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So my folks recently asked me what I wanted for Christmas. I mention an airbrush, and it was only just at that moment that I realized that I had no idea what I was looking for!

Ive had little to no experience in airbrushing, and know very little of what the pros/cons of certain makes and models are.
I am somewhat familiar in terminology and how it works, at least in theory.
I am searching for a decent airbrush for basecoating models (infantry and vehicles and everything in between) but I dont want to break the bank on this one (so sadly no ultra-high-end fancy-dancy ones).

And thus I turn to the collective intellegence of Dakka for aid.

Can ya help me out?

Unfortunately for you, I don't have much advice for you. Fortunately for me, I'm in basically the same boat as you and have found an opportunity to piggyback.

I know I've been pointed towards Harbor Freight in the past for cheap introductory stuff, but I've no idea if the ones there would be appropriate for airbrushing miniatures.

I've been very happy with my Paasche talon, the gravity feed is such a nice feature as now blending becomes ridiculously easy by mixing the pot between strokes.

The biggest advice though, though just get an airbrush, get an airbrush with a compressor. Canned air is awful, awful stuff, it's inconsistent, and it runs out quickly, especially with a dual action gun where you need to keep the air running. The extra money spent on a compressor is well worth it.

I would suggest an airbrush by Badger. They make pretty decent guns, and they aren't crazy expensive. The one I have is from the Crescendo series, and I absolutely adore it. I agree with Dexterium. I bought a cheap single action starter airbrush that used compressed air, and I hated it. I ended up clogging it when I ran out of air mid stroke. Definitely go with a compressor. If you don't have access to one (my dad has a 200 gallon one in his shop hehe), I have heard of special small tank ones made especially for modelling airbrushes. What ever you use make sure the compressor has two things 1) a water trap, 2) a regulator. A water trap separates moisture from the air, which can cause your paint to come out inconsistent and ruin your paint job. A regulator controls the pressure of the air coming out (measured in P.S.I.). If unregulated, you can have an airbrush literally blow itself apart in your hands (while I haven't experienced this, I have heard horror stories).

Hope this helps.

Oh, and buy a double-action airbrush. Single action just don't cut it.

Excellent Excellent! This is all much appreciated!

So double action over single action, and compressor over compressed air. Alright!

How about gravity fed vs conventional?

After using both, I have to say Gravity is worth the convenience. It's easier to mix colours, and easier to get the right consistency if you are new, since you can water down the paint as you spray on your test model. It also allows you to hold your brush at angles not otherwise allowed by a siphon feed.

Oh yeah, and about the compressor, get a water trap and a regulator. Even if you buy a compressor without these you can go to a local hardware store and buy them separately, just attach them to the compressor (don't forget to use teflon). I also use an oilless compressor, it's a little less maintenance, but that's not a huge deal.

I've been speaking with the wife and she's approved me getting an airbrush for or after christmas. What I've found from here (Thanks, Mistress of Minis) is that there is a lot of good feedback on the PS900 airbrush. You can pick one up for around $60 on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Air-Pro-Tools-PS900-Airbrush/dp/B0013DSONI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=A23ADOZFIJNPFB&s=generic&qid=1290099739&sr=1-1

For an air compressure, for the money you spend on an airbrush compressor, you can get a much heavier duty compressor. In fact, I've found a compressor that costs less, has a larger tank, more air flow, and higher pressure, as well as having a built-in water trap and pressure regulator:

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200405815_200405815

So that leaves me needing to buy possibly an air hose and some cleaning supplies, and I can get everything for less than $200.

What do you guys think?

I tried to order the PS900 airbrush TWICE through amazon and in neither case did the supplier actually ship the brush. The first supplier (Chicago-based) said they shipped the brush but it never arrived & I got my money back without a fight. The second (California-based) just never shipped it and refunded my money without explanation about two days after I placed my order.

I gave up, ordered a Paasche Talon from Dick Blick in Chicago and had it two days later. Pays to go with a professional outfit (Blick was recommended to me by someone who's wife is a professional artist). Price was very competitive too.

I got this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/IWATA-HP-CS-Eclipse-AIRBRUSH-w-COMPRESSOR-KIT-Air-Brush-/200540507400?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2eb1254d08

you can't go wrong w/ an Iwata, they are considered one of the best airbrush manufacturers. The HP-CS is (I would say) their mid-range model. I absolutely love my brush and what I can do w/ it.

Just weighing in here... I now have several airbrushes muahaha...

I hadn't heard of any problem with distribution for the PS900, but if you can get one, they are a very good, cheap alternative to the name brand brushes.

The Paasche Talon (gravity feed) is a very popular and fairly priced brush.

I agree with chaosOxomega though, you cannot go wrong with Iwata quality. I have the same brush that he listed. When my (Iwata) compressor broke, do to user error, I called them and literally with no questions asked, they shipped out the part for free. They didn't care when/where I bought it or how I broke it. I was very impressed.

Also at the very top there is Harder & Steenbeck ab's... I have one of those also.

Basically you will find a ton of different opinions on all this but most miniature painters agree on a few things:
-- Gravity Feed
-- Daul action
-- and for the compressor - separate tank and moisture trap; the auto-shutoff is a also great feature.

From what I've been able to find, it looks like Air Pro Tools may have been bought out and/or replaced with Master Air for airbrushes. I have no idea what the quality would be like for any of the G40 series (like a G46) brush.

And Dick Blick, despite the silly name, is a great company. I got 3 W&N Series 7 brushes for them cheaper than I could get on Amazon or Ebay, and they arrived quickly.

If you are in a region that has Hobby Lobby stores, there is a sale going on right now for 30% all airbrushes and supplies. There is a very decent Iwata dual action, internal mixing, gravity feed brush that will run you $41.00 after the discount is applied.

I'm in the same position, funnily enough!

I'm not looking to do anything more than Base Coats and Zenital Highlights, so nothing expensive. A local Model Store has a nice Badger for about £50, so it's really the Compressor that I'm looking for; anyone got any recommendations, preferably of cheap ones which will do the job?

Also, what else will I need? What sort of spray booth setup do you use?

Get something that has good spares back up. Buy plenty of o-rings for it as you'll need to change them if they start to leak or get paint on them. Most decent airbrush manufacturers have spares lists and exploded diagrams to point you in the right direction. I also recommend having a spare needle handy. If you've got spares you can change them out rather than wait a week for the posty!

Iwata and Harder and Steenbeck are good quality and good for spares.

Compressor wise Iwata are a good investment as they are very reliable. The new ones are an improvement in an already good design.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Don't worry about spray booths. Even if you're painting tanks you shouldn't be spraying that much paint out. If you are then you're doing it wrong or rushing it too much. Just put some newspaper down in case you spill paint filling it or have an accident. It's easy to do I can tell you! Wear latex gloves too for cleanliness and you can test spray the back if your hand before the mini to ensure you don't splatter it from a small clogging issue.

Thanks you guys for the exceptional advice!

Now are there any specific models you guys would recommend?
Im looking at that Paasche Talon and Iwata Kits so far.

From my research, things to look for:

Airbrush:
Gravity Fed (cap optional) - Allows you to mix paint directly into the feed
Dual Action - Allows you to adjust air flow through the trigger
Nozzle and Needle Size - Smaller nozzle/needle combinations will, in general, be capable of finer lines. On the flip side, the largest diameter they can put out will be smaller, and smaller nozzle/needle combos will be more finicky (more likely to clog). From what I've seen, most folks seem to recommend around a 0.4 to 0.6mm to start with, and a 0.2 to 0.35mm for more advanced and detailed work. I'm looking at getting a 0.3 or 0.35mm for my first, as I want to be able to do some detail work on minis and not just on vehicles.

I HIGHLY recommend looking at reviews before purchasing an airbrush.

Air Pro Tools - PS900 (note, it may be discontinued, making spare parts hard to get)
Badger - 200 or 250 series
Iwata - Eclipse series
Paasche - Talon

Compressor:
Once you have selected an airbrush, you want a compressor to push the air. Don't use canned air, it's expensive and inconsistant. The most important thing about air flow is having a consistant steady flow. Since you know what airbrush you want, look at what the manufacturer recommends as far as minimum air flow (CFM or SCFM) and pressure (PSIG). You don't want to buy an expensive compressor that won't work well with your airbrush.

Compressor Types:
Next you want to look at the various compressor types. You have piston driven compressors and diaphram (pancake) type compressors. Diaphram compressors are quieter but more expensive, and tend to be a bit more compact.

Compressor Usage:
Then you want to look at what the compressor can be used for. You can get one made for airbrushes, which will be a smaller more portable unit, but have lower capacity and pressure for a similar cost. Or you can look at an air compressor for air powered tools. I have found for a similar or lower price, you can get a shop air compressor that will have more pressure and capacity than an airbrush, with the downside being that it is larger and will be louder.

Air Tank:
Everyone recommends getting a compressor with an air tank, either integral or buying a seperate tank. By flowing into a tank first, you are creating a very steady flow to your airbrush. Additionally, you can fill up the tank to a higher PSI and use a regulator (see below) to limit the pressure going out. This means you won't have to continuously use the compressor.

Regulator:
You can get a compressor with either an integral regulator or a seperate regulator you attach to your line. This will limit the PSI and typically comes with a dial adjustor so you can set the pressure to what you want. Pressure controls air flow, so this lets you dial in your painting. As a bonus, regulators help push out a consistant air flow.

Quick Disconnect:
Again, you can buy this integral or seperate. This will allow you to easily disconnect your air line and/or airbrush, allowing for easier storage and cleanup.

Adapters:
These may be required if your compressor outlet doesn't match up to your air line/regulator/etc. Typically the outlet is either a 3/8" or 1/4", and most air brushes use 1/4" connections.

Water Trap:
May be integral to compressor, tank, or regulator, or purchased seperately. This takes condensate that gets created from pressurizing the air and gives it a place to collect. It will have a tap you open to drain. This will help keep your paint quality consistant.

I'm looking at getting a shop type compressor with integral tank, regulator, and water trap. I don't think I'll need an adapter, but if I do I can get one at any hardware store (lowes, home depot, harbor freight, etc).

Air Line:
If your airbrush doesn't come with an airline, or doesn't have one that's long enough, you can pick up another easily at any hardware store.

I bought an airbrush recently after doing lots of research.

It was the IWATA ECLIPSE CS Airbrush

http://www.graphicair.co.uk/products/Iwata-Eclipse-CS-Airbrush.html

I got this with a compressor, some paints, a dvd, and painting tool for just over £300.

The airbrush itself comes to about £100

From contacting airbrush designers and sales people I saw no reason to pay more than this for an Airbrush.
I am the kind of person who would pay an additional £200 for the better air brush - but this one is perfect for what I need to do.

If your beginning and starting out the CS is fine, you can always get different airbrushes if you decide to spray a car or wall.

From my experience the CS is easy to use and makes my work fun, new and interesting. Its expanded my capabilities.

If I get into fine art in the future I might get another air brush, but for now its fine.

http://www.graphicair.co.uk/products/Iwata-Introduction-Art-Airbrush-Set.html

My sincerest thanks to all of you guys! You have no idea how helpful you've all been!

Ive narrowed my searching down to the Talon and the Eclipse. Now it just depends on avaliability, and convincing my folks to get it

Hi, just wanted to say thanks for the input aswell, as I'm considdering getting a brush aswell.

Now that I'm posting anyway, do anyone happen to know of a good English/German/Scandinavian website, that deals in these products, at reasonable prices?

I found a danish website that sells one called Airbrush DH-3 (dual action), but not sure what brand, or how good it is. (link, in danish http://www.morfars.dk/rc/airbrush-dual-action-p-3015.html) - the price of that one is just over 100 USD.

Harder & Steenbeck airbrushes are German made, though I don't know of any Eng/Germ/Scand websites off-hand.

They are actually the top of the line ...I have an Infinity 2-in-1 myself.

The link I posted previously is the best deal I have seen yet. The compressor isn't necessarily the best, but it certainly works. It's not terribly loud, but it runs a bit more often than I would like.

chaos0xomega wrote:I got this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/IWATA-HP-CS-Eclipse-AIRBRUSH-w-COMPRESSOR-KIT-Air-Brush-/200540507400?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2eb1254d08

you can't go wrong w/ an Iwata, they are considered one of the best airbrush manufacturers. The HP-CS is (I would say) their mid-range model. I absolutely love my brush and what I can do w/ it.

IWATA is awesome!

This deal is sweet. I have dealt with them several times and always good.

http://www.chicagoairbrushsupply.com/iwreaiwsmjet.html