discussion Which airbrush would you buy?

[Jim R]

Airbrushing is something that almost all modellers do slightly differently to the next guy. Despite this, we all get it to work.

Practice, practice, practice, and when you experiment, only change one thing at a time. It’s the only approach that works .

Wise words from Tim.

Bet your head is spinning with all the advice, words of wisdom and YouTube videos.
The reality is just "have a go"

 

[Tim Marlow]

Wise words from Tim.

Bet your head is spinning with all the advice, words of wisdom and YouTube videos.
The reality is just "have a go"

Absolutely right Jim. Get a test mule and spray the hell out of it…..

 

[Andy T]

I totally agree with Jim & Tim. No matter how much research you've done, nothing will prepare you for the first time you load paint and pull the trigger.

There are many ways to skin a cat so don't get hung up on doing things exactly like everyone else. If something works for you, do it that way

 

[PaulTRose]

I've thought of something you might want to consider in the future, a year or so maybe, and that's a cheap ultrasonic cleaner

Great for when you do a complete stripdown..... I use mine for all sorts of things........ And She Who Must Be Obeyed will love it once she realises it keeps her jewelry sparkling

 

[Tim Marlow]

I've thought of something you might want to consider in the future, a year or so maybe, and that's a cheap ultrasonic cleaner

Great for when you do a complete stripdown..... I use mine for all sorts of things........ And She Who Must Be Obeyed will love it once she realises it keeps her jewelry sparkling

If you’ve got a plated, rather than solid, brush that will rip the coating off in no time Paul.

 

[PaulTRose]

If you’ve got a plated, rather than solid, brush that will rip the coating off in no time Paul.

I've never had any problems even with cheap Chinese knockoffs

 

[Tim Marlow]

Must be solid metal then, not plated. Someone on here had their airbrush finish left dull where it was immersed. I’ve personally seen an US bath strip the anodised finish from an item. Ultrasonic cleaning is actually quite aggressive and can be destructive to the wrong item. Worth reading up on it before an irreplaceable piece of jewelry, for example, gets destroyed.

 

[pjgtech]

I've thought of something you might want to consider in the future, a year or so maybe, and that's a cheap ultrasonic cleaner
Great for when you do a complete stripdown..... I use mine for all sorts of things........ And She Who Must Be Obeyed will love it once she realises it keeps her jewelry sparkling

My wife already has one I think, although I'm not sure she actually ever uses it?
What type of cleaning fluid would you use?

 

[pjgtech]

We are now set-up, spray booth turned up today.

Would you line the bottom and sides with paper towel or someting else, presumably something that can be easily replaced whenever needed?

 

[Jim R]

Yes. I line mine with newspaper or cheap brown paper - whatever you've got really. Bits of masking tape hold the paper in place. You don't get a lot of over spray on the sides and base, most is sucked through the filter, but the paper does keep things clean.

 

[Tim Marlow]

I must admit I don’t bother, and it’s a bit late to start now. If it gets too bad I just spray with Windex window cleaner and wipe it off. Most of the overspray comes off like that. Probably no more that once a year though.

 

[stillp]

My wife already has one I think, although I'm not sure she actually ever uses it?
What type of cleaning fluid would you use?

Just water with a drop of washing up liquid.
When I bought my u/sonic I also bought some "Jewellery Brightener" which did a good job on my wife's ring (stop sniggering at the back) but stripped the finish off my watch bracelet, so I wouldn't use it for my airbrush.
Pete

 

[LeytonO]

I put a cutting mat on the base of my spray booth.
Added a few lights, on top and at the sides, they came from old photo boxes.