Evil Eye Posted November 30, 2016 Share Posted November 30, 2016 So I've got a very good compressor and a not very good airbrush. It came as part of a bundle with the compressor, and is fairly minimal. It's dual action, but came with basically no optional parts and is a jar-feed, with a not very good jar (the lid has started to crack!). Anyway, long story short I'm planning on replacing the poor tired old thing with a better, gravity-feed option. The question is, what's the best option? I'm something of a beginner with an airbrush- I understand the basics of how they work and how to use one, but I have little experience due to lacking a proper setup (which I'm planning on rectifying as well). My criteria are pretty basic- it needs to be fairly easy to use (as airbrushes go) but still capable of getting good results. I don't need a multi-thousand-pound ultra-sensitive piece of kit with ten trillion needles and nozzles intended for Giger-tier airbrush artists that will stop working if I don't douse it with hydra blood after each session, but at the same time I don't want a bare-bones, cheap as chips thing that only works for the most rudimentary tasks. Simply put I need an "all-purpose" airbrush for general use. Price isn't too much of an issue- whilst I am a firm believer that you get what you pay for, I also don't want to spend loads on something that isn't suitable. So simply put, how much am I going to need to pay for what I need? I know that any serious airbrush work will require different needles and nozzles, and I'd prefer a kit that comes with some of the more useful ones. I'm more than happy to buy others if I need them of course. I'm not hugely familiar with the brands out there- the 3 I know are supposed to be good are Badger, Paasche and Iwata. Also, what is the best cleaner/cleaning method to use with an airbrush? With my old one I've been running thinner or white spirit through it until the spray comes out clean, using a pipe cleaner to scrub it through, and then disassembling it and giving it a soak in white spirit, but I've still got "stains" of paint in various parts. Am I doing something wrong? Is it fixable? (I hope so as I still plan on using it for basecoats.) Is there anything else I need to bear in mind when buying/using/maintaining an airbrush? Anyway, thank you for reading and my apologies for all the stupid questions. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/328343-a-new-airbrush/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugarlessllama Posted November 30, 2016 Share Posted November 30, 2016 I use the Badger Patriot 105. I have had great results with it, and it doesn't require tools to disassemble and clean. All steel construction means it will last for a very long time. I have dropped mine a few times, and the worst thing that happened was that I bent the needle. But I was able to order a replacement from Amazon for $5. Overall, I have been very, very happy with it. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/328343-a-new-airbrush/#findComment-4578460 Share on other sites More sharing options...
NovemberIX Posted December 1, 2016 Share Posted December 1, 2016 I like my Iwata Neo, I've had it for a year and it's taken some abuse but kept on trucking. In that time I've only had to do a full disassembly once, and that was because I wasn't clearing the brush after I had sprayed some fairly thick paint that I let sit. I like the gravity feed and the dual action trigger as well. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/328343-a-new-airbrush/#findComment-4578603 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grim Dog Studios Posted December 1, 2016 Share Posted December 1, 2016 The Iwata Neo seems to get great reviews everywhere I've looked and is pretty affordable. I intend to get one myself to replace the trash one that came with my compressor when I can be bothered to getting around to it! Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/328343-a-new-airbrush/#findComment-4578894 Share on other sites More sharing options...
madscuzzy Posted December 1, 2016 Share Posted December 1, 2016 The Neo is a lower end Iwata Airbrush and IIRC reading somewhere is actually outsourced from Iwata-Medea. I find that the Iwata Revolution HP BR/CR is pretty decent as a general purpose workhorse brush. A 0.3 - 0.5mm range is good for general purpose if you are running different kinds of paint through. Varnishes (especially the thicker ones) perform better with a larger nozzle at a lower PSI. Patriots are pretty decent, with a slightly better performance than the Revolution but not noticeable unless you have really good brush control and have the brushes to compare with. 0.2 and lower are pretty good for detail... But the smaller the nozzle, the easier to clog, especially if you paint has flakes in them (essentially the smaller, the more maintenance you need to do to keep it really clog free). The Iwata Custom Micron line is a joy to use and can really do fine control. The Badger Sotar is a good brush too, trailing slightly behind IMHO (it's slightly less smooth than the CM). The Sotar has a free floating head which makes it easier to clean than a threaded head like traditional Iwatas. Wave does pretty good brushes, as does Rich (and do even share the same manufacturer, as does Tamiya). One of the ones I find do stand out is the H&S Infinity. For some reason, the spray is much softer than the others, which is good for blending but is more difficult to get sharper details. To me it is a good accompanying airbrush and doesn't replace a more 'normal' airbrush. If you have it already, then its a great brush and you may want to look into the more common brushes. It is very easy to clean. Amazon does have good airbrush sales around Xmas. Got my Sotar for USD69 a couple of years ago. Becareful when running paint thinners through a brush. Some can react with the O-rings and expand them. PTFE (teflon washers) types are more resistive but it's not safe. Most airbrush cleaners are organic solvents (IE alcohol based) and are good enough for stripping acrylic (which I assume you are using it for... but otherwise each type has its own specific thinners that can reactivate the paint.) Isopropyl or Denatured Alcohol can dissolve acrylic paints. I do like the Vallejo Airbrush Cleaner but the smell can take getting used to. There are stronger ones like Tamiya and other brands but I find Vallejo has a very good range. Their airbrush thinner is friendly to a LOT of paints (doesn't react adversely. Some alcohols can separate paints changing their consistency) and can even be used to reactivate half caked paint! Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/328343-a-new-airbrush/#findComment-4579190 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloody Legionnaire Posted December 2, 2016 Share Posted December 2, 2016 OP, the Iwata Eclipse HP-CS is one of the more popular airbrushes recommended by model and game hobbyist alike and is the airbrush i chose. The HP-CS is an excellent mid-range (upper mid-range) airbrush from a very good company. The HP-CS is known for being very forgiving when it comes to shooting different consistency of paint so if you aren't used to thinning paint for proper consistency (an art with in itself) I believe you'll have an easy time with the HP-CS (I know it made it easy for me). What the HP-CS is not the best at is super fine details.. however there aren't a lot of airbrushes that do it all (large and small applications) well anyway and I doubt you're trying to do details that small right now. I do find that my HP-CS is excellent at painting smaller models like Marines and I have switched over to painting my Marines with an airbrush exclusively instead of standard brush painting (excluding details like eyes, faces, and bolters). The HP-CS comes with a .35mm nozzle and is pretty easy to keep clean, however, becareful cleaning it out with straight alcohol.. it caused some of citadel paint to gum up and was a pain in the ass to clean out. Now I'm not saying the HP-CS is the ONLY airbrush you need to buy, there are plenty of outstanding airbrushes in the same price range to pick from. A quick google search will provide all the information you'd ever want on how the models compare. All that said.. I am completely satisfied with my HP-CS.. I've read from another user here on B&C that it's a lifetime airbrush and I can definitely see what they mean. I'll probably never get rid of it. If I can make one complaint about the HP-CS (and Iwata in general) it's that their components are pretty pricey if you need to replace a nozzle or something. Though I'm sure the same is true for H&S and some of the other brands. ------------------------------------------------------------- As far as cleaning materials goes I predominantly use water between changing colors. I rinse it out real good until all paint is out of the cup and then fill up the cup again and shoot all the water through the nozzle to clear that. Sometimes I'll squirt some acrylic paint thinner into the cup and shoot that. For dried paint and stains I found that simple green does a great job and Tamiya acrylic paint thinner also does an incredible job of cleaning up old stains and dried up paint. Oddly enough the Tamiya thinner smells like alcohol but I've yet to have an issue with it clogging up my nozzle. You shouldn't need to soak in quality airbrush for any reason and could potentially be bad for inner seals. Of course you're cleaning is also going to depend on the type of paint used. I've read some good tips from experienced airbrushes that say whatever the manufacturer recommends as thinner for that specific paint is what should be used to clean it out. So far that's held up to be pretty true. You really want to stay away from using any chemical unless you are using enamel paints in which case you must used a white spirit. On Good luck on your choice, hope we helped! Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/328343-a-new-airbrush/#findComment-4579755 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Augustus b'Raass Posted December 3, 2016 Share Posted December 3, 2016 I mostly use a Badger Krome myself, but for a beginner that thing is perhaps a little too convoluted to keep clean and use due to the odd way the nozzle is designed. The Iwata Revolution and Iwata Eclipse are both great beginner all-purpose airbrushes. I say 'beginner' only because they are easy to use and maintain - I've been airbrushing for years and still use mine often. For cleaning I simply have a 5 liter bucket that's filled 3/4 with water and a bit of window cleaner. Every time I change paints, I simply dip the gravity feed in and rinse it clean with an old, large brush. Then I spray it empty in my spraying pot, after which I spray a couple of drops of Vallejo Airbrush cleaner through it. Done. Faster and cheaper than spraying it empty and then cleaning it with dedicated cleaner product. It's also a far more healthy method, as running thinner and white spirit through your airbrush to clean it will create toxic fumes that are SUPER bad for your health - regardless of your using a mouth piece or not. I highly, highly recommend against using a pipe cleaner - those can be way too rugged, potentially damaging the coating inside the airbrush. Just use an old brush and some of those cotton tipped sticks for your ears. :tu: For spraying, I cannot recommend using Vallejo Flow Improver enough. A couple drops of this stuff with a couple of drops of water will make even the thickest paint flow smoothly through your nozzle. Really. Invest in a large pot and a small refillable dropper bottle to use it. It'll change your (airbrushing) life. For storage I have a huge weck jar filled with a 1:3 mixture of Vallejo Airbrush Cleaner and Water. I simply dunk in the airbrush when I'm done so it can soak. I hope this helps. :) For storage I have a huge weck jar filled with a 1:3 mixture of Vallejo Airbrush Cleaner and Water. I simply dunk in the airbrush when I'm done so it can soak. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/328343-a-new-airbrush/#findComment-4581715 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evil Eye Posted December 3, 2016 Author Share Posted December 3, 2016 Thanks for all the suggestions, guys! I'll take a look at some of the suggested airbrushes- the Iwata Revolution and Iwata Eclipse both sound like good options, at least from the multiple recommendations. Thanks for the advice on cleaning as well, I'll bear it in mind. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/328343-a-new-airbrush/#findComment-4581743 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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