Airbrushes and other stuff

[Phil Hendry]

I don't know where this post belongs, so I'm sticking it in the General Discussion category.

I spent most of yesterday messing about with my airbrush, and my new spray booth. 

My new spray booth, I am happy to report, is superb.  Cleaning up after my session, I decided to 'test' how good it was by wiping the kitchen surfaces with a dampened white dishcloth, to see if any 'overspray' had found its way around the room onto the surfaces (it'd usually appear, in my old kitchen, as a dusty layer on every horizontal surface).  Nothing.  Absolutely nothing.  Not even right behind the booth, where the exhaust comes out.  Great piece of kit - wish I'd bought one donkey's years ago.

The story with my airbrush wasn't so happy though.  I am, it has to be said, pretty experienced with airbrushes, having owned about four since the late 1970s.  I wouldn't call myself great at using them, but I'm competent enough.  I was aware, just before my modelling life hit the buffers three years ago, that my last few sessions with the airbrush hadn't gone well.  So it was with some trepidation that I got the beast out.  It's an Aztek A470.  I've used it an awful lot, for a lot of stuff - from painting the water in the harbour on my 'large' Japanese layout, through to tiny weathering jobs on wagons, and everything in between.  It's given me 15+ years of good service.  I won't go into details, but I have, basically, worn it out.  It works, but not very well, and cleaning it has become a ball-ache, because, due to it being worn out, I have to strip a lot more of it down than I ought to have to, in order to clean paint out of places paint should not get to, to prevent it clogging solid.

So, I need a new airbrush.  I'm not inclined to buy another Aztek A470 because the new versions are nothing like as good - most of the internal components which are stainless or brass on mine are now plastic (even on the metal-bodied version), and prone to breaking.  As it's not 'user-serviceable' and you're supposed to return it to Testors'/Aztek for repair replacement (under warranty if it's under three years old - the 'lifetime' warranties seem to be a thing of the past too), it isn't seeming like a good buy.

But what to get?  I've had a play with an Iwata, and it was bloomin' gorgeous.  But they're flippin' dear.  But (again) the missus says I'm due a present (not sure why, but I'm not peering into the maw of this particular gift horse...), so an Iwata is probably not beyond the bounds of possibility. 

One big advantage of the Aztek was the 'side feed' aspect - you can use it with a jar (for lots of paint, and less control (because of having to 'drag' the paint up from the jar) - or you can use it with a cup - far less paint, but more controllable for delicate jobs, as it doesn't take as much air-flow to get paint.  Given my habit of using my airbrush for such widely-differing jobs, neither gravity (top) feed nor siphon (bottom) feed seems ideal.  So, what to do/buy?  Any thoughts?

In other news, I think I've decided to 'hand-weather' the HQAs - stipple/drybrush the rusty bits around the hopper top where the ballast 'overspill' has chipped the paint, and wash/drybrush the bogies/underframe - having experimented on some scraps of plasticard I sprayed in NR yellow, I think I can get a better effect than by airbrushing.

Cheers,
Phil

[scotsoft]

Hi Phil,

If you liked the Iwata, then go for it.  There is nothing like being happy with something you are going to use rather than trepidation as to whether it is going to work first time or whether you are going to spend ages fiddling about with it before it splutters into life.  It is only money - and that is a Scotsman saying that   

cheers John.

[Phil Hendry]

 

It's a matter of which to go for out of the 38 (?) airbrushes they make... 

I have narrowed it down a fair bit.  I want double action, not single, because that's what I'm used to.  I don't like the 'pistol trigger' ones - I prefer the conventional little 'button' on top - press down for air, pull back for paint.  Given the paint I'm using, I'd better not have too small a nozzle - probably 0.3 - 0.5mm.  There are a few 'side feed' brushes in their range, so one can use both cups (gravity) and bottles (suction), though the disadvantage is a slight cost increase because you need to buy both a cup and a bottle.  I'm actually wondering whether SWMBO's budget will stretch to an Eclipse SBS:

https://airbrushes.com/product_info.php?cPath=1_9_47&products_id=21

which is the most 'affordable' side-feed brush they make.  I'll cook her a nice dinner tonight, and hope that gets her in a good enough mood for it to be worth asking.

[Greybeema]

I have an Iwata Eclipse CS.  The Top cup is large (probably to large for what I do) so it could help you out.  It really is an excellent Airbrush. 

I have never had to use it but I understand the aftercare for Iwata is good and having, in the past, had to bin an Airbrush because I couldn't get spares, that is important.

As they say - You get what you pay for.  I think that is very true in Airbrushes..

[Phil Hendry]

I have an Iwata Eclipse CS.  The Top cup is large (probably to large for what I do) so it could help you out.  It really is an excellent Airbrush. 

I have never had to use it but I understand the aftercare for Iwata is good and having, in the past, had to bin an Airbrush because I couldn't get spares, that is important.

As they say - You get what you pay for.  I think that is very true in Airbrushes.

Thanks - that's very handy to know.  The CS and the SBS seem to be almost identical, bar for the CS being top feed and the SBS being side feed.

[Phil Hendry]

I have my new airbrush set-up...  Iwata Eclipse SBS, and a new Chinese-made comp (AS186 if you want to hunt one down on Ebay). 

The comp is, er, comptetent.  It's quieter than my old one (which is still in decent nick, and is going to a mate), and has a regulator and moisture trap as standard.  It also has an auto start/cutoff - stops at 4 Bar, restarts when the tank pressure falls to 3 bar.  It's also smaller and neater than the old one, and takes up less space under my bench.

The airbrush is impressive.  A fine piece of Japanese engineering.  And it works.  Finally, despite not really feeling well, I'm well enough to play.  Spent an hour or so squirting 'Quink' at pieces of copier paper.  Fine lines of about 1mm thickness were achieved within five minutes of trying - never managed that with the Aztek, and it's quite capable of a 2" wide 'splurge' for doing really big areas too.  Doubtless I'll get better at it too, as I learn about what pressures and suchlike work best.

And then I squirted the 'bodies' of my RNAs with paint - first yellow on the 'slopes' at the ends, then, after they were dry, masked the ends off and squirted Executive Dark Grey at the rest of the bodies.  Job looks good so far.

Brush seemed to clean up okay - but doubtless I'll find out whether I really did a good enough job next time I try to use it...  :fingerscrossed:

[scotsoft]

You are sounding more positive now Phil, let's hope your trials continue to improve with use 

cheers John.