Ranked by 2025 Sales

Transcript*

Intro

What would I sacrifice to get Tamiya and Mr. Hobby Spray back into Canada? Um, my second born child. Why not my first? Uh, because I love him a lot. Hello there. It’s Paul from Loisirs vers le soleil. Kamusta everyone. That means how are you? And Tagalog it. Yes, it does. Uh, I’m still fluent guys. I promise I did not abandon you. Anyway, so uh previous weeks, a couple weeks ago, I made a video called Top Five, uh Best Kits of 2025. Basically, the best kits that were released in 2025. Hopefully, there’s a link down in the description below for that video just so you can watch if you haven’t seen it. You guys really like that video.

I think by the time we post this video, there’s probably going to be over 10k views. And yes, it’s quite nice. Uh, that list was topped by the 1/72nd scale Tamiya F-14 Tomcat. Chef’s kiss. Compliments to the chef with which would be Tamiya. [laughter] And that’s an incredible kit. Probably a top three Tomcat kit released within the last seven years, I would guess, right? There’s a couple releases here and there. So, but in that video, the thumbnail, uh, a couple of you noticed, but you guys were good sports and, uh, you guys knew exactly what I was talking about in the video.

Anyway, there’s a ribbon on the thumbnail of that video that says bestseller. Uh, not to anyone’s fault. We’re working on like 15 videos simultaneously, so it’s all good. And that got spoiled, or sorry, this video got spoiled. And this video is a best-selling video, which is the Top Five Best Selling Paint Brands from 2025. And yes, I do mean January 2025 all the way down to December. And initially, I wasn’t going to make a video about this topic. I just thought it was a nothing burger topic. I just asked Angelo and Angelo gave me a list. Um, and I’m like, what? This list? Initially, I’m like, this makes no sense.

How is that possible? But then I thought about it. It’s like yes actually it’s completely possible because I mean it happened. This is the actual factual list. Um we will be keeping the numbers confidential but this is it. This is the uh ranking for our store which we sold quite a bit of paints overall. So hey that’s a decent evidence to how the hobby as a whole may be doing or just the paint brand in general how they’re doing. You might be surprised about one particular brand like where the heck are they?

Well, once I explain it, you’re like, “Actually, that makes a lot of sense.” So, yes, let’s get right into it with our number six. But before we get started, I just like to very quickly and proudly In Person Paint Class announce that for the first time in our store’s history, we will have an in-person instore, that’s right, instore painting class. We’ve been waiting for this for a while. Uh, and you guys have asked us of us to do this. So, hey, we’re finally doing it. So, that’s great. The class takes place on April 18th at 11 a.m. This class will be led by Mr. Adrian Pech.

Uh, War Glamour Minis on Instagram. Follow him there. That’s his handle, War Glamour Minis. Once again, direct links down below for his Instagram page. Follow him. Show him some love and appreciation. Tell him we sent you. So, yeah. also direct links down below will be the sign up for our uh well the class uh and it will direct directly lead you to our website so you can sign up. The fee includes a free mini and the class of course and the paints itself will be provided by Adrian though of course he owns the paints so you can take those home but you do get a free mini plus the class uh included with the fee.

So yes, pretty good. Pretty good. And also Adrian is a big deal because uh if you actually click one of the uh pinned posts on his profile, you’ll see why. He is a Golden Demon bronze recipient for large scale miniature painting. He is insanely good [laughter] to say the very least. And amongst other awards as well, he won numerous award. Uh so yeah, sign up now. You’ll be led into battle gloriously by Adrian. Should be fun. We’ve been looking forward to this for a long, long time.

Honourable Mention – Humbrol

Number six belongs to That’s right, Humbrol, if you can believe it. That’s right. The honorable mention spot or the number six spot belongs to Humbrol. And I couldn’t believe what I was seeing when I was sent this information by Angelo. And you might be saying, why? Why don’t you believe it, Paul? It’s because that for a while there, we just could not get Humbrol stock to save our lives. It was border line impossible. It was rough. Um, we only got, I believe, one maybe two re-stocks throughout all of 2025.

Once very early in the year and once near the end of the year. So, and I guess that was enough of a push to put it at number six or the honorable mention spot. And you might be saying, Paul, again, why why is it that low or why is it even there to begin with? We just couldn’t get stock. That’s why I doubted the information. Guys, the Humbrol stock issue was so bad we thought the company died in 2025 [laughter] cuz we received a preliminary re-stock in January or February of 2025 and then another one all the way down in the winter. That’s right around November or December, we received a re-stock.

That gap there is why we thought the company just perished. Uh, but there’s enough of you guys out there that are dedicated Humbrol fanboys or just maybe enamel is your choice paint kind uh or type, not paint kind, paint type, [laughter] that uh you pushed it all the way to number six, telling us that if Humbrol was more consistent with their production um that they would be a lot higher on this list. And we tried guys, we tried to get stock. We we did promise. So that’s why they’re honorable mentions.

5th Spot – Revell

After a quick look at team Canada’s curling team there, we now move on to our number five spot, which may surprise some people, and that is boom. Our number five is Revell Aqua Color. That’s right. This is Revell’s very own water-based answer to Vallejo AK Interactive Third Generation paints. We have Army Painter as an option as well. Citadel, right? Uh, Two Thin Coats, etc., etc.

These are the answers for those paints. And uh, and I say answer, but really they’re compatible. That’s what I mean. So, let’s say you have a Vallejo paint thinner, you can use it directly on aqua color with no issues. Uh, so yeah, that’s why their popularity is boosted up, but there are other reasons. So, let’s get to that really quickly. number one as to why they’re popular or at least this popular at number five is because, you know,
to say that water-based is king in the modern era is an an understatement. Uh people are always looking for uh paints that are compatible with their favorite paints.

And it’s just the fact that water-based is now king. And one of those compatibility options that they have if you use water-based is Revell. So, hey, that’s uh already kind of a point towards Revell. Number two, Revell paints are specially engineered for Revel kits. And honestly, just kits in general of these two types, a car and a plane. Revell just happens to have a lot of those kinds of model kits. So if you use Tamiya, consider uh using Revell paints. If you are a water-based painter because cars and planes are essentially one continuous curved surface and um water-based paints typically struggle on those kinds of surfaces.

Try painting a car. Seriously, with a brush paint. Uh come back to me after you’ve uh you know started crying [laughter] uh after the second coat. Don’t be surprised that um a brush stroke started appearing here and there. It’s just the nature of it. Water-based paints dry too fast and too unevenly. Uh so yes, uh they seem to have slightly mitigated those issues with Revell paints. You can actually kind of smell the formula. So typically water-based acrylics don’t smell like anything.

There’s a slight smell with Revell, which is the only I think maybe downside to Revell paints is that when they freeze, they they become sort of un-recoverable. So maybe that’s why they’re only number five because their sales dip during the winter months, but otherwise, yeah, surprised it was here, though ultimately not surprised.

4th Spot – Army Painter

Now, anyone else thirsty? Well, it seems like me and the list and everyone watching this video is thirsty because from here onwards, honestly, it started at number five. From number five, four, three, and two are all water-based paint lines. [laughter] Starting off at number four, we have the illustrious Army Painter. That’s right, Army Painter. Um, I’m surprised to see them this low. I thought they were number three or something, but hey, they’re still in the top five, so good for them.

Army Painter has three paint lines uh designated by a cap sort of color system. The white ones are the easiest to remember because that is the main paint line, the Fanatic War Paints paint line or the War Paint Fanatics paint line, whichever one you use to refer to them. But basically, they are the revamp that came out in 2024. I would say around early to mid 2024. They replaced the older generation of main line Army Painter paints. And basically, if your bottle doesn’t have the label fanatic on it, it is the older formula.

Some of those paints no longer exist as they’ve been discontinued and changed to a different name or a different formula or whatever else. Uh so, yes, some people do prefer the older uh sort of formula to the newer Fanatic Formulas. I disagree completely though. I prefer the newer ones. They are much smoother and much more responsive to water. They don’t dry as fast and they dry more evenly. That seems to be the trend with water-based as of late uh because they’re trying to fix the main water-based problem.

The second paint line we have here is speed paints. This is Army Painters answer to contrast paints by Citadel. They were, I believe, the first one to respond to Citadelle‘s release of contrast paints, which happened, I would say, late 2019, early 2020 for Citadel. They came out shortly by end of that year with 1.0, or was it early 2021? Something along those lines. It was quite fast, a turnaround from uh, you know, the competition revealing its hand to coming up with a brand new rival product.

And the 1.0 showed its weaknesses. It wasn’t that good, but they revamped the whole thing with a 2.0 release. And you can tell by the bottle right there. All of these are 2.0 releases. And they are now pretty good, I would say. So, and finally, we have the gold caps. These are prethinned airbrush paints. That’s right. Uh technically speaking, um this is only the second uh prethinned uh airbrush paint line within the top six. I say technically, we’ll get to that in a sec, but basically, yeah, they’re pretty thin, meant to be plug and play essentially. Just start painting. We’ve known them to be incredibly smooth.

David himself has professed to this fact. And uh yeah, it’s quite incredible. Uh the paint range is also decent. I wouldn’t say the best because there’s one specific paint line that’s pretty thin that trumps the I wouldn’t say maybe not the quality, but definitely the variety. So, they’re still quite good, though, especially the metallics like Elven Armor that you see here. But despite all this and what I’ve said about these two combined sales figure-wise, they still don’t come close to War Paint Fanatics. War Paint Fanatics is basically carrying the Army Painter Paint brand to number four.

And that’s because, guys, we don’t sell Army Painter paint sets anymore. We sell like the basing sets, but we don’t sell paint sets. And despite all that, the War Paint Fanatics sell a lot. So much so that they’re number four. And there is a sort of phantom force, phantom menace, so to speak, that is carrying the top four, at the very least number four, three, and two, and maybe five. Uh, but five, which is Revell Paints, is largely not being used for this part of the hobby, the Phantom Menace.

3rd Spot – Citadel

Number three is Citadel. Are we really surprised? Come on, guys. [laughter] Are we really surprised? Please don’t say you’re surprised. Yes. Yes. Yes. We’ve heard it all before from Games Workshop. You know, the complaints by fans. Yes. Yes. Let it out. Right. The the prices, we’ve heard it. Uh the paint buckets, we’ve heard it. The fact that on the paint bucket, the rim the paint can dry on the rim, so the the paint jar doesn’t close properly, so when you go to shake it, it actually explodes on your hand and onto your shirt.

Rest in peace, my old Revenge of the Sith jacket. uh that kills me to this day. But anyways, yes, yes, we know it. You know it, I know it. Everyone knows it. But at the same time, there’s a lot to love with Games Workshop. Yeah, their paint range is self-contained, but they’re compatible with everyone else, you know. Uh so it’s not that sort of big of a deal. The paint quality themselves, I personally think they’re quite good. I know a lot of people are tired of Games Workshop, but they kind of take out their anger and say that they are pretty bad. I would say that there are paint ranges that are better, but I wouldn’t say they’re bad.

Not even close, actually. But the main thing about Games Workshop is that their range has a lot of unique colors. Their paint range, as to why it’s unique, is because they’re highly litigated. They have an army of lawyers protecting their IP. And I don’t blame them because everyone wants to be Games Workshop. Ever wonder why uh Army Painter has a color called something like angel green? Ever wonder why? Yeah, angels are not green. At least not according to pop culture uh depictions. You want to know why?

It’s because dark angels in Warhammer lore is a Space Marine Legion now chapter and their main color is green. Green. [laughter] So yes, Games Workshop stands on an island. a very tall building within an island, but they are in an island and everyone is trying to copy them, but they only uh can get so close because Games Workshop will uh yeah uh [laughter] the lawyers metaphorically uh so they they can only step on Games Workshop’s toes so much before they start to notice.

So yeah, they’re not quite the same color schemes uh from other brands. So that’s why Games Workshop stands alone. And to be honest, the unique colors are quite poppy. No one else has them. Uh and yeah, you can mix and match to make your own. Uh come close to it, if not exact. But that’s a lot of paints. And Games Workshop already has the offering. And also the Phantom Menace’s Warhammer, by the way. That’s what’s carrying number four, three, and two, and maybe five, but definitely the the middle pack there.

It’s Warhammer. That’s the Phantom Menace. And I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that the Phantom Menace, i.e. Warhammer, hard carry them to the number three spot. And that’s because the unique colors directly correspond with a certain Warhammer kit, lore, faction, whatever that they’re directly correspondent to each other, intrinsically bonded. So, if you want to be as lore accurate as possible, those unique colors are the way to go. I have to stand for this because number two and number one are the true big boys of this list. There is a massive gulf between number two and the rest of the list in terms of sales.

2nd Spot – Vallejo

Number two, unsurprisingly, is Vallejo. That’s right, Vallejo. Everyone’s favorite. Vallejo needs no intro nor an explanation as to why it’s number two. Come on, guys. Let’s be for real. You use Vallejo. I use Vallejo. 70% of my paints are actually Vallejo. Uh and everyone uses Vallejo. Uh it is just that good. They are the benchmark and continues to be so for water-based acrylics. But what differs in 2025 from 2024 is that Vallejo released a brand new paint line.

A paint line so beloved and so popular that it is a little bit ridiculous. This is the true metallic metal paint line. 80 paints total, 20 base, 20 lights for dry brushing or edge highlighting, 20 airbrush paints, and 20 shades. 80 paints total. Such a powerful line. And I mean that in a quality sense and a sales sense because in a quality sense, they are the best metallics in the business. At the very least, best metallics in water-based acrylic. Their gold is a little bit eh.

Like I would say that it’s about Retributor Armor quality. Not the same color, mind you, just in terms of the quality of gold you’re going to get. It’s about that certain level, which some people really like, some people really hate, but the rest of the line, guys, it’s not even close. Actually, it has no competition in water-based. Genuinely, none. Zero. Then you also have the general stuff, right? Model color, game color, model air, game air. You’re familiar with them. I’m familiar with them. No explanation. So, yeah, they’re just the goat. Well, technically not. At least they’re the goat of water-based, but number one is the true goat, perhaps. Maybe. Who knows? Why are you looking at me like that?

1st Spot – Tamiya

Don’t be surprised. Number one is Tamiya, obviously. Come on, guys. Are you surprised? You really shouldn’t be. [laughter] Why are you surprised? [clears throat] I hesitated on calling Vallejo the goat because of Tamiya, right? It’s, you know, the battle of the strongest, the strongest of the day versus the strongest in history. Vallejo versus Tamiya. Who will reign supreme as time goes on? We’ll find out. Well, we did find out about Gojo and Sukuna. It was very close till the very end.

But, uh, despite all that, a Lady Gaga starts playing in the background. Despite all that, you know, Tamiya is legendary and it they’re so legendary that you and I both know that in Canada sprays are banned. That’s right. Their sprays got banned and they’re still number one. Um, so that’s TS PS. Some select primers. Uh, I believe the base lacquer thinner is also banned in Canada for Tamiya. Not the other version, the one with the retarder in it. Not that one. That one’s not banned to our knowledge, just the base one. But even despite all that, not having stock for all those paints for about a year and a half now, they’re still the goat. Or maybe Vallejo surpasses them in the future. They’re well and truly on their way, but who knows?

Tamiya is truly timeless. [laughter] You shouldn’t be surprised. And by the way, we’re not counting sort of uh the tools here. This is just purely paints cuz I know Tamiya has a lot of tools and kits. If you’re thinking about that, no, this is purely paints and they’re still out selling Vallejo. They’re that good. Yeah. So, don’t be surprised. So, before we go, I have the list of the numbers here, right? And you may have a list in your mind. So, honorable mention, Humbrol, five, Revell, for Army Painter, three Citadel, two Vallejo, one Tamiya.

What Happened to Mr. Hobby?

And you’re like, Paul, something’s missing on my list. You didn’t have Mr. Hobby. Is that a mistake of some sort? No, it’s not a mistake for one particular reason. They got destroyed even harder than Tamiya. So, their Surfacers, both liquid and spray top coat, I believe both liquid and spray for both of them, I believe. Uh definitely the spray part. The liquid is the I believe part.

I’m not too sure about that, but definitely Aqueous as well. Yes, the liquid paint line that’s compatible with Tamiya acrylics. All of those got banned. They got destroyed here in Canada. Um, so that would lead us uh with the C paints, which is all lacquer to our knowledge, that’s all okay. The super metallic stuff, that’s all okay. Acrysion, which is actually their water based paint line. So that’s directly compatible with Citadel, Vallejo, etc. That’s also okay. It’s just Aqueous, the Surfacers, and the top coats. A significant portion of their lineup. Yeah, that’s why they’re not in the top six. Maybe they’re number seven. I don’t know about that part, but yeah, that’s why.

Paul’s Final Thoughts

So, did the list surprise you? Personally, I am half surprised, half not. So, the biggest surprise for me is actually the honorable mention. I would be humble. Uh judging by how 2025 went for them, I didn’t expect them to be anywhere near the top five, let alone number six. But you know, it is what it is. There were a significant factor in our sales during December. So fair enough, I guess.

But I thought honorable mention would have been Mr. Hobby just because of the in the included paint list that Angelo showed me. Leveling thinner was included. And Leveling Thinner we sold hundreds. Hundreds, guys. It’s sold like hot cakes. Uh, and I’m I’m not going to give you the full num uh number, but it is a little ridiculous the amount we sold. Hundreds. Hundreds. Uh, so the fact that it’s not even on the list, Mr. Hobby. And then number five, I didn’t think it was Revell.

I thought it was Ammo by Mig. Surprised they’re not on here, too. And um, Citadel and Army Painter. I had switched, but number one and number two, come on. Uh they are Vallejo and Tamiya. I work here so I expected them uh to be here uh and number one and number two respectively, but hopefully you weren’t surprised either. Thank you guys so much for watching.

Uh another top five video with uh this one’s a little messier because unlike the other video where I show off the kits, there’s a little bit of jokes sprinkled here, but it’s mainly just me talking. So, if you hate my voice or my face or both, it sucks for the both of us. [laughter] That’s a blow to my ego. But anyway, I do appreciate you guys showing up and viewing the other top five, the top five best kits of 2025.

That truly does warm my cold dead heart. And uh every single item and brand mentioned in today’s video will be available links down below for through our website sunwardhobbies.ca. Okay. And of course, links down below as well would be the direct link for the sign up for the upcoming class on April 18th at 11:00 a.m. And I look forward to that.

Maybe I’ll try to sneak in. I think Angelo kicks me up. Uh and then obviously down below finally is the link to Adrian Pech’s uh Instagram page. Follow him.

That’s more glamour minis on Instagram. That’s a glamour with a O U by the way, not the American O spelling. U. So, thank you guys. This is Paul signing out.

Bye-bye.

About the Author:

Paul Catindig As someone who’s been building model kits since he was 8 years old, Paul is very knowledgeable and adept at model kit building! When he’s not building or painting kits, he spends his free time cooking, playing video games with friends, or at a restaurant patio somewhere. Hopes to make his very own movie one day.

*Video by Paul Catindig
Video Edited by Daniela Castellano
Transcript generated by youtube
Edited by Angelo Castellano