I need air brush advice.

C

Chrome

New member
In reply to the bold answers(see what I did there? Eh, eh? Guess not...),If there's anything I've got when it comes to fiddly stuff it's patience, I quite like getting half bad stuff and forcing them to work through staring at them for hours. :)

But I can manage without and through that I'll say it's better to use that patience to sit down and do less to save more. :)
 
airhead

airhead

Coffin Dodger / Keymaster
Look into either an Iwata Eclips or an Aztec.

Both are good general purpose guns.
 
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Einion

Einion

New member
Chrome said:
Didn't want to buy it before speaking to you guys, besides, I really want a good compressor before going there anyway, tried the can approach, all that did was leave me wanting more.
Click to expand...
Glad to hear that. In terms of lower-cost ABs, the Premi-Air G35 is supposed to be hard to beat. Never used it myself since I only need my old Aztek but there were a couple of three-way shootouts near to when the G35 was released, between this, one of the cheaper Iwatas and one other (in one of the UK mags I think the third brush was a Harder & Steenbeck). And in terms of bang for the buck the Premi-Air tends to get the vote since quality is similar and it's the cheapest - at the time, nearly half the price of the Iwata.

Review:
http://www.aeroscale.co.uk/modules.php?op=modload&name=Reviews&file=index&req=showcontent&id=4627

Three-way comparison on Armorama:
http://www.armorama.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Sections&file=index&req=viewarticle&artid=2365

Chrome said:
...besides, I really want a good compressor before going there anyway, tried the can approach, all that did was leave me wanting more.
Click to expand...
Understandable! Easy to put someone off the idea of canned air when a few minutes of light spraying and a single clean of the airbrush could easily empty a whole can.

Einion
 
me_in_japan

me_in_japan

New member
Hi all. I hope this isnt viewed as threadomancy/threadjacking, but I have a similar airbrush question, and didnt want to start yet another thread with basically the same title. Is there any way to make a kind of sticky airbrushing advice thread, which collates the distilled knowledge of the arty brains present on this site?

Anyway, I'm currently using a Tamiya Sprayworks single action airbrush, and although it's nothing fancy, I have been fairly happy with it. I've only used it for vehicles and base coating minis, and for that it's been fine and dandy. However, I'd like to get into more fiddly stuff with the airbrush, and I've found that with the Spraywork I can only manage about a 5~6mm wide line at the narrowest, and that's if I reduce airflow to as low as possible and risk heavy splatteration.

Can anyone please recommend a decent airbrush for doing finer detail work? I know I'll need a double action one, but I'm not clear about what other specifications I should be looking for. I'm in Japan, so Iwata is dead easy to find, whereas Badger is a bit of a bugger to track down. (e.g. Amazon Japan has 50 hits for "Iwata Airbrush" (イワタ　エアーブラシ) and 0 hits for "Badger Airbrush"(バジャー　エアーブラシ)) Budget-wise, up to about 15,000yen (um, 150bucks, US?) is about where I'm aiming. Obviously, the cheaper it is, the happier the missus will be.

ps. by "more fiddly stuff" I mean things like zenithal highlighting focusing light on certain parts of the mini (head, fr example) and also I want to do some freehand on my vehicles (purple lightning on my dark eldar ravagers. Cheesy, I know, but nothing says "evil whooosh" like purple lightning :D)

Thanks a lot in advance for any advice y'all may have. I think I could get into this airbrushing malarky, but its such a big ocean of Stuff I Dont Know that I'm a bit intimidated...
 
F

finn17

New member
Personally, I think you are in luck because in my opinion Iwata are the superior beast. I have used a Custom Micron and an HP-BH for a few years now and am happy with them both. I don't think you can go wrong with Iwata, just pick a size/price that suits:)
 
QuietiManes

QuietiManes

New member
Are the Iwata's much cheaper in Japan? If not I'd point towards a Badger 100G or a Patriot. Of course you'd have to track them down...how's the shipping from the UK or US? Another option is the DeVILBISS DAGR, by all accounts it is a top notch brush for a great price.

Edit: Also, maybe try to track down a local airbrush forum (I.E. in Japan) because they'd know what's available locally much better and can probably show you all the best options and retailers and such.
 
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me_in_japan

me_in_japan

New member
Thanks for the advice, guys. A Japanese airbrush forum is a good idea, but my Japanese language skills are unfortunately not good enough to be able to communicate clearly what I want, or understand the answers I would get. So, sadly, that option is out.

I'll take a closer look at Iwata models available, but before I do I have one, hopefully simple, airbrush question: If I want to paint finer lines and have more control, what should I look for in an airbrush? Does smaller needle bore = finer lines, or is it more complex than that?

*edit*
I dug around a bit, and found this brush: http://www.iwata-medea.com/index.php/products/hp_bh on Amazon Japan for 13,860yen, which is about 173USD. Does this model look like it would be appropriate for doing finer details on minis?

Another one I was looking at was this:
http://www.iwata-medea.com/index.php/products/hp_cs which I can get for 8085yen (~100USD).

What would I be able to do with the HP-BH that I wouldnt be able to do with the HP-CS?

Thanks in advance for any advice you may have - I really appreciate it. :)
 
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F

finn17

New member
I don't know what one you are looking at in the second link as it refers to an index page....

Like most things, your own skill will have the most dramatic effect on the ability to produce fine lines, but obviously the smaller the bore diameter the smaller the line.
Be careful though because if it is too small you might have problems with some paint.....?
As a guideline, look at the paint container...if it has a big glass jar strapped underneath it...it won't be much cop for fine detail work (probably great for basecoating though) If you look at that Iwata in the first link it has a tiny receptacle on top that is designed to be filled from dropper bottles and that is obviously going to be more suited to the fine work you may wish to do with models.
 
me_in_japan

me_in_japan

New member
Thanks, finn.

My apologies - the link I posted was supposed to be for the HP-CS, but in my haste I didnt leave a space between the link and the next word in my sentence, and this resulted in the iwata page bouncing it back to the catalog home page. oops :doh!: Fixed it now, though.

The info about a smaller bore resulting in a finer line is very helpful, actually. I suspected as much, but its nice to have it confirmed by one who knows what he's talking about. you're no doubt right about skill being the determining factor. I dont have much in the way of that, but I hope to make up for it with as much practice as I can get :)

I think I'll go for the HP-BH, as it seems to be intended for use as a small detaily kinda tool (from reading Ive been doing on t'internet), and as I already have the Tamiya for large area work, I may as well get a dedicated fine detail brush.

Thanks for your advice. I'll post up some pics once I actually finish a model with it :) (sometime in 2020, most likely, given the rate I usually paint at :sad:)
 
F

finn17

New member
The bore is a reasonable guideline, but don't forget that, in use, the bore size is infinitely variable depending upon exactly how much of it is blocked by the needle whose movement you are controling....if that makes sense:).

If anything, the bore size determines the maximum width of the line you can produce, not the minimum as, with a little practise, you should be able to produce a relatively fine line even with larger bores.

I don't think you'll be disappointed with the Iwata HP-BH, I have one and it absolutely oozes quality:) Look around for the best price though as they appear to vary greatly.
 
airhead

airhead

Coffin Dodger / Keymaster
I love my HP-B. Shoots a line around a heavy pencil line width (somewhere less than 1 mm). That takes balancing air, paint thinning and distance as well as much practice. Pull back on the trigger and the gun and you can go to 3/4" (20mm+/-) without much changes.

Parts are available from several sources (pricey but available.)

Internals are either stainless steel or chromed brass.
 
me_in_japan

me_in_japan

New member
@finn - it does indeed make sense. I'm under no illusions that I'll be able to just connect 'er up and produce better results. For various reasons I have no summer vacation plans, so I intend to spend most of August cooped up in the (well ventilated :D) spare room, working my way up that learning curve.

@airhead - one of the reasons I'm inclined to go for the iwata is that parts will be much more easily available here than other brands. Local manufacturer, and all that.

@both of you - thanks again for your advice. I really love that any old schmuck like me can post a question on the CMON forums and get answers from folks as well versed in painting as you guys. (I lurk a fair bit on the forums here, so I know you both have a lot of experience with minis/airbrushing.)

Righty - I'm off to dredge the internet in Japanese, searching for cheap Iwata HP-BHs. Lor', but I hate Japanese web site design :(
 
airhead

airhead

Coffin Dodger / Keymaster
Not a big fan of the "H" models. Love my old HP-B. I have a regulator on my manifold to adjust the pressure. Don't need another dial to fiddle with.
 
MPJ

MPJ

New member
While I mostly use my airbrush for modeling (tanks mostly) I swear by my Azteks (I have 3 of them). As for air, I use a Testors little black thingiemabob that suits my needs fine, never ran it for hours on end though.
 
RuneBrush

RuneBrush

New member
You won't be disapointed with an Iwata :) Love mine, just need to tidy up my work desk so I can have it permently setup - though the dining table is a great alternative ;) I've an HP-C (0.3mm needle) and it's pretty spot on. One thing I did find what that putting in a 3rd party needle seemed to improve my paint flow - bit weird, but it looks like it's more highly polished than the stock one I got.

pete.
 
F

finn17

New member
Pete

Have you seen these?
hs-e420k_00.jpg


Just over £70 complete with hose...:)
 
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