Airbrush advice?

Tools, Techniques, and Reference Materials Painting and airbrushing
1

Can anyone recommend a decent airbrush and compressor. Not too pricey, but something workable for this hobby (meaning, the ability to paint fairly fine lines, varying air and paint pressure, etc).

Any advice and links to best prices online appreciated… thanks.

Sean

2

Just scroll down on the “Painting and airbrushing” forum first page and you will find several posts on this topic.

3

You’ll find many people backing several different brands of airbrushes, based on their personal experiences.

A few goods sites to check out are:

http://www.tcpglobal.com/airbrushdepot/

http://www.dickblick.com/

http://www.chicagoairbrushsupply.com/index.html

http://www.dixieart.com

http://www.merriartist.com/category_s/94.htm

To name a few.

I’ll be one of the first worm to speak from the can that’s just opened: For what it’s worth, I broke in on an Iwata HP-CS and feel it is a very good all-around modellers airbrush at a mid-range price. Easy to clean, durable, easy to use and versatile.

You’ll read many other views here to follow which you can use to find the airbrush that’r right for you.

4

Like KeiLau wrote, do some surfing on this forum and this one and you will find an assortment of opinions. But don’t sweat it too much. Buy a name brand with good parts availability where you live and you should do OK. Be prepared to spend some time learning how to use and take care of it.

Don

5

Is there a difference (quality-wise) between airbrushes with the cup on top and ones with a glass jar that attaches to the bottom? (I’m assuming the cup on top is called ‘gravity feed’?)

I have some odd projects to paint (large 1/6th scale things) and won’t always be painting on a level plain, so a brush that has a jar attachment on the bottom seems like it’d be best for me so I’m not spilling the paint all over.

I just need something that’s easy to use, not a b*tch to clean, and can do fairly fine lines- and light lines, like a variable air/paint control.

Thanks…

EDIT: by the way, I did look through some of the topics here but none really helped me much aside from giving me a few brand names. I’m not very familiar with airbrushes or compressors to begin with. And opinion seems to vary a lot too.

Sean

6

If you’re not very familiar with airbrushes, you might want to check out my website. You might get a better understanding of them. Siphon feed or Gravity feed have nothing to do with quality. It’s a matter of convenience and being suitable to the job at hand.

“opinion seems to vary a lot too” That could be considered an understatement. [:D]

Don