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Scale Model Shop

Which airbrush would you buy?

Tim Marlow said:
Airbrushing is something that almost all modellers do slightly differently to the next guy. Despite this, we all get it to work.
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Tim Marlow said:
Practice, practice, practice, and when you experiment, only change one thing at a time. It’s the only approach that works 😉.
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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" 😁😄😁
 
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 😁
 
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 :ROFLMAO:
 
PaulTRose said:
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 :ROFLMAO:
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If you’ve got a plated, rather than solid, brush that will rip the coating off in no time Paul.
 
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.
 
Thread owner
PaulTRose said:
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 :ROFLMAO:
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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?
 
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.
 
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.
 
pjgtech said:
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?
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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
 
Thread owner
Lol, very steep learning curve over the first 5-10 minutes!!!
Still can't quite figure out which is the best grip for me to use? Initially I was holding the AB sort of pen like, with my index finger controlling the trigger, but then switched to my thumb controlling the trigger, not settled on which I prefer yet.
Started with low pressure, 15 ish, but quickly upped it to 20 ish.
Started with very uneven, inconsistent and thick vertical and horizontal lines, but quickly managed to get some consistency and much thinner lines and more control.
Just messing about spraying onto kitchen roll, then onto some actual real painting, just started priming my next build, just parts on three sprues.

The first time I cleaned the AB I got paint everywhere, Lol, on my hands, on the cup, on the outside of the brush, on the table, etc, lots of kitchen roll, several cotton buds, few dental picks, but I'm a quick learner.... So, after now cleaning it a few times, I can conform I am an expert at taking this AB apart and putting it back together again.

Impressed with how little overspray you get from an AB, when compared to a normal rattle can, eg: virtually none!
Impressed with how accurately you can apply paint to very small areas.
Impressed with the spary booth, fans a bit noisy, but has decent extraction, I could detect no fumes etc, so seems to be capturing all that it should.
Impressed with the compressor, the tank helps, so no pulsing, etc, a nice consistent air supply.
One thing I did notice is that the compressor gets very hot! is that normal? Its currently on the floor just to the side of my spray booth/table, etc, but it has good airflow around it.

Anyway, so far impressed, so its all good.
 
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Glad it's going well.
Just out of interest do you have any airbrush lube? Don't be tempted to use other lubricant. The proper stuff is made for the job. A small tube of the stuff will last you forever as you use so little. Just a smear on the needle and a little on the trigger parts. I put a little on the thread of the needle cap and the nozzle but that's maybe over kill.
 
Thread owner
Jim R said:
Glad it's going well.
Just out of interest do you have any airbrush lube? Don't be tempted to use other lubricant. The proper stuff is made for the job. A small tube of the stuff will last you forever as you use so little. Just a smear on the needle and a little on the trigger parts. I put a little on the thread of the needle cap and the nozzle but that's maybe over kill.
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No, I don't, but I'll get some, I assume its readily available?
Just googled, Iwata seem to be the go to lube, there is a Gaahleri one too, but its double the price. I assume any AB lube should work in any airbrush?
Anyone know what the lube is made from? I note it seems to be silicone free whatever it is...
 
I have only ever used Iwata. Only ever had one tube which is still going strong.
Although there is no evidence I imagine that if the seals which the needle goes through are lubricated they will last longer and seal better. Makes sense to me.😄
 
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