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Hey,

I am sure this has been posted before, but I couldn't find it easily enough,



So I am currently looking at getting an Air Brush/ and compressor kit, and I know these are widely used in the hobby so I am wondering if anyone has any suggested kits for beginners?

Currently I have looked at the expensive stuff at Michael's craft store and the less expensive kits on Ebay.

( such as http://www.ebay.ca/itm/New-3-Airbrush-Compressor-Kit-Dual-Action-Spray-Air-Brush-Set-Tattoo-Nail-Art-/320799334265?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4ab1215f79#ht_3571wt_1163)


Currently I am thinking the Ebay option to start off with to see how I like it and to get used to using one.


Any help or suggestions appreciated.

Thanks,

It's not a bad idea to start off with a cheaper airbrush, it allows you to try one out without fear of breaking a nice airbrush Michael's usually carries Badger which is a good brand, but you can find better products from them online. The ebay link looks alright for starting off, but I've not heard much about the use of one or its quality
To that end, ebay is definitely a good place to check out airbrushes. Some say that getting a Chinese off brand airbrush is a really great way to save money, but you're not getting the quality. I've written an article about picking out an airbrush that also has a list of some really awesome artists that use airbrushes and links to their YouTube tutorials and vids. http://blog.itsacoyoteworkshop.com/2012/07/getting-airbrush-for-hobby.html

Good results come with practice not with brands.
I like that you get 3 different airbrushes, the .8mm one is useful for thick, cheap paint.
and the holder is an very important thing

Get a basic double action brush, even a cheap one is fine to learn with. Don't mess with cans, get a compressor.

Gravity feed is better in the long run than siphon, but for your first brush its not a huge deal.

Oh, for a starter kit, the harbor freight kit ain't bad. Its a cheap double action, but good to learn on, and the compressor is not bad either.

Ok, this question is posted LITERALLY about once every other week....do some poking around, there is a lot of good info out there on this topic....there are also a LOT of great vids on you tube on it.

awesomepaintjob .com recently had an entire airbrush segment I believe.

Here is a summary:
Compressor > canned air
Double action > single action
Gravity feed > siphon feed
Actual airbrush paint >>> better than thinning your own
using alcohol or windex > thinning with water
airbrush medium > alcohol or windex

I prefer vallejo model air, or golden brand paints.

Good luck and let us know how it works out!

Check out chicago airbrush site. they have a huge selection good brands and great customer service. if you sign up for the news letter then you will get discount vodes and etc making your purchase less painful.

I got iwata hp cs for under $100. I don't regret it great to use.

As was said compressor all the way. if you don't like the little airbrush ones go to some hardware store pick up a small compressor with an airtank. it keeps the moisture out of the air better and depending on the tank size it won't be running all the time. I have a 3 gal tank kinda wish i had a 5 oh well.

going with a cheap brush can work. some how ever dont wotk and returning it and such can be a pain. the name brand priceir ones will not give you any troubles because of manufacturer warrenties and such i think mine has like a 5 yr anything goes wrong and we fix or replac it warrenty.

big thing that no one has mentioned. moisture trap. if you are going to airbrush its a must. Dry air is good air.

i personallt like the vallejo paints. gw paints work too if you are patient and get the mix right. there is lots of good airbrush paint out there. also vallejo has primer. i dobt even use cans to prime its pretty awesome.

good luck with the hunt.

Hey Guys,


Thanks for the great advice, now I have some homework to do and hopefully I will have something on order by the end of the week.


Thanks again,

I began on a cheap double action airbrush and upgraded after about a year and a half, it was a good way to gain an understanding of the basics and I definitely learnt alot from it. I recommend making sure that you can get spare parts for the airbrush you end up buying, especially when beginning, typically the bigger, well know brands have spare parts readily available for their airbrushes.

As said above big brand names have spare parts readily available where as cheaper ones may not.

if i had to do it again i wouldn't buy an airbrush based on its customer appeal or approval. I'd buy the airbrush that local suppliers stock parts for and i'll tell you why:

you won't save much on spare needles over the internet, there isn't much mark up on them and the shipping is about $5-6 dollars. so to do some quick math, buy at local store for me $8.00 dollar needles vs buying needle over the internet $7.99 needle + $6.00 S&H. and usually when your needle goes the tip is usually bad as well.

Also when you buy needles sight unseen you get bent needles. I've ordered needles a few weeks ago and the needles actually were pushed through the plastic sleeve.

TLDR: plan on bending, breaking needles + tips and get a brush you can get local parts for.