whackett Posted August 30, 2015 Report Share Posted August 30, 2015 I need to get a new airbrush and Hobby Lobby has the Iwata BCS Eclipse. Was wondering as I am some what new to airbrushing if this is a worth while AB. I know it is a siphon instead of a gravity and would really like a Eclipse CS but don't have the cash for it, and am not sure if HL carries the CS. Any opinions would be appreciated. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted August 30, 2015 Report Share Posted August 30, 2015 All Iwatas are worthwhile airbrushes but some are better for crankbait painting than others. I strongly prefer any of the Iwatas that have gravity feed. One of my favorites is the Revolution B, with .3mm tip and small gravity feed reservoir - priced around $80-90. Gravity feed brushes are easier to clean and shoot paint a little easier than siphon feed brushes. If you are using only one airbrush, you'll be cleaning the brush between every color so that's important. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whackett Posted August 30, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2015 Do you know what needle that comes with. And what size do you recommend for painting crank baits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted August 31, 2015 Report Share Posted August 31, 2015 (edited) The Revolution BR comes with a .3mm tip and a 1/16oz gravity feed cup. Personally, I think a .3 to .35mm tip is perfect for painting crankbaits. Large enough to shoot pearls and flakes (airbrush paint, not cheaper "hobby paint") without clogging and fine enough to do decent shading when desired. I can color basecoat a wood bass crankbait with several coats of white paint with one 1/16oz cup of paint, or squeeze in 2-3 drops of paint into the cup when doing accent colors on a crankbait. Between colors, I just flush out the airbrush with a spray bottle of water. A gravity feed brush of any type will save you paint over the long run since you are only cleaning paint from the cup and the tip of the brush, and not from the bottle and siphon tube. IMO, the siphon feed brushes are more appropriate for production painting where you can store paint in various bottles and shoot without pausing to refill a bottle, doing a dozen cranks at a time. The Iwata Eclipse brushes are also popular, a little more costly, with their .35mm tips. If you plan to airbrush other larger objects like motorcycle tanks, etc, a brush with a large gravity feed cup would be better but the 1/16oz is a great size for a hobby builder who paints 1-6 crankbaits at a time. In the Iwata line, you can also buy brushes that have a trigger stop screw to limit the amount of paint it can shoot, and an on-board air control valve. To me, these are "nice to have" features but not essential, and Iwata charges a premium for them. As the tips of Iwata airbrushes get smaller and smaller, they cost more and more. Why? the needles have to be thinner and more finely shaped and the paint nozzles on the front of the brushes become tiny, more tiny, then almost microscopic. And they have to be hand tuned at the factory to shoot properly, so if you bend a needle or split a nozzle, just buying a new part may not get your airbrush back to "factory new" function. There are lots of different brands and models that will get the job done. You can certainly use a brush with a much larger tip, maybe up to .5mm, and do perfectly good crankbaits. Some manufacturers, like Paasche and Badger, don't provide mm tip sizes to the public. They often sell brushes in kits with 3 different tip sizes. Those brushes work very well too. But I and most guys who have used them think Iwata is the pick of the litter in terms of build quality, precision, and function. Edited August 31, 2015 by BobP 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whackett Posted August 31, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2015 Thank You for the information . I tried to get the MM sizes from Badger and all they would say was they were fine, medium or large. With your information I think I will go with the Iwata Revolution B which I found for $90.00. Again I thank you kindly for the time and information. Wayne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ccfish Posted August 31, 2015 Report Share Posted August 31, 2015 You can get the iwata eclipse bs .35 tip on Amazon for 99$ and 4$ shipping. That's the one I bought. It seems to work really good. It's the only brush I ever used though so can't really compare it to anything else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted August 31, 2015 Report Share Posted August 31, 2015 Just a note - when you order an Iwata, you also need an Iwata hose which you have to order separately. If you have another brand airbrush already, you can buy an adapter fitting for that hose to fit an Iwata for less cost than an Iwata hose (but Iwata hoses are nice). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blacklabelsociety Posted August 31, 2015 Report Share Posted August 31, 2015 I have a Iwata Neo and I have had no Problems at all. I use Lacquer Paint and I keep it as Clean as possible. Some say a Airbrush is a Airbrush but I believe they like everything else. You get what you pay for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whackett Posted August 31, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2015 I'm using a Badger 150 right now and it came with a 8' braided hose so i'll just get an adapter as I want a quick connect fitting for it. I had taken the head assembly apart and now it air leaks on all areas.Didn't even use a cleaning kit on it as I had heard they aren't good for the airbrush. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZ Fisher Posted September 3, 2015 Report Share Posted September 3, 2015 I downloaded a 40% off coupon from Hobby Lobby's website and used that on a Iwata Neo. Print one every time I go to buy Wicked paints and save. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nedyarb Posted September 3, 2015 Report Share Posted September 3, 2015 Get the hobby lobby app....its much easier. Just show the cashier your phone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobP Posted September 3, 2015 Report Share Posted September 3, 2015 Airbrushes need to be cleaned regularly. I run acetone through mine and pull the needle and clean it after ever session. Several times a year, I disassemble the airbrush and soak the parts in an airbrush cleaning solution to remove any dried paint from the barrel of the brush. If your brush is leaking air at any of the threaded parts, you can fix that by coating the threads with a little beeswax. Don't use anything containing ammonia because it will eventually dissolve the chrome plating on parts. I also have a Badger 150. I kept it when paring down the number of airbrushes I had because I thought it worked a little better than my Paasche VL. One thing you will find out eventually - results are more about the guy behind the airbrush than about the airbrush. There are some great crankbait artists using Paasche and Badger airbrushes. But I do think the better quality the brush, the easier it is for us "hackers" to succeed. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZ Fisher Posted September 3, 2015 Report Share Posted September 3, 2015 Get the hobby lobby app....its much easier. Just show the cashier your phone Thanks, I'll do that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whackett Posted September 5, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 5, 2015 And my airbrush is far better then the person behind the brush ........me 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sswilson1964 Posted September 19, 2015 Report Share Posted September 19, 2015 I use an Iwata Eclipse duel action and love it.It paints all types of lines from fine to larger lines. The big key to me is air pressure I operate from 10 to 20 psi. there a little pricey but worth every penny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW Lures Posted September 19, 2015 Report Share Posted September 19, 2015 (edited) If possible I would repair the one you have also, while you are getting the new one. The reason is that having multiple brushes allows you to paint a series of paint layers before cleaning. Some good advice from the posts above. Dale Edited September 19, 2015 by DaleSW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
