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So. I have a LOT of guard to paint. And I'd rather not use a black-based paint scheme, because that's boring.

And since GW axed their line of coloured spray cans, I'm down to either painting alll the grey on by hand or finding a solution to the spraying. The staff at my local GW recomment the GW paint gun (obviously), but I'm skeptical. Also, it's expensive and runs on propellant cans. Anyone got experience with it?

Also, airbrushes. They're very tempting, given the amount of control you can get with them. I could practically do the whole camo scheme in it on larger patches.

And while I'm here, does anyone have any ideas on what to look for in terms of jagged/geometric camoflage schemes?
I'm intending the force to be a motorised/semi-mechanised force from a modern-era-ish world that's stuck in an eternal overcast/twilight for some reason that I haven't picked yet. And looking for a scheme that looks like camoflage, but won't cause my infantry and vehicles to vanish against the table. (That bit's important; I want to be able to do pick-up games at my local store without having to comb the board after.)

Don't buy it. I think it is a scam, well... a "business plan".

Airbrushing is a fantastic way to save time and quite a bit of money on spray paint. Let's face it some one is getting filthy rich off of charging 10$ for a can of low grade spray paint with what SOME would call a proper nozzle.

If you want nice spray paint get Montana. If you want a base coat get a cheap sandable car primer. Krylon carries some good stuff for all types of painting, that is probably your best bet. If all else fails you "can" dip your models to base coat them, it just takes a bit of practice.

Getting an airbrush (not a cheap table-top one) and a 5-gallon or so air compressor will be your best bet. Take a look on ebay for the airbrush, you can score a nice one for under 30$ (U.S.), your better off buying an air compressor from a hardware store for around 30-50$ depending on the size and quality. I would recommend doing the work in a garage so you can have maximum ventilation (condensation builds up in the tank and will start to mess with the airbrush). In all honesty I see no reason why you couldn't mass base coat with a house painting air-brush and a sandable acrylic house paint. Mess around with it and see what you think. It is worth the investment for the air compressor, FANTASTIC way to annoy your neighbors at 3 A.M. ... ..

Yes the air compressors do get quite loud, but they really should if they are doing their job. Compress air some time and try not to make loud sputtering noises, it is really difficult.

I agree with some of what wrex says. Airbrushing is not a bad idea for vehicles and such and I have seen some guys do armies fast with em. Easy way to "drybrush" with em just by misting the models, just a little harder to control on smaller models. I do agree that you need to go to hobby lobby or michaels or another hobby store and get a quality air brush and a small compressor. Just make sure you buy a water catch with it as well and you should be good to go.

I highly recommend the army painter system, if for nothing other than the various colors of primer available. The website is below.

http://www.thearmypainter.com/

It's a fine system for what it is. The brush is a well made design (said to be designed by Badger) and the cans of propellant are comparable to other systems.

You need to do a cost-benefit analysis. I use 2 cans of propellant for each vehicle (3 coats), for example. At $8.25/can, how long before I would have been better off with a compressor? f you know you're only going to dabble, the GW air brush should be fine. Five vehicles ago I said I only had a couple that needed painting, and now I have at least 3 more in my future.

a real airbrush can do everything a ghetto sprayer can, and then like another 20 things once you learn how to use it.

Theres a steeper learning curve for anything past base coating, but the effects are well worth it.

I just picked up a 'PS 900' off ebay for 50$, its very comparable to a midrange Iwata/paasche/badger.

Ive got about 250$ tied up in air brush gear, which is about 1/4 the cost of an army? If you plan on apinting more than one or two armies- a real air brush is totally worth it.

A knockoff Iwata or Badger from eBay is approximately GBP5.00 more expensive than the GW spraygun, and it has the benefit of being double action which allows for better control.

Air brushes are cheap, it's the compressor that can be pricey. I agree that if you plan on painting your entire army with one, invest in a compressor setup. I brush paint troops and air brush vehicles, so it's not as clear cut an investment (now it's looking like I should have invested).

There seems to be a lot of discussions about airbrushing lately. I am not sure if it’s because I am just more aware of them from my own painting, or if the hobbies perceptional awareness has expanded to include them.

Anyway, my suggestion: Get the airbrush!

If you live in the US, you can go to Harbor Freight and Tools (the wall mart of tools) and pick up a compressor that will not blow your ear drums out for under $60. A Pachee H model airbrush (a solid mid level single action brush) will run you about 40-50$ depending on where you get it (perhaps MUCH cheaper if your lucky). If you are not interested in paying retail for one, look on Craigslist or Bartertown for one. This setup will allow you to paint tanks, basecoat figures, and paint all the terrain you need (and no more melty foam from spray paints).

If you have large armies, or even if your serious about painting, I suggest you get one.

I think Im gonna post an airbrush basics topic rather than tellin people over & over the GW sprayer is overpriced

Okay, this gives me an excuse to get an airbrush.
Any recommendations on brands to avoid or aim for?

Of course, this is assuming I can't talk my father out of his, or find out he left that lying around in a box, as well as a bunch of other might-be-useful-someday things.

http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/244602.page

Is the all-about airbrush thread I started. Some of the suppliers I mentioned may not be available there, but the rest of the info might help.

Honestly, I don't mind the GW airbrush.
I've got an 'expensive' brush for doing detail work like camo, or weathering(a really nice Paasche brush).
And then I've got the GW airbrush for doing basecoats, structures, and the like.

The fact that it seems to be a wider nozzle than the Paasche makes all the difference.

One thing you really, really, REALLY want to do?
Is get an adapter asap to allow the GW airbrush to work with your compressor.

Kanluwen wrote:

The fact that it seems to be a wider nozzle than the Paasche makes all the difference.
.

This also means it eats up paint alot faster- which is probly what GW is hoping for

Also if you had a nice paasche you could have just purchased a larger needle and fluid cap set for less than the GW gun. I have 2 sets for my Iwata Eclipse and changing between sets only takes a minute.

What about using a Tyre as your air tank? Badger do a nice little fitting for a car tyre valve to connect to the air gun, then you can just pump the tyre with either a foot pump or car tyre compressor (minimal cost and noise).

Ever tried something like this?

I've been tempted, but too much cost to then skip if it does not work! Comments please!

Druidic wrote:What about using a Tyre as your air tank? Badger do a nice little fitting for a car tyre valve to connect to the air gun, then you can just pump the tyre with either a foot pump or car tyre compressor (minimal cost and noise).

Ever tried something like this?

I've been tempted, but too much cost to then skip if it does not work! Comments please!

Druidic

You need to be able to regulate the pressure. If you have an air regulator in the mix it would be OK, but cumbersome. MoM's thread (http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/244602.page) has a better suggestion of a cheap air bottle which would be more practical and easier to find parts for.

You don't want variable pressure when you are using the airbrush, and having it dialled up to high is as much of a problem as dialled too low.

Cheers

I've been considering (and resisting) for a while, will dig further and research before I go buying! Thanks