What is the best diluent for oils?

[Ron Tamburrini]

I never dilute oils ,it just makes a mess, bring the different colors to meet and blend with a totally dry brush in a stippling fashion .

foot note! after you clean your brushes in white spirit wash them with a little soap and water, this will keep them supple ,and give them about 24 hrs to dry out before reuse.

this means a lot of brushes but art master pearl series brushes are extremely good and
great value for money, every bit as good as sable.

 

[Carlos69]

I paint with oils and cannot use the paint unthinned throughout... I go back wet on dry with thinner paint,lining in and detail etc.. with thinner oils,for this I use Sansodor,distilled turpentine,white spirit and Dalers low odour turpentine,all apart from the distilled I use for thinning to paint detail,lining in etc and filters.The distilled is high quality thinner I use if the paint needs to be thinner for base coating... a couple of time I have used it for filters etc and it has disturbed the under lying paint,both acrylic and enamels and even oils

But they all have there uses to me

Carlos

 

[marius'mules]

for years when I painted in oils I used mineral spirits; from the hardware store, which only cost a few dollars for a big bottle and it worked fine.

Mineral spirts whether it cost a few dollars like the stuff in the big jug at the hardware store, or if you buy the really expensive artsy fartsy stuff in the small can for a extremely inflated price at the art store-----it's all the same; mineral spirits is mineral spirits is mineral spirits.

 

[Carlos69]

Sansodor,cheapo white spirit,W/N distilled turpentine all have different qualitys ... they are ALL mineral based but all the above behave differently and have different qualitys ! so the "artsy fartsy" stuff that I have used isnt the same as cheapo white spirits ?!!

 

[marius'mules]

Sansodor,cheapo white spirit,W/N distilled turpentine all have different qualitys ... they are ALL mineral based but all the above behave differently and have different qualitys ! so the "artsy fartsy" stuff that I have used isnt the same as cheapo white spirits ?!!

I was referring solely to basic white/mineral spirits only.

And I agree, W&N distilled turpentine--which I have also used--has a different effect.