I got great news the other day. My AWESOME fiance told me for my birthday, she was getting me a new airbrush. I have been doing some research, but there are sooo many options. Can anyone help me narrowing down my options and the websites I should be looking at? I am looking for double action airbrush that is not too expensive. I remember seeing one in the swanny video that I would really like to get, but I am not sure what brand and what model it is. Any help will be appreciated.
The one in Swanny’s video was the Badger 360. It’s not too pricey, and you can use it as gravity feed or siphon feed. The only problem seems to be the color cup being small for gravity feed applications.
I use an Omni 4000. It is gravity feed and has a large color cup with a lid. Cleanup is much easier than my Paasche VL, and it needs less air pressure to spray effectively.
Bearair.com is a good place to find great prices for many different types of airbrushes. Good luck finding one, and what a hell of a woman you’ve found yourself! When are you guys getting hitched?
Testors Aztek for sure. It’s modular, doesn’t need adjustment, double action, eight different tips, cheap.
I’ve only owned one airbrush, but it’s been a real sweetheart: a Badger 155.
Do yourself a favor and definitely get a dual action
I’ll throw in my vote for the Iwata Eclipse. It’s a realy workhorse, easy to clean and has being all metal is durable when you inevitably drop it. Parts are also easy to come by. It’s a very good general airbrush. As noted above, go for the dual action.
Yes Redmax8, I am lucky to be with this lady. We are getting married in November of 2009.
Painklr8,
Congrats on the upcoming event, but more importantly I have the badger 155 & the 150.
The 155 is easier to use , less maintanence is required to keep clean .
The 150 I use for more detailed work .
Frank C
PS The badger 150 was a gift from Santa ( my wife )about 10 years ago.
I can’t say enough good things about Bearair! They have everything from no-name single actions for about $10 (I have several and they are great for large are, quick & dirty jobs) to the very best “professional” quality d/a brushes for $$$! Check out the web site, it’s great!
Oh, and congratulations to you both - take GOOD care of that lady, she is a treasure!
Brian [C):-)]
Air Brushes frighten me.
…all that hissing and sputtering! Yikes!
HAAAA!
I’m joining a support group, I think.
Outstanding, painklr! I hope you two get to spend a very long time together![#toast]
Hey painklr,
i have different brushes ( Badger 150 and HD Ultra ). It depends for waht you are using it. For bigger things like wings or fuselages i use my trusty Badger 150s and for finer things ( eg starting with camouflages especially german Luftwaffe camo i use my Harden & Steenbeck )
Both Airbrushes are easy in maintenance, so i would buy or a get a new one a Harden & Steenbeck.
greets from over the pond
thomas
If you have an AC Moore Craft store nearby, go to their website at the link below and pick up a 40% off coupon, then hit your local store and see what they have.
http://www.acmoore.com/e-acm.StoreLocator.aspx
I picked up a single action Badger for cheap, cheap cheap that way. They also had some double actions IIRC.
I upgraded my AB earlier this year. I looked for something that was easy to clean. I did not want a no name brand clone. I want the full manufacturer’s warranty. The Iwata HP-CS was cheaper than the equivalent Badger (Renegade) and Paasche (Talon) models when I used the Hobby Lobby 40% coupon. (It was $90 plus tax and came with an inline moisture filter and an extra nozzle, and 5 years warranty. Look for the ECL-4502 set.) The extra items are worth more than $50. The replacement needle and nozzle are also the cheapest among the three brands at the HL Store.
I like my Iwata Eclipse-CS a lot. It is everything that I was looking for for an under $100 airbrush. The trigger is very responsive and the atomization of paint is excellent. Besides, it is much easier to clean than my Paasche H. Highly recommended.
The selection of the Iwata is straightly a personal perference based on convinence, economics and not a comparison among the major brands. One important consideration is that I can get spare parts (mostly needle and nozzle) locally at discount price. To pay shipping for those parts make them very expensive to replace.
Hobby Lobby also stock some Paasche airbrushes, but no gravity feed Paasche. The Michael Craft Store carries the Badger AB and spares, and occasionally has 50% coupon in newspaper. But I could not find any gravity feed AB there either.
I have to disagree with the Aztek I have had several cheap plastic both of mine leaked air I’m sending back to get fixed then giving one to my son in law to use I like my Iwata Eclipse cost a little more but worth it. all metal real work horse. Good luck I wish the best for both of you all.
Are you serious about the recommendation. What model is it? There are some very different opinion in the AB section of this forum.
/forums/984914/ShowPost.aspx
I went through three AB last year:
Aztek 410 (if I remember correctly)
Badger 360
Iwata HP series
in that order. IWATA is the best AB I know. If you plan to use it for detailing - it is worth every penny (not a cheap one [:(]).
Aztek is not very reliable due to a cheap design. Settings drove me crazy and finally I got Badger 360. This is a great AB however it requires some special skills while controlling the flow. It also requires a lot of compressor power.
If I had to compare using car analogies:
Aztek = Yugo
Badger = Buick
Iwata = Mercedes
I use two different Badgers, a 200NH for NMF and clear coats, and my wonderful 100LG for everything else. I can’t say enough good things about either of them! I have heard great things about the Iwatas, but without ever having the chance to try one I can’t comment on them. I really would like to try one someday!
You can pick up an Iwata with a side port for around $100 at Dixie Air. (Check out there website). That’s where I bought mine from and the side port takes the Aztek paint cups directly (about the only thing I can recommend about the Aztek) I used a 470 for a couple of years until I bought the Iwata. Never go back!! I used my 40% off Hobby Lobby coupon to pick up the Iwata Smart Jet compressor though. But Hobby Lobby doesn’t have the Iwata AB with the side port.