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I've been lucky enough to receive a truckload of 30k stuff for various birthday and other celebrations and I'm wanting to buy an airbrush to make my life easier.

I've read a lot of guides etc but still a bit confused about exactly what I should be buying. I unfortunately don't have a good art or modelling shop locally so it will be an online purchase. I've been sat trawling through eBay but it's a total minefield.

Can anyone point me in the right direction? It won't get used that often as I prefer to paint by hand so I don't really want anything mega expensive but likewise don't want to do myself a disservice.

cheers all

Did you search this forum? I think there are about 100 threads on this question. Ideally do some research and come back with a "is this a good set up?" question?

Cheers!

Please, please, please do a quick search first This question is asked so frequently.

At a minimum, take a look at some other threads, and narrow down an idea of what kind of price range you'd like to entertain, what brands you're able to source locally, and whether you're looking just to basecoat & prime, or do more.

What you're asking is almost like, "what kind of car should I get to get around, for my first car?" Well, every car will do the job, but...

From what you've mentioned, it sounds like you're just looking for an airbrush to do the most basic tasks, and if that's so, you just need to establish the best airbrush/compressor combo you can get for your budget, factoring in as well accessories that you'll need.

Almost every airbrush will do the job, but the other hand, the truckload of 30k stuff sure ain't cheap, and if money isn't really an issue, you might want to spend a little more, and get something that feels a little better, has a little better trigger, etc. To give you an idea, you can get into airbrushing for less than $100, or spend more than 4 times that, without getting silly.

Double-action gravity fed airbrush with a 0.3 or larger needle/nozzle for basecoats.

This one is pretty cheap and very good for basecoating.

If you want to future-proof yourself I'd suggest looking into H&S as you can easily swap between different size needles/nozzles in the same body.


As for compressor; if the flag on your post is correct and you're in the UK, there's a bunch of AS186 on UK ebay, probably the best value option.


Also, there are some safety concerns a lot of people are unaware of; the brush atomizes paint which can then be breathed in and will sit in your lungs. Use a particle filter mask to prevent this and a decent spray booth if other people or pets are going to be in the room you spray in.
If you work with enamels/solvents you'll need more robust filtering and vent the air outside.


Edit:
And as the posters above say, there are a bunch of different threads on this subject across the internet, particularly on scale model forums like britmodeller etc.

The posts above are filled with sound advice.

You can either go down the cheap chinese route (and hope for the best) or get a step in model from a quality manufacturer. I really like my H & S Ultra. https://www.everythingairbrush.com/airbrushes/harder-steenbeck-airbrushes/airbrushes-harder-steenbeck-airbrushes-harder-steenbeck-airbrushes-ultra.html

Remember that you also have to budget for a spray booth and/or good quality mask.

I'd go cheap and cheerful for your first compressor and AB.

I was in a similar position a few years ago and researched it throughly before buying.

Things to note:
AB's in the US are dead cheap compared to here so many a yank will recommend something quite expensive to start with.
Many of the AB's on eBay are Chinese knock offs/relabelled products by better known companies (all made in the nsame place by the same Chinese Megacorp basically).
There's nothing wrong with them (in fact idea for a starter) but I would suggest buying them from a decent hobby retailer so you can get a warranty.

I bought a kit from a well know Hobby tool company in the end and for a better price than eBay after a chat on the phone with them: http://www.rdgtools.co.uk

Be warned though instructions are rudimentary but not a problem if you have a bit of common sense.

After that you just need to learn how to use the damned thing but there are loads of YouTube vids on the subject and I found FWs Model Mastercraft and Finescale Modellers book on the subject quite helpfull.

 notprop wrote:
I'd go cheap and cheerful for your first compressor and AB.

Buy cheap, buy twice.

This doesn't mean you need to get a top of the line compressor, but if you buy one without a tank to save money, you're going to regret it. Buy one with a tank.

Yeah I bought one with a tank. Been running for 5 years now no problems but then diaphragm pumps aren't really high tech so no surprise there.

The thing is, you need to buy for what you are doing and if you're just spamming out the odd army a year all good. If your spraying professionally then clearly another option might be worth it.

Thanks for the help, did a quick forum search but honestly, was still struggling to get the direction I wanted. Anyway, I've plumped for a H&S as recommended with a compressor with tank. I've just started a pre-heresy EC plog and it's first outing will probably be base coating the tactical marines so you can see how it works out

Good choice, let us know how you go

doctor_zoidburg wrote:
Thanks for the help, did a quick forum search but honestly, was still struggling to get the direction I wanted. Anyway, I've plumped for a H&S as recommended with a compressor with tank. I've just started a pre-heresy EC plog and it's first outing will probably be base coating the tactical marines so you can see how it works out

Actually, while H&S is a high quality brand, depending on the specs' it might be a terrible brush for a beginner.

One of the MOST common mistakes people make in buying an airbrush is confusing quality machined parts (which is good) with high end airbrush (which is not good).

You want a brush that has quality machined parts (as opposed to some low machine tolerance chinese knockoff that won't seal) but not some expensive brush with an very small needle.

An airbrush can be an incredibly tricky tool to learn - it takes a bit to get used to the intricate balance between pressure, trigger work, and paint viscosity.

This is MOST difficult, if you have an airbrush with a fine needle (anything below .3).

Now, before someone says "the HS IS GREAT!" I am not saying its bad....I am saying that if you got something like a HS ultra with a .2 needle - it will be bad for you. For a beginner you want something which is a LOT more forgiving, but still a good quality brush.

I reccommend something like the badger patriot 105, or an iwata neo. Both are decent brushes (the patriot is bit better quality), but will be easier to learn with, and if you eventually want a finer detail brush after you have mastered their use, they will still see use.

Again, H&S (and many others) make good quality brushes - just try to get something more like an evolution or some other brush with a bigger needle - you will be thankful later.

best of luck.

I would go for a cheap Taiwanese U-Star 130 or similar to start with. If you break it, it'll only lose you 10 - 15 USD max. I am still doing a lot with mine. But I totally see the point for going for a model with good quality parts immediately.

A decent compressor is always good to have. My U-Star compressor 601 was about 100 USD.

http://www.ustar-hobby.com.tw/

davethepak wrote:

doctor_zoidburg wrote:
Thanks for the help, did a quick forum search but honestly, was still struggling to get the direction I wanted. Anyway, I've plumped for a H&S as recommended with a compressor with tank. I've just started a pre-heresy EC plog and it's first outing will probably be base coating the tactical marines so you can see how it works out

Actually, while H&S is a high quality brand, depending on the specs' it might be a terrible brush for a beginner.

One of the MOST common mistakes people make in buying an airbrush is confusing quality machined parts (which is good) with high end airbrush (which is not good).

You want a brush that has quality machined parts (as opposed to some low machine tolerance chinese knockoff that won't seal) but not some expensive brush with an very small needle.

An airbrush can be an incredibly tricky tool to learn - it takes a bit to get used to the intricate balance between pressure, trigger work, and paint viscosity.

This is MOST difficult, if you have an airbrush with a fine needle (anything below .3).

Now, before someone says "the HS IS GREAT!" I am not saying its bad....I am saying that if you got something like a HS ultra with a .2 needle - it will be bad for you. For a beginner you want something which is a LOT more forgiving, but still a good quality brush.

I reccommend something like the badger patriot 105, or an iwata neo. Both are decent brushes (the patriot is bit better quality), but will be easier to learn with, and if you eventually want a finer detail brush after you have mastered their use, they will still see use.

Again, H&S (and many others) make good quality brushes - just try to get something more like an evolution or some other brush with a bigger needle - you will be thankful later.

best of luck.

H&S Ultra can be equipped with a .4 needle. The 2 in 1 ultra kit comes with both the .2 and the .4 needle, and is probably the best bet for the beginner.

davethepak wrote:

doctor_zoidburg wrote:
Thanks for the help, did a quick forum search but honestly, was still struggling to get the direction I wanted. Anyway, I've plumped for a H&S as recommended with a compressor with tank. I've just started a pre-heresy EC plog and it's first outing will probably be base coating the tactical marines so you can see how it works out

Actually, while H&S is a high quality brand, depending on the specs' it might be a terrible brush for a beginner.

One of the MOST common mistakes people make in buying an airbrush is confusing quality machined parts (which is good) with high end airbrush (which is not good).

You want a brush that has quality machined parts (as opposed to some low machine tolerance chinese knockoff that won't seal) but not some expensive brush with an very small needle.

An airbrush can be an incredibly tricky tool to learn - it takes a bit to get used to the intricate balance between pressure, trigger work, and paint viscosity.

This is MOST difficult, if you have an airbrush with a fine needle (anything below .3).

Now, before someone says "the HS IS GREAT!" I am not saying its bad....I am saying that if you got something like a HS ultra with a .2 needle - it will be bad for you. For a beginner you want something which is a LOT more forgiving, but still a good quality brush.

I reccommend something like the badger patriot 105, or an iwata neo. Both are decent brushes (the patriot is bit better quality), but will be easier to learn with, and if you eventually want a finer detail brush after you have mastered their use, they will still see use.

Again, H&S (and many others) make good quality brushes - just try to get something more like an evolution or some other brush with a bigger needle - you will be thankful later.

best of luck.

I recently started airbrushing myself, first airbrush being a 0.3mm ebay beater(specific model recommended by friends, for good reason). Just got a H&S Infinity and I'm not really having any problems with the 0.15mm that I don't have with the 0.3mm. The Infinity with a 0.4 needle is just a dream, though. So I'd probably say that the best bet for a brush that will be good not just as a starter brush, but can be the only brush you'll ever need, would be a H&S Evo 2in1 kit(and getting the cutaway nozzle cap for it). That way you get a big needle to start off with, and a smaller one that you can easily switch to if you want to do more detail work.

Ebay beater route isn't bad either, but it's quite a lot more effort to clean and seems to require more air to work smoothly, thus being a bit trickier to start with.