Well, sitting on my desk waiting at work for me this morning was my IWATA Eclipse HP-CS airbrush… Now I’m ready (as soon as I figure it out how to use it)…[party]
Cool! I use an Iwata HP-C! Can do things with it I could never do with my Badger 350. I guess the next thing to do is practice!
Glenn
Well done on the airbrush! I love my Iwata HP-C. It takes a while to adjust the whatdjacallit at the back, but once you find a comfortable setting, it rocks! Cleaning is so easy too. Just spray the cleaner in, use the residue to clean the bowl, and then spray the rest out. The nozzle cover screws off easily, and any paint build up is easily removed (just don’t touch the needle)
Do you have a compressor too? That’s really preferable over the canned air.
My suggestion to you is play with it. A lot. Get a piece of cardboard and spray on it. Make lines. Make patches. Read how-tos and try them out. That way, there’s not a lot tied up emotionally in using the thing when you’ve got a kt in front of you. I always found it a frustrating experience, because I did not practice with it enough before I started using it.
Then get a little kit or some old kit your don’t care about and slap it together. Then shoot paint on it, because painting a vehicle model is different from painting a piece of cardboard. The main thing is to get comfortable with it before you start using it on a kit you want to look nice.
And keep it very clean always or it will clog and that is that.
Now that all that’s out of the way, congrats! It’s going to provide you with many fine painting effects you really can’t get any other way.
Iwata makes some sweet compressors to like the smart jet. Get a nice one with a moisture trap and pressure regulator and you won’t be sorry
well, a spray can for starters, but i will get one eventually…
I made 2 mistakes when I got my airbrush:
- I used the cans for a long time. All that was $$ that could have went to the airbrush.
2.) When I finally bought a compressor, I bought a cheapie with no pressure gauge or moisture trap.
Yeah I hear that. I threw my money on the Testors mini Blue compressor. It’s actually served me very well, but I’m wishing I had the money to get one that I can vary the air pressure. Oh well, couple more months. I really want an Iwata one. I’ve used my friends’, and it’s worth the money they charge for it.
I hear ya Jason. I currently have an Iwata Iwata Revolution BCR I use cans. The dam cans freeze up durring painting and I don’t get crisp clear lines when cammoing. I end up getting a lot of splatter.
I do have a Campell hausfield upright 250 HP compressor with a moisture trap and a regulator (insert Tim Allen grunt). It is in the shop right now gettig fixed. I can’t wait to get it back.
How much PSI does everyone use for basic airbrushing?
Try putting your can in a bucket of warm water. I used those large cups McDonalds used to give away with movie logos on it
Oh, one more thing. The first time you break the airbrush down, pay attention! The first time, I took my badger apart and had about 10 minutes of fear that I ruined it because I couldn’t remember where everything went. Now I can do it in a minute,
Thats great you finally got your Iwata Geoffrey! You’re going to really love using it. I finally broke down, and used mine for the first time the other day. Man, I don’t know why I waited so long? It’s everything people say it is, and with some experience will no doubt do even more. I just use mine with my big 5-1/2 hspwr garage compressor, with moisture trap, and of course press regulator. You’re on the cutting edge now buddy! Semper Fi, mike
Congrats. Nothing makes a model come out better than a quality airbrush. Have fun.
i have a piece of cardboard ( i drew a tank on it for the hell of it ) just for practice and then a matilda that i was unhappy with that will get some practice cammo on it
Nice brush ,… I am sure you will like that one .[8D]
I did the can thing and I’ve done the compressor too. I’ve found that I am most happy with a tank of CO2. No noise, no moisture, no power issues, no pressure problems, I can carry it any where. It costs me $12 to refill and lasts forever (not really, but it does many kits). I had used nitrogen but the CO2 costs less. The nitrogen is a compressed gas and the pressure slowly drops as you use the nitrogen. CO2 is a liquid inside the tank. The pressure stays the same in the tank until the tank is almost empty.
I have an HP-C for all of my detail work but I am looking for a good easy to operate and clean airbrush for doing basecoats with acrylics. Any suggestions?I was thinking of Iwatas Eclypse, or is that to close to an HP-C ?
Tankerg:
Practice is the thing here. Don’t be afraid to use your airbrush. I spent a couple hours with my Badger 360 spraying lines, boxes, circles, everything on sheets of cardboard before moving on to plastic.
Some things I’ve learned:
- There’s lotsa advice out there. Google yer brains out and do your homework. Not alot about the actual techniques used in modeling, just cleaning, thinning, etc.
- Mix your paint to the consistency of 2% milk for airbrushing at around 20psi
- Keep a container of Windex nearby (I use acrylics exclusively, so enamels will use something else) to shoot through the brush between color coats.
- Apply the paint in THIIIIIIN coats. It’s real easy to get carried away with the job and apply too much paint.
- Runs in the paint are easier to hide on armor models than aircraft [:)]
- The more you use it, the better you’ll be at, well, using it. I was very hesitant to use my brush for painting the small bits of a kit. Now that I’ve had some experience with my airbrush, it takes only 15 seconds or so to clean it. That’s just as quick as paintbrush cleaning with better, thinner paint coverage.
When I got my 360, I smiled for a week…
Dennis
I use 12-15 PSI or a bit less here for mine ,( paasche DA) I use the fine tip for most work .
Congrats. It makes a big difference in the finish of your kit. Now it’s just practice, practice, practice. Every time I build a kit now, I cut myself a 3X5 piece of styrene and glue little bits on it. I never put a coat on the kit without putting it on the stryrene first. Base coat, Future, dull coat, wash, everything gets tested out first. When I haven’t taken the time to do that, the quality of my finish dropped. Have fun!