What's a good airbrush set-up?
07-27-2003, 03:22 AM
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What's a good airbrush set-up?
My wife announced today that she'd like to get an airbrush. What??? Dugh,,,,,let's see,,,,well ok! 
I've been wanting one for years and couldn't believe my ears.
She wants one to do rock painting and I want one for my framed up Sukhoi. We know nothing about them so we need some advice from you.
I've already got a compressor so we just need to know what to get and how to use it.
Any good books on the subject? What about the $12.00 ones on E-Bay? They look cheesy.
Thanks!!
I've been wanting one for years and couldn't believe my ears.
She wants one to do rock painting and I want one for my framed up Sukhoi. We know nothing about them so we need some advice from you.
I've already got a compressor so we just need to know what to get and how to use it.
Any good books on the subject? What about the $12.00 ones on E-Bay? They look cheesy.
Thanks!!
07-27-2003, 11:21 AM
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airbrushing 101
For info on airbrushing, try these two sites: http://www.dixieart.com/ and http://www.howtoairbrush.com/. These will give you a start in the right direction. Another source is the public library. Sometimes they have videos on airbrushing--usually for t-shirts and such but the basic info applies. Regards.
07-27-2003, 03:44 PM
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What's a good airbrush set-up?
I have a Badger. Don't use it as much as I should. It's a nice, classic design. Good piece of equipment. Others that have impressed me were the Aztec (?), or any of the lighter weight models.
07-28-2003, 11:12 AM
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What's a good airbrush set-up?
I second the Aztec (made by Testors) I own one and it's very ergonomic, user friendly, easy to change nozzles and easy to clean. It is not one of the cheapy ones. It will last a lifetime and will shoot any media you desire.
Skunk
Skunk
07-28-2003, 03:22 PM
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What's a good airbrush set-up?
I second the Paasche VL. I have one and love it. Iwata is considered the Cadilac of airbrushes, but parts are expensive and usually have to be ordered. Paasches do a gret job, parts are reasonable and easier to find.
For a compressor - I bought a 1 gallon compressor from Harbor freight - it is a little small, but gets what I need done. It was around $90. for airbrushing rocks it would be plenty. I did a 40% Edge with it so it should work for the Sukhoi.
For a compressor - I bought a 1 gallon compressor from Harbor freight - it is a little small, but gets what I need done. It was around $90. for airbrushing rocks it would be plenty. I did a 40% Edge with it so it should work for the Sukhoi.
07-28-2003, 04:15 PM
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07-28-2003, 06:49 PM
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What's a good airbrush set-up?
I've got 2 Iwata's... had them for 20 years... they last forever. Whatever you get, make sure you get a double-action brush and I strongly recommend gravity feed over syphon.
Make sure you know what kind of paint you plan to shoot and check the brush for compatibility... many brushes are for only water-soluble paints, and most thinners will deteriorate the internal components if you use them.
Neo
Make sure you know what kind of paint you plan to shoot and check the brush for compatibility... many brushes are for only water-soluble paints, and most thinners will deteriorate the internal components if you use them.
Neo
07-28-2003, 07:38 PM
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What's a good airbrush set-up?
Originally posted by NE0
I've got 2 Iwata's... had them for 20 years... they last forever. Whatever you get, make sure you get a double-action brush and I strongly recommend gravity feed over syphon.
Neo
I've got 2 Iwata's... had them for 20 years... they last forever. Whatever you get, make sure you get a double-action brush and I strongly recommend gravity feed over syphon.
Neo
Iwata looks nice.
Curious...What are the advantages of gravity feed over syphon? I have the syphon? Never used gravity feed.
07-28-2003, 08:22 PM
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What's a good airbrush set-up?
Three advantages...
Gravity is natural... can't stop it from happening. Paint WILL flow into the chamber regardless of the amount of paint available in the cup. You can get every last drop! Syphon feed brushes tend not to syphon unless you've got more paint in the jar, and there's always that last bit of paint that you can't get to go into the syphon hose. Kinda like a bottle of windex that has a little left in the bottom but the syphon hose doesn't reach it. Many times, that last little bit left is all you really needed to start with.
Next, mixing on the fly. Sometimes when I'm weathering, I'll start with one color, then want to slowly shift the color in small increments without emptying and remixing. I can actually dip brush dabs of paint into the cup while painting and just mix it up with a small paint brush. A couple of sprays later I've got the new color without breaking down the brush.
Thirdly, much easier to clean up... less components to clean, less things to clog.
These factors come into play more with smaller detail brushes where you only want to mix a tiny bit of paint for detailing, weathering, etc. You'll just find that you'll use much less paint with gravity feed and you can even dunk the entire brush (cup and all) into water to clean it.
Neo
Gravity is natural... can't stop it from happening. Paint WILL flow into the chamber regardless of the amount of paint available in the cup. You can get every last drop! Syphon feed brushes tend not to syphon unless you've got more paint in the jar, and there's always that last bit of paint that you can't get to go into the syphon hose. Kinda like a bottle of windex that has a little left in the bottom but the syphon hose doesn't reach it. Many times, that last little bit left is all you really needed to start with.
Next, mixing on the fly. Sometimes when I'm weathering, I'll start with one color, then want to slowly shift the color in small increments without emptying and remixing. I can actually dip brush dabs of paint into the cup while painting and just mix it up with a small paint brush. A couple of sprays later I've got the new color without breaking down the brush.
Thirdly, much easier to clean up... less components to clean, less things to clog.
These factors come into play more with smaller detail brushes where you only want to mix a tiny bit of paint for detailing, weathering, etc. You'll just find that you'll use much less paint with gravity feed and you can even dunk the entire brush (cup and all) into water to clean it.
Neo
