Would this compressor (Airbrush-Depot TC-20) work for my needs?

Tools, Techniques, and Reference Materials Painting and airbrushing
1

I will be purchasing either an Iwata Revolution CR or a Badger 100LG in the near future. I have not yet purchased a compressor. I’ve done quite a bit of research on them, but understand them only as well as a mechanically-impaired female can. [:)] I’ve just begun visiting my local shops to look at their non-airbrush-specific compressors, but have several questions:

  1. If the store compressors turn out to be too noisy, I’ve been looking at the Airbrush Depot TC-20 compressor online url=http://cgi.ebay.com/AIRBRUSH-DEPOT-HIGH-QUALITY-AIR-BRUSH-COMPRESSOR-Quiet_W0QQitemZ8250222307QQcategoryZ28111QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem[/url] and believe it fits my needs (quiet, smaller, higher pressure for when I purchase a brush that requires it, auto on/off). My biggest question is: is this a good compressor? How much pulsation can I expect? Having never purchased one before, I’m not one hundred percent sure how to tell a fair-quality machine from an excellent-quality machine.

2. The compressor comes with a hose, regulator, water trap, and pressure gauge. If I purchased this compressor, does that mean I do not need to purchase a hose with my airbrush? Or is it talking about a different hose entirely?

3. If I did purchase a non-airbrush-specific compressor from a local store (lower cost and longer warranty), once I purchased the necessary accessories–hose, regulator, water trap, and pressure gauge–would I already be up to the cost of the Airbrush Depot TC-20?

Thank you!

2

Looks like the one from Harbor Freight that I bought and really like.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=92403

Mine runs about 30 psi and drops to 12 psi when spraying.

I added a $14 pressure regulator and I run it between 15psi and 20psi.

I use the hose that came with my air brush and as far as noise my kid’s music is louder.

It is quite in my book

3

Below are links to the info page on the compressor and it manual. Based on the information they provide, it seems decent enough. I have a Bager 180-1 which seems similar to the TC-20, albeit with a slightly less powerful motor, and it works well for me. While airbrushing, I don’t get any noticeable pulsation, so there’s no reason that the TC-20 cannot provide steady air as well.

About the air hose, you need to consider both the end that attaches tho the compressor as well as the end that attaches to the airbrush. I have an Aztek, a Badger, and a Paasche and they all have a different thread size. In the the TC-20 manual they mentioned that when shipped as part of a compressor/airbrush package that they would have the correct hose sent. Perhaps when ordering the compressor separately you can specify the airbrush model that you’ll be using so that you can get the right hose.

http://www.airbrush-depot.com/scripts/depot.exe?pgm=compress.bbx
http://www.airbrush-depot.com/images/TC20Manual.pdf

4

One thing to keep in mind, it is still a hobby compressor even though it can reach 60 PSI’s. It is not intended for production T-shirt/Textile spraying. With that said, I purchased this kit - MODEL # ABD KIT-4211-T near Christmas and my wife has been spraying a little every week on different clothing items (T-shirts, wall canvas, pocket books, kids bookbags, etc…). So far so good, but she doesn’t keep the compressor going constantly. She’ll spray for 5 - 15 minutes and then change colors, draw something, stencil, whatever.

It is the quietest compressor I ever heard and we don’t have any pulsation with ours, we bought the tank version. Everything in the kit fit together just fine without any problems. I didn’t need to buy anything extra, well except the paints LOL. One thing I did though, being a mechanic for many years, I used teflon tape on the treads of the fittings before putting everything together. I didn’t want any air leaks, and the tape assures me that the fittings go together smoothly, and will come apart if needed in the future.

I would email Airbrush-Depot to find out about the hose and how they work it.

The TC-20 and 20T pumps out 60 PSI, all compressors will drop as you start to spray or open the end of the air hose, you compensate by readjusting the regulator. Here’s the one at Harbor Freight that has 30 PSI.

Here’s a run down on some compressors that my wife and I listened too -

Had this at Wal Mart, but WAY too noisy for in the house…
100 PSI but would handle pretty much any AB task.

Also had this at Wal Mart. Was still too noisy for in the house, at least for my wife and I.
Almost as loud as my wifes vacuum cleaner, 115 PSI.

Also at Wal Mart, worker said it would be just as loud as the one above.
Maybe he just didn’t want me to open any more boxes…? 100 PSI.

Here’s a couple of nice kits with everything to get you up and spraying -
IWATA Eclipse CS Airbrush Kit w/Mini Tank Compressor $349.98
IWATA Eclipse BCS Airbrush Kit w/Mini Tank Compressor $299.98

Or airbrushes only at Dixie Art -
Iwata Eclispe HP-CS $109.97
Iwata Eclipse HP-BCS $79.97

Then the compressor, hose, regulator/water trap, etc…