nemomark Posted January 20, 2015 Report Share Posted January 20, 2015 I have been painting crankbaits the old fashioned way and am thinking about upgrading to an airbrush. I have some questions, though, before I buy one. It's a little confusing, since I don't know anything about them. At this point I wouldn't be using it all that frequently, so I would like to get something that is affordable, and I can upgrade in the future if I want to. Any questions you can answer would be appreciated. Purchasing Where can I get a good airbrush for a beginner? What's a good brand/model? What size compressor do I need? Where can I get a compressor at a good price? I've seen some kits that use canned propellants. Are those any good? How long does one can last? Features Do any of these have a significant effect on the brush's usefulness for painting crankbaits? -Single action vs double action? -Internal mix vs external mix? -Gravity feed vs bottom feed? -Tip size? --Anything else that I may be unaware of? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaw Posted January 20, 2015 Report Share Posted January 20, 2015 If you look one page over (Atleast that's where it's at on my mobile) you will see a post marked (school me on airbrushing) I believe most if not all your questions will be answered there if not reply back and I'll help if I can Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gone2long Posted January 20, 2015 Report Share Posted January 20, 2015 Here you go this should help a bit: https://sites.google.com/site/donsairbrushtips/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDub Posted January 21, 2015 Report Share Posted January 21, 2015 I am also about to start airbrushing. I have been looking around mainly youtube and this website but from some research what i have found best ( not from experiance) is dual action, external mix, gravity fed, and .35 tip size due to being able to do fine lines. Im on a big time budget due to a baby on the way but i went ahead and bought the Iwata eclipse ( gravity fed) from hobby lobby using the 40% off coupon for a decent price i think. I think i paid about $130 for it. Hope this helped alittle bit, its my first post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDub Posted January 21, 2015 Report Share Posted January 21, 2015 And the reason I chose gravity fed is from what i read, a bottome feed requires more psi to push the paint opposed to the gravity feed which just feeds into the airbrush. Also I just bought a 1 gallon compressor from walmart for $50 which should work fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoonpluggergino Posted January 21, 2015 Report Share Posted January 21, 2015 When I started a little over 3 years ago I went through the same dilemma, I can sympathize the way you feel. I can tell you that a bottom feed brush its easy to use but cleaning takes a lot more work vise gravity feed, I own 5 airbrushes and my workhorse is the Iwata HP-BR .3mm 1/16 Oz. cup double action. I like the bottom feed with the larger tip due to you can spray heavier paints due to the larger tips, like.5mm. Now Iwata is not the only brand that works good that is many more, it's just the ones that I happened to go for. One advise I can give you is to try to understand how an airbrush works, understanding the mechanics will help you to trouble shoot problems when the airbrush start to have spraying problems. Airbrushes are very simple and will made, most of the time is operator error, ask me I know. One reason I like Iwata is because they really stand behind their products, I am sure other manufacturers do the same. Hope this helps. Big Tip REDUCE YOUR PAINT Gino Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhersh Posted January 21, 2015 Report Share Posted January 21, 2015 (edited) If you do a search of this site you will find alot of info. on this very subject (how to use and clean your brush and the different brands). Also if you check out youtube you will find all kinds of info. on how to clean your brush also. hope this helps. Edited January 21, 2015 by rhersh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDub Posted January 21, 2015 Report Share Posted January 21, 2015 Spoonpluggergino, would you reduce airbrush ready paint too? Polytranspar to be exact. And if so would you do it due to spraying easier or to get morepaint per bottle? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gone2long Posted January 21, 2015 Report Share Posted January 21, 2015 Don't buy into "airbrush ready" that all depends on your equipment, the actual color can also have an effect such as white as it is heavily pigmented, to get right down to it you'll only know the answer to that question when you get started with the equipment that you choose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoonpluggergino Posted January 21, 2015 Report Share Posted January 21, 2015 I reduce paint to get a better flow from the airbrush and a lot less glugging. There are some paints that are really airbrush ready like ComArt, I shoot mostly Createx and I reduce it all the time. The consistency of the paint should be like 2% milk. Another Big Tip Flush your airbrush after every color change, flush and thoroughly clean brush after every use, I use a bucket of hot water when I am painting makes very easy to keep my brush clean. Go on to Createx website and there are plenty of paint reducer and medium to use, they will make your life and your painting enjoyable. Good luck and start airbrushing. Glad to be of help Gino Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDub Posted January 22, 2015 Report Share Posted January 22, 2015 Good info. I see alot about createx and wicked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
