Thank you Fred. Bit of a slow burner this idea but it truly is a very useful device. Ideal for botanical artists where small details with gradations are required with superior control of the water in the brush. I use mine all the time.
Wow...I love your beautiful technique, thank you so much for sharing. Your water charger is just amazing, it certainly shows the scale of your passion to have invented such a complex water mechanism, not something I would personally try to attempt to make myself, but it was such a pleasure to watch and see your thought process, TOTALLY ingenious! I have subscribed and I look forward to seeing more.
Thanks for taking the time to comment Brenda it is much appreciated. There is lots more information about the watercolour charger on my website should you be interested. sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/home
Hi again. So I followed your instructions to the letter and it works like a charm. You, sir, are a genius. Washes are such a fundamental part of watercolor, and your idea is an absolute game-changer. Trying to recharge a brush with water from the tip while continuing a wash is so damn counter-productive, and one spends all of one's time battling the flaws of that approach. YOU'VE SOLVED THOSE PROBLEMS! This is easily the coolest thing I've seen in watercolor in decades. I am so excited to explore what will come from this. I cannot thank you enough.
Wow! Thanks so much for your positive comments xyzct, they are very encouraging. I'm pleased you were able to construct one, especially since you say it works so well. I haven't had many responses from others who have tried to make one yet, even though I've tried to keep it simple, it still may be beyond the skill level of many fellow artists. I encourage then to show the video to friends, craft groups or model makers who should be able to make one with ease. I know you'll enjoy experimenting with the charger. Although it will make some techniques easier, the painters skill level is still challenged by ensuring you have the correct amount of pigment in the brush before starting a gradation and of course, the brush size and modulating the amount of water in the brush as you proceed. I assume you've seen the more in depth information on my website xyzct but if you haven't here's a link sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/charger?authuser=0 It would be great to see how you get on with it and maybe send some examples of what you've managed to do with it. Thanks again. 🙂
@@xyzct That's strange. It doesn't take any stress, it just holds the cradle in place. Are you in the UK? I got my glue sticks from Lidl's. They weren't anything special just the normal hot glue sticks.
@@JohnSalmon, I accidentally bumped it moving some stuff around on my desk. I was wondering if the glue might not be truly waterproof, thereby weakening it. I'll try again. On a different note, I am using 1.6mm stainless wire, and gaped it using the same wire. I also filed and polished it. My meniscus tends to be thin and laying flat between the wires, rather than bulging up, and this is making loading the brush inefficient. Any suggestions from your experimentations?
Thanks Jennifer. I have made a few for other artists but each one takes quite a little while to make. I would need to charge a lot of money for each one to make it viable. Do me a favour and tell me how much you think someone would be prepared to pay for such a device?
@@JohnSalmon I wouldn't hesitate to pay about $35 which is likely not worth the time you invest in it. I'm a _bit_ handy so I will follow your clear instructions and give it a go. *Thank you* for sharing your useful invention!
Thank you@@jessieadair Do give it a try, it's not too difficult plus it's a good way to recycle things which we'd normally throw away. As for price, although it's made from junk, it's the time it takes to make one that's the problem - I'd rather be painting 🙂. I wouldn't be able to make for non UK artists either due to extremely high postage costs and time consuming customs regulations. It's not worth the hassle. Let me know how you get on? You may want to check out the Charger section on my website for more information. sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/charger?authuser=0
Hi John, okay, so I made some slight modifications to my charger and now it works like a charm! I'm going to step through your tutorial and try all of the exercises. Already I can tell from just fiddling around a bit with it that you only use a fraction as much pigment as compared to laying a wash and dipping a brush in water. Also, I just realized that I've left 3 or 4 comments for you, but they've been deleted because I put (awesome) links in them for you. Oh well ...
@@xyzct Thank you. I'm pleased you can see that. The capillary action in brushes should not be discounted and we must use those hidden forces to help us. 🤓
That wasn't a nearly finished painting Nancy, it was just a piece I was demonstrating gradations on. I would have thought that was obvious. I explained that in the video description.
I'm a little late to the party and I do hope you are still answering. Here are the problems I ran into: 1. The wire was very difficult to cut and bend. I have really small jeweler's pliers and I still couldn't get those end circles to curl without causing the bottom of the part that is supposed to be straight to flip out and ruin the distance between the wires. 2. The loop where it bends in half was either too far apart or, if I pushed it together, the rest of the space along the length became too tight. Couldn't get it all even. 3. Adjusting hither and tither got so many bends in the wire that it wasn't a nice straight line. 4. The glue did not flow so neatly as yours did and I ended up with very little below the metal so there was a gap underneath. 5. I didn't have a proper file or steel wool so I tried a little sandpaper and got a rough surface but not a flat wire. Only when I assembled the whole thing did I realize that that means the water between the wires lies below the "rise" of the curve and the brush never touches the water at all. 6. The water drips from the below the spot where the wire exits the cap. Also from the end at the loop. But the whole thing doesn't work at the moment not just because of the drips but because the brush doesn't contact the water. Does the wire really have to be so thick??? Appreciate any helpful hints. Thank you
Hi Susan, yes I'm still about. Where are you located? Do you have a crafting or model makers club nearby who could help you with the wire etc. It's the sort of thing which they would have the tools for.
@@JohnSalmon I'm in Toronto. Only thing we have is a woodworker's club , they wouldn't help with this. This is such a genius thing you need to patent it and get it into production. I'll see if I can't get some friends in on it I guess. I just started another one. Would you agree that the most important bit is filing down that top surface? Also about the placement of the hole exiting the cap: is it okay if there is a little space above the bottom surface or does the opening have to be in a specific distance from that surface like starting right on itjank you
Hello @@susansorger7399 Regarding the wire, you could possibly try wire from mains cable. We have 15amp electricity cable running to our power sockets which is copper .0685 inch (1.74 mm) diameter. You can use that as it would be far easier to bend (Being copper, it's softer). An electrician should be able to give you a few inches - just strip the outer plastic coating off - straighten it then bend. The copper will need cleaning from time to time as limescale/calcium may build up after a while. I used copper wire on earlier chargers that I made and they worked fine. It would be easier to flatten the top surface too but for the sake of your brushes the smoother the better. I don't know about the galvanised wire, I've never used it. Regarding the hole exiting the cap, I don't think it would matter too much but I think the closer to the bottom of the cap the better. I've been through the patenting cycle a few times with other ideas and to be honest it's an expensive nightmare. I decided to publish the charger because once it has been published no one can patent it. I hope that helps. I don't know if you saw this info on my website? sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/charger?authuser=0
Could I buy this charger from you...if you are manufacturing....I wish some watercolour company sees this and manufactures this new discovery. Looks excellent to me. But making it is arduous.🙏
Fantastic idea! A couple of questions: 1. Do you flatten just the top surface of the charger cradle, or both the top and bottom? 2. Just wondering what you would think of this idea. What if, instead of making a hanger for the charger, I glued the top of the plastic cap to the inside surface of a plastic cup cover, for instance from a small margarine tub? Then the charger could sit flat on a tabletop, plus the cup cover would serve as a water catcher. Perhaps a small spacer between the cap and the cover would be needed to elevate the charger cradle a bit. Any reason you think that wouldn't work? Thanks!
Hi Jeff, you only need to flatten the top of the cradle. I think I understand what you are suggesting - maybe try it and see if it works out for you. The reason why my setup is like it is, is because I find speed to be very important. On some techniques you have to work fast. My charger is mounted so that I can keep my hand movements to a minimum eg. I can either charge the brush or move my hand a few centimetres further to wash it out in the big pot of water or drop the brush a little lower and modulate the amount of water on my sponge. As you could see in the video I have a sponge directly below the charger for catching drips and adjusting the water in the brush. Hope that helps. I think it's called ergonomics, the more efficient your setup the better your painting experience will be. You may want to keep an eye on my website Jeff. I'll add more info about the cradle as I continue to experiment and improve upon it. sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/charger
Thanks for your response Mia Coding_Girl. Yes you can of course use those water brushes. They are OK for smaller gradations but due to the actual size of the brush it can be limiting. With the charger you can virtually use any size and shape of brush. Round, flat, filbert etc. Synthetic or real hair. I often use a size 16 round for larger gradations which a water brush would struggle with. For more information on the charger and how it can be used you can check out this website page. sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/charger?authuser=0 Thanks again for your response and happy painting. 👍
Sorry for the delay in replying to you Estee. I'm afraid I can't make and sell any at the moment because it would be too expensive. Maybe in the future I could make some but I wouldn't be able to ship them out of the UK.
@@JohnSalmon awesome if you could make me that original one you have that in the video like the metal piece I'd be more then happy to buy it and pay for shipping if that possible cause I could really use that in my art
@@JohnSalmon it's what you call the water charger cradle if you could just make that piece for me I'd pay you an shipping I'd really appreciate it cause you deserve to make some money from this invention and I'd use this every day lol
@@EsteeDarla Could you email me at mrjohnsalmon@gmail.com please so we can discuss this further. I may be able to help you but I need to know exactly what you want and whether you will be making any of the parts yourself and of course where you are.
so when i add water to the fat part of my bristles with an eye dropper am i doing the same thing? i started doing this awhile ago with my most expensive paints so i could slowly add water without losing pigment into a water cup. also i have thought about using a hamster waterer
Hello Peacock Feathers, thank you for your comments. It's kind of you to do so. Adding drops of water to your brush will give you a similar effect. In fact that's what I started doing before I decided it wasn't accurate enough. Sometimes you may only want a half drop of water which is hard to regulate with a dropper plus it means you have to engage both hands which can be awkward and it can take too much time. My system is much quicker to use and is essential when speed is required in some painting circumstances. Regarding using the hamster feeder. I've been down that route too. Be careful. most feeders have a metal ball bearing in the mouth of the tube which can snag your brushes, pull bristles out and ruin the brush. A bit worrying if you use expensive brushes. If you think making a charger like I have shown is too difficult, you could try and find a craft class or model maker locally who would be able to make one for you. They will have all the necessary tools and equipment and it would be quite easy for them to make. Thanks again for your comment. Let me know how you get on?
Thanks for this. Interesting idea and looks pretty useful. Where did you source your stainless wire from? TIG welding wire springs to mind, but I don't know a friendly TIG welder. Thanks.
Thanks for your question Jonathan. I've used copper wire from 13 Amp mains cable and the wire from one of those ladies jewellery chokers that had a charm on it. They both worked and were OK. I'll add some notes on the charger section of my website later today as this is important. Check this link out Jonathan. sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/charger 👍🏼
Really quite ingenious, congrats🎉
Thank you Fred. Bit of a slow burner this idea but it truly is a very useful device. Ideal for botanical artists where small details with gradations are required with superior control of the water in the brush. I use mine all the time.
Wow...I love your beautiful technique, thank you so much for sharing. Your water charger is just amazing, it certainly shows the scale of your passion to have invented such a complex water mechanism, not something I would personally try to attempt to make myself, but it was such a pleasure to watch and see your thought process, TOTALLY ingenious! I have subscribed and I look forward to seeing more.
Thanks for taking the time to comment Brenda it is much appreciated. There is lots more information about the watercolour charger on my website should you be interested. sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/home
Hi again. So I followed your instructions to the letter and it works like a charm. You, sir, are a genius. Washes are such a fundamental part of watercolor, and your idea is an absolute game-changer. Trying to recharge a brush with water from the tip while continuing a wash is so damn counter-productive, and one spends all of one's time battling the flaws of that approach. YOU'VE SOLVED THOSE PROBLEMS! This is easily the coolest thing I've seen in watercolor in decades. I am so excited to explore what will come from this. I cannot thank you enough.
Wow! Thanks so much for your positive comments xyzct, they are very encouraging. I'm pleased you were able to construct one, especially since you say it works so well. I haven't had many responses from others who have tried to make one yet, even though I've tried to keep it simple, it still may be beyond the skill level of many fellow artists. I encourage then to show the video to friends, craft groups or model makers who should be able to make one with ease.
I know you'll enjoy experimenting with the charger. Although it will make some techniques easier, the painters skill level is still challenged by ensuring you have the correct amount of pigment in the brush before starting a gradation and of course, the brush size and modulating the amount of water in the brush as you proceed.
I assume you've seen the more in depth information on my website xyzct but if you haven't here's a link sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/charger?authuser=0
It would be great to see how you get on with it and maybe send some examples of what you've managed to do with it.
Thanks again. 🙂
@@JohnSalmon, my glue failed. May I ask what type of glue stick you used?
@@xyzct That's strange. It doesn't take any stress, it just holds the cradle in place. Are you in the UK? I got my glue sticks from Lidl's. They weren't anything special just the normal hot glue sticks.
@@JohnSalmon, I accidentally bumped it moving some stuff around on my desk. I was wondering if the glue might not be truly waterproof, thereby weakening it. I'll try again.
On a different note, I am using 1.6mm stainless wire, and gaped it using the same wire. I also filed and polished it. My meniscus tends to be thin and laying flat between the wires, rather than bulging up, and this is making loading the brush inefficient. Any suggestions from your experimentations?
@@xyzct Are you in the UK?
Ingenious!!!!
@@julieo8017 Thankyou.👍
Thank you for your generosity.
Awesome tool you have invented! Have you looked into selling these on a place like Etsy?
Thanks Jennifer. I have made a few for other artists but each one takes quite a little while to make. I would need to charge a lot of money for each one to make it viable. Do me a favour and tell me how much you think someone would be prepared to pay for such a device?
@@JohnSalmon I wouldn't hesitate to pay about $35 which is likely not worth the time you invest in it. I'm a _bit_ handy so I will follow your clear instructions and give it a go. *Thank you* for sharing your useful invention!
Thank you@@jessieadair Do give it a try, it's not too difficult plus it's a good way to recycle things which we'd normally throw away. As for price, although it's made from junk, it's the time it takes to make one that's the problem - I'd rather be painting 🙂. I wouldn't be able to make for non UK artists either due to extremely high postage costs and time consuming customs regulations. It's not worth the hassle. Let me know how you get on? You may want to check out the Charger section on my website for more information. sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/charger?authuser=0
Hi John, okay, so I made some slight modifications to my charger and now it works like a charm! I'm going to step through your tutorial and try all of the exercises.
Already I can tell from just fiddling around a bit with it that you only use a fraction as much pigment as compared to laying a wash and dipping a brush in water.
Also, I just realized that I've left 3 or 4 comments for you, but they've been deleted because I put (awesome) links in them for you. Oh well ...
Wow, there _is_ something new under the sun.
There is now 😁
@@JohnSalmon, brilliant. It shows a keen understanding of the hydaulics in a brush.
@@xyzct Thank you. I'm pleased you can see that. The capillary action in brushes should not be discounted and we must use those hidden forces to help us. 🤓
You show painting a wash then BINGO you show a nearly finished painting. Wow
That wasn't a nearly finished painting Nancy, it was just a piece I was demonstrating gradations on. I would have thought that was obvious. I explained that in the video description.
Clever! :)
Hello Nacoran. Nice to hear from you. I hope you are well. Tooka tooka..
Hey I just saw you won twice a price from Jackson's art. How much I envy you right now haha
Thanks. Yes I've been very lucky. 👍
genial ✌️😂 many thanks
Welcome!
I'm a little late to the party and I do hope you are still answering. Here are the problems I ran into:
1. The wire was very difficult to cut and bend. I have really small jeweler's pliers and I still couldn't get those end circles to curl without causing the bottom of the part that is supposed to be straight to flip out and ruin the distance between the wires.
2. The loop where it bends in half was either too far apart or, if I pushed it together, the rest of the space along the length became too tight. Couldn't get it all even.
3. Adjusting hither and tither got so many bends in the wire that it wasn't a nice straight line.
4. The glue did not flow so neatly as yours did and I ended up with very little below the metal so there was a gap underneath.
5. I didn't have a proper file or steel wool so I tried a little sandpaper and got a rough surface but not a flat wire. Only when I assembled the whole thing did I realize that that means the water between the wires lies below the "rise" of the curve and the brush never touches the water at all.
6. The water drips from the below the spot where the wire exits the cap. Also from the end at the loop. But the whole thing doesn't work at the moment not just because of the drips but because the brush doesn't contact the water. Does the wire really have to be so thick???
Appreciate any helpful hints. Thank you
Hi Susan, yes I'm still about. Where are you located? Do you have a crafting or model makers club nearby who could help you with the wire etc. It's the sort of thing which they would have the tools for.
@@JohnSalmon I'm in Toronto. Only thing we have is a woodworker's club , they wouldn't help with this. This is such a genius thing you need to patent it and get it into production. I'll see if I can't get some friends in on it I guess. I just started another one. Would you agree that the most important bit is filing down that top surface? Also about the placement of the hole exiting the cap: is it okay if there is a little space above the bottom surface or does the opening have to be in a specific distance from that surface like starting right on itjank you
Hello @@susansorger7399 Regarding the wire, you could possibly try wire from mains cable. We have 15amp electricity cable running to our power sockets which is copper .0685 inch (1.74 mm) diameter. You can use that as it would be far easier to bend (Being copper, it's softer). An electrician should be able to give you a few inches - just strip the outer plastic coating off - straighten it then bend. The copper will need cleaning from time to time as limescale/calcium may build up after a while. I used copper wire on earlier chargers that I made and they worked fine.
It would be easier to flatten the top surface too but for the sake of your brushes the smoother the better.
I don't know about the galvanised wire, I've never used it.
Regarding the hole exiting the cap, I don't think it would matter too much but I think the closer to the bottom of the cap the better.
I've been through the patenting cycle a few times with other ideas and to be honest it's an expensive nightmare. I decided to publish the charger because once it has been published no one can patent it.
I hope that helps.
I don't know if you saw this info on my website? sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/charger?authuser=0
Could I buy this charger from you...if you are manufacturing....I wish some watercolour company sees this and manufactures this new discovery. Looks excellent to me. But making it is arduous.🙏
Read the video description and make your way to my website sujanith. It gives more details and ideas on how you may be able to get one.
Fantastic idea!
A couple of questions:
1. Do you flatten just the top surface of the charger cradle, or both the top and bottom?
2. Just wondering what you would think of this idea. What if, instead of making a hanger for the charger, I glued the top of the plastic cap to the inside surface of a plastic cup cover, for instance from a small margarine tub? Then the charger could sit flat on a tabletop, plus the cup cover would serve as a water catcher. Perhaps a small spacer between the cap and the cover would be needed to elevate the charger cradle a bit. Any reason you think that wouldn't work?
Thanks!
Hi Jeff, you only need to flatten the top of the cradle. I think I understand what you are suggesting - maybe try it and see if it works out for you. The reason why my setup is like it is, is because I find speed to be very important. On some techniques you have to work fast. My charger is mounted so that I can keep my hand movements to a minimum eg. I can either charge the brush or move my hand a few centimetres further to wash it out in the big pot of water or drop the brush a little lower and modulate the amount of water on my sponge. As you could see in the video I have a sponge directly below the charger for catching drips and adjusting the water in the brush. Hope that helps. I think it's called ergonomics, the more efficient your setup the better your painting experience will be. You may want to keep an eye on my website Jeff. I'll add more info about the cradle as I continue to experiment and improve upon it. sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/charger
Is this different from using a watercolour brush with a water capsule ?
Thanks for your response Mia Coding_Girl. Yes you can of course use those water brushes. They are OK for smaller gradations but due to the actual size of the brush it can be limiting. With the charger you can virtually use any size and shape of brush. Round, flat, filbert etc. Synthetic or real hair. I often use a size 16 round for larger gradations which a water brush would struggle with. For more information on the charger and how it can be used you can check out this website page. sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/charger?authuser=0 Thanks again for your response and happy painting. 👍
do you make and ale any of these?
Sorry for the delay in replying to you Estee. I'm afraid I can't make and sell any at the moment because it would be too expensive. Maybe in the future I could make some but I wouldn't be able to ship them out of the UK.
@@JohnSalmon awesome if you could make me that original one you have that in the video like the metal piece I'd be more then happy to buy it and pay for shipping if that possible cause I could really use that in my art
@@JohnSalmon it's what you call the water charger cradle if you could just make that piece for me I'd pay you an shipping I'd really appreciate it cause you deserve to make some money from this invention and I'd use this every day lol
@@EsteeDarla Could you email me at mrjohnsalmon@gmail.com please so we can discuss this further. I may be able to help you but I need to know exactly what you want and whether you will be making any of the parts yourself and of course where you are.
@@JohnSalmon ok thank you I will now send you email
so when i add water to the fat part of my bristles with an eye dropper am i doing the same thing? i started doing this awhile ago with my most expensive paints so i could slowly add water without losing pigment into a water cup.
also i have thought about using a hamster waterer
Hello Peacock Feathers, thank you for your comments. It's kind of you to do so. Adding drops of water to your brush will give you a similar effect. In fact that's what I started doing before I decided it wasn't accurate enough. Sometimes you may only want a half drop of water which is hard to regulate with a dropper plus it means you have to engage both hands which can be awkward and it can take too much time. My system is much quicker to use and is essential when speed is required in some painting circumstances. Regarding using the hamster feeder. I've been down that route too. Be careful. most feeders have a metal ball bearing in the mouth of the tube which can snag your brushes, pull bristles out and ruin the brush. A bit worrying if you use expensive brushes.
If you think making a charger like I have shown is too difficult, you could try and find a craft class or model maker locally who would be able to make one for you. They will have all the necessary tools and equipment and it would be quite easy for them to make.
Thanks again for your comment. Let me know how you get on?
@@JohnSalmon thanks, helpful info!
Did you try a hamster waterer? I was tthinking the same as you
@susansorger7399 no i never did try it but I still think it's a good Idea
Long time no see. I'm an Edmknton man.
Hi There good to hear from you. I hope life is treating you well.
@@JohnSalmon I'm all good, hope you're ok, love you uploads of old Edmknton and surrounding areas..
@@bmwnasher Thank you. More to come hopefully but they take such a long time.
Thanks for this. Interesting idea and looks pretty useful. Where did you source your stainless wire from? TIG welding wire springs to mind, but I don't know a friendly TIG welder. Thanks.
Thanks for your question Jonathan. I've used copper wire from 13 Amp mains cable and the wire from one of those ladies jewellery chokers that had a charm on it. They both worked and were OK. I'll add some notes on the charger section of my website later today as this is important. Check this link out Jonathan. sites.google.com/view/john-salmon-watercolours/charger 👍🏼
I don't know why but I can't see the reply I made to you.
@@JohnSalmon the reply about 13A core and choker? That's visible to me. Odd.
@@jonathanwebb9862 Ah I see it now. For some reason this morning it disappeared. Thanks.