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Hello everyone,

I'm looking for a new airbrush! I had some cheap Chinese ones and they actually did a decent job, they just didn't last long. The first one I had I accidentally turned the nozzle the wrong way (was trying to get it off but just tightened it more) and it snapped with little to no effort. The second I accidentally bent the tip of the needle while cleaning it (I could just replace it, but it's probably not worth it). And finally, my third one is working fine but it's single action and siphon fed and I'm just not a fan of that due to the first two being dual action and gravity fed. It's decent enough for priming and basecoating, but I like to do OSL on weapons and work on windshields on flyers and such. The siphon airbrush just won't cut it.

To give an idea as to what I do and am trying to improve on, here's two pictures of my more successful attempts:


OSL done on the base of a power/force sword for a CSM Sorcerer


Windshield on a Ravenwing Darkshroud

Though not perfect, I am quite happy with how those two turned out. I was able to achieve a reasonable look with the second airbrush I mentioned, the one with the bent needle. I believe the needle was 0.3mm. I have been browsing Amazon.ca and I have found a few decently priced airbrushes from more reliable brands, such as Paasche. Problem is, the smallest needle I seem to find is 0.35mm. It doesn't seem like a big difference, but if very well may be. I am unsure and don't want to spend $100+ on an airbrush and be unhappy with the results. Most of the airbrushes I have found that use 0.3mm or 0.2mm seem to be in the $200+ range.

So I have two questions I hope to be answered, does anyone have a definite answer whether or not 0.3mm and 0.35mm needles are significantly different? I don't aim for fine detail, just similar work to that of the pictures shown above.

Second, is there an airbrush anyone could recommend that's worth around the $100 (Canadian dollars) mark, uses a large cup, is dual action, and is gravity fed?

I know this is more than $100, but it sounds like you may want to try the "Buy once, cry once" method.

http://www.amazon.com/Iwata-Medea-Performance-Action-Large-Gravity/dp/B001CRV14Y/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1460937842&sr=8-1&keywords=iwata+hp-ch

I do all of my airbrush stuff with it and I love it, Im sure there are better ones out there but I certainly dont need it.

You're not going to notice any difference between .3mm and .35mm...

I have a H&S with a very small needed and I can still do most of the same stuff with my cheaper Airbrushes.

Check out the Iwata Neo Trigger Pistol (Gravity fed)... I have several ABs but this was my first pistol-grip and I just love it... it's about $100US so likely similar CA.

The biggest difference isn't nozzle size but needle geometry. I have 2 airbrushes that are both 0.35 and one has a steeper dual taper needle and the other has a more gradual single taper. The gradual single taper is slightly better for fine detail work, but is also more susceptible to tip dry and clogging and whatnot.

That said I can do similar work with both of them, it's only when I get to really really fine lines I find the gradual taper better and covering very large surfaces when I find the dual taper better (though still insufficient compared to a spray gun).

I also have a 0.2mm nozzle with a really long tapering needle for superfine work, the problem with that guy is the needle is so long that tip dry is horrendous so realistically even for fine detail work I prefer the 0.35. I accidentally bent the 0.2mm needle and never bothered to replace it because the damned thing was too fiddly to use (and it wasn't because it was 0.2, it was just because it was such a long taper).

My friend let me use his Iwata neo. Its no actually Iwata, but made for them. Its pretty nice. It can be cheap if you have a hobby lobby near you. cost me 50$. Now if only I have an airsource.