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Can someone just link me some good compressors for brushing? What is the appropriate PSI needed for airbrushing? I have seen so many articles and recommendations but I want to know what people use regularly. Thanks!
~Ice~ Da' Burnin Couch 2018 Best Overall
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From what I've heard it is mostly personal preference, the head of my miniatures group prefers >=50 PSI on hir compressor, but I've also heard from some professional painters that ~30 is also good. Not to mention it is also a question of how watered down your paint is.
I tend to be between 20 and 40psi depending on paint and application. The lower pressure give less misting overspray. I work in an unvetilated space.
When it comes to compressor a good start is the AS-186 seen all over eBay and other places. It is very good value, has a tank and is pretty quiet. I used mine for many years and upgraded because I am an idiot, not so much that I outgrew it.
// Andreas
Dark Angels 4th Company (3,830pts) 950pts fully painted
On all small needles (anything smaller than 0.38mm) II airbrush at just a notch under 20 PSI for most models using Vallejo Model/Game Air or Citadel Air. When I mix my own paint (Citadel Base/Layer + thinner), I go a little thinner, and use as 17 PSI or on the regulator, and dial it back a little more on the MAC at the brush end. When I'm painting detail stuff, my regulator is set at 15, and I dial it back on the MAC as low as I can go without clogging up the nozzle too much.
When I'm painting terrain, I'll paint at 25 PSI or so using a 0.66mm needle.
I'm not really sure why people like to dial up the PSI on their airbrushes. It's only really appropriate if you have your airbrush quite far away from the model; if you're too close, having a very high PSI (like 50... wow...) will just move all the paint you just put onto your model around. Now, painting from far away from the target will allow you to paint more, faster, but... most of the things we paint are pretty small. So, painting from 12" away? On anything other than terrain or a massive model, it just means 80% of the paint goes to waste.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2015/10/17 08:32:07
You probably want something no less than 1/6th HP (0.17 horsepower, 125W), probably with no less than 20 litres per minute flow rate and something with a tank.
Talys wrote: On all small needles (anything smaller than 0.38mm) II airbrush at just a notch under 20 PSI for most models using Vallejo Model/Game Air or Citadel Air. When I mix my own paint (Citadel Base/Layer + thinner), I go a little thinner, and use as 17 PSI or on the regulator, and dial it back a little more on the MAC at the brush end. When I'm painting detail stuff, my regulator is set at 15, and I dial it back on the MAC as low as I can go without clogging up the nozzle too much.
When I'm painting terrain, I'll paint at 25 PSI or so using a 0.66mm needle.
I'm not really sure why people like to dial up the PSI on their airbrushes. It's only really appropriate if you have your airbrush quite far away from the model; if you're too close, having a very high PSI (like 50... wow...) will just move all the paint you just put onto your model around. Now, painting from far away from the target will allow you to paint more, faster, but... most of the things we paint are pretty small. So, painting from 12" away? On anything other than terrain or a massive model, it just means 80% of the paint goes to waste.
It's more dependent on the needle geometry and annular geometry of the air cap than it is on nozzle size (ie. needle taper and the gap the air flows through is more important than if it's a 0.2 or a 0.4).
It's worth noting that, since we are talking about purchasing a compressor, you want to buy something that has a healthy amount of pressure overhead compared to what you're actually going to be spraying at.
Most people will probably never spray over 30PSI, but I still would recommend getting something rated 50+, especially if it's a cheap compressor because...
a) It may struggle sustaining that pressure for long periods.
b) The pressure that will be listed on a compressor is the pressure with no airflow. When you actually open the airflow to the airbrush, the pressure will drop and the compressor will not sustain the pressure it's actually rated at. Also if you have a long hose, you may lose a few PSI through the lines between the compressor and the airbrush. Having a tank will alleviate this, but if your tank runs low you don't want to have to stop and wait for it to refill if the flow rate of the compressor itself is too low.
c) Sometimes it's useful just to have a blast of high pressure even if you aren't painting at that (I usually paint below 30PSI, but turn it up to 40+ when cleaning the airbrush).
Also something to keep in mind is that the cheap regulators we typically use on airbrush compressors aren't necessarily all that accurate. I noticed when using my friend's compressor that for a similar flow through the airbrush his was reading about 5 to 10PSI less than mine. The regulator is good for you to learn what pressure you need, but when someone says on a forum "I spray at blah PSI" you can't assume your regulator (or their regulator for that matter!) is actually correctly reading what blah PSI is.
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2015/10/17 11:26:58
Icelord wrote: Can someone just link me some good compressors for brushing? What is the appropriate PSI needed for airbrushing? I have seen so many articles and recommendations but I want to know what people use regularly. Thanks!
A good compressor really depends on your needs and budget. Here are my thoughts on the subject:
My mother is buying me a new compressor for an early Christmas present but it has to be from Michaels (craft store). They have some iwata, badger Etc. anyone have experience with any of their current brands for sale?
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On the subject of PSI and tanks, and such, we are talking about piston-style oil-free compressors. Like their larger brethren that are used for brad nailers, spray guns, impact tools and other contractor goodness, every compressor of this sort has two important characteristics, which is NOT advertised for hobby compressors: duty cycle and life expectancy.
A typical compressor will be rated at a duty cycle of 50% - 100%, and number of hours anywhere from 1,000 to 5,000 or more. Compressors start and stop as they need to produce air pressure, and the duty cycle indicates how much uptime it is rated at relative to downtime. So a 100% duty cycle compressor is designed to run continuously, and a 50% duty cycle compressor is designed to run a minute, rest a minute, etc. Used at its rated duty cycle, the compressor can be expected to last its life cycle number of hours before dying. A typical $200 contractor's compressor might have 75% Duty Cycle, with 3,000 hours life expectancy. There's also CFM (the amount of air that the compressor can put through) and PSI (the amount of pressure the compressor can generate), but neither is really all that important for airbrushing.
These are relevant to hobby compressors because even though these numbers aren't advertised, the compressors work the same way. You want a compressor that won't have to work its fully duty cycle because it will last you a lot longer. Aside from a tank giving you a more steady airflow, this is a good reason to get a compressor with a tank (the motor will run less; therefore, it will last longer).
Other than duty cycle and life expectancy, if there is a tank and your regulator works accurately and your compressor doesn't leak, every compressor does exactly the same thing: it fills up an air tank and then kicks in and fills it back up when it reads that the pressure is a little low.
Really and truly, once the tank has air in it and you're releasing it through a regulator, what is on the motor end *doesn't matter*. You could fill up a propane tank or a spare tire with air and let it out through a regulator, and it would do the same thing and just as good a job.
The reason the tank is important is that without it, you're relying on constant pressure from the compressor, which is less likely; plus, your compressor will run at a 100% duty cycle as long as you're airbrushing (it stops if you're not drawing air), which is a lot of wear on it.
The only other thing that really matters is noise: quieter is better, but frankly, you won't know how loud it is til you plug it in and listen to it.
--
For name brand compressors, I own both of these:
Badger TC-910 ($180 USD - the model up from the one that Dullspork has above, I think):
I got the Badger from Michaels with a 50% coupon, and the Paasche from Amazon. They both work great, but the Badger was MUCH higher quality. The Paasche required me to do a bunch of retaping joints to fix leaks, but has since worked really well. The Paasche is a little smaller, though they take up about the same footprint (the casing is really nice on the Badger).
The Paasche is a little quieter. Oh, and it has a totally useless (optional) function - the ability to keep the motor running even when the tank is full. I can't imagine any reason to use it.
I also have a contractor's compressor (California Air Tools) for home DIY stuff. It's really easy to make it work with an airbrush. All you need is a quick-connect to 1/4" NPT adapter (about $2), a short 1/4" NPT hose ($10) to go to a hobby regulator ($15). Set the compressor to 60 or so PSI, set the hobby regulator to about 20 PSI and you're set. In fact, this is the CHEAPEST way to get a good hobby compressor, because even the crappiest compressor for brad nailers (less than $100) will "outperform" a hobby compressor in generating air.
The downside is that they are stupidly loud for airbrushing and not suitable for using inside a house, unless you live alone. People will hate you. The upside is that if you're a real go-getter, you can set it up in your garage and run hose through your home and keep it all quiet. And of course, you can fill your tires, spray your fence, nail crown moldings and baseboards and all that stuff
There are also new (contractor) compressors with aluminum tanks that don't rust. I would love one of those, as keeping the tanks drained is a pain
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2015/10/17 17:25:17
I would recommend a compressor with a tank if you're going to do any significant amount of airbrushing, of only because the motor will run a lot less and therefore last a lot longer. Especially if you're going to be painting terrain or large models like 40k tanks and titans.
In any case, I wouldn't pay $115 for a compressor without a tank (I think that's too much). I am a fan of buying a compressor at Michaels though, with the 50% coupon -- if it leaks or whatever, you can just take it back and exchange it.
Talys wrote: Really and truly, once the tank has air in it and you're releasing it through a regulator, what is on the motor end *doesn't matter*. You could fill up a propane tank or a spare tire with air and let it out through a regulator, and it would do the same thing and just as good a job.
That's true, the only thing to keep in mind is that if the tank is small and the pressure in the tank reasonably low (like many "hobby" compressors), it will have to refill often and if the compressor doesn't have the power to maintain the necessary flow rate and pressure you need to spray and refill the tank at the same time you will have to stop spraying until the compressor refills the tank.
But really... we use bugger all air when spraying miniatures. Things like duty cycle and mean time between failure are far more important for workshop compressors where you're using them for power tools or spraying a car. Most hobby compressors don't list those sorts of numbers anyway.
For spraying miniatures, as long as it's powerful enough to supply the pressure and flow rate (I think no less than 1/6th HP), can supply the flow rate (I think at least 20 litres per minute), has a tank (to give more consistent pressure), has a regulator and moisture trap (many compressors come with them attached, you can buy them separately but it adds to the cost) and has acceptable noise levels (compressors range from making a soft put-put-put noise to a deafening roar) then you should be fine.
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2015/10/17 19:59:41
@icelord - yes. just pull out and turn the knob of the regulator.
57 psi is the max pressure; the compressor switches off when the tank's pressure reaches this, then kicks back on when the psi of the tank drops a certain amount b
I have the last compressor on that list and love it (got it from Michael's at 50%, too).
~Ice~ 
