I left SW many years ago incompetence, overpriced, price hikes, product reformulations, not selling products they don't own, etc. I absolutely despise everything about SW. BM isn't cheap but that's not what I'm looking for I don't like Ben or Super paint but I don't do rentals I'm sure both have something better suited.

I basically use BM in higher products but my supplier carries many brands so I always have options. I was using Pratt & Lambert which is owned by SW until recently they left my favorite products alone I no longer use them.

Anything is better than getting paint from a big box store. There's not a lot of options since they all buy each other out but SW is notorious for turning everything into crap.

 

I only use a few products from SW but my local has trouble keeping them in stock. My only BM dealer is Ace Hardware and they carry a limited line and even less product knowledge. I used to buy Dunn Edwards, which I really liked until they never had anything I needed in stock. If I painted exteriors everything would be fine. But considering I only really use Emerald urethane, Advance or Aristoshield it's been really tough.

I have a local PPG and I'll probably swing by to get some Breakthrough when the right project calls for it.

The guys at SW are nice enough but that doesn't matter if I can't get the product.

 

My line of work is going to be mostly rentals, with some higher end work potentially there.

I will support SW.
SW has paint for all levels of work, from cheapest rental type work to high end products and industrial products. I think finding product you need and pricing should not be too much of a problem.
I am not a fan of HD and here is why, only the paint dept manager can custom tint paint, I am not putting paint in a shopping cart and wheeling it across the parking lot. Behr paint does not roll out very well. I do not buy paint at Ace Hardware even though I am very loyal to my local Ace for so many other needs.

I will agree SW has pricing issues, likewise buying larger quantities of paint can result in good deals through the coatings rep. Store managers have some discretion with pricing. Product reformulations can drive you crazy, not enough to drive me elsewhere.

My experience with SW is I am usually buying their higher end products and very rarely the lower end stuff, I think their products are generally excellent.
Get to know the SW coatings reps and they can be extremely helpful.

No local BM store so no opinion.

 

My opinion is find the store you like. Try them both out, you probably already know the products. Around here Western NC BM is to SW, what local supply house is to Lowes. But that often changes from store to store. In the Greater DC area SW was the winner I switched when moving here to BM.

Also kind of like buying a tractor, don't by a green just because it's green. I went blue because of my dealers stellar reputation.

 

I wouldn't know, all I've used is orange.

 

So far I've called both stores, I got a part time at SW so I didn't get a whole lot of info, but he said I'd have to stop by and pick up the paperwork to start an account. I talked to the bm store and in less than ten minutes I was told there are 4 levels of contractor discounts, I was told I would be starting in level 4, he gave me an example price on regal select for my discount and he took my contact info. Pretty good service from bm so far. I didn't see a whole lot of products on their site for my location so that could be a factor. I'll have to ask at some point.

 

So here's the other side of the question. I know subjectively everyone has their favorites, but I Iike to keep things simple so let's keep it objective. What I've been using is Behr Premium Plus. I know everybody(almost) hates Behr but it's what my boss likes. It seems I can get lower cost paints from paint stores (A 100, ben, superpaint) for a pretty comparable cost to what I've been paying for behr. I know paint like regal select or duration will be leaps and bounds ahead, but will the paints I just listed be objectively significantly better than what I've been using? I don't know if he'll jump for the closer to $50 a gallon paint. I just want to know the details before I bring it up with him.

 

A link to a great reviewer on the tube. His reviews are spot on and have helped me make good product/tool decisions, hope it helps.

 

Well none of the specific paints I'm interested in unfortunately. Good info nonetheless. Also, is it normal to get emerald for $50 a gallon with an account? That seems kind of cheap to me unless you spend a lot in a year.

 

I think Ben s^cks and isn't even cheap. Go higher or find alternatives. For rentals, SW should be fine using Promar.

 

Get away from the box stores. We use SW for most stuff but have an account at BM that we use occasionally when a customer picks stuff there.

The main thing is to find a store that gives you good service and they make your life easier. You call in your order and just grab it and go to pick it up. No waiting in lines. Drop off a sample of stained trim to match along with a fresh cutoff of the new trim and a day or two later you have a can of stain that matches the remodel you're working on. That kind of stuff.

 

We have both BM & SW fairly central to most of our sites. Definitely, both have pros and cons. Ultimately, SW ends up working better for us because their commercial/industrial branch is just down the street from the store we use. So, sometimes if they're out of a few tint bases, etc. we can pull from that store. Mainly SW wins for their inventory convenience.

And as Wind and others mentioned, finding a store with decent people and good service to make work efficient and life easier is the key.

 

And as Wind and others mentioned, finding a store with decent people and good service to make work efficient and life easier is the key.

I use S&W pretty exclusively.
Happy with the products and very happy with the staff. Customer service is always superb.

 

No one size fits all solution for me. I’m more use to Sherwin’s products after years of using them, especially, proclassic hybrid, super paint and duration, both interior and exterior. Promar 200 isn’t bad for, I think, less than 30 a gallon but I’ve been moving away from it since going back on my own again, I think Duration is going to be my go to for walls, especially since they’ve cut my price down. I also have a really good rep from Sherwin who will help me figure out what I need and what’s available now that paint availability is so spotty and he’s been pretty good at getting my business by pushing pricing down.

I do still use Hirshfields a bit though, I really like their fresh start enamel underbody, especially for painting previously stained cabinets and trim, they carry Wooster brushes, rollers and poles, Old Masters products like the Armor I usually use for poly, General Finishes Gel Stain and reinforced builders paper. They’ve also been a lot better at being able to get some kind of oil primer for me during this shortage. Their Regal and Aura are great wall paints when they work but I’ve had a few weird batches too.

 

I like the SuperPaint. But I always do 2 coats on customers homes. On mine, one, and SuperPaint can go one thick enough on a warm day it won't run.

I love Miller 100 percent acrylic primer. Reminds me of the old Glidden formula Gripper. The PPG Gripper is passable, but not the miracle worker the old one was.

I use Pratt and Lambert as well. Good stuff and available at our local lumber yard. Still do two coats, unless it is a rental or customer choice.


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Don’t hate, but I live in a small town in Tennessee. I use what is readily available when I do any painting and for the past couple of years have been using valspar medallion from my lumber yard. I have used sw, bm, ppg over the years and like the valspar just as well

 

The Medallion is great. I was doing a black and orange house. It looked better than it sounds.

Anyway, I stopped laying drops as I rolled the 3 foot wide wrap around lid.

It would not drip and covered beautifully. Then they stopped selling it around here.

Tried the other Valspars and they suck completely. Worst I've ever used.

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I use Ben Moore, pretty much exclusively.. Aura and Regal select, Advance. You can try the Super Spec for apartments. Scuff X or Regal select would be my preference a single coat and a half would work well in apartments.

Remember with paint, it's the labor that cost not the product. So the better more expensive paint generally saves labor. Home owner dyi don't pay labor...

Once in awhile Sherwin, usually a client preference. Cashmere, I didn't like, A 100 I used for a retired painter, it was ok, only good for a few years. Duration is nice stuff as well as Emerald.

Either place I can phone I. My orders, Ben Moore store is privately held, and they have several locations.

 

Here's my two cents. My preference is Moore's over SW. California Paints (here in New England) I've found superior to both. Also, My cali store carries Pittsburgh, Muralo, Cabot (whom Valspar completely ruined about 10 years ago) and C2, along with many specialty paints.

For your work, the BM Superspec is fine. Ben is absolute garbage. For the money use the regal classic. As many have said before there is nothing more expensive than a cheap coat of paint. Inside we use (from BM) Regal, Aura in bathrooms and for dark colors and I really like the Advance.

SW does make good products, but it also makes bad ones. Also, everything in that store (pretty much is made by SW) They are not the best at making everything. My biggest beef with them is not so much the products, but the utter incompetence of the people at the stores. This here in Massachusetts and southern NH is universal. As a pro, I expect the people behind the counter to know their products and know how to run a paint store. I could fill pages with examples of the times (to put it nicely) that they (meaning the performance of the people at the paint store) caused me great inconvenience. This is in dealing with 4 SW stores. Its not the store, its the way the company does business.

Long story short, there are alot of great products out there. In 29 years painting (running as many as 18 people) I have had legitamate product failures two times. TWO. I have had chemists out to a jobsite. Buy the people behind the counter. Work with the people that have been around awhile that know paint and paint systems. They should be able to tell you the best system for any project at any price. Sometimes 1 coat of superspec is all it needs. Othertimes its much much more than that. There should be someone in the store to explain the difference. Buy from those people. Not from the people that always have to direct you to the guy that isn't here today.

 

Okay, lots of good info here. As I suspected, my mileage may vary so I'm just going going have to try them out. My bm store doesn't have a lot if products on their site, so I'll have to find out what all they carry. Can you guys recommend a good paint for rental properties? It seems most guys choose the cheapest paint they can, but paint that costs less than $20 a gal normal price scares me a little. But I also don't want to go painting rentals with duration or regal select. Im leaning towards pro Mar 200 for sw or ultra spec 500 for bm. I'm not sure about trim paints yet, scuff x seems promising, maybe pro classic? I haven't started exteriors yet, but I see no reason to skimp on that.. Anyways, drop your suggestions for a good value durable paint. And good touch up capabilities would be great too.

 

I’m happy with one coat of ProMar 200. It covers anything light in color with one coat.


Yeah, cheap paint doesn’t save you any money if you need to do it twice. Not to mention the drips. Oh, the drips!


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I do a lot of exterior repairs, sometimes as small as one piece of window trim or a couple boards of lap siding, and painting to match existing.

I’m happy with A100 by the gallon.

No quarts in A100, only in Resilience.

1/64ounce if colorant makes a much bigger difference in a quart than in a gallon, so you will always get a better match if you buy a gallon instead of a quart.


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SW for me...but you never know what they're reformulating this week...?

A close second - Valspar at Lowes is very consistent and good pricing if your not plugged in or bug the SW folks every order.

 

I did the interior of my house with pro mar 200 and proclassic for the trim. No issues and I suck at painting.

 

As a few have mentioned. Developing a relationship with the staff and management of the store is sometimes more beneficial than which company the store represents.

I have accounts at both sw and bm and the customer sevrvice is much better at the sw store. Over the years I've gotten ti know the staff and the manager. They always give me a little bit of the vip treatment, due to being a regular. I'm in and out of the store more quickly and my orders are done right.

Getting paint at a big box store is a slow painful experience in comparison.


For rentals I'd go with CHB or pm200 at sw and ultra spec 500 at bm.

 

If you go with S-W get an account rep (probably need to open a credit account) all of a sudden your prices and service will be better after talking to them.

 

Perfer BM, i find moore options there,

 

Update: I had a meeting with my SW rep and a store employee today. I talked to my boss before the meeting, and he said most of his rentals are long term, so he saw the value in a good paint that would be washable and last a long time as opposed to cheaper paints. In the meeting today I laid out my needs and he suggested Duration Matte for walls, Emerald Urethane for trim and CHB for ceilings. I have also just started talking with my BM rep and so far for my needs they have suggested scuffx. I know I could get regal select and duration for about the same price, I'm guessing scuffx will come in significantly cheaper than either. You guys can weigh in on those options. However I am leaning towards SW right now. I liked the guys I talked to, and if I get good products, good service, and good pricing, I'll just stick with them I'm sure.

 

I wholeheartedly agree with the chb for ceilings. Personally I eouldrun pm200 eg on the walls and proclassic latex satin on the trim.


Being washable sounds great, but very few tenants actually wash their walls and when it gets turned, it gets repainted anyways. I'm not seeing the value in spending more money on high end paints in rentals.

 

I understand not wanting to put a premium paint in a rental, I just want something that's going to hold up for 5+ years. I feel like pro mar 200 would be well suited to something with higher turnover, more like 1
-2 years. I'd be open to superpaint or Cashmere too. I could be wrong, I'm still trying to figure this out.