Paintbrush

For other uses, see Paintbrush (disambiguation).
Paintbrushes

A paintbrush is a brush used to apply paint or sometimes ink. A paintbrush is usually made by clamping the bristles to a handle with a ferrule.

Decorators' brushes

Decorators' brushes

The sizes of brushes used for painting and decorating are given in millimeters (mm) or inches (in), which refers to the width of the head.

Common sizes are:

Bristles

Bristles may be natural or synthetic. If the filaments are synthetic, they may be made of polyester, nylon or a blend of nylon and polyester. Filaments can be hollow or solid and can be tapered or untapered. Brushes with tapered filaments give a smoother finish.

Synthetic filaments last longer than natural bristles. Natural bristles are preferred for oil-based paints and varnishes, while synthetic brushes are better for water-based paints as the bristles do not expand when wetted.

A decorator judges the quality of a brush based on several factors: filament retention, paint pickup, steadiness of paint release, brush marks, drag and precision painting. A chiseled brush permits the painter to cut into tighter corners and paint more precisely.

Brush handles may be made of wood or plastic while ferrules are metal (usually nickel-plated steel).

Artists' brushes

Short handled brushes are for watercolor or ink painting while the long handled brushes are for oil or acrylic paint.

Shapes

The styles of brush tip seen most commonly are:

Types of brushes
Brushes used in one stroke painting

Some other styles of brush include:

Sizes

Artists' brushes are usually given numbered sizes, although there is no exact standard for their physical dimensions.

From smallest to largest, the sizes are:

Sizes 000 to 20 are most common.

Bristles

Types include:

Turpentine or thinners used in oil painting can destroy some types of synthetic brushes. However, innovations in synthetic bristle technology have produced solvent resistant synthetic bristles suitable for use in all media. Natural hair, squirrel, badger or sable are used by watercolorists due to their superior ability to absorb and hold water.

Bristles may be natural — either soft hair or hog bristle — or synthetic.

Soft hair brushes
The best of these are made from kolinsky sable, other red sables, or ox hair. Sabeline is ox hair dyed red to look like red sable and sometimes blended with it. Camel hair is a generic term for a cheaper and lower quality alternative, usually squirrel. It can be other species, or a blend of species, but never includes camel. Pony, goat, mongoose and badger are also used.
Hog bristle
Often called China bristle or Chungking bristle. This is stiffer and stronger than soft hair. It may be bleached or unbleached.
Synthetic bristles
These are made of special multi-diameter extruded nylon filament, Taklon or polyester. These are becoming ever more popular with the development of new water based paints.

Handles

Artists' brush handles are commonly wooden but can also be made of molded plastic. Many mass-produced handles are made of unfinished raw wood; better quality handles are of seasoned hardwood. The wood is sealed and lacquered to give the handle a high-gloss, waterproof finish that reduces soiling and swelling.

Metal ferrules may be of aluminum, nickel, copper, or nickel-plated steel. Quill ferrules are also found: these give a different "feel" to the brush.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to paint brushes.
Look up paintbrush in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
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