Bendy brushes

[clivethecelt]

I realise that it's a bit silly to say this, as none of the rest of you seem to have problems with painting 'round corners, but ... I've been struggling to paint on a "hidden" bit of figure, around behind another part of the mini. In the end, I took inspiration from an old radiator brush, and, using some some pliers, gently bent the metal tip (carefully, so as not to spread the bristles) of the brush to about a 45° angle. Not a perfect solution (I snapped the end of the first brush I tried this on), but it does seem to work. Anyone else tried this? Worth putting to AP as an addition to their range for numpties like me to use ... ?

[Comte Michel]

I've never tried it but that's a damn good idea! I will blame you if I ruin my brushes though....

[grant]

That's innovative!

[2close2theflame]

wow i usually think of off the wall stuff like this, but this is awsome. i know what you mean by hidden parts hard to reach. i hate painting stuff before putting it together myself and think that brush would be a blessing in those situations! grats on a original idea!

[mikeland]

Whatever make I buy, whatever cost, or hair, however carefully I wash them, my brushes always curl up at the tip eventually, so I always have a brush or two at hand to get to those hard to reach areas...

[carvel2]

[westwaller]

Whatever make I buy, whatever cost, or hair, however carefully I wash them, my brushes always curl up at the tip eventually, so I always have a brush or two at hand to get to those hard to reach areas...

@ Mikeland this happens to me too Even on my Sable ones that I have paid over six quid for! I know that some people claim that their brushes last for years I find the longest time to be about eighteen months.I am now unconvinced that regular thorough cleaning of brushes as recommended by most painters, hastens that demise. After all one of the things you are supposed to do when cleaning is swirl the bristles into the palm of your hand, thus bending the tip again and again... how do you care for your brushes? Maybe I should invest in some proper brush soap?

Although now I think about it, the action of painting with a round brush means bending the tip as you paint.

I also find that the majority of brushes made for painting miniatures have a head that is too long as I seem to get on much better with short headed brushes.

Gosh that is a lot of words, sorry you got me thinking

[Colonel White]

A tip for prolonging the lives of brushes in particularly expensive brushes like W & N 7s is to wash them in soapy water afterwards or a commercaily available Brush Cleaner (Docortex) for example. THis will help to keep the bristles in tip top condition.

This is probably another modification I may try. My other modification I have is the I shorten the handles of some of my brushes for when painting with the aid of an Optivisor.Stops the handle from banging into the lens.

[westwaller]

You guys are not going to like this much but I have just realised that the brushes of mine that have lasted the longest are the old black handled GW ones! Maybe they got that bit right

[Comte Michel]

After I rinse my brushes in water I brush them over a bar of soap, wet the palm of my hand and sort of swirl them. Then rinse off with water again. Gets all the bits of paint out from up near the ferrule which is what usually kills small brushes. Washing the brush often while you work helps too. Even so my brushes all tend to go curly at the end after a while.

I think I may have to invest in an Optivisor. Either that or get some glasses specially for close work. Sucks getting old when you used to have perfect eyesight