Making the Switch? GW vs Vallejo

[Bulkoth]

So I've been debating making the swap for awhile now to Vallejo but with GW changing paint lines completely I was wondering if any one has opinions on the Vallejo line and if it fits well with my mostly GW gaming.

I'm a sucker for speed painting so I want to know things like:
Does it coat well in a single go, including colors like white and orange?
How is it price wise compared to GW?
Are there down sides to dropped bottles vs pots?
Do you find you have to thin them?
Do they have anything any where near Devlan Mud? I haven't used the new "shades" from GW but I liked Devlan and I was curious if there is an alternative like it.

Thanks for any feedback!

[Xoan]

Heya man, I can understand your pain with this topic, let me give you some quick points I have found. heh


I'm a sucker for speed painting so I want to know things like:
What I have found is the type of basic paint does not improve the speed of such things, but there are way to cut what I call "Table Time". Table Time is what I call drying periods, whether it is glue, paint, or even green stuff. Some the things you can do are well known like drying agents for glue, blow dryers for paint, and what not. However, there are things one can do to thin pain so there is less to dry than normal. Some people get thinning agents, and some say that liquid floor polish works just as well to do a glaze style paint job that let you get more done faster when painting a lot of miniatures.


Does it coat well in a single go, including colors like white and orange?
This is always a little harder, some colors are harder to get done in a single stroke. I would say that GW, Vallejo, and the PP paints are all very good at covering them. Those are well known in the US, but there is a 4th that many old timers have used, but do not know the new name. GW changed their paint company a few times over the years, but one of the best back in the mid to late 90s is still being made and is called Coat d'Arms Paints. They are a UK company still, but you can get them through mail order, and they have over 500 colors of paints, many of them we will know like Marine Blue and High Elf Blue for example.

How is it price wise compared to GW?
Yes GW is the most expensive per oz, but they are also pretty good generally too. GW is an older company so not everything is the same quality imo. I think you have to sort of look at what they do right, and know that you will always have to come back to them for that color.


Are there down sides to dropped bottles vs pots?
This is one of Vallejo's stronger points, and I would say not really, with a proper wet pallet you can have paint last a few days if cared for properly. The same can be done with GW pains, it just takes more care imo.


Do you find you have to thin them?
This is probably an extra question you didn't need to ask, but I make a blanket statement on it. hehe Any paint that is too thick needs to be thinned some, doing that can change the color that is more of the issue than having to thin them in the first place. Good care and all of the above paints will do just fine in this respect imo... the 99 cent stuff at Walmart might be iffy though.


Do they have anything any where near Devlan Mud? I haven't used the new "shades" from GW but I liked Devlan and I was curious if there is an alternative like it.
Ehh that is the dilemma right there. I would say that a price watching person who wants the most from their paints for their models, would want to explore what is close in each of these company as they all have their stronger points. I would say that you could move mostly away from GW paints, but you will still have to come back them in the areas they do very well. Devlan Mud, and most of their Washes and/or Foundation Paints are on a higher quality than most other paints right now imo.

[kturock]

If you insist on overpaying for paints, stick with what you know.

If you are changing to a new color, go to a craft store like Michael's and buy apple crate or is it apple barrel paint,

The bottle is 2x the height of GW and costs anywhere fro .89 to $3. All of the professional painters use it. [there are 3 in my area just for minis and a 4th who paints large size monster models.] It's the same type of paint. It just have GW names.

[MagickalMemories]

That's what I started with... Well, sort of. Apple Barrel, for me, is far too runny with too little pigment. I stuck, almost strictly, to Ceramcoat. It's a bit more expensive (typically a quarter or less per bottle), but more than makes up for that.

I still have some "Craft Acrylics" in my collection, but I won't rely on them. They're too thick to use reliably. They almost have to be thinned, especially if you're painting fine details. The problem with those style acrylics is that they have a far lower level of pigmentation than the "gaming" acrylics referred to earlier. So, after thinning them (those few that need thinning), the "gaming" acrylics get far better coverage.

Eric

[cursedmydice]

My issue with the craft paints i tried was the chalkiness of the pigments. I couldnt get a brown that would go on in one coat and that sealed it for me, if brown cant cover in one or two coats none of them will. I use a practically every line of paints and ive found colors from each one that are better for different things, i dont think i could ever go back to a single line now if i wanted to.

[kturock]

I thin all of my paints when I use them; GW, Vallejo, Apple Barrel & others.
I usually add a few drop straight into the bottle/pot.
Shake it well.
Then pour some or drip some out onto non-porous material. I use little plastic cups like you get in take-out restaurants, for large projects or on an old napkin coveed with paint that becomes a pallete.
I add a few drops of water, from an eye dropper and mix.
I repeat as necessary.

[MagickalMemories]

I only dilute the craft paints with water. I use Vallejo thinner for the higher quality paints. In my experience, they don't thin as well with water... and the craft paints don't thin as well (really, they're almost incompatible) with the Vallejo thinner.


Eric

[tordeck]

I use cheap vodka to thin paints. Less expensive than real thinner and helps cut drying time

[MagickalMemories]

I'd be too tempted to drink my paints! LOL


Eric

[CMSheats]

I'd be too tempted to drink my paints! LOL

Lol, my thoughts exactly. It might not even make it in the paints......

Chris

[MagickalMemories]

That's how the Hello Kitty Space Marine Chapter was born.
"One for the paints, and one for me. One for the paints and one fer meee. One fer meee and... one fr meeeeee...
One fr... Oh, SH**!!! Thassit! Hullo KIddy Spish Marinezes."


Eric

[cursedmydice]

i think the My Little Pony Cryx was started the exact same way lol

[Xoan]

lol @ the Hello Kitty Space Marine and My little Pony Cryx... I have been debating on doing something themed that is fun like that, but I have a hard time putting paint to model know I will never use them for anything else.


On topic though I think that there is some powdery issues with the craft paints, and when you use higher level painting styles it is harder to get the proper blend as well as look. Their metals look faded too when you do that. Though I have heard of people using all sorts of things to paint with. There was a guy a while back who painted his War Zone Miniatures with fingernail polish form his GF. It was a striking yet extremely bizarre color scheme.

[tordeck]

When i say cheep vodka i mean stuff like Georgi that tastes like rubbing alchohol. Unfit to drink with out sending it through a brita 3 or 4 times. (Also helps im a JD guy lol)

[Xoan]

When i say cheep vodka i mean stuff like Georgi that tastes like rubbing alchohol. Unfit to drink with out sending it through a brita 3 or 4 times. (Also helps im a JD guy lol)

Yes but that "Voice of Experience" sounds like a "Guilty Pleasure" too though. I just hope you do not go into full spiral mode, and put on a CD of the Back Street Boys your personal BSB call to arms!! hehe