Dry brushing with Vallejo

[Valeron]

Hi

As many of you will know I'm pretty new to all of this and only really started in January.

I've been brush painting al my models using Vallejo model colours. I use thinned down paint (with tap water) and find that it flows and covers really easily.

But I've recently started to try the dry brushing technique. I've read up on this, watched videos etc.

I load the paint brush up with paint, scrape excess off on the palette, then remove more by painting on a sheet until there is hardly any paint showing.

I then dry brush. I find that the paint drys on the brush so quickly that I'm having to reload the brush after each brush stroke.

Most of the videos I've seen regarding dry brushing refer to emails or oils so I was wondering if other people dry brush with Vallejo model colours?

It's probably just me struggling with this technique but would be interested in people's thoughts and experience.

[slupanter]

Hey,

Dry brushing is always a building-up technique where you move from hardly there to OMG, what have I do. I find having a little pot in package form in it with a few drops of water on can help keep the paint and brush just humid enough to layer up your effect.

[BarryW]

Water based paint like Vallejo does not work as well as enamels for dry brushing. You can make it work.

I, however, no longer do dry brushing with paints at all. I use pigments and metal powders.

In fact I always use Uschi Metal Powders when dry brushing a surface that is meant to be metal. It gives painted plastic a really good painted metal look while highlighting details. It ‘sticks’ in places, raised detail, where the paint would be worn and chipped.

Other coloured pigments are useful elsewhere. A dirt or dust pigment on tyres or on cockpit floors for instance.

[Mark1]

I use vallejo for drybrushing , I just apply paint to the brush regularly and use a bit of pressure on the brush when applying to the model.

[slupanter]

I use these with model color

https://elementgames.co.uk/paints-hobby-and-scenery/artis-opus/series-d-drybrush-set

[Jim R]

As you have discovered it is harder to dry brush with acrylics because the paint dries too quickly on the brush. I use oils. They have a long drying time. Another advantage of oils is that if you aren't happy with the effect it is easily removed with a brush dampened with solvent (white spirit). The downside is that further work has to be left until the oil work is fully dry, at least 24 hours. Enamels work in a very similar way.

[Tim Marlow]

I’m with Jim on this. Drybrushing acrylics is very hard to do well. The drying time of the paint is just too fast. You can use retarder to slow the drying, but that changes the characteristics of the paint, making it wetter, and a restrained dry brush effect hard to achieve. You can “overbrush” with acrylics. This uses more paint, so keeps the brush moist for longer. However, the effect is much heavier than proper dry brushing and can look crude because it’s easier to overdo it.
Oils or enamels are best for true drybrushing n my experience, but you must leave them to dry properly before the next task or they will rub off or smudge..

[Guest]

It depends a lot on the brand of acrylic paint, though: Tamiya is usually impossible to drybrush with, except for a number of colours when they’re fairly new, Vallejo is a lot easier, while Army Painter or Revell Aqua Colour work pretty well IMHO. But yes, you need to put fresh paint on the brush a lot more often than you would if you were drybrushing with enamels.

[Valeron]

Thanks everyone.

I have a follow up question with dry brushing if I may

So far, I've been applying a gloss/silk coat before then applying a wash and then dry brushing.

I know from previous chats with some of you, that some of you don't apply a gloss coat, BUT that aside, I've now been. reading on a few sites that dry brushing will not work properly on a gloss/satin coat as it needs a Matt surface to bite to.

What are people's thoughts on this?

[Ian M]

I normally dry brush Vallejo lightly thinned abd with a synthetic brush on a matt surface.

[Jim R]

I always dry brush onto a matt or occasionally satin finish - never gloss. You want your dry brush to cling to raised detail and edges and gloss is not "gripping" enough.

[Guest]

It will work far better on a mart surface, yes. It’s not impossible to drybrush onto gloss paint, but that doesn’t work overly well, is my experience.