leon-Hardy Material: Red Sable Shape: Pointed round Sizes: 3/0 Pros: Decent quality, reasonable price Cons: Just kind of… fine

I like to recommend this as a decent first detail brush. It’s a bit smaller than a Citadel Small Layer and holds a good point. Quite similar to the TR series, but with a traditional handle. Personally, I’d rather spend more for a really good brush for details, but this is a good place to start at less than half the price of a similarly-sized Winsor & Newton.

Made by: Games Workshop Material: Synthetic Shape: Angled Flat Sizes: Small, Medium, Large, X-Large Pros: Good for covering large flat areas, angled tip makes them a bit more precise Cons: Tends to wear fairly quickly

I’m not really big on the Citadel Base brushes, but I think that’s more down to my preference for rounded brushes. Not really anything wrong with these, but I find that flat brushes wear fairly quickly if you’re pushing them into tight spots where they can be bent out of their nice flat shape (which is usually what I end up doing when I’m basecoating). For a flat brush, I’m going to treat a bit roughly, I’ll save a couple bucks and get a PMX-GF.

Made by: Games Workshop Material: Sable Shape: Pointed Round Sizes: Small, Medium Pros: Good for general painting, not too expensive Cons: Quality control can be a bit hit-or-miss

Middle-of-the-road. I like having a couple of these around for doing things I don’t want to risk my more expensive brushes on. A good pick for general work, especially for the budget-conscious. Oddly, I will occasionally get one of these that just doesn’t want to behave and hold a proper point. Take a moment to look through the rack and avoid any that look a bit off.

Made by: Games Workshop Material: Sable Shape: Pointed Round Sizes: X-Small, Small, Medium Pros: High-quality hair, well made. Holds a fine point. Cons: Expensive

GW’s answer to Winsor & Newton, with a price tag to match. Nicely made, good hair, and a fine point. I still prefer W&N over these as a personal preference (and the Artificers are just a touch more expensive too) but these are still very nice.

Made by: Games Workshop Material: Ox hair Shape: Round, rounded flat Sizes: Medium, Large Pros: Long absorbent bristles hold lots of paint, good for washes and some large areas Cons: Imprecise, a specialized tool (esp. large size)

These are “mops” for soaking up a wash and applying it over wide areas. The large one especially is pretty pigeonholed to this job, but I actually get quite a lot of use out of my Medium Shade brush – it’s long bristles make it good for thinning and mixing paint on the palette, where a normal brush would become saturated and pull paint up into the ferrule where you don’t want it. I’ll also use it for quick basecoats on broad areas where other painters might use a Base brush.

Made by: Games Workshop Material: Synthetic/Ox hair blend Shape: Flat Sizes: Small, Medium, Large Pros: Soft, durable bristles are perfect for drybrushing Cons: Specifically for drybrushing

The right tool for the job when it comes to drybrushing. That technique will absolutely destroy normal brushes, where the soft durable hair of these purpose-made ones hold up far better. Using old worn-out brushes for drybrushing is a time-honoured tradition, but I always reach for one of these when using this technique.

Made by: Winsor & Newton Material: Kolinsky Sable Shape: Pointed Round Sizes: 2, 1, 0, 00, 000 Pros: Outstanding quality, a joy to paint with Cons: You get what you pay for

Long considered the top of the line for painting miniatures. Originally commissioned as watercolor brushes for Queen Victoria (yes, really). Holds a beautiful point, wonderful snap, and absorbancy from the hair. Long-lasting if properly cared for. An investment for a person who has cut their teeth and knows they really want to explore painting. Be prepared to spend $20-$30 per brush.

Made by: Winsor & Newton Material: Kolinsky Sable Shape: Pointed Round Sizes: 2, 1, 0, 00, 000 Pros: Outstanding quality, a joy to paint with Cons: Shorter build, less absorbent

The Miniature in the name doesn’t refer specifically to painting miniatures, but rather that this version of the Series 7 features short bristles with less body. It can be stiffer and more precise, but the small body means they don’t hold as much paint and dry out faster. The shorter bristles also mean paint soaks further up the brush and can be harder to clean. I prefer the standard Series 7, myself.

Made By: Privateer Press Material: Synthetic Shape: Pointed Round Sizes: Fine, Work, Base Pros: Holds a good point for a synthetic, decent quality Cons: Expensive compared to other options P3 is a bit unusual in making their garden-variety line of brushes out of synthetic. I have a few friends who quite like these, but I prefer something like a Citadel Layer brush at a similar price point.

Made By: Privateer Press Material: Sable Shape: Pointed Round Sizes: Fine, Work Pros: Decent quality Cons: Bristles aren’t very absorbent, expensive compared to other options

I used a couple of these years ago before investing in Winsor & Newton’s and thought they were alright, but some of the better painters I know weren’t very impressed. Suffers from being more expensive than a decent brush but not as good as a high-end brush.

Made By: Privateer Press Material: Synthetic Shape: Flat (!) Sizes: Small, Large Pros: It’s fine, I guess Cons: Expensive compared to other options

It’s a flat synthetic brush, with all that entails. Perfectly reasonable performance compared to PMX-GF or Citadel Base, but like most P3 brushes is just a bit more expensive than what you’d expect for such a brush.

Made By: Privateer Press Material: Synthetic Shape: Round Sizes: Small, Large Pros: It’s fine, I guess Cons: Why do these cost this much

A purely synthetic round brush. Works reasonably well for drybrushing but not quite as durable as the Citadel drybrushes. It can work as a really chunky round basecoat brush, but just more expensive than a brush like this ought to be.

Made By: Testors Material: Synthetic Shape: Round, Flat Sizes: Flat, “Pointed”, 1/4″ Flat Pros: Basically indestructable, dirt cheap Cons: Pretty useless for the actual painting

Trusty, dusty, and it’s dirt freakin’ cheap. The bristles are literally some kind of plastic. I wouldn’t ever want to try to paint normally with one, but for spreading glue on bases or drybrushing rough sand, the fact that this brush is nigh-unkillable is what you want. For just a couple bucks, I always have one of these on hand for unpleasant tasks I wouldn’t risk an actual brush on.

I hope this article has given you a better idea of what brushes can do and how to go about choosing some for yourself. To make things as easy as possible if you’re just starting out, I’d like to leave you with a shortlist of recommendations for the first few brushes you might want to start out with:

Citadel Medium Layer For most of your general painting. A good blend of price and performance. PMX-SD 3/0 A decent small brush for practicing fine details. Once you get the hang of it, this would be a good place to upgrade to a more expensive brush Citadel Medium Drybrush A must if you’re going to be trying out the drybrushing technique. In a pinch, it can also be used to basecoat big areas on larger models. Testors Economy Pointed An inexpensive addition for real grunt work like spreading glue or texture paint on bases. For just a couple bucks, it will save your more valuable brushes from being damaged.

If you have any questions, I’d love to help! Please message the store via our Facebook page and we’ll do our best to answer your questions. Thanks for reading and Happy Painting!

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