Paasche H + paint spatter = not making cammo schemes.

Tools, Techniques, and Reference Materials Painting and airbrushing
1

Note, there’s a bunch of text here because I try to be as thorough as possible with my questions.

In reality, I have two brushes one is the Badger 150. I simply can’t get control of the lever, so I use the Paasche single action

I have noticed lately that I will get a spattering around the edges of what ever I paint.

I use Acry paints and I do not thin it. I did try once thinning it. Without a clue as to the amounts, I went 3-1 paint to Acryl thinner. I tried dialing down the pressure below 20psi, but it is difficut because that is where the gauge starts.

From other posts I have read “get in close”, well I still get the spatter.

I use color cups and I try to use a water/windex solution between colors.

I have tried this with all three paint heads and I get the same result.

Because I usually paint only one color, I use the #5 head exclusively.

I have noticed that when I am done painting and remove the color cup I am can tip the brush back and a decent quantity of paint will pour out (onto a paper towel)

Both color cups have had the paint dry at the bottom and clog the tube. With both I have cleaned them enough for water to flow freely when under a faucet.

The #5 head has also been clogged but cleaned so that fluid passed freely throug both parts.

Two last things.
I am wondering if adding a more detailed gauge to the hose line will help to get a lower pressure.
Also, though the compressor has a built in moisture trap, I have another in the hose line. It completely dry and I wonder if having it could cause a problem.
The compressor is a Homedepot $130 “hobby” compressor.

I have not checked for spatter from the Badger yet.

2

Is the spattering overspray or is it just “Splatter”? I know, that’s kind of ambiguous but you know what I mean.

If it’s overspray, try thinning the paint some and spray at a lower pressure. If it’s splatter it is probably dried paint that is either drying at the tip or on the way to the surface. I’d still try and reduce the pressure some, and possibly try adding a drop or two of acrylic retarder to your paint cup. I had never tried retarder until last week, and it really seems to help keep the acrylics from drying so fast.

I use Tamiya and MM acrylics and I thin them 3:1 using 91% isopropyl alcohol. I usually spray at about 15 psi with Badger airbrushes.

Adding a higher resolution gauge would allow you to more accurately judge your pressure, however it does not control the pressure… The regulator is what controls the pressure. I use a “General Purpose” (as opposed to a hobby or airbrush-specific compressor) and can reduce the pressure on mine down to a bit below 15 psi but below that it is pretty erratic.

Dual moisture traps should not be hurting anything either. They just insure that the air is completely free of moisture.

3

this may be a little hard, but my advice would be to put down the single action and go back to the double action and practice, practice, practice. i personally have never had a whole lot of luck with my paashe H on tight cammo schemes. there are several armor dudes on here that swear by them. i use a double action brush for everything now and it took quite a while to grasp control of it, but once you do get it, i quarantee the single action will sit idle like mine does. another thing is, (and i dont use mm acrylics much if any) i thin my paint starting at 60%thinner 40% paint and just slowly build the colors up. i use around 10 or 12 psi of pressure and get very, very close to the subject. when im post shading or weathering my paint is thinned 90% thinner and 10%paint. i know that sounds extreme but you can achieve some ever so subtle effects with that kind of mixture, especially with tamiya smoke which is transparent anyway. dont be scared of the doulble action. you would think you had more control with the single action but you have much more control with the double action. you just gotta hang in there with it and tame that thing. the more you practice, the more you build confidence with it. im definetly speaking from experience in this department because i bounced back and forth between the single and doulbe action for about a month when i got into this hobby. and like scott says, you definetly need a regulator if you dont have one and you can pick up a more accurate guage from the local hardware store for under $5. later.

4

There are a few threads where people recommend BLAH airbrush and it is kind of like computer harddrives. People have their opinions based on their use of the product.

I have seen several recommendations for the Paasche H and it has worked for them for Many years.

My compressor has a regulator Knob on it. It is just that the Guage starts off at 20psi. I’m not even sure I can dial the pressure much below 20 anyway.

My entire paint collection is Model Master, so I will be sticking with that for a while.

I haven’t had a chance to give the Badger another shot, but I wouldn’t mind figuring out what the issue is with the other airbrush.

As far as the paint spatter goes imagine a solid circle and then a wide dispersement of dots around it. That is kind of like what I am getting.

I used to be able to spray wide areas at a time, but now with the little dots of paint, it makes for double the work.

I will try extreme thinning of the paint and see what kind of affect I get.

5

OK, now I think I see what you are talking about. I still think it could be the paint drying to quickly, but it could also be your airbrush. I’m not familiar with Paasche’s, but if the tip is split, belled out, chipped, dinged, whatever you want to call it then the spray pattern would be like that. I split the tip on one of my Badgers last week and it did basically the same thing. You might take a close look under a magnifier and see if everything looks OK.

6

I would mix a 50/50 mixture of distilled water and isopropyl alcohol and use that as a thinner. Mix the Acryl paint 2:1 with the thinner and spray it at about 20 psi.
My airbrushes seem to spray that mixture pretty good.
I think straight from the bottle it may be slightly too thick for your airbrush to atomize well unless you are spraying at 30-35 psi or more.
I would also recommend the #3 tip over that #5 tip.

Mike

7

I’ve noticed the #5 tip does seam to splatter a bit more than the #3 and #1. I’m not sure if mine may have a bad seal or whatever, but I don’t use that tip at all. It seems as though that tip is just too big. Maybe so much paint comes out of the #5 tip at once that the paint doesn’t have time to atomize.

8

I think that is correct.
The #5 tip and needle were designed for thicker mediums like varnishes for wood projects and such. When you spray a thin, fine-pigment medium like acrylics through a tip and needle that big then atomization is very difficult without high air pressure I would think.

Mike

9

Good info to know, I will stop using it now.