Thanks toolmaker. Just a hobby, although I do paint occassionally for hire. I painted my first body about ten years ago with rattle cans, well I knew I wanted them to look better so I got a cheap brush, I outgrew that quickly then got a better brush, and now use an Iwata HP-CS, awesome brush! I just really enjoy painting them, painting and wrenching are two of my favorite parts of this hobby.
boogie, if I remember correctly my brush was around $125, but I got it a couple years ago so I could be off by a couple bucks. A good brush makes a huge difference!