beginner airbrush?
03-04-2007, 12:39 AM
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beginner airbrush?
Hey guys I recently bought a couple of new kits and some new bodies, so I have 5 new bodies, all of which are clear. I decided I wanted to invest in an airbrush kit so that I get a nice looking finish on these shells. I have heard that dual action airbrushes are better than single action. But what are the differences and is a dual action worth the extra money? I am on a budget of about 30-40, at the very top 60 for the airbrush and it has to be from tower since I am ordering other stuff as well. On the topic of propellant, I have decided to go for an air compressor because I think I'd wind up paying a lot in propellant cans with 5 bodies to paint, and I would also like to use the compressor to clean my cars. Could I use any compressor sold at a hardware store for like $40, or do I really need to shell out the cash for one of those compressors on tower for about $90? Also are there any accesories I really need? I don't want to buy everything I could possibly use since I'm not that into painting bodies. The most I'll every do is probably a 3-4 tone paint job, no fancy designs or flames or anything, just maybe some jagged lines or colors fading in. Do I need any special cleaners for the airbrush? Should I buy 4 of those little glass jars for painting several tone bodies?
Thanks!
Thanks!
03-04-2007, 01:07 AM
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RE: beginner airbrush?
well, firstly, A dual action with internal mixing is definately the way to go.
A dual action allows you to control the amount of air going through the brush, and lets you control when paint is released. Internal mixing produces a finer spray.
If you are buying from tower for uner 60$, I would reccomend something like this:
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXHEX7&P=ML
I've never used that particular brush, but it looks decent and seems to meet your requirements. I am personally a fan of Iwata and Paasche, but tower has a very limited selection of airbrushes.
As far as compressors go, an expensive compressor is not necessary. You can go down to sears or any hardware store and buy any multi purpose compressor. Just make sure it has a decent regulator on it. you only need a max of maybe 50 psi or less for painting, but for cleaning, you might want around 90 psi. Getting an inline water trap is a good idea, but not completely necessary if you are good about purging the tank every once in a while.
I use fascolor paints mostly, and I just soak my brush in dishsoap and hot water to clean it, but you may want to get some cleaner for in between colors.
as for accessories... basically just your paint. I use a 50/50 mix of windex and water to thin down my fascolor. And depending what airbrush you get, some come with a light coiled airhose and some don't. It would be a real pain trying to paint with a full size heavy airhose attached to your brush.
hope that helps some.
A dual action allows you to control the amount of air going through the brush, and lets you control when paint is released. Internal mixing produces a finer spray.
If you are buying from tower for uner 60$, I would reccomend something like this:
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXHEX7&P=ML
I've never used that particular brush, but it looks decent and seems to meet your requirements. I am personally a fan of Iwata and Paasche, but tower has a very limited selection of airbrushes.
As far as compressors go, an expensive compressor is not necessary. You can go down to sears or any hardware store and buy any multi purpose compressor. Just make sure it has a decent regulator on it. you only need a max of maybe 50 psi or less for painting, but for cleaning, you might want around 90 psi. Getting an inline water trap is a good idea, but not completely necessary if you are good about purging the tank every once in a while.
I use fascolor paints mostly, and I just soak my brush in dishsoap and hot water to clean it, but you may want to get some cleaner for in between colors.
as for accessories... basically just your paint. I use a 50/50 mix of windex and water to thin down my fascolor. And depending what airbrush you get, some come with a light coiled airhose and some don't. It would be a real pain trying to paint with a full size heavy airhose attached to your brush.
hope that helps some.
03-04-2007, 02:38 AM
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RE: beginner airbrush?
ORIGINAL: dustin7837
well, firstly, A dual action with internal mixing is definately the way to go.
A dual action allows you to control the amount of air going through the brush, and lets you control when paint is released. Internal mixing produces a finer spray.
If you are buying from tower for uner 60$, I would reccomend something like this:
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXHEX7&P=ML
I've never used that particular brush, but it looks decent and seems to meet your requirements. I am personally a fan of Iwata and Paasche, but tower has a very limited selection of airbrushes.
As far as compressors go, an expensive compressor is not necessary. You can go down to sears or any hardware store and buy any multi purpose compressor. Just make sure it has a decent regulator on it. you only need a max of maybe 50 psi or less for painting, but for cleaning, you might want around 90 psi. Getting an inline water trap is a good idea, but not completely necessary if you are good about purging the tank every once in a while.
I use fascolor paints mostly, and I just soak my brush in dishsoap and hot water to clean it, but you may want to get some cleaner for in between colors.
as for accessories... basically just your paint. I use a 50/50 mix of windex and water to thin down my fascolor. And depending what airbrush you get, some come with a light coiled airhose and some don't. It would be a real pain trying to paint with a full size heavy airhose attached to your brush.
hope that helps some.
well, firstly, A dual action with internal mixing is definately the way to go.
A dual action allows you to control the amount of air going through the brush, and lets you control when paint is released. Internal mixing produces a finer spray.
If you are buying from tower for uner 60$, I would reccomend something like this:
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXHEX7&P=ML
I've never used that particular brush, but it looks decent and seems to meet your requirements. I am personally a fan of Iwata and Paasche, but tower has a very limited selection of airbrushes.
As far as compressors go, an expensive compressor is not necessary. You can go down to sears or any hardware store and buy any multi purpose compressor. Just make sure it has a decent regulator on it. you only need a max of maybe 50 psi or less for painting, but for cleaning, you might want around 90 psi. Getting an inline water trap is a good idea, but not completely necessary if you are good about purging the tank every once in a while.
I use fascolor paints mostly, and I just soak my brush in dishsoap and hot water to clean it, but you may want to get some cleaner for in between colors.
as for accessories... basically just your paint. I use a 50/50 mix of windex and water to thin down my fascolor. And depending what airbrush you get, some come with a light coiled airhose and some don't. It would be a real pain trying to paint with a full size heavy airhose attached to your brush.
hope that helps some.
Also what should I look for on a regulator? Or should I just get a regular compressor and then get something like this: http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXDD33&P=7 and a hose without a trap?
With Tamiya paints, do you need to water them down? With the airbrush that you suggested, do you use regular glass cups or is something different with that metal cup thing? Also is the dual action part really worth the money? I mean if I'm going to be buying a watertrap, a filter, compressor, airbrush kit and all that stuff it's going to get expensive. Isn't it just fine to have the paint start spraying as soon as you press the trigger? My budget for all the stuff is pretty much $80. Would an air compressor like this work? It's more of a pump but....: http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/produ...seBVCookie=Yes
That would be ideal because it is so cheap. Also what type of adapter pieces would I need to use a standard air compressor?
Sorry for all the questions, but I'm new to painting. Thanks again for the great help!
03-04-2007, 03:31 AM
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RE: beginner airbrush?
As for the paint, i have never used it, so IDK if it needs thinned or not. Some people dont thin fascolor, but it all depends on your brush and hhow fine of detail you are doing.
As for the dual action... If you are only doing basic stuff, and not planning on any fades, or anything dramatic, then a single action is fine. But if you plan to progress onto some fancier painting, I would say get the dual action right now. But if you really think that you are only going to do simple designs, then a single action is better bang for your buck.
A water trap is one of those things that some guys swear by, but some guys refuse to use at all, so its not really necessary.
and as far as adapters go, most airbrushes come with one, but if they don't, its a cheap part at any hardware store.
I'm not sure whether that compressor would work or not. I have always used a compressor with a tank. I am not sure if that one would be very consistant.
that hose and regulator looks great, but if you were to go with something similar to this
http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/produ...seBVCookie=Yes
you would get a compressor, tank, regulator, and hose all in one.
You might be able to get it on sale, or even find a cheaper model somewhere.
I'm not sure what stores you guys have in MA, but if you could find a discount/whosale tool store, you could probabaly get an equivilant for cheaper. Just have to shop around a bit.
As for the dual action... If you are only doing basic stuff, and not planning on any fades, or anything dramatic, then a single action is fine. But if you plan to progress onto some fancier painting, I would say get the dual action right now. But if you really think that you are only going to do simple designs, then a single action is better bang for your buck.
A water trap is one of those things that some guys swear by, but some guys refuse to use at all, so its not really necessary.
and as far as adapters go, most airbrushes come with one, but if they don't, its a cheap part at any hardware store.
I'm not sure whether that compressor would work or not. I have always used a compressor with a tank. I am not sure if that one would be very consistant.
that hose and regulator looks great, but if you were to go with something similar to this
http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/produ...seBVCookie=Yes
you would get a compressor, tank, regulator, and hose all in one.
You might be able to get it on sale, or even find a cheaper model somewhere.
I'm not sure what stores you guys have in MA, but if you could find a discount/whosale tool store, you could probabaly get an equivilant for cheaper. Just have to shop around a bit.
03-04-2007, 10:15 AM
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RE: beginner airbrush?
okay sounds good. I think I'll go for an entry level single action for now, then if I really do get into it, then I can always upgrade later. I have seen some air compressors advertised in the newspaper for around $30-40 and they had a tank on them so I'll try to see if they are running an ad again. They looked pretty nice. I'll shop around a bit.
03-04-2007, 04:59 PM
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RE: beginner airbrush?
here's a new link to some really good airbrush "Class Stuff"...
http://www.undergroundrc.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=101
and the home page at:
www.undergroundrc.com
http://www.undergroundrc.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=101
and the home page at:
www.undergroundrc.com
