A short question about varnish

[Plasticoutsider]

Hi,

I wasn't sure where to post this, so apologies if it should have gone somewhere else!
Can I ask what varnishes people use on their 10mm figures.
Do you spray or brush on?  What brands work best etc?

Thanks in advance.

Barry

[Ric]

I use a mix of both, ive got humbrol and army painter brush on and sprays, and so long as the humidity is right (cheers to Andy for that info) the sprays are great!

[Plasticoutsider]

Thanks!  So that's Army Painter brand?  I'll give it a go.

[Ric]

Yeah, the army painter brand (it's matt varnish)

[Wulf]

I've been spraying Army Painter, but I'm now brushing on Vallejo, as I got some 'dusty' looking finishes with the spray. It's slower going though - right now I'm painting individual minis, if I go back to unit bases I may well go back to sprays...

[freddy326]

Winsor and Newton Galeria Matt varnish, it's a brush on but never had any problems with it. WH Smith sell it, but be careful it's sometimes in exactly the same bottle with very similar labeling as the gloss!

[Fenton]

I have used the AP and had nothing but trouble no matter what weather conditions have been

Have gone back to Humbrol Acrylic varnish spray now

[Plasticoutsider]

Thanks so much for all the replies.
I can see how brushing on varnish could be labour-intensive; I do find spray cans to be a bit messy though (and there's the embarrassment factor - 'Look, he's doing it again.  Is he really spraying paint on coffee stirrers?').
I'm tempted to give a few different brands a try now.

[Ric]

I think the biggest problem is something that wulf said above, in that if your unlucky you can get a dusty finish on your figures..There is a way to remove it though which is to paint on gloss varnish, then matt and it goes away. If you only have a few to do at a time then I'd go with brush on stuff to minimise the risk of a cock up!

[Plasticoutsider]

Thanks.
I didn't use varnish at all in the past. 
The thought of ruining paint work is a bit chilling.
I suppose another upside of spray varnish is that you're sealing the ground cover as well

[Wulf]

I've actually found that brushing on the Matt varnish clears up the 'dusty' spray coat. At least, I tested it on 3 of my dusty BEF and they look fine, so there's another 60-odd to do...

[Si Tyler]

FWIW,
I use a two step process over a gloss varnish which I find tends to protect the paint work.  Either using Army Painter quick shade (yes okay) or a spray on varnish such as http://www.craftycomputerpaper.co.uk/.-Acrylic-Spray-UK-SALES-ONLY_SPRAY-ACRYLIC.htm

I then use the Windsor & Newton Galeria Matt varnish which is brushed on once the gloss varnish has had a good chance to harden

Si

[Plasticoutsider]

FWIW,
I use a two step process over a gloss varnish which I find tends to protect the paint work.  Either using Army Painter quick shade (yes okay) or a spray on varnish such as http://www.craftycomputerpaper.co.uk/.-Acrylic-Spray-UK-SALES-ONLY_SPRAY-ACRYLIC.htm

I then use the Windsor & Newton Galeria Matt varnish which is brushed on once the gloss varnish has had a good chance to harden

Si

Yowsers!  You must have the safest figures in the kingdom!
Well I'm going to try out the Army Painter spray and the Windsor and Newton Galeria (maybe on the same figures!).  If I come to any conclusions on what works best for me, and if I'm not hallucinating too much from all the fumes, I'll post them here.
Thanks again for all the replies.  Very much appreciated.

[Leman]

I brush on Vallejo gloss and after drying I then brush on Windsor and Newton's Acrylic matt varnish. Never had a whitening effect using this combo. Also, don't matt medieval/renaissance armour.

[Orcs]

Winsor and Newton Galeria Matt varnish, its about £4-5 a 75ml bottle.

As Freddy says check ite the style you want as it comes in Matt and Satin in the same bottle.

I have only ever had the whitening issue from old varnishes, so I dump mine after a year, which for me is nornally the last 10% of the bottle, so not too much waste.