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Howdy,

I've never used an airbrush before in my life and I have limited experience with the spray gun, but it's something I'd like to learn as it seems like a very simple and effective way to paint.

So I have been looking at various air brushes/compressors on the interwebs, meaning I now have even more questions.

I was looking to getting the following airbrush/compressor as it seems like everything I need is there, so if you have any opinions on this or an example of a better one I'd be very grateful.

Airbrush/Compressor

Also if I do buy this can I use GW paints with it, as far as I have read I could but I would require a thinner (like diluting base paints with water in the spray gun?) so I was looking at the vajello model air paint thinner but would this be suitable with GW paints and if it is how much would you say you need to use with them? (Vajello Paint Thinner)

Finally if I were to start airbrushing, what sort of pressure would you typically need to operate at and are there any suggestions on techniques etc, as I've looked around and found some examples but at this point I may as well be reading spanish.

Thanks for any help
Rysaer

Sorry just going to bump this as I could do with some help if possible.

Thanks
Rysaer

It's not a bad set.
The side-feed brushes are a bit harder to clean than a top-feed (cup built in on top of the brush) design. Siphon feed (the jar one) need a little more pressure to run and again are a bit harder to clean, but if you're doing a bulk job (ie varnishing / basing an army) you can do more without having to refill the cup / make up new mixes (unless you jar them up in advance and then pour that into the cup).

You can use GW paints with it for sure, but the thinner you use can change the behaviour of the paints; generally water is fine for most acrylics (not tamiya!). It's a good idea to add some flow improver too, as this helps prevent tip dry.

Usually I'm working at somewhere between 15 and 25 PSI. I think. My regulator is old, and a bit knackered. You'll rapidly get a feel for it.

I thin most paints (VMA / VMC / GW) with a water and flow improver mix. Sometimes I'll use windscreen wash or more usually Tamiya thinner (alcohol based) if I want a faster dry, or if I'm using an alcohol based paint (Tamiya / Gunze-Sangyo (Mr Color) or Vallejo Liquid Gold).

There are several factors at work while airbrushing:
Paint flow, drying time (depend on your medium / thinner), air pressure, distance to target.

The longer the paint is in the air (distance) and the faster your medium evaporates will affect how 'dry' the paint goes on. In general you want your paint to go on looking slightly glossy (not 'wet'). If it goes on too dry you'll notice your finish is powdery and easily rubbed off (sometimes you want this if you're weathering with it).

The more paint you put in the air (by pulling back the trigger to open the nozzle wider) will mean more paint will hit the target and your spray pattern will be larger.

The higher the pressure, the faster the paint will fly, and the quicker it will dry on the tip, as well as also expanding the spray pattern.

 Rysaer wrote:
Howdy,

I've never used an airbrush before in my life and I have limited experience with the spray gun, but it's something I'd like to learn as it seems like a very simple and effective way to paint.

So I have been looking at various air brushes/compressors on the interwebs, meaning I now have even more questions.

I was looking to getting the following airbrush/compressor as it seems like everything I need is there, so if you have any opinions on this or an example of a better one I'd be very grateful.

Airbrush/Compressor

That compressor is the bare minimum you need for airbrush. One with a tank would be a better option. As for the airbrush some people say those cheap brushes are great but after trying a better one tend never to get back to them. In my opinion it won't be longer until you start wondering if you can do better with a better brush and take the plug. So my recommendation would be to get something better to start with. Try to watch a few videos about airbrushing on youtube, Les from awsomepaintjob as a good one, as does WGC channel. Mr Justin from secretweapon also did one a few days ago. Just do a search and watch a few to get the basics and the things you should be looking for. In previous threads here on dakka you will also find a ton of links to videos about the same. The miniaturementor videos and the Army painter from cool mini or not are also good but you need to pay for them.

 Rysaer wrote:

Also if I do buy this can I use GW paints with it, as far as I have read I could but I would require a thinner (like diluting base paints with water in the spray gun?) so I was looking at the vajello model air paint thinner but would this be suitable with GW paints and if it is how much would you say you need to use with them? (Vajello Paint Thinner)

Yes the vallejo thinner is excellent and allows you to work with GW as well. As for the ration consistency of milk is what you are looking for. This will depend on pressure, specific paint etc. that is hard to tell you what you should always use. Basically you want to give the paint a swirl around on a cup and as the paint runs on the walls it should be translucent.

 Rysaer wrote:

Finally if I were to start airbrushing, what sort of pressure would you typically need to operate at and are there any suggestions on techniques etc, as I've looked around and found some examples but at this point I may as well be reading spanish.

Again this will depend on paint. For a normal paint a start point of around 20psi is a good compromise between control and flow. If you are doing really detailed work you might to drop it to about 15 or even lower and raise up to 30 psi for primers and thicker paints. If you are getting loads of blockages then you may need to thin you paint more or change the pressure. Counter intuitively the lower the pressure the more you have to open the trigger and so more space for bigger particles to pass through so it actually makes easier for thicker paints to pass through. But you will also get more painting at the time so it is easy to create spiders and so on

One of the arguments for getting a brand airbrush – apart from actually getting better results due to having an airbrush you can grow with instead of grow out of – is that it is way easier to find replacement parts. Because you will bend needles, lose packings (not that common, but it happens) and generally need replacing parts when you learn the airbrush.

So... buy quality, cry once.

Thanks for the advice guys, I think I'll hold off for a bit on the Airbrush/Compressor until I can find a better one then if this one isn't overly great. The way I see it I'd rather get the right one first time especially considering how much they cost.

I'm more aiming to use this to primer with, and to do blended effects with (chaos armour etc)