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I've heard that it can seriously improve your ability to thin out paints during regular painting and improve results. Have any of you found this to be true?

I use distilled water but that's not the reason for it. I just don't want mineral depots to form inside my airbrush over time because the water is pretty hard where I live.

As for thinning paint, the best thing is actual thinner or homemade thinner made from a mix of distillled water and matte medium. That will improve the paint but distilled water alone? Not in any manner you will notice.

Nope at one point i did but it became a pain.

its nice for thinning washes but otherwise i usually just use tap for everything else.

If your tap water is safe to drink, then it's likely to be just as good as distilled water for any paint-related purposes.

I think I only use distilled water because it is a handy jug to have.
The solids drying in the airbrush I was concerned of a bit.
In the scheme of things... it probably does not matter much.
I just like to give anything I make every chance it can get and the "cleanliness" of the distilled water appealed to me.
About as honest an answer I can give.

Wow I feel like a heathen, I use water out of my pot to thin x.x

Thanks for the tip. I went down to the store and bought some as well as some flow-aid and mixed it in an empty bottle at a 3:1 ratio. Works well as a thinner, though from what I can tell, tap water would have probably as well.