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Great read thanks.

I've just started with an airbrush (my experience here: http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/244125.page) and found it reasonably easy to get into (without really reading or watching much in the way of tutorials - just jumping in with both feet!)

In regards to the tankless models, I would have though a regulator with a water trap may have helped with the pulsation - as it effectively holds the amount of pressure you dial in on in the chamber and hose, it should (in theory) be able to avoid much of the problems suggested with the tankless systems?

Cheers

What sort of oil do you use and where do you put it?

Hi

A great airbrush maintenance guide can be found here:

http://www.wargamerau.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=72016

Nice tutorial. Earlier I thought about buying the GW airbrush, but after reading tutorials like this I gave up on the idea - so you guys have saved me the money

Very happy with my ebay airbrush - under US$30 delivered.

One of the things I really like about the dual action airbrush as opposed to what you can do with a single action is to spray an area, then blow it clean with air. This is also useful if you accidently spray a little too much in an area to get it to disperse.

And airbrushing really is a lot of fun!

Anyone got any sample images of what you can do with airbrushes on minis, e.g. it would be nice to see before/after shots of the weathering effects (without any brushwork afterwards, so rather "in the making" shots). I've never used an airbrush - I only spray paint the undercoat.

Not weathering, but here are some figures I have painted with the airbrush so far (only brushwork is a single wash)...

Scherdy wrote:

Wow, if this is your beginning go at this I think I need to start looking for a deal for a compressor to run an airbrush. Those hawks look like a GREAT place to start laying paint with a brush. If anyone has spied any deals on air compressors they could pm or link I'd love you all even more than I already do

The picture is very grainy above - it doesn't do justice to how nice the finish comes out from the airbrush - solid smooth surface with no brush strokes!

I was lucky that my father had a good compressor that he wasn't using.

This is a completed listing for the sort of one that I have:

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Air-compressor-2-5HP-21L_W0QQitemZ320393865738QQcmdZViewItemQQptZAU_Air_Tools?hash=item4a98f66a0a&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65%3A13|66%3A4|39%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A200

It is noisy, but it only needs to run for a couple of minutes to fill the tank, then I shut the power off.

So, overall cost for a decent setup (similar to what I have) in Australian $$$:

Compressor $80 (second hand industrial - you need a hobby one if you can't be noisy at night)
Airbrush $30 (dual action and works a treat - a whole new airbrush costs less than some replacement parts for top quality brushes)
Water trap/
regulator $30
Hose $20
Couplings $15
Acrylic airbrush
thinner $12

So all up for less than AU$200 you could have a decent setup.

Entertaining airbrush use #223

Watching the new transformers movie and watching the fully made up vixen in cut off shorts and high boots bend seductively over a motercycle doing airbrush work - whilst having neither a cap on the 'brush, nor paint.

I guess they didn't expect people to be actually looking at the airbrush in that scene!

LOL

Glad you asked!

Here is a picture of Megan Fox airbrushing a motorcycle. Gotta love the technique!

After my first effort of running the airbrush at 40PSI and blowing all the paint out the front in rapid style, I now mix only a very small ammount in a medicine cup - just enough to use and discard the remainder (rather than mixing up a big batch).

For example, I wanted to put some yellow on my swooping hawks' wings, so it was a mix of about .2ml of sunburst yellow paint to about .6ml of airbrush thinner. The very thin paint allows you to layer on paint well and it dries quickly. With 10 of them to do I used this paint mix with some spare.

Saves having to store airbrush mix paint separately (although some may prefer if they have a large army to paint for example).

Very economical - used less paint than I would have with a brush for sure.