AIRBRUSH BUYING GUIDE
warning: may be bias (mostlikely)
good airbrushes
iwata (all)
paasche (h, vl)
badger(all)
thayer and chandler(omni series, vega series, unsure about matrix convertable)
Sotar (by badger, 20/20)
horrible airbrush brands
aztec (except a220) ( bad include a320, a370[oop], a430, a470, a480[aka metal body airbrush])
most knockoffs
www.bearair.com
www.dixieart.com
← good buying sites
more to come
Most of the Hobby shops I have been to over here allow you to test the airbrush and compressors prior to buying. Most got a few compressors and the more commonly sold aibrushes set up as a “hands-on” display.
[:D]
Many of the staff at HS over here also build models(for mags, etc.), sculpt kits, etc so they tend to have a pretty good idea of what they are talking about.
Personally, I would not buy an airbrush via the Net untested, simple things like balance, etc can make a big difference, IMHO.
[;)]
Also visit an arts-supply shop and ask if the let you atleast hold the airbrush.
You are very fortunate MMF.
Here there are very few places I know of that will let you try out an airbrush.
I believe Coast Airbrush in Anaheim, CA is about the only one that would do that that I know of. Most of us are at the mercy of the hobby and craft shops who carry very little in terms of choice and it’s usually a Badger, Paasche or that Aztek thing. [;)]
Unnamed Player,
While all Iwata’s may be good I certainly would not recommend many of them for modeling and I still maintain that the Sotar is overkill unless you want to get into illustration or automotive airbrushing with urethanes. [:D]
Mike
I want a Sotar. I have a knotwork in mind that would look great painted.
i want an iwata custom micron b
but i only have enough for a revolution cr
What are you going to do with a Micron b for modelling that can’t be done with an Omni or any other good double-action airbrush?
Mike
i like omni 5000, and vega 1000, but with a micron b, i seriously think you can actually paint INSIDE the panel lines (correct me if im wrong). i know its overkill, but hey, its a hobby. and besides, i need a good (non-aztec) airbrush for my graphics class.
You could do the same with the Omni. It is the skill of the user, not the instrument that creates the music. Right ‘Styrene’ (Gip)? [;)]
The Micron would be a good airbrush for illustration and graphics as you say but keep in mind that this is an airbrush that runs you $300 alone, costs $39.50 for a nozzle and $17.35 for a needle alone. [:0]
If you ever dropped it and need a new fluid head system it will cost you $110 for that.
If you can live with those prices and have the money to play around with one then go for it, but I frankly feel it is major overkill and the true potential of that airbrush will not come through for modeling, that is unless you want to paint your models with inks, watercolors or urethanes. [:D]
Mike
Only buy a micron or a sotar if you plan to use watercolors or inks. Enamels are difficult to get through the sotar. The sotar will do thinner lines than an eclipse but only barely and it takes practice. You’re not going to just fire it up and be able to do 1/32" lines. It’s too specialized to be worth the money in this hobby unless you have it to burn (ask me how I learned this lesson!)
Easiest to use: Iwata
Easiest to clean: Iwata
Just not the easiest to buy
The lessons I’ve learned after buying 8 airbrushes
hrm… my aztec is just plain crap. this is what i think
Aztec |everything else
good good? WAHAHAHAHA almost everyting
bad a220 to a480 some minor things
correction: 550 american, i live in canada.
besides, ive been using my a220 for like 4 years
and a badger 100 for 2 months before i had to return it; not mine
What makes your Iwata Eclipse easier to use and clean than an Omni, since the Eclipse is a copy of the Thayer & Chandler Vega 2000 which later spawned the Omni. [:D]
Mike
I have to second what Mike said. I’ve owned an Iwata HP-C since 1983 (I think I’m one of the first Iwata users around) and while good, the Omni series air brush will spray and clean just as well as the Iwata. Don’t underestimate the Omni. It is what is controlling the brush that has the most significant effect on the finished product.
I can’t speak for the omni in particular (yet) but the iwata is far and away easier than the other 7 brushes I’ve owned. From the pics I suspect that the paint cup on the omni is similar in design to my badger 100LG which is a pain to clean compared to my iwata. If dixie art ever gets that omni to me maybe you’ll see me put asside my iwata, who knows.
Plume, and anyone else,
Dixie Art nomally sends products in record time. I saved the box that Dixie sent my Omni 4000 AB in. I ordered my AB and a couple of weeks later I sent an email to Dixie asking the mailing status noting that I was sure the AB would arrived the day after I emailed them. It did arrive the next day. The same day the AB arrived Dixie sent a tracking number.
This is the reason I saved my box. Instead of the normal Dixie return label on the box the label read:
SHIPPING DEPT
(847) 678-3104
BADGER AIRBRUSH
9128 BELMONT AVE
FRANKLIN PARK IL 60131
My impression is that Dixie does not stock the Omni AB but orders and has them sent directly from the factory or distributor. That could be good; the AB would be the freshest stock and would not have been handled by uncaring customers ‘playing’ with the brush.
So the slow mailing might not be Dixie’s fault but a slow down at Badger’s end.
That’s good to know, however I ordered my omni 4000 on 12/26/03. And yeah, I’m impatient.
Karl,
Have you called them? It usually takes only about 7 days for one to reach us out here on the West Coast. [:0]
Mike
What makes the Iwata color cup easier to clean? Is it the shape, the finish, what?
I am curious.
Mike
Well, I don’t know about the Omni, but my Revolution has a shape that makes it awfully easy. The finish is such that paint doesn’t really stick to it, and once the needle is out, there are no crannies or anything that paint can stay in. It’s smooth with no nooks or bends or anything. It’s tons easier to clean than my Aztek was, but those are the only two brushes I have experience with.
maddafinga: which revolution: cr or bcr
and still, i used the aztec pre-thinned paints and still got crappy results. using them at 30psi
I would be on the phone with Dixie Art like Yesterday! I got my Omni in 2-3 days so I guess they had an extra one in stock or something…MikeV got his fairly quick for being so far off the beaten path LOL.
I didnt even notice the return label on my box…LOL