It will probably be another month or so before I actually have time, but I've started thinking about how I want to paint my models. But, I'm curious to know your suggestions on what paint brands seem to work best.

My past experience with 1/35th scale models has been with Tamiya acrylics. While they worked rather well for the level of detail I was going for, I'm planning to be extra detailed with my Dust Tactics figures. I also remember having some difficulties with the paints. Sometimes a new bottle would be so thin and watery it wouldn't cover the plastic well or dry glossy. And sometimes older paints that I used often would start to get very thick and the pigment would become chalky, not even applying paint thinner helped (also tamiya brand).

So, to get to the meat of the question, what brands do you prefer and why? What do you use to weather your models?

The best paints are ______.

Seriously, you're going to get as many answers to that as there are brands of paint. My personal recommendation is that your best results will be with paints made for figures, like Citadel, Vallejo, Privateer Press, and Reaper Master Series. My second recommendation is that you don't necessarily stick with one particular paint line. They all have different working properties, and it will be up to you to experiment and find which ones pair best with your painting style and ability. Not to mention, if you combine paints from different manufacturers, you have access to a huge range of colors. I find I get better blends with GW/Citadel (though I haven't yet gotten much experience with their new formula) and Privateer Press. I get better layering with Reaper. I don't use Vallejo much, as they separate a lot if thinned too much, though others swear by them. Privateer's paints are a bit glossier than most. Reaper's are the probably the most matte.

Additionally, though more difficult to learn to use, you can get very good results with hobby enamels, like Testor's or Humbrol. (Loophole Master has a very long thread on his painting, and gets some fantastic results using Humbrol enamels.)

For weathering, I use AK Interactive and Mig products, as well as artist's oils. (Mostly Gamblin, as I have a lot of those, but Windsor and Newton is good too. For oils, stay away from student grades. They are cheaper, but that cheapness derives from fillers. Most weathering techniques involve heavily thinning the oils, and the fillers cause all kinds of problems when the paint gets thinned that much. Good oil paint is linseed oil and pigment, nothing else.)

That Being said I get fine results using mostly craft paint, my brand of choice is folk art. I find that the craft metalics are inferior as the pigments are too coarse. but much of the other paints work fine. I also use some artist paints and vallejo and citadel paints and both are great though the GW pots suck and I much prefer the dropper bottles. Also for the dropper bottles you should shake them at least once a month or they start to separate.

I actually expected, and was hoping, to get a wide range of opinions. It would expose me to brands and allow me to hear some of the advantages and disadvantages of them. And two users who've used the same paints might have very different experience with them. For example, as I mentioned I have had an overall good experience with the tamiya paints, but sometimes new or old paints would give me problems.