Need a decent #1 brush for my other place. I was thinking Iwata because it’s needles and nozzles may be a bit tougher: and I already have a HS Evol - little boring to have two.
You can get a gravity fed .35 nozzle in both the Iwata Revolution and Eclipse. The Eclipse is about $40 more. They appear to take the same neeldes/nozzles. So what does the price difference reflect? Cosmetics aren’t a big deal but if the Eclipse has some qualitative edge it would be worth it. Anyone out there tried them both?
Actually, I’d call that a very important difference. I clean my brushes a lot and one thing I really like about the HS is the ease with which you can get the nozzle free for a quick check. Thankee
I have BR and CR Revolutions but not an Eclipse. I like them, they spray pretty well. The Revolution and Eclipse share some parts but the nozzles and head system are different. Revolutions use a small screw in nozzle and the Eclipse uses a drop in nozzle with a double cone shape. With an Eclipse you can use either .35mm or .50mm nozzles and needles. The .50mm nozzle is one piece while the .35mm has a smaller tip that screws into the cone shaped nozzle. But, you don’t have to take the tip out of the cone to clean it, you just unscrew the head and the cone will drop out. With an Eclipse both needles are the same diameter so they are interchangeable. In a Revolution the .30mm and .50mm needles are a different diameter so you have to change the fluid seal or needle bearing to switch from .30 to .50. The Eclipse nozzle is very similar to a Badger 105/155/360 nozzle. The Eclipse also has a cutaway handle so you can pull the needle all the way open in case of a clog.
You can go to Coast Airbrush and look under Airbrush Parts to see an exploded view. Then you can see what parts they share and what is different. I don’t remove the nozzle from the Revolutions that often, there doesn’t seem to be much of a problem with paint buildup. But when I do tear it down it requires a wrench and a delicate touch. Those nozzles are pretty small. With an Eclipse you just screw the head off and can drop the nozzle out. I always seal the threads on the Revolution and you wouldn’t need to do that with an Eclipse.
BTW, I see Chicago Airbrush Supply has raised their prices on Iwatas recently. Some of them a significant amount. Wouldn’t be surprised to see other online shops do the same soon. There is an 11% discount in effect at Chicago through Sunday though.
As has been said the main difference is the nozzle design, the Revolution using the typical Iwata type of nozzle which is more or less a small screw in tip & the Eclipse using a drop in system similar to what you are accustomed to.
The smaller screw in nozzle design does have it’s pros + cons - it’s generally made of harder material than a drop in nozzle, so can last longer, but it is tiny making it troublesome to handle & on occasion the nozzle tip can break away leaving the threaded section behind in the airbrush. While the Eclipse 0.5mm nozzle is similar in design to the H&S nozzle, where the tip is of the same material as the rest of the nozzle body, the Eclipse 0.35mm nozzle has the typical, small Iwata nozzle fitted at the tip (screwed or pressed in, I can’t remember).
The Revolution nozzle is about 5mm long;
The Eclipse nozzle (the 0.5mm without the typical nozzle tip) is about 15mm long;
