Brush

Precision Kolinsky, size 3 (Mirage Hobby)

This is a modeling brush with natural kolinsky hair from the Polish maker Mirage Hobby, from the Precision line, in size 3. It is not a kit and not a model but a tool intended for painting. Natural hair differs from synthetic in that it can take up more paint and releases it more smoothly, so the stroke is smoother and breaks less often. That is exactly why modelers reach for natural hair where a clean stroke and work on a small area matter.

Use

• Detail painting on plastic models: instrument panels, equipment, small additions.
• Painting figures: faces, hands, equipment, belts, small metal parts.
• Touch-ups after masking and repairs where paint has not seated or has flaked off.
• Picking out edges and raised detail, fine transitions and shading.
• Work with acrylic and enamel paints thinned beforehand to a flowing consistency.

Care of the brush

Natural hair is more sensitive than synthetic, but with reasonable handling it lasts a long time. Wash the paint out of it immediately after the work is done, before it dries, with the thinner matching the paint used (water or acrylic thinner for acrylics, spirit or technical thinner for enamels). Dried paint in the ferrule spreads the hair sideways and the tip will never come back. Never leave the brush standing tip down in a jar of thinner, as the tip will bend and the deformation stays. Do not press on the brush while painting; the tip is meant to lay the paint on, not the bent side. After cleaning, let the brush dry lying flat or tip up, so that thinner does not run into the ferrule.

Who it is for

For modelers and figure painters who want a good brush for detail and are willing to look after it. Size 3 is the versatile working detail size: for finer work reach for a smaller number, for more continuous coats for a bigger one. Anyone looking for a version that stands up to solvents better can consider the synthetic STANDARD line in the same size.

A brush is a tool, not a kit. Paints and thinners are not included in the package. Use thinners in a ventilated space and out of the reach of children.