da VinciWatercolor Series Artissimo Paint Brush, Round Pure Kolinsky Red Sable, Size 1 (428-01)

To be clear, natural hair brushes from every company are plagued with quality control issues. Some work great for the lifespan of the brush and others splay and can't hold a point during the first painting session.I happened to get a good one.Comparing it to the W&N Series 7 brush of the same size, I much prefer the DaVinci.Ability to hold a tip: They both hold a tip equally well. However, the DaVinci can hold more paint and yet still hold a tip versus the W&N that starts to split. I believe this is in part because the DaVinci does have slightly longer bristles so the belly of the brush is fuller.Control: Despite the longer bristles which you'd think would result in less precision, the DaVinci was much easier to use when doing fine edge high lighting in the 'Eavy Metal style on Primaris Space Marines. It was very easy to lay a "chunky" edge highlighting followed by a medium line and concluding with that ultra thin highlight. The W&N was good at only the chunky first highlight but lacked the control to lay down the subsequent thinner highlights.Paint flow/capacity: As mentioned earlier, the DaVinci can hold more paint due to its longer bristles and bigger belly. I didn't have to refill the brush as often and the paint never dried on the tip.The only downside is that with longer bristles it can be harder to paint certain parts of the model....even when using sub-assemblies. I on occasion did grab the shorter bristled W&N to reach hard to get places. But otherwise, I liked the DaVinci so much, and the price is really good now (and about 10 dollars cheaper than W&N), that I bought a few spares.Great brush!

I have moved on from Windsor and Newton Series 7 brushes after they clearly let their standards go. After hearing from some reviews of the DaVinci Maestro 35, I decided to give it a chance. These are expensive brushes for what they are, and though just a bit better than their competitor, I find the brushes came with plenty of frayed hairs and a poorly shaped tip. I'm back on the quest for a quality Sable brush.

I bought two Round 10 Size 2 brushes. One arrived with a protective cap, the other didn't. The uncapped brush fortunately only had one hair that was bent out of shape.I was able to use that brush today to paint some 28mm statues. I also had my current favorite brush to help with two brush blending (the Da Vinci Student Series 373, also Round Size 2). The Maestro lived up to its name, and the student needs a lot more education. The Maestro bulged beautifully, almost precisely in the middle between the ferrule and the needle-sharp tip. To achieve that tip only a slight rolling of the brush was required as I pulled it through a puddle of thinned acrylic.Laying down large swaths of color was, as one would expect from any brush, easy. The brush held so much paint I started to question whether I was blanking on the moments when I reloaded; but no! This brush simply holds a lot of paint.The test came when I needed to paint the statue's eyes, and paint the 1mm wide sash. I could not have asked for better precision. The tip was so pointed I had to make actual brush strokes to lay paint on the eye. I was able to paint in the very narrow crevice between the figure's folded clothing and the belt, without any of the paint brushing onto the clothes.Then came two brush blending. The Student, while a very nice brush and my favorite of the low-cost options, felt like a toothbrush in comparison to the Maestro. The Student's bristles were hard, and pushed back against my hand where the Maestro's bristles are impossibly soft, yield to the pressure and snap back to a point. The Student's tip felt like I was using an old sharpie compared to the fine drafting pen of the Maestro. A new frustration arose when I had to reload the Student at least twice for each time I loaded the Maestro.Currently the Maestro is twice as expensive as the Student, but is definitely more than twice the brush. If this lasts as long as a Student I will be ecstatic.

Brush arrived today in a box with three other items and was bent at the ferrule. Truly surprised that it would have been shipped without a tube and is the first sable I've bought that came without it. I checked the site and see they have another option to buy with a tube for about 6 dollars more, which is more than a little absurd. Just sell one brush with a tube for a little more. You'll have happier clients and less inventory to manage.I fixed the brush as best as I was able to and figure I'll see how it performs. The shape is good with no fraying or stray bristles. The point seems to be pinpoint razor sharp and if it holds when wet and performs like my other sables, I'll overlook the lack of a tube, update the rating to four stars and if you change your products to a brush with tube for a couple more dollars, make you my main brush supplier.Update: as promised...The brush, though it had a point upon arrival does not hold a point when wet. The bristles flatten out even with the smallest pressure and makes it impossible to make clean even lines.When dry the brush flays and the bristles spread like a woman's makeup brush.Truly disappointed in this brush.It is probably just a bad brush and does not reflect the quality of their product. I most likely received a defective one.I increased to three stars because I was able to make it hold a point by dipping it into boiling water for a few seconds. Now when dry it's bristles are frayed as before, but wetting it and giving it a sharp tap across the rim of my water cup brings the point back. When painting the tip still isn't sharp but it is adequate for base coating.

Item exactly as described. Made a huge difference to my painting

j'aime bien il est de qualité

Usually Da Vinci brushes are good, however, my latest order (5/0) turned up looking more like a broom than a precision paint brush. This wasn’t anything to do with packaging or postage, it was just misshaped. Good brushes if you don’t get a defective batch.

Purchased this brush as a replacement for my Winsor & Newton Series No. 2 brush, and there are a few notable points (review pertinent to miniature painting only):- The quality of the bristles is very nice. There is a good amount of spring in the bristles, and the brush does keep a very sharp point.- The capacity of the brush seems to be quite similar to that of the WN s7, not enough to make a difference either way. For the difference in price the capacity is a non issue.-My only issue with the brush is that I have been using the brush for about a week now and painted 4-6 miniatures with it. I have already had to trim 4-5 stray bristles off of this brush, which makes me worry about its longevity. I purchased the brush for about $25 CAD, whereas my W&N was bout $40. I had the W&N for one full year before it started to get too soft to use, whereas I've only had this brush a week and it's showing signs of wear already.I will concede that I may have just gotten unlucky with the stray bristles, and after trimming then carefully there is no effect on the usefulness of the paintbrush. It is annoying, however, to have to perform maintenance on a brand new brush which makes me feel like I may only get half of a year out of it.TL;DR: the brush is adequate quality, I worry it may not last as long as a more expensive alternative (Winsor & Newton S7).

Carries way too much water that you have to dab a lot on your tissue to be able to make precise work (wastes a lot of your paint). It doesn't have a naturally occuring point for line work and so you have to shape it yourself everytime and it ends up shaping differently everytime. I feel really taken for all the hype around this brand and here goes 100$ for nothing special, I'm pretty sad about it.