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First: example pic:


So I've been airbrushing, I've abused the hell out of this thing previously, so that may be the issue, the airbrush I use was a pretty cheap $40 badger clone. Ive decided that I love airbrushing and would like to get a brush that I can scale all the way down to doing the majority of my mini non-detail work on. I'm fully prepared to get a new brush/ultrasonic cleaner/whatever.

Anyways, Above is my first attempt at using black to shade a vehicle, as you can see it works well in some places, but not in others, my primary issues are.

1. it is very difficult to get the correct paint flow at close range so the shading doesn't spread out too much, but is very light
2. I'm not getting "spatter" however the paint doesn't seem to be vaporizing correctly, eg the little dots of paint aren't as small as they should be, ideas?
3. I get a burst of paint when the needle goes forward/ when I let go, and when I start, making the whole process difficult.
4. the paint flow doesn't seem consistent, at high power/full flow I never noticed but when trying to do shading

Basically the thing is inconsistant as hell, I'm hoping to get a new brush/whatever and follow a specific process so that it works the same every time with alot less guesswork as to what pressure/paint/clean status/ect. that it is.

Thoughts?

Check your moisture trap. This can deposit water droplets into your airflow which can cause spattering.

Ensure your mix has good flow (use flow improver / airbrush medium), and your pressure isn't too high.

After that, ensure you have airflow first before pulling back the needle (introduce paint to the airflow gradually).

Postshading often looks very harsh - often a 'clear' black is used (Tamiya Smoke), this helps the effect be built in more passes for a more subtle look.

Preshading is probably the technique you want here. Assuming a gunmetal and red scheme; prime (or basecoat) in a mid grey (a touch darker than the gunmetal.
Apply thin lines of black over raised edges, panel lines. It will feel 'wrong' shading a raised edge. Trust me, you should do it, the contrast of a later edge highlight against the shade will make it pop more.
Then mask off the gunmetal area. Build up the red with very thin layers (so the black preshade shows through). Allow to dry. Remove mask and mask off the red areas. Build up the gunmetal in the middles of panels etc. Thin layers again.
Remove mask. Edge highlight with gentle drybrushing with a lightened red on the red and a lightened gunmetal.

Edit: If you're not using a dual action gravity feed brush, get one. They're cheap on ebay. Or if you want to spend a bit, a Harder/Steenbeck Evolution 2 in 1 looks like a very nice setup.

Winter: Thanks buddy you're one of the main reasons I got into this airbrush madness, I just wish I could spend 90% of my time painting and not fking with the airbrush.
I've been washing my brush with water, then blowing water through it with my mouth, and then spraying water through it to clean it (then airbrush cleaner)

so it makes perfect sense that water is in the brush somewhere, I'll give it a through shaking and blow some higher pressure air into it (not through it) to see if i can de-moist it.

one more question: lets say I do a circle, I go around the circle, then how do I do the spot where the two "lines" intersect without making them much darker? just go slower and use less paint at a time?

Yes, slower and more carefully. Ease off the paint flow. Generally when doing line work / preshading you have very little paintflow and fairly low pressure. If your AB has an action limiter, they can come in handy in preventing over-zealous paintflow.