A few questions about airbrushing

General Discussion
1

I’ve done a few airbrush jobs on blanks before but they have all been very simple, such as colored panels or a fade. but i have a few questions. First the paint gun that i have now is more of a production gun and not very good for detail work (fine lines) i was looking at buying this gun

IWATA ECL4500 Airbrush Kit with Mini Tank Compressor Now Only $239.98 IWATA ECL4500 Airbrush Kit

This multi-purpose, high-paint-flow, high-detail Eclipse Series airbrush covers a wide range of uses. Commonly used to spray premixed or heavier paints, it is well suited for uses demanding precise control of spray when applying moderate-to-large amounts of paint to a variety of surfaces and to various-sized areas. This Eclipse Series brush has established a new benchmark for excellence in an all-purpose airbrush.

  • Gravity-feed airbrush features a unique 0.35-mm needle and nozzle combination for fine-detail spraying, but with high-paint-flow capacity
  • Generous 1/3 oz. sized cup is designed with a new funnel shape, which makes for easy clean up and more efficient paint flow
  • Automotive artists, fine artists and students will appreciate how well the Eclipse CS sprays heavier acrylics and Medea Textile Colors, while maintaining high-detail spray characteristics
Mini Tank Compressor
Our new featured mini compressor is an Oil-less Maintenance-Free 1/8HP Auto-Stop (Preset at 60 PSI), Thermal Protected unit with much higher quality standards built in than most other airbrush compressors on the market today.

Mini airbrush compressor TC 20T is designed to work only when you do. With this unique automatic on/off shutoff switch, it only operates when you are airbrushing.

This “Air-On-Demand” feature allows the compressor to operate much cooler and avoid overheating problems that frequently plague other compressor models.

The new TC 20T delivers more air volume (CFM) and pressure (PSI) than any airbrush demands and is much quieter than either the Paasche D500 or the Central Pneumatic A6000 compressors. The unit has a water trap to ensure clean, dry air, and the true diaphragm regulator & Gauge which allows you to accurately control the air pressure to the airbrush from 0 to 60 PSI.

Our TC-20T compressor comes with a full one year warranty and your assurance of the quality that you have come to expect with all of our fine Airbrush-Depot products.

is this a good gun for fine work. does anyone have any recommendions for a gun, (i don’t want to spend a whole lot of money on it).

next question. i’ve always mixed my paint with water, but i’ve heard of mixing it with future floor sealer, whats the best way? also how much do you mix? i’ve always just thrown some water in the paint and mixed it up trying not to water it down too much.

last question. does anyone have a website link to get on good stencils or any advice on stencils?

i know i’m asking alot of questions and any help would be great. thanks.

2

I’ve heard that the Iwata air brushes are good although I’ve never used one. Regarding mixing of paint I do have some experience.

First of all, check the recommendations for the airbrush. They may have some requirements that are outside the usual needs of standard spraying.

Future Acrylic Floor Finish is good for mixing into water-based acrylic paints before spraying. Personally, I also use distilled water, because I’ve found that the Future creates a little shine when it dries, and that’s not good for resin adhesion.

The paint should be just thin enough to flow through the gun. I usually use 50/50 water and Future to get the right consistency, but it’s more art than science. Usually the Future/water part is no more than 20% of the total volume. If you are spraying on foam, no sanding is needed, but if you are spaying on the hotcoat, you’ll need to use a Scotch pad or 320 to 400 sandpaper to make a dull finish before glossing.

And to pass on a “Darn, I hate it when that happens” rule: Spraying on the foam is preferable, because the paint will be protected by fabric and you won’t sand into the paint. Painting on the hotcoat will give crisper lines and more brilliant colors, but you have to be careful when you sand and polish the glosscoat. Just a little sand-through and you’ll erase the paint. Been there, done that. Man I hate it when that happens.

Doug

3

Hi Revolution -

If you buy the kit you could unscrew that black intake filter on the top left side of the head, screw in a different inlet connection and probably have yourself a decent little vacuum pump too.

Any of those air compressors that blow out one port also suck from the other port.

4

Howzit revolution, I use an Iwata and they are great and easy to use and clean. I think the Eclipse is around $70. If you have a compressor already then you can just use it. If not I would pass on the package deal and but a real compressor so you can use it for air brushing and so many other things. As for paint mixing I have found that paint I mixed for my detail sprayer worked fine in my Iwata. Now just which airbrush gun model are they offering you in the package.Aloha,Kokua

5

thanks for the help so far. this is the brush in the package.

[/url]Eclipse HP-CS

This gravity feed Eclipse CS features a .35 mm needle and nozzle combination, as well as a generous 1/3 oz. sized cup. The new funnel design of the cup makes clean-up easier and also means that less paint is wasted. The short distance from cup to nozzle allows for more consistent paint flow, too. Fine artists and students alike will appreciate how well the Eclipse CS sprays heavier acrylics and Medea Textile Colors while maintaining very fine spray characteristics.

they have listed for $104 alone. i was lookig at the package because i do have a compressor, its small (just as that one is) 1 gallon tank i think, but i’m not sure about setting the psi on it (does that sound right, as i said not in the know about airbrushes and compressors) and that one in the package looks like it would be set for that brush.

kokua, what do you mix your paint with? i’ve bought acyrillic surfboard paint but it doesn’t say what to mix it with and how much. so i’ve just been adding water and guessing how to mix.

and anyone got a place to get some good stencils?

6

Howzit revolution, That is a different model than the one I have. Mine doesn’t have the cup connected to the airbrush and mine is not a gravity feed but a syphon feed. But for detail the syphon feed works great for me. As for the psi setting I use about 40-45 psi which I set on the inline filter and water separater pressure gauge. I use a mixture that is 60% acrylic thinner and 40% water to thin the paint. How much you thin the paint can differ from person to person depending on their preferences, you will figure out what you want by practicing. Always do a test before starting the design on a board as a precation. With an airbrush you push the button down and pull back, the more you pull back the more paint comes out. The other way is to preset the paint amount by loosening the twist screw in the open slot and pull the needle back, then tighten the twist and just push the button down and not pull back.Play with it till you get the amount of paint you want. I like doing it this way since it’s not that easy to keep the button in the same position while spraying. Hope this helps but if I were you I would take some time and learn a little simple steps from some one who has done this before. I was lucky to have people who are realy good airbrushers help me in the beginning and it amde a world of difference. I do most of my color work with a gravity feed detail sprayer and use the airbrush for small work, but then again I own 5 or 6 different types of sprayers. Aloha,Kokua

P.S. one thing about those open top sprayers is you have to keep the sprayer upright where with a syphon and bottle one you have more flexability and more range without paint spillage.

7

Kokua’s right about the compressor. The small tank on the compressor is useless, and the motor is on almost all of the time. Get a real compressor (they’re about the same or less at Sears), a good regulator and water filter. I’ve found that the airbrushes with built-in cups are a pain, because they don’t hold enough paint and always spill. There are Iwata-equivalent siphon models that have detachable cups and bottles. Changing colors using bottles is very easy, you just use a bottle filled with window cleaner and spray into a rag to clean the brush before the next color. Get or make a sturdy holder for whatever airbrush you decide on; you don’t want it falling on the floor everytime you need to set it down.

8

Revolution,

You might want to see if you can get a bigger needle/nozzle combination such as .5 mm in whatever style airbrush you buy. You can spray thicker paint with the bigger needle/nozzle. I have the Iwata with the gravity feed cup and one advantage is that its easy to clean and change colors.

Dave_D

9

Howzit Pete, I have an even easier way to clean the airbrush between color changes. Get a small plastic bottle with a cap with a tapered top ( like the catsup dispensers in a restaurant but small maybe 2 or 3 oz). Fill it with your cleaning solution and when you want to change colors just pull the paint bottle out of the feed tube, spray what’s left in the airbrush in to the trash can and stick the tip of the bottle with cleaner into the paint feed hole squeeze the bottle and spray til the spray is clear. Really fast and works really good. But wither way works.Aloha,Kokua

10

Thanks for another one Kokua, using a squeeze bottle works better than just letting the siphon action move the cleaner through the airbrush. The bottle tip I found fits directly into the nozzle of my Badger, so I don’t even need to use the bottle cap with tube.

11

thanks for the info so far, i’m now looking at this brush [/url]Eclipse HP-BCS

Bottom-feed airbrush features a 0.5-mm needle and nozzle combination; it is a versatile model that can do it all. The Eclipse airbrush is available in three sets: airbrush with bottle set, airbrush with bottle set and airhose and in a 6 pack airbrush only set.

 Eclipse HP-BCS Specifications   <span style="font-weight:bold">Paint Reservoir</span> <span style="font-weight:bold">Nozzle</span> <span style="font-weight:bold">Trigger Action </span> <span style="font-weight:bold">Spray Pattern</span>  2 oz. (84 ml) Siphon-Feed Bottle 0.5-mm Drop-In Self-Centering Nozzle Dual-Action Hairline to 2 in. (50-mm) Round  <span style="font-weight:bold">Features</span> <span style="font-weight:bold">Optional Features </span> <span style="font-weight:bold">Product Name </span> <span style="font-weight:bold">Item No. </span>   <ul class="bb-list" style="list-style-type:circle;"> <li>Single Cut-Away Handle</li> <li>Adjustable Main Lever Tension</li> <li>Solvent Resistant O-Ring</li></ul>  <ul class="bb-list" style="list-style-type:circle;"> <li>0.35-mm Nozzle</li> <li>Siphon-Feed Bottle Sets</li> <li>Pre-Set Handle</li> <li>Pre-Set Cut-Away Handle</li> <li>Solid Ergonomic Handle</li> <li>Crown Cap</li></ul> Iwata Eclipse HP-BCS ECL 2000

ECL 2001

ECL 2006

it seems to fit what i’m looking for and seems like most say go with siphon bottle. looks like it will do fine lines and still adjust to do larger areas.

seems also like the best way to mix the paint is with a mixture of water and the floor sealer, then just mix that to the paint to thin it down some. sound right?

thanks for all the help, now does anyone have some artwork they can post for a beginner like me to try out?

12

Howzit Pete, Another thing is if you squeeze the bottle it cleans even better.Aloha,Kokua

13

Howzit revolution, That looks like the model I have. The beautiful thing is they are really easy to work with and very durable. They use a stainless steel needle which doesn’t bend very easy, that is one thing you need to be careful about. Aloha,Kokua

14

The HP-BCS looks like a very nice airbrush. There’s alot of methods for mixing paint, but I do it this way using liquid/tube acrylics: Put your straight paint(s) in the spray bottle, add enough straight Future to get it thin enough to spray at about 25 psi. I mix with a fairly thick artist brush, and you’ll get the right viscosity after a few trys by seeing how fast the mixture drips from the brush. Too thick and the tip will start clogging; clear the nozzle using Kokua’s ketchup bottle method, thin the paint more and start over. I always test spray on a piece of paper taped on the wall first. Too thin, just add more paint. I always disassemble and clean my airbrush with soapy water after each use (toothbrushes, pipecleaners, Q-tips). Having to soak parts in lacquer thinner to remove dried up paint isn’t good, especially for the rubber and plastic pieces.

www.badgerairbrush.com has a (very dated) book called “airbrushing techniques for custom painting”, which shows freehand, template, masking, and stencil methods that are applicable for boards.

15

thanks for all help guys, i got my new airbrush, and i have two boards to airbrush (still fairly basic designs) i hope to post some pics when i’m done. i guess i will search around the forum for some other designs on boards for ideas for some more boards. thanks again.

16

ok, another question. with this resin tint. is the base lighter blue/green poured out then some darker blue tint poured out to get the effect? I’ve done pigment swirls before and thats how i did those.

17

Howzit Pete, Another thing you might want to get is a silicon lubricant that airbrush suppliers sell, unfortunayely I can’t remember the name but I apply it to the needle after cleaning and it makes the paint flow more evenly.Just remembered the anme, Super Lube. My Iwata is the ECL model. Aloha,Kokua