Vallejo Xpress - First Impressions, Upsides & Downsides [How I Paint Things]

A few odd audio clicks and echoes in a couple of segments today - my apologies for these, but they're short! Thanks again to Vallejo for letting me have a play with this new range of 'one and done' paints. Dead surprised by how well they turned out after a splash of Game Color Wash over the top!
Since it'll no doubt come up: I can't compare them to the Army Painter Speedpaint line since I don't have any Speedpaint. The reactivation issue is simply a deal breaker for me - I love their other products, but I haven't got room on my shelf for paints I can't just paint over once they're dry. Speedpaint 2.0 claims to have 'mostly solved' the reactivation issue, but I also haven't got any of those. 🤷‍♂️
The Vae Victis Miniatures Wizard: www.myminifact...
The Grim Guard 'Sister of War' from this pack: www.myminifact... (available to general release from April, or as part of their Tribes offering during March)
00:00 - Intro
01:04 - The Wizard - Pure Xpress
04:10 - The Dry Wet Palette Plate Palette...?!
05:07 - The Space Marine - Xpress & Varnishing
09:32 - The Grim Guard - Xpress & Washes
11:50 - Final Thoughts...
Thanks to Producer Patrons Alan Nuttall, Kyrie Crawford, Andrew, Jimmy, and Rod - as well as all the other Patrons that made this video possible, and Exit23 Games for recording equipment that helps keep the channel ticking over! Find out more at the following links:
/ sonicsledgehammer
/ sonicsledge
/ sonicsledgehammer
ko-fi.com/docw...
exit23.games
THE BASE: Each miniature got a quick splat of Vallejo's Brown Earth texture paint, then a drybrush of Dark Sand. Done!

[@ObjectiveMedia]

The inverted omega is definitely not a coincidence! 40K writers are very open about the historical influences of most space marine chapters, the imperium and the setting itself. I think it’s another way of adding both believability and interest to the universe. It’s actually one of my favourite aspects of the hobby and sparked a life long interest in history for me.

[@thenerdyknight1559]

Once again, Vallejo put GW on notice with their paints

[@johnkelley9877]

An excellent review and very helpful! I had wanted to know how well the Xpress performed and you answered a lot of questions. Thanks for sharing this.

[@matthiassmedlarsen3676]

Maybe its just because I'm used to looking at minis that have gone through the classic paint + wash process and/or more realism-based or grimy looking paint jobs, but that Wizard jumped out at me immediately when I started the video. It looks great! I would happily use that as-is.

[@buchsg]

Got and army painter ad at the beginning of the video, funny thing 😂

[@SaschaKleiber]

I must admit the last one with the washes really knocked it out of the park. The last minis I usually painted with slap chop style, mainly with contrast paints. But this looks like an awesome alternative, really love how the face looks! Haven't tried Xpress yet, but I sure will. I'm guessing they are even better for slap chop than Contrast Paints because of their slightly lesser pigmentation... And especially not as different in how opaque their different colors are. With contrast I almost always have to thin them down with medium for slap chop, especially colors like Wyldwood or Cygor Brown.. Other I never thin down, like Magos Purple... Don't enjoy that inconsistency... Xpress look more like they don't need thinning down at all for slapchop.

[@Cr4pSnip3r]

Dwarf Skin is absolutely excellent, stand out colour for me

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Dwarf Skin is a real winner in my book, too. Slightly darker than Guilliman Flesh over white, or you could pop it on over Wraithbone and highlight it straight away.

[@loupiscanis9449]

Thank you , Troy . 🐺

[@arandomlostsoul753]

Just in time! I recently ordered a dozen of these paints and (having so far skipped out on Contrast-style paints entirely) I can't wait to try them out! I especially look forward to using them for a grisaille/slapchop-style painting for my eh, prodigious pile of unfinished miniatures. Thanks for the overview, I'll definitely give the "wet plate under hard palette" trick a try too.

[@richardalan117]

im also impressed. i look forward to getting a set

[@flipmoviemaker]

I really like that first one, the wizard from Vae Victis . Before you even mentioned the inspiration the colour scheme, I thought "super hero"!

[@Arnu77]

Inspirational work as always! I recently picked up half of the range, mostly due to half of it being out of stock and I did not need all of them.. I find the purple the hardest to work with so far but I am absolutely loving the bright blue and browns. I'm tempted to use the reds on my sisters of the bloody rose, but I've already started painting with regular citadel reds so they might appear out of place with the rest of the army. Anyways, beautiful work!

[@fogh]

Thanks for the test / review. The imperial guard figure looks especially good - I was really surprised that you hadn’t highlighted her coat and webbing, just the wash. Probably one of the best results I’ve seen from these contrasty type paints👍.

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

I quite liked how the coat came out, but seeing how it 'highlighted' even the very smallest areas on the webbing was actually pretty surprising to me, too. The colours are pretty wicked, but that's something they're working on adding to, at least!

[@markgnepper5636]

Great stuff friend 👏 👍

[@timothyyoung2962]

Wow, I have to say I'm impressed with the finished results for those minis. I do not paint a ton with contrasts. I tend to use them more to add effects like rust, tarnish, etc. to my minis, but I have used them almost exclusively to paint a few, with mixed results. But these look pretty damn nice. I even like how the space marine turned out, and I usually dislike marines painted wholly with contrasts. They seem to do much better over large, flat surface areas than GW contrasts (can't say anything for Army Painter Speed paints as I have not used that line, but would like to). And that wizard's color scheme is a blast from the past. Reminds me of a cartoon character from 1980's Dungeons & Dragons animated series, or something like He-Man or Thundarr The Barbarian. The turquoise color is brilliant. I also have to give a shout out to Station Forge. Their guard models are great. I REALLY like their corrupted guard. Way cheaper option than GW and, in my opinion, way more character to them as well.

[@Jim-yk9if]

I've been hoping you might do something about the Vallejo XPress colors! Thank you for doing this! And that palette/plate tip is great! Time to buy a round palette, I guess!

[@sleepsinleaves]

Thanks for the review! My body is getting to the point where it doesn't like being hunched over painting and seeing reviews for different products that may help in that is nice. Would like a one paint application instead of multiple thin coats because I don't know how to thin my paints properly, lol.

[@Rookie40K]

Great video! Thank you for sharing. The vibrancy is excellent.

[@Kaddith]

excellent video. I have used the velvet red on armor and it is wonderful. working on a full army now since i was so happy with the results.

[@justanothercaptain6566]

Thank you very much for doing a review on them. I am not a fan of the Army Painter Speedpaints. The whole reactivating issue left me feeling burned. 😢 So I wasn’t going to try these…but now… if the price point is cheaper that Contrast…I will replace my GW pots with these as I need replacements. Cheers 🍻

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Pretty sure they're way cheaper than Contrast! I don't know that they'll all work as 1:1 replacements for most of the Contrast range since the colours are a little different, but unless you need perfect colour matching... they're pretty bloody good, it turns out!

[@justanothercaptain6566]

@@SonicSledgehammerStudio thank you Sir!

[@tedwilliams491]

Yet another cracking video mate, great to get some honest impressions of the whole range. Xpress seems to be more consistent across the whole range than contrast, but as i've only got four colours so far that may just be the ones I picked ! When I bought mine, I was advised to get some medium as well, but I've not had a chance to experiment with it so far, so am interested to see how it alters the paint when used

[@malcolmbrown5331]

Nice review. I have a set of Xpress on order and am excited to get busy with them.

[@brandonmcdaniel4216]

Picked up the line, overall very happy. Some personal notes: I use a wet palette with no issues. Space Grey isn't grey at all, it's blue. I had the opposite feel of Templar White, I found it useless. I had a hard time even telling a difference between what was primed and what had been painted. My Dwarf Skin dries way darker with a strong copper tone, yours seems much lighter. Weird. Love the Black Lotus, really wish there was a bone / khaki as I've had mixed success thinning Wasteland Brown.

[@docremington1589]

Excellent review. What I find fascinating is also that you can mix between companies! I’ve started mixing contrast with Xpress and AP or even diluting contrast with xpress medium. Works a treat.

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Great point! I'm definitely going to play around with mixing and using different colours alongside one another. As soon as Vallejo has something like Skeleton Horde and Basilicanum Grey on the market, though, the Citadel side of my paint rack might be in some trouble. ;D

[@docremington1589]

@@SonicSledgehammerStudio get what you’re saying although I like the AP effect better. Xpress don’t always create the shading effect that well. Some are creating a too uniform result for my taste

[@HappyDuude]

You don't need a criminal lawyer, you need a criminal, lawyer! (Loved the wet pallette tip!)

[@tobe2854]

I use speed paints for now, just for the coverage. Then I manually highlight with lighter, and shade with darker tones. Always been a fan of Vallejo though. Great video, dude.

[@sgtbenton8518]

I immediately thought of HeroQuest when I saw the wizard colour scheme

[@theenigmaticgamer]

Very interesting review, thanks. The yellow on the first figure looks fantastic! I have never seen yellow so bright with only one coat. I think it may well be worth me giving these a go on the ancients project I am planning in 15mm.

[@brandonmcdaniel4216]

Used these on some Achaemenid Persians I'm doing and Deep Purple was fantastic for their accent colors.

[@daddomgaming6472]

Like the look of these. Will see what the rest of the range has to say now

[@IanGerritsen]

Paint range reviews are one of my favourite things. If you can reach out and get review samples, this is the shit I live for. Vince Vinturella my other main painting youtuber does them but I like how you do things.

[@ecMonify]

great video as always! i've seen a few videos of these paints, and they seem to dry a lot smoother than contrast paints do. not sure you mentioned the pricing of these paints, but they're a lot cheaper than contrast paints too (shocking that GW sells something that's worse quality at a higher price, i know!). as soon as i heard vallejo were working on contrast-style paints i knew they would be high quality. i'll definitely pick some of these up in the future! :)

[@Roll1ToExplode]

Great review Sonic! :) I've only used a couple of the colours on Orks/Tyranids so far and they looked great but the marine example in this is fantastic and a good showcase of what it can do on power armour, thank you :)

[@jhl5093]

Just more tools for the toolbox. Can't wait for Vallejo to do some xpress military colors in the future.

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Yeah, I think that's really what's missing from all the fast painting method stuff. If Vallejo hits the market with a range that'll paint grubby khaki, field grey, British battledress and such like that? They'll print money from historical wargamers that don't have the time to highlight every brass button.

[@LeeHobbies]

That flesh colour looks fantastic, better than the Contrast ones I have in terms of finish and overall effect.

[@typicaldonut6191]

How to make brown skin tones?

[@LeeHobbies]

@@typicaldonut6191 yeah, please do a video on easy brown skin tones with contrast/speed/et al. I'm doing USMC for Bolt Action and want to get lots of brown skin tones in the army, I don't care if segregation stopped much of that, I've painted Patton black as the mini looks so much like Obama, but please help as I've tried myself and can't get it right.

[@alessiodecarolis]

Interesting review, the only problem with Vallejio's colours Is that GW's ones are more diffused, I yrs ago replaced the whole range of paints with the former, they 've a Better density than GW's, and are cheaper too! I hope to find these new paints, expecially the darker tones, useful for Power armours.

[@caseyrogers7538]

a Model Color Xpress range would be pretty cool and different from the other transparent paint ranges

[@richardrussell7082]

Love the reverse bain marie 😄

[@MrPiotrowicz]

I was surprised by the quality of these paints. Definitely a winner for me among all the speed painting solutions. Sadly, Vallejo are moving cautiously with the colour range.

[@RodBatten]

Finally, an actual ultramarine Ultramarine!

[@McClane4Ever.]

That's as cool hack for the pallet.

[@KnightYellow]

My one wish with these paints would be that they had a better distribution system because these things have been teased by multiple big hobby sites including elementgames and wayland games since November and every time the supposed restock date comes and goes with no change, only for them to tack another couple of weeks onto the date. I emailed EG at one point to ask when they were actually getting stock and their customer rep said within 2 weeks... that was 6 weeks ago and they still aren't in stock.

[@Adi031978]

Feeling a bit conflicted. I do like the "colour" of the new colours, so will definately want to pick them up. As pure one coat paints, I feel the shading and highlighting effects are too subtle for me. So somehow I like them but do not like them 🫣🤯

[@franksminiatures7509]

Very helpfull review!

[@rjlarose5271]

I think you will like the one blue called ether electric/ magic blue over a slap chop or a 3 color dry brush.

[@goforitpainting]

Really cool. Thank you for sharing. 👍

[@mickbrilliantfootballeroft327]

brilliant

[@heatherarmstead]

Great vid ^^

[@andyshaw5378]

Top tip for a wet pallet 👍

[@KrullMaestaren]

Longer drying time can really be a "positive" or "pro" on the list for people that live in a climate with lots of dry air. I still haven't learned wet blending because regular acrylics dry too fast, even with retarder... its just silly dry air at home.

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

I found it super useful being able to go back to an area with a little too much or having to meet a 'tide mark' and still being able to work the paint, it was great from my perspective. Definitely makes these one-and-done paints easier to use.

[@ovidiudiumea4012]

Thanks for this, Sonic. I've got the Xpress range at a local store and have been wondering whether to get into them or to just go for Contrast paints since they're a bit more of a known quantity with all the reviews on YT. I might start with the flesh/skin one (dunno the names) as it looks really good.

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

I'd suggest the Dwarf Skin really is a good place to start. That and Velvet Red are two really useful colours.

[@oldschoolfrp2326]

Interesting, if their medium works with their regular authentic historical shades that could clear some piles of shame/opportunity

[@philipplace9990]

Great review, thanks for this. I've been toying with getting a set to paint my Napoleonic Peninsular project. I'm not the best painter and Contrasts have helped (your videos were invaluable!!!) I have mixed feelings about Speed Paints atm... any thoughts on trying them on a British and a French figure as an experiment? Once again many thanks for this.

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Trying these, or the Speedpaint line? I'm not much a fan of the Speedpaint stuff with the reactivation issue (apparently 2.0 formula has 'mostly fixed' this, but that's not... fixed, so I'm still not all that keen). These I imagine would probably look quite good over a white primer, then shaded with something a bit less heavy for British or French infantry.

[@philipplace9990]

@@SonicSledgehammerStudio thanks, l think I'll stick with contrast as the main paints, I'm getting pretty good results... I keep going back to your videos just to make sure I'm doing it right lol! They've been such a great help thanks yet again!!!

[@n8vlego]

The ranger, paladin, and a warlock walk into a tavern

[@jesusherrera4273]

I love that face in the marine ! is "dwarf skin"?

[@sharonmazor9531]

Great video! What color did you choose for the skin?

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

On which miniature? It's Dwarf Skin on all three, but the Krieg-alike Guard figure had a wash of Flesh Wash over top.

[@BlackJack6569]

Awesome vid. Question have you ever use the slap chop paint method could you try it with this type of paint I am really curious to see how this new line works with it if at all. Thanks again for all your efforts they are greatly appreciated and highly inspirational.

[@patrickmurray1512]

Thanks for sharing this. It looks good for bright colours. I'm not about to use it on my space marines, I prefer grimdark to grimbright!

[@peters.9463]

Which green you would use for some Austrian Chevaulegers? Snake Green or Troll Green? Just from the pot pictures Snake Green looks very dark to me, but so does Velvet Red and on the miniature it looks clearly brighter. Is it similar with the green colours?

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Unfortunately, I can't just drop a link in a KZbin comment... but if it helps, try searching Reddit for 'Vallejo Xpress Color FULL RANGE review' from Juan Hidalgo, which has a bunch of coloured samples painted over white. I'd probably try Lizard Green, but Troll Green might look good over a beige or cream primer like Wraithbone or Brainmatter Beige.

[@ml6158]

I did the error of buying Speed paint, the reactivation is really bad on the reds.

[@la-le-lu-le-lo5540]

Hey! Great Video. Would you mind sharing your 3D Printer Brand/Resin and the Settings?

[@velocitiyraptor]

I know its not super realivent to this video, but im getting back into painting after am 8 year break... and im gonna follow your imperial fist paint guide... do you have like.. refence sheets for what tools, brushes more... basic techniques?

[@andrewblumenthal6611]

This is brilliant. I was thinking of painting my Fallout Wasteland Warfare minis with a Speedpaint / Contrast / Xpress paint. This line of colors seems to fit with the campy 50/60's art style in Fallout. Would you think that these paint would be worthwhile and give you enough range to paint most of these? I think it might be missing a dusty/sandy color, but most everything else would be well represented. What are your thoughts?

[@toms8216]

Fantastic video, thanks for sharing! Which colour did you use for the metallics on the Ultramarine?

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Just Iron Hands Steel and a Nuln Oil wash.

[@toms8216]

@@SonicSledgehammerStudio great, thanks for the response!

[@tumbleweed1970able]

which express colour is the light brown leather colour ?

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Copper Brown, off the top of my head.

[@typicaldonut6191]

Where to buy them? I don’t wanna get sent an older version

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Best to check with your local store or whatever online supplier you usually use. I don't know where you are in the world, so I can't tell you. 😅 The new versions will have the red ring - you'll need to check directly with your supplier.

[@nickchoplick]

When painting the last model it looked like you were using your wet pallet after saying they recommended not using it. Did it apply or dry differently?

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

The short version is that I generally let my palette dry out fairly thoroughly before uses to keep the sponge from moulding; at this stage it wasn't really all that wet. I still thought it'd be worth showing off the cooler plate trick just on the off chance. :D

[@Matt-md5yt]

sweet video for today, it's also my Birthday.

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Nice one! Many happy returns! 🎉🎂

[@Matt-md5yt]

@@SonicSledgehammerStudio thanks bud

[@michaelwain3198]

They have a colour that is similar to the contrast Militarum Green, I think it's called Plague Green. Can you compare the two paints? If it's close enough, I'd like to try the Vallejo Green on my Bolt Action Afrika Korps figures. Also, are you able to feed back to Vallejo, that colours designed for historical (not just fantasy) figures, would be a good idea? I mean, who wouldn't want a speed/contrast Field Grey for example, that they didn't have to mix up

[@michaelrossel7339]

The ultra Looks a bit more Kantor or is this just me? I couldnt find a color for space wolves, you?

[@southpaw5483]

What brand/color Primer is being used?

[@cbradquillen]

Deep wells help. Silicone fidget toys work well.

[@karlriddell3396]

How do we order xpress colors in USA?

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Not being in the USA, I'm afraid I can't tell you much. Might be worth contacting a local or online retailer that carries other Vallejo products, or one that carries other company's lines if they don't already to see if they'd have more information.

[@dickdastardly488]

Stick the whole wet dry palette in the freezer? Mmmmm Paint pops.

[@bluedotdinosaur]

Contrast style wash shading is never going to work with large round and cylindrical space marine armor. Not in one step. See Duncan Rhodes’ video on Imperial Fists using Contrast for the only way to get good results. Works with any brand.

[@pandaemoniumminiatures]

Nice :)

[@swimmerspack40k62]

I am a bit dubious on these. The coverage and applications of painting look to be decent but good lord I hate the color and quality of finish I see across the range. Dark colors look blotchy as all hell to my eye.

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

If you don't like them, you don't like them - nothing wrong with having a style or method you just don't get along with. Personally, I still paint more quickly with traditional acrylics and washes than most of these quick painting lines, but I get a lot of use out of some of them as basecoats in some things.

[@ecMonify]

check out juanhidalgo's video titled "Can you paint vehicles with SLAPCHOP? NO AIRBRUSH". there he paints a vehichle in green that turns out amazing using these paints. he has more videos using these paints, but that one stood out to me because he's painting something with very big, flat surfaces.

[@GeileMinis]

Citadel Contrast zu teuer, Army Painter Speedpaints haben Problemchen ... es wird Zeit Vallejo Xpress eine Chance zu geben.

[@mkulchar]

How are the skin tones The GW skin colors are horrible and they are all the same color

[@stephenrider6107]

well, another five minutes and I'd have completed an order for them without seeing what you had to say.

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Hopefully it didn't put you off! 😂 I think the one really major 'issue' with them so far is being just 23 colours. Being able to shade and wash them super easily is nice, but I'm seriously looking forward to when they announce wave two.

[@stephenrider6107]

@@SonicSledgehammerStudio you didn't:) There's so many cool options to play with. I need more hobby time. Can you tell my boss, lizard and girlfriend (three seperate characters, just to be clear) that I need more time to do that?

[@SonicSledgehammerStudio]

Absolutely cracking up at the idea of the Lizard Girlfriend Boss as one colossal monster in charge... 🤣

[@stephenrider6107]

@@SonicSledgehammerStudio there's a pinup STL for someone to make.

[@stephenrider6107]

@@SonicSledgehammerStudio you did persuade me to pick up a can of white scar. So there's that. Atomic Empire in North Carolina thanks you for your service.

[@jekylthorn8969]

Looks really garish and cartoony to me. Might be good for comic characters.