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hello dakka,

still getting used to my airbrush and I've got a few questions for the experts out there.

first off, matte varnishes. I had some bits I'd done an oil wash on (glossed with future floor polish) and I tried spraying vallejo matte varnish on to take down the shine. I'd read somewhere that you can use the vallejo varnishes in an airbrush without thinning, but I tossed in a few drops of vallejo airbrush thinner anyway because it looked a bit thick in the cup. final mix was something like 1:10 thinner to varnish. I sprayed it on at 30 PSI, holding the brush about 6" from the model and ended up getting a frosted finish. woops... (was able to recover by re-applying more future polish so, not the end of the world)

my guess is that I simply sprayed on too much varnish and that I need to wait longer between coats so I can see the matte finish build up as it dries. however, I'm wondering if I should be making any adjustments to my thinning ratio/medium and/or PSI. thoughts?

next up, airbrushing with GW paints (the old line, if it matters). I know I'm supposed to be aiming for a milk-like consistency, but that's pretty subjective. I've been using vallejo airbrush thinner so far. am I better off using distilled water for GW paints? is there a rough ratio of thinner to paint that should get me in the milk-like consistency ballpark?

I tried spraying some fortress gray last night and thinned it with vallejo airbrush thinner. I started by adding 30 drops of thinner to the cup (spraying the interior of two rhinos) and then about 3 brush-fulls of paint (super precise, I know). it that looked pretty milk-like to me; it was thin, but left some pigment on the wall of the cup when I dragged the brush up the side. when I sprayed it on (20 PSI, 6" from model), it felt like the paint was extra watery... it didn't dry quickly and I ended up with some pooling around raised details like rivets. I don't know if that's the result of over-thinning or me spraying on too much paint. the fortress grey color was similar in color to the primer, so it was hard to tell where I'd put paint and where I hadn't.

lastly, I feel like I'm using a lot more paint when I airbrush vs. using a regular brush. for example, to base coat a few heavy bolters in black with a regular brush, I might use 2-3 drops of paint and a similar amount of water/flow-aid to thin it. to do the same thing with my airbrush I'm using 2-3 times as many drops of paint plus airbrush thinner (depending on the color). is that normal or am I wasting paint? if I'm wasting paint, what should I be doing differently?

cheers guys. lots more questions to follow, I'm sure

What equipment are you using. The pressures and distances seem off - though it may just be the equipment you have instead.

6 inches seems to be pretty far to me. Normally I am right up on my models. What can happen when you are far from your target is the paint can dry mid air so that when it finally lands, you will have a fair amount of frosting when using clears (matte or gloss - though much more obvious with matte). Back off the pressure some and get a bit closer. Should sort that issue for you.

The drying time will depend a bit on a variety of factors. If you are staying with the same paint - the previous coat doesn't need to be fully dry/cured to put the next coat on. In fact, you gain better adhesion if you apply the second coat just a little before it is completely dry. This is less true with enamels/oils/lacquers as the solvents will allow it to stick where it goes (assuming they don't evaporate en route to the surface).

Never bothered to use the GW paints in an airbrush - so I don't have too much to add there. However, just because one person used three or four drops to get the right consistency you may not find that to be correct for your particular bottle. Unfortunately - paints will change consistency depending on how each person uses them to some extent. Might not seem like much - but it can change things enough that you will still have to figure out the exact combo when you pop the top.

How thin you want the paints is somewhat preference and somewhat equipment. While much is made regarding the needle/nozzle sizes - that impacts what it can spray a good bit more than how fine it will spray. If you are trying to use well thinned paints in a rig that is setup for spraying textile paints...it will seem like they are too thin. You can either use thicker paints or adjust your setup to match.

Normally you don't save much paint with an airbrush - at least not in these scales. You will loose almost drop of paint to the inside of your equipment, and of course you probably have some overspray to consider.

Sean_OBrien wrote:What equipment are you using.

woops, forgot to mention that bit. I'm using a badger renegade krome with a .21mm needle. oddly, I can't find a link to that model on badger's website at the moment, but there's a bit of info here: http://www.chicagoairbrushsupply.com/barekr2in1.html

I actually have one of those. Badger make good airbrushes - but crap websites. If you are thinning down to milk consistency, try backing the pressure off some. I normally use that one with thinned paints around 17 PSI.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
http://www.renegadeairbrush.com/

They have their own site for their Renegade brushes - but they still haven't added the specs for the Krome to it.

yeah, I did see that one. you're definitely right about the 'crap websites' part :p

no one uses GW paints in their airbrushes?

GW paints in an airbrush are just like any other paint. Vallejo Thinner works just fine to thin any of the acrylic paint ranges. I use it with Valljeo (duh...), GW, P3, and Reaper Master Series. It has been said a number of times on this forum and elsewhere; there is no magic ratio of paint to thinner. Even in one range the consistency can differ from color to color. You have heard correctly, a skim milk consistency is what you are looking for. Add a drop of thinner in to the cup, then add a drop of paint. If it is too thick, add another drop of thinner. Too thin, do the opposite. Again, no one can tell you exactly how much of each you need... just expirement to find what works for you.

I just picked up an Eclipse CS airbrush the other day, and had many of these same questions. So for paint, any acrylic paints will work for it? Just as long as the consistance is thin enough? (either by adding water... or paint thinner?)

Consistency and your actual needle/nozzle/pressure configuration.

If you run really thin paints at higher pressures - they tend to splatter some. Thin paints with a large needle/nozzle will also tend to be more difficult to control.

Other than that - you can pretty much put anything through an airbrush given the correct set up of the various variables. I know a few people who use artist's tube paints almost exclusively - and they do it professionally as well (not miniature painter professional - advertising and that sort of thing). You just need to get an understanding of what the different things will do and adjust accordingly.

varl wrote:no one uses GW paints in their airbrushes?

I do.

If you plan on using Foundation or Base paints they will need extra thinning and keep an alcohol swab nearby to clean up the needle now and then as they dry up real fast.

For regular GW paints, a few drops of thinning solution works fine but there is no magic number. Some colors require more thinner than others.

Overall it works well enough.