School Me On Airbrushing!

[joelhains]

I'm looking to get into airbrushing. I've been making baits for along time. I started out with making jigs in my teens, than moved on to spinnerbaits and soft plastics. I've been looking at getting into airbrushing, more so for painting soft plastic swimbaits but I've been wanting to start painting cranks too.

 

I have a budget of about $300-$400 to get setup with an airbrush (possibly compressor?) and paint. Not really sure where to start with looking at airbrushes. I have a regular air compressor (5 gallon, 150 PSI limit) and I assume I could regulate the pressure low enough that it would work for this application as well. Obviously it would be overkill but If it will work it will save me from having to buy another.

 

I would like to just get a good airbrush. I know I'm going to stick with this as it will have lots of uses in lure making. No point in getting a cheap piece of junk IMO. Do I  need multiple air brushes or is there one good one that will cover most situations? I've seen Paasche and Iwata. Are there other brands to look at as well? which it better? What is the difference between single and dual action?

 

Ventilation is another concern. I work in the garage. I'll have no problem building a paint box that vents outside. I would probably build a wooden box with a dryer vent and an old bathroom exhaust fan.

 

I'm open to suggestions in all areas. I've never used an airbrush but I've watched hours worth of YouTube videos. and It looks like a lot of fun!

 

Thanks

[BobP]

Your compressor is fine, better than many of the "airbrush" compressors since it will run an airbrush for a long time before it recycles and you'll be using it in your garage, where noise is not an issue.  As for airbrushes, I like Iwata for their overall quality and the one I pick up most often when doing crankbaits is the Revolution BR, a  very solid airbrush with the right sized tip (.3mm) and small gravity feed cup which is big enough for crankbaits.  It will do anything you need a brush to do when painting a crankbait.  A bonus is the Revolution sells for around $80, making it a bargain.  The trigger on a dual action airbrush controls both the air flow and the amount of paint dispensed into the air flow:  push down for more air, pull back for more paint.  In a single action brush, the trigger only controls the air flow over a venturi orifice that sucks up the paint.  I paint in the garage and since I shoot only water based acrylic paints, ventilation is not much of a concern.  I don't use a box or a ventilation system, just prop some newspaper behind my work area to catch the overspray.  If you want to use a box, you have to clean it regularly because airbrush paint tends to dry to a dust as soon as it is shot.  If you plan to use any solvent based coatings through your airbrush, then a solvent rated breathing mask and a combustion proof ventilation fan are necessary.  

[Jaw]

Remember hobby lobby carries good iwata airbrushes and they always have 40percent off coupon

[Snoopy]

I bought a Iwata Neo from Hobby Lobby and it works great. I used the 40% coupon and it ended up costing about 40 dollars.

[BIGCREW]

X3 on the hobby lobby coupon, I get all my paints there, the best advice anyone can give someone just starting out with airbrushing is to read some about it first then buy a decent airbrush and practice practice practice, I started with making stencils out of thin plastic, I used folders used for paper binders you can get them at the dollar store, I watched a lot of YouTube videos made some stencils and went from there learning how to detail a stencil, skulls and dragons are real good to start with then lean how to detail them, then I tryed some flames and depending on the style they can be quite challenging after many many hours I finally got the techniques down and finally moved on to the lures remember less is more when painting and I prefer translucent paints mostly, if you painting wood bodys wet them a little to get the grain to stand up then sand with fine sandpaper make sure there nice and smooth then paint them with some good white paint to seal them up and a base coat the white will make your colors bright and pop opposed to a dark base coat, also get an air pressure adjustment valve that will be in arms reach in your painting area once you get going on painting you will see why it is a great tool to have, I hope this helps you getting started watch lots of YouTube videos and you will get it and its nice to be able to paint more than just lures I have been asked to do a buddys motorcycle with skulls and flames and a pickup truck

[saltshaker]

Your 'pressor will do just fine. I had a 30 gal when I started and it works like a charm. Just dial it down to whatever you need/want.

[joelhains]

I actually have a hobby lobby close and my wife say she has the 40% off coupon. What paints do they carry that work in airbrushes that also work well for cranks?

[Jaw]

They carry createx both the regular and wicked lineup at the ones around here. I use the wicked colors more than the regular line of paints but both work. You need to get the reducer also and play around with thinning your paints. The transparent paints work best for me although I use the opaque colors also. They also carry comart paints by medea I like them alot but the color selection is limited I mix the two manufacturers paint with no problems. Remember to shoot light coats and heat set inbetween coats (I use a hairdryer on high ) real well. You should experiment on scrap material until your comfortable enough to paint a finished product and pick up some denatured alcohol to clean up over spray or those times when you don't know what happened to your painting skills. I'm sure I've left something out but there are alot of people on here better at painting than me that are sure to chime in

Have fun and don't throw to many things it takes patients and time and more time and just when you think you know what your doing you don't give it more practice and more time.

[mark poulson]

If you're going to use water based paints, be sure to clean your brush between coats and colors by shooting some clean water through it, and backflushing, and then do a real good cleaning after each paint session.

I have a tupperware tub full of clean water next to my painting area each time I start painting, so I can just dip the brush into the clean water to flush it between coats.  It takes 15 seconds, tops, and I'm ready for another color.

I also made a wire hanger from a piece of coat hanger wire for the side of the tupperware, shaped like a long U with a dropped belly, and ears on the ends to catch the lip of the tupperware tub.  I leave it attached full time.

I can hang my brush in it with the tip and the paint bowl in the water, give it a quick backflushing, and I don't get tip dry or paint skinning in my brush between colors, or while I'm heat setting my paint.

 

I have forgotten and left paint in my brush overnight, and I had to disassemble the entire brush, soak it first in acetone overnight, and then in air brush restorer, to get it to shoot right again.  The channels that carry the paint are super fine, and it takes forever to get them clear, once they're clogged!

NEVER LEAVE PAINT IN YOUR AIR BRUSH OVERNIGHT!!  It will become an expensive paper weight.

Edited December 27, 2014 by mark poulson

[joelhains]

Is createx an oiled based paint?

[Jaw]

No it's water based . The coupon for hobby lobby is online so if you have someone with you you can bring it up on your phone and make separate purchases so you buy the airbrush 40percent off wife buys paint 40percent off the coupon is only good for one item per customer. If you get the comart paint kit it's around 25$ and has both transparent and opaque base colors and is pretty much ready to shoot should be a good starting point. Remember to mix the paint well and to shoot light coats.

[gone2long]

No the regular line is water based acrylic the wicked line is mild solvent based but I think some reduce it with water, I personally find it better to reduce with the line specific reducer the prevent weak film properties.

[joelhains]

Thanks a lot for all the help with this! I'll be stopping at Hobby Lobby today to check out what they have. Do you know if they sell any airbrush paint that is suitable for use on soft plastics?

[Snoopy]

Ive been playing around with a stencil burner. The stencils turn out pretty well except that when you burn plastic you leave melted part behind and when you get done burning it you have to go back with a x-acto knife and clean up the stencil.. Man its a lot of work but well worth it when you get done. Im very crappy with an x-acto Knife so ill keep burning !!  

[BIGCREW]

I use a wood burning pen to cut stencils in plastic, I use an arrow tip a practice tip that I modified and it works real good, I found it is better to go a little faster when cutting then to melt to much away, I made a box with a glass top and a light Inside for cutting stencils and tracing, if your tip is burning or melting to fast try to find something heavier so it takes more heat and wont melt the plastic as fast, an arrow tip screwed right into my wood burning pen and it works real good

[Skeeter]

Looks like you have plenty of suggestions to choose from. So, the one thing that I can suggest is that you get some white PVC pipe to practice with. It is already white so you can play with different color combinations and practice shooting your scales and back stripes. It is inexpensive and can really help with learing how to control the gun, mixing and thinning your paints for shooting, and finding the sweet spot for the pressure needed to shoot different brands of paints and colors.  

 

Skeeter

[mark poulson]

Looks like you have plenty of suggestions to choose from. So, the one thing that I can suggest is that you get some white PVC pipe to practice with. It is already white so you can play with different color combinations and practice shooting your scales and back stripes. It is inexpensive and can really help with learing how to control the gun, mixing and thinning your paints for shooting, and finding the sweet spot for the pressure needed to shoot different brands of paints and colors.  

 

Skeeter

Skeeter,

You made that suggestion here years ago, and it has really helped me refine my paint colors without wasting a lot of paint or time.  

Thank you so much for that tip.

A bonus is you can simply wash off the paint when you're done, and reuse the PVC pipe again and again.

I use a short piece of 4" drain pipe, and it lets me do multiple color tests before I wash it, plus, because it is so wide, it stands by itself vertically when I do my test painting.

Edited December 28, 2014 by mark poulson

[SLT785]

My BIL bought a airbrush for $20 at Harbor Freight. He said it works as good as the one he paid a $100 bucks for.

[Jaw]

I've also got a cheap harbor freight airbrush that I use for base coats with solvent based paints and it works fine for this but I can't shoot detail with it. I also have a neo I bought for $79 or $99 can't remember ,I've never been able to shoot anything with so l threw it it the junk drawer,so I guess there are good and bad with everything. It's all about whatever gets the job done in the end as long as you enjoy it.

[rhersh]

In my opinion and remember that my opinion does not mean much. I started with a harbor freight brush then a cheap paasche, then a neo and finally an iwata. They all will work but since I got the iwata I don't touch the others unless I am trying a thicker paint not made for airbrushing. My iwata has the .03 needle and some times the thicker paints just will not shoot through the iwata with out over thining or I just don't want to. lol Like I said just my opinion.

[mark poulson]

I have a Badger sipon that I use to base coat large lures, or a lot of small cranks at once.  I like it because it's bottle holds a lot of paint, and because I can spray concrete through it.  Hahaha  It has a .5 mm needle, so it doesn't clog.

I use my Iwata HP-C+ for almost everything else.  It has a .3 needle, and with an aftermarket Iwata micro air valve, it is very versatile.  I can shoot Wicked White through it unthinned, and pearls, with a drop of AutoAire reducer just to play safe.

I have a cheap knockoff detail brush that I almost never use, because it is hard to adjust, has a .2 needle that clogs easily, and is a pain to clean.

[Skeeter]

rhersh,

 

I try to respect eveyones opinion here on TU. Your opinion matters to me. And, I agree with you about the Iwata. Great gun. However, I use a Paache VL for shooting large amounts of paint. The coverage is much better because of a larger tip. My baits are bigger than most. When I coat a bait body with a base coat or shoot the main body color the VL is hard to beat. I use the #3 tip for that. But for shooting scales and back stripes I love the Iwata. But the small tip on the Iwata does not handle paint with small glitter well at all. Again, that is when I go back to the Paache.

 

Skeeter

[rhersh]

rhersh,

 

I try to respect eveyones opinion here on TU. Your opinion matters to me. And, I agree with you about the Iwata. Great gun. However, I use a Paache VL for shooting large amounts of paint. The coverage is much better because of a larger tip. My baits are bigger than most. When I coat a bait body with a base coat or shoot the main body color the VL is hard to beat. I use the #3 tip for that. But for shooting scales and back stripes I love the Iwata. But the small tip on the Iwata does not handle paint with small glitter well at all. Again, that is when I go back to the Paache.

 

Skeeter

Sorry! I was not trying to imply any of them were bad, and you are correct, and I agree with you on the Paache vl. I should have tried to be more clear on my thoughts but I get in a hurry typing and omit a lot that I shouldn't.

[Jaw]

I use an iwata now for most of my painting but I also bought a grex pistal grip airbrush last year.I don't see grex mentioned much when the subject of airbrushes comes up. It is a really good gun that I splurged on when my wife wasn't around but I seem to have bent my needle tip slightly and will have to purchase a new one before using it much again so it's back to my iwata till then . Really can't go wrong with them anyway. You guys have me thinking about a paache for base coating though,as far as the neo goes I really wish mine would have worked or I would have given up sooner and took it back mine must be faulty because I can't shoot thinned air through it haha

[Skeeter]

There are a lot of beautiful high end guns out there. I think the reason most of us use paache or iwata is because they are available locally and the stores usually carry replacement parts as well. Plus they do the job.

 

Skeeter