If you missed it from last week, GW unveiled two new paint brushes that retail for around $25 each. Come see why the heck they are so expensive!
Artificer Brush Collection $69 (or around $25 ea)
Description
The Citadel Artificer brushes are the best brushes money can buy, made from the highest-quality sable hair and designed to help you achieve results you wouldn’t have thought you were capable of. This bundle gets you three, in XS, S and M sizes – a set of the greatest layering brushes imaginable, that’ll open up a whole world of potentially-incredible paint jobs on your Citadel miniatures!
So why are these brushes so expensive?
Well here’s what an “insider” has to say about the what has happened in the past:
Source: Rick Priestley (facebook)
Games Workshop don’t make brushes – they buy them in from Winsor & Newton who supply rebranded brushes based on their standard range. Just once – when I was there – we persuaded W&N to do a limited edition of a range based on their premium Series 7 brushes – which are made to a higher standard and are generally held to be the best brushes available. If that’s still the case, I would guess this is the same deal again – W&N Series 7 brushes sized to GW’s ‘inbetween’ brush sizes. If so I’m sure they’re very good. I generally go for Series 7’s myself – as you can buy the sizes you want and many good art suppliers offer them at a discount.
The Winsor Newtwon 4 rounds set of Series 7 brushes sell for about $75 at discounters indeed. Are these the same brushes that GW is currently offering though their stores?
Winsor and Newton Series 7 Kolinsky Sable Watercolor Brush Sets $75
Originally commissioned by Queen Victoria in her favorite size—7! These Series 7 watercolor brush sets are still made in the royal tradition out of only the finest Kolinsky Red Sable hair mounted within cupro-nickel ferrules attached to balanced, black, Italian Albata, polished wood handles. Handmade in England, a Series 7 brush should be part of any watercolorist’s available tools.
4 Small Rounds Set – This set includes 4 round brushes in sizes 0, 1, 2 and 3.
Vazalaar crunched the numbers on it from the Pound Sterling side of things below:
Man, this is becoming confusing. The Artificer colection cost £42 and on the WN site the WN 7 series 00, 0 and 1 cost together £37,1 thus when buying from GW website you pay £5.1 more than when you buy the same brushes from the WN website. Thus when you compare both products, which are the same from their official companies websites you pay around 13% more for the same collection of brushes, but with the GW name on it in comparison when you buy it from Winsor & Newton directly.
Phew
Either way it may be a good idea to have such qood quality brushes “on site” for hobbyists, the only question is if they will bite on the extra price tag. With GW these days it seems to only be crazy if it doesn’t work.
-How much are good tools worth to you?
Adepticon 2016 Review: w/ Special Guest Aaron Aleong & Chris Mehrstedt Long War Episode 46
About the Author: Rob Baer
Rob Baer
Job Title: Managing Editor
Founded Spikey Bits in 2009
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About Rob Baer: Founder, Publisher, & Managing Editor of Spikey Bits, the leading tabletop gaming news website focused on the hobby side of wargaming and miniatures.
Rob also co-founded and currently hosts the Long War Podcast, which has over 350 episodes and focuses on tabletop miniatures gaming, specializing in Warhammer 40k. and spent six years writing for Bell of Lost Souls.
Every year, along with his co-hosts, he helps host the Long War 40k Doubles Tournament at Adepticon and the Long War 40k Doubles at Las Vegas Open, which attracts over 350 players from around the world.
Rob has won many Warhammer 40k Tournaments over the years, including multiple first-place finishes in Warhammer 40k Grand Tournaments over the years and even winning 1st place at the Adepticon 40k Team Tournament.
With over 30 years of experience in retail and distribution, Rob knows all the products and exactly which ones are the best. As a member of GAMA (Game Manufacturers Association), he advocates for gaming stores and manufacturers in these difficult times, always looking for the next big thing to feature for the miniatures hobby, helping everyone to provide the value consumers want.
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