Airbrush Anger.....

[spjaco]

Well I purchased the Citadel airbrush set, with propellant, cleaner, and one bottle of GW SW Grey. On second thought maybe I should have gone with a Citadel color cuz GW didnt seem to like to work. Either it was the mix or me, not sure which.

 

Plus when I got the airbrush it had a twenty dollar sticker on the front. What I didnt see was the $30 sticker on the back....

Needless to say I will order from the net and it will be a cold day among the Salamanders Chapter before I shop there again.

 

Any suggestions on how to get the airbrush to work properly?

 

"I sense the forces of Chaos at work," - Ragnar Blackmane.

"You always sense Chaos at work," - Torin the Wayfarer.

[Tamwulf]

I hate linking to another website, but try Dakka Airbrush FAQ. This thread discuses a TON about airbrushes. I dare say it's everything you ever wanted to know about airbrushes.

 

edited for bad link.

[Simo429]

I brought the GW one when it first came out

 

I found that by the time id watered down the paint enough to get it to work and done some test models I could just undercoat with a tank brush

 

Might get a decent one for xmas if im going to have a bash at a horde army

[spjaco]

Thanks for the help. Sounds like pretty much the Citadel airbrush is a big waste of funds. Experience seems to confirm things that way.

 

Really gonna have to go search for a different system now.

[Beef]

Yes the Citidel one is a waste of time. Personnaly getting the right level of mixture (water and GW paint) is an art form in iteself.

[IamCaboose]

I bought the airbrush and didn't have any trouble with it... Maybe I got lucky with my mix on the first try but it really sped up my tank painting process. I tried it on a few test marines and it looked like it globbed up on the helmet but after it dried it came out just fine.

[Quillen]

If you have a HobbyLobby or similar hobby craft store go there. You can get a kick butt air brush for like $24 and they last for ever. I have had mine for 3 or 4 years now. You want to use model master paint with a little thinner. Looks way better. Water colors out of an airbrush is a pain. Model mater works the best, and most hobby/RV/Model stores carry their line and they are amazing.

[Thunderhawk3015]

Personal Experience for me is that my Iwata works just fine watering down the paint a tad and keeping the pressure very very low to avoid the shotgun effect :D

 

Quillen pretty much hit the nail on the head for if your looking to speed up the tank and/or basecoating part of painting. Only other note I have is get a gravity feed airbrush as they are less wasteful. Siphon feed ones you always end up with excess stuck in the pot that refuses to come out, and with gravity feed you can put less in and add more as needed. Dual action triggers are wonderful if your doing more than just basecoats as it allows greater control in paint flow in addition to the air pressure.

 

My .02 on the matter

[Gman]

I have tried the GW airbrush and it did OK. I was using the normal GW paint, DA green, and not the thick base coating stuff it's "made" for. I used the same water to paint mixture recommended for it though. Seemed to come out OK and all, but still took 2 coats to get a vehicle done right. Probably used about the same amount of paint as doing it by hand though. I think base coating infantry it makes it faster and more even though. I was not terribly impressed.

 

Now my way is all about using spray paint to base coat my armies. Currently doing Ravengaurd so the black is easy, as I just use the GW black spray. Wife is starting up SW and we are planning on buying this stuff, http://www.thearmypainter.com/ uniform grey. A friend has been using on them 3 armies now with great success, and loves how it turns out. The Warstore sells it here in the US.

[Quillen]

I'm telling ya, Model Master works awesome covers great and leaves detail. It's not water base. You have to use thinner, still I base coated like 3 tanks 6 Rhinos and 60 marines in a couple of hours. It makes it so much easier.

[Gman]

I've been to the local Hobby Lobby here and saw the air brushes. Where the airbrush was very inexpensive, the compressor was like $200. That's what stopped me from buying one, just to paint some plastic models. :RTBBB: Is there something I'm missing here about the air source that is much cheaper?

[JaegerAD]

yes it is cheaper, if you use your spraygun for more than coating.

also there are more pro`s :

-no "cool down" (Propellant can freezes)

-steady pressure

-more control about the air stream

 

if you ONLY want to base coat your minis (around 50-150 minis) than the gas can will be enough :D

[Commander Skaav]

I brought a GW Airbrush and air can the airbrush alone cost me £18 and the can of air at least £8, I mean I ask you it cost me a total of £26 and the only thing I use it for is actually inking and overcoating, as the inks are just the right consistency for the sprayer, and when it drips down on a tank, it looks like oil seeping out of the tanks engine.

 

Also if you are looking for a decent paint to use, I would recommend the Vallejo range, yes they come in smaller bottles, but I find I actually use less amounts than GW pots, and believe it or not, the bottles actually last longer, I have not had to purchase so many of their range as I have GW.

 

So yes, I use my airsprayer for one thing only, inking, other than that, I prefer 'Ol Faithful', as I like to call my Tank Brush. I mean it still works with the putty over the tank so I still get camoflage patterns.

 

Any way, that's my two pence worth, hope this gives some food for thought.

 

Cheers.

 

C-S

[RunningWolfFenris]

So whats the consensus on the GW Airgun-flamer shaped doodad? I was thinking about doing it mostly because I seriously don't enjoy painting troops. I like characters and everything but I just want a game-quality painted army FAST. I like playing more. Yay or nay on the spray gun?

[Quillen]

I got me a massive Kawasaki compressor from Costco. Yes a big hulking one for contractors. And it cost me $80 US. The ones at hobbyLobby are a bit over priced. Go Costco and Home Depot. Maybe Lowies and heck even WalMart.

 

The little ones are over expensive. You can get one that will last for years for way cheaper.

 

Basicly a can of prerellent is about 10 bucks US, so for the price of 10 cans I can get a compressor.

 

 

Pawn SHops. They usually have a ton of compressors too. And you can pick up what ever you like. Just test it before buying.

 

You will probly need a piece to allow the gun to work on the compressor. I got a brass one from a friend from feree cause he said they cost like 5 bucks. And any hardware store should have one.

 

 

I have had 2 Air Guns and 1 compressor. I have used them for 10 years now. Air brushes are a time saver. I have painted 3 whole armies with it and a ton of Sci-fi models. Star Wars models, Bab 5. My Appoc Super heavies.

 

I love my Air gun and the guns from Lobby Hobby are metal and will last. My friend got the FLamer from GW and it broke. It's plastic. Testors had a plastic one too. I had it for a time way back. I stepped on it thou. Plastic doesn't hold up all that well.

[JaegerAD]

äh nay , if you want to use airbrush, buy an better one, yes more expensive but only once B)

 

@ commander skaav : gw 12 ml , vallejo 17 ml, but yes thelast longer , dont dry out so fast , better pigmentation and the small bottles are so usefull :D i use only 1 gw color Shadow grey , my other are p3 or vallejo

[Taeken]

Picking up a Master G44 in a couple of weeks. Used a friends once and now its a must have. JaegerAD is right. It may be more $ but you get what you pay for.

[Gman]

Hmm I frequent Coscto weekly, I'll have to keep an eye out for that. If it's one of those big ones with enough pressure to work automotive air tools, it's worth it for me. :D Also, hadn't thought about the pawn shop deal either.

[Gman]

Picking up a Master G44 in a couple of weeks. Used a friends once and now its a must have. JaegerAD is right. It may be more $ but you get what you pay for.

 

Where you getting it from, an online source? Are you getting a whole kit with compressor? I did a quick search on Amazon and found some complete kits for less then $200.

[JaegerAD]

@ Taeken , i use the Galaxy Star 3000, but as they ae the same nice spraygun :devil:

 

Gman if you`r lucky then yes, i can use my comp for both

but dont forget to control the preassure, or else the mini goes with the paint everywhere(or worth, airgun goes with it)... yep personal experience ^^

[KeithGatchalian]

Air Brushing....

 

I've been using an airbrush for years. In fact, I did my very first army ( wolves of course) with the old cheapass Testor's airbrush and shadow grey. Came out great.

 

I've had a Badger Anthem, which was nice, until it got broken.

 

I now use a cheap Badger I got at Michaels, with a 50% off coupon that they issue every so often ( sign up for the newsletter on their website!). You can get the compressor too with another coupon!

 

Now....here's the key....if you want to make professional looking models like in magazines like Fine Scale Modeller, then splurge for a good airbrush etc.

 

If you want to just basecoat them...well then a cheap Badger or the GW one ( which I believe is the same....) is just fine. With GW paints, you want to thin them, more then the 50-50 mix. You have to make sure the atmospheric conditions are right....and <looks around> don't thin the paints with water. Use rubbing alcohol ( look for 90%) which is dirt cheap at any pharmacy.

 

I find nothing wrong with the GW equipment, though it might be a little more pricey, as all GW stuff is. Not to offend anyone, but ages ago, my shop teacher told me that 90% of the time, a mistake is due to the craftsman, not the tool. Through all my work with airbrushes, I find that rule applies.

[Bay]

Been airbrushing for a while now, I have found it to be extremely useful when painting vehicles, walkers, tables and terrain. The key when using citadel paints is to water it down. 50-50 or more.

 

I never had any problems when using citadel/vallejo/reaper/p3 series paints in a air brush, when the consistency is right. I never used the GW spray gun, but then

again I'm using a 300+ dollar airbrush setup. (Iwata). It was well worth the investment plus I can do some detail work with it as well as just layering.

[asmodai650]

I find nothing wrong with the GW equipment, though it might be a little more pricey, as all GW stuff is. Not to offend anyone, but ages ago, my shop teacher told me that 90% of the time, a mistake is due to the craftsman, not the tool. Through all my work with airbrushes, I find that rule applies.

 

I agree 1000%. I have a cheap airbrush from the clearance rack of tractor Supply, co. and it has worked great for me. It's a basic siphon feed, plastic handle, single needle p.o.s., but for painting tanks and basecoating infantry it does the job far better than a tank brush for me.

 

My only advice is to mix the paint thinner than 50 / 50 and do a couple of test sprays before starting on your figures. Once you find the right mixture for your brush, go ahead and mix a 2nd bottle and write down the ratio of paints and water / thinner.