Vallejo paint
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| VGC paints on my paint station, with an Army Painter Strong Tone ink wash. You can see how the medium has separated from the pigment in the Parasite Brown bottle. |
There are dozens of companies out there
selling paint specially formulated to be used on models and miniatures. If you
are entering the world of painting for the first time it can be a little
daunting.
Most painters, myself included, will use a
mix of paint from several different companies. I use Vallejo paints almost
exclusively, with some Games Workshop here and there – but very little.
If you are starting out painting, there may
be a local Games Workshop in your area, or an independent game store that
stocks Games Workshop paint, so you might be tempted to start there as it is
easy to get a hold of. First up, there is absolutely nothing wrong with GW
paint. The range is now very extensive and it’s a great paint to start using,
You will not encounter any serious issues with consistency or quality.
The problem, like most things GW related,
comes from the cost. It simply isn’t worth what you pay. Many moons ago, when I
started painting, GW paints came in cylindrical pots that were 20 mls and
fairly priced. The first major pot redesign saw them change into a hex shape
and drop 3 mls, to 17 mls. Still fine, still pretty good quality. The disaster
came in the late 90s when they changed the size substantially to 12 mls and
made the lids screw caps, which promptly got glued shut by paint after about
three uses. The bottle design stayed, as did the size, even when the paint cap
changed to a flip cap. The current design is a good little pot – the operative
word being little, that is hard to knock over and has a flip lid. It’s still 12
mls though, and it is still pricier than most competitors whose pots contain
more paint.
I made the switch to Vallejo some years ago
and haven’t looked back. The Vallejo Game Colour (VGC) range was originally
modeled on the GW range, and matched it both in tone and naming ) VGC’s “Bloody
Red “to GW’s “Blood Red” for example). With GW’s range having undergone an
extensive overhaul, the close conversion between the two ranges is no longer
there, but it doesn’t really matter: The Vallejo range is superior quality and
quantity. Vallejo pots are 17 mls and the paint itself is a slightly thinner
consistency than GW. The pigment is much smaller, meaning the pigment and the
medium often separate in Vallejo pots. You will see a milky liquid on top of
the solid colour of the pot has been left to sit for any length of time.
As a result, shaking the bejeezus out of a
Vallejo pot is entirely necessary. Failure to do so means you get medium on
your palette, not colour. The less medium in the pot, the thicker it gets, the
sooner it dries out. I purchased some glass beads from a craft store and put
one in each of my Vallejo pots, which speeds up the agitation process.
Vallejo is cheaper than GW paint as well as
being more voluminous. Online, this is even more apparent. You get much more
paint for your buck with Vallejo, and as we all know, in this hobby you need
every cent you can muster.
The biggest criticism of Vallejo pots is
also its biggest selling point: the dropper bottle. Some people hate them, some
love them. I prefer them to the flip lids of GW style pots, but either doesn’t
really bother me. Your paint doesn’t sit on your desk open with a dropper
bottle, meaning it is not exposed to air and so it will probably last longer.
But some people prefer taking paint from the pot with a brush to put on the
palette for mixing, some prefer squeezing it out with a dropper bottle. That’s
really about it.
Vallejo is often criticized for their
metallic range, and GW is usually declared a winner on this one. It’s not true.
The Vallejo metallics are practically identical to GWs. Consistency is fine. I
think this is an often-repeated internet rumour that people say to make
themselves sound knowledgeable on paint without having tried them. Vallejo also
make a series called Model Air, which is designed for use in an airbrush. These
metallics are even better, being packed with nearly twice as much pigment as
normal VGC paint. You can use these with a brush, they don’t have to go into an
airbrush.
Vallejo has a range of Extra Opaque paint
that was released as an alternative to GW’s Foundation or Base range. These are
designed as base colours and can go over any primed colour, even black. GW’s
Foundation paint is actually slightly better here in terms of consistency. For
example, if you have a look at my Flesh Tearer Marines, it took two coats of
VGC Extra Opaque Red to get a solid base colour, whereas the GW Base Red colour
did a practice model in one coat. But I didn’t like the colour as much and
preferred the Vallejo red. The Extra Opaque range is a great set though and I
use them a lot.
There’s no two ways about it, GW washes are
vastly superior to Vallejos. Vallejo’s washes dry chalky, whereas GWs give a
much better finish. It pained me to have to go back to GW, but they really do
have a better product here. That was until I discovered the Army Painter…
The Army Painter is a Danish company that
started off selling a dipping method for miniatures – a way to paint up models
quickly by taking a model painted in basic base colours and dipping it into a
jar of liquid that stains the model and gives immediate shading. It’s an old
miniature painter’s trick that goes way back. It’s essentially wood stain
varnish dyed to either a brown or black colour. Anyway, the Army painter has
gone from strength to strength and now sell their own range of paint and inks
that can be used as washes. Three coloured inks are available, Soft (light
brown), Strong (dark brown) and Dark (black). You can use these on any colour
to add instant shading. Games Workshop did have these same colours covered in
their old washes range as Gryphon Sepia, Devlan Mud and Badab Black. With their
new range and formulas, these have changed to Agrax Earthshde (doesn’t that
roll off the tongue?) and Nuln Oil. These are pretty good, but inferior to the
Amry Painter inks. If you are new to painting, these will give you instant
results to be proud of. And even if you’ve been painting for years, these will
change the way you look at shading models.
I haven’t tried any of the other
manufacturer’s paint on the market, such as the P3 range, Reaper, Foundry etc, so I can’t comment, but those
paints have their fans and suit other painter’s needs. If you are a fan of
these paints, please leave a comment!
That’s about it really. My advice is
simple. If GW paint is all you can get in your area, go with it, it’s a great
product. But be aware you are being ripped off. Online shopping means you can
have Vallejo delivered at a great price and it will last you a lot longer. I
can’t recommend it enough.
EDIT: I have since found out that the new "Layer" system of paint that GW uses is already thinned in the pot. That is, the paint is already thinned down with water. This is just ridiculous. The entire point of having the paint slightly too thick from the pot and thinning it on your pallette is so you have complete and total control of your paint consistency. For this reason, I'd avoid this paint if I was you. Go with Vallejo, P3, Reaper, Foundry, or Cote d'Arms.
