discussion Harder & Steenbeck Infinity CR plus 2 in 1 + Tamiya paint.

[Guest]

That must be two beers I owe you now? The Kabushi A4 masking sheet arrived today, such a brilliant material, mind you, the mask hasn't come off my P47 canopy yet, so perhaps I should keep shtuum about that until it does

 

[stillp]

I found Galeria was cheaper in The Range, if you have one near you.

Pete

 

[stillp]

What are the advantages of the different H & S airbrushes?

Pete

 

[Guest]

You'll have to trawl through all the reviews I'm afraid - I only know the Ultra, which is a budget brush, good, but no cigar, as they say, but I'm begining to warm to it again after trying thinned Tamiya paint through it! However, I'd go as far as saying don't buy one if you plan to use model air or similar through it. I had no end of grief with it, and put it away in the end. And now the infinity, which kicks serious bottom, but it seems to be their flagship model, so it needs to perform!

 

[stillp]

Thanks John.

 

[Guest]

Winsor & Newton Galeria.

Good tip Bob, I'd used the Matt varnish before, but mostly brushing it, this gloss stuff is lovely! I am, however, thinning it with airbrush thinners, in keeping with my recent experiences - takes a few coats, but super-smooth gloss surface.

 

[Mr Bowcat]

Glad I could help.

Edits to add: I leave it a full 48 hours to fully cure. This may be overkill but I like to be sure.

 

[stillp]

I'd been considering moving on from my SMS cheapo, and couldn't see any point in buying a mid-range airbrush and possibly wanting a better one in the future, so I took the plunge and ordered the H & S Infinity CR+ 2 in 1 on Sunday - it arrived yesterday, and I've just been trying it out - the difference is incredible! Now I need something else to paint... must get building.

Pete

 

[Guest]

I'd been considering moving on from my SMS cheapo, and couldn't see any point in buying a mid-range airbrush and possibly wanting a better one in the future, so I took the plunge and ordered the H & S Infinity CR+ 2 in 1 on Sunday - it arrived yesterday, and I've just been trying it out - the difference is incredible! Now I need something else to paint... must get building.

Pete

Good, isn't it? I've been practising mottle on plastic milk bottles, very good surface to put it through its paces, and wow, isn't it a breeze to clean?

 

[stillp]

Yes, you have to be careful of the needle though - it's sharp! (Don't ask me how I know...)

Pete

 

[Guest]

Yes, you have to be careful of the needle though - it's sharp! (Don't ask me how I know...)

Pete

You might want to have a close look at the tip with a good magnifier - if you've pricked your finger, you may have put a slight bend in the tip of the needle (don't ask me how I know...). Even the slightest bend of a needle tip will distort the paint flow! Must have been my leathery index finger tip!

 

[Steve Brodie]

For thinning the Tamiya paints, i discovered a great tip on one of 'Andy's hobby store videos', open a new jar of 'tamear' paint and fill to just above the lip of the opening with Tamiya thinner. The whole jar is then 'airbrush' ready, i then add a sticker to the topso i can see which is good to go and which isnt!!

 

[Guest]

For thinning the Tamiya paints, i discovered a great tip on one of 'Andy's hobby store videos', open a new jar of 'tamear' paint and fill to just above the lip of the opening with Tamiya thinner. The whole jar is then 'airbrush' ready, i then add a sticker to the topso i can see which is good to go and which isnt!!

That's what I did in the beginning as well but it's such a mess to pour from the Tamiya jars so I now pour the colours I use regularly into larger drop bottles and just add iso later. Good ratio though when you want paint that covers properly!

 

[Mr Bowcat]

I find Tamiya paints fairly forgiving, a 50/50 'ish mix of paint to IPA or Tamiya thinners works well for me.

 

[Guest]

Well, a month in and I thought I'd add some comments after a fair bit of use.
I ended up buying a 0.2 needle/nozzle set, as I found the 0.15 a tad small for some uses, and although it's not a big jump in size, it does make a huge difference to the performance especially with Vallejo Model Air (I don't tend to use this much, but when I do, I find it doesn't work as well with a tiny nozzle). The 0.4 is perfect for primers and some base coating and the 0.2 spot on for all but the smallest detail work!
What I love most about this brush, is the ease of cleaning in between colours, this means that I am happy to take the cup off, put 2 drops of paint in just to paint 2 forgotten undercarriage doors!! I would have never done this with my ultra, as it meant (well, in my experience anyway!) a strip down afterwards. Also the finish - it sprays a beautifully smooth coat, silky smooth, and appears to be economical with paint.
The chrome coating is very robust - although I have stopped using Windex on my airbrushes (I was warned, I know!) and at the end of each session, it looks brand new again.
I painted my F4 Corsair with it, and it has been the most pleasurable paint job I've ever experienced, by a country mile!
And, finally, after using it pretty much every day for a month, I can't find anything negative about it at all. That speaks volumes!

 

[colin m]

I have stopped using Windex on my airbrushes

Great to hear you are getting well with the new AB. I bought the same AB (0.2) and actually read the instructions (rather than waiting until there was a problem) and discovered the warning about using Windex etc. So this nice new shiny AB won't be seeing any of that evil stuff.

 

[Guest]

Great to hear you are getting well with the new AB. I bought the same AB (0.2) and actually read the instructions (rather than waiting until there was a problem) and discovered the warning about using Windex etc. So this nice new shiny AB won't be seeing any of that evil stuff.

Yep, it strips chrome nicely, over time. Not terminal damage, but makes it so much tougher to keep it clean. Mine gets the royal treatment, and rewards me with good behaviour!