Airbrushing tips
#1
here are some air brushing tips.....


Tip 1. to use the right gun for the job.. as most of you know the right tool makes the job you have to do a lot easier.
well here is the diff in the guns that you will use for air brushing .

single phase or also called single action. this is a good starter gun . it is easy to find and they are cheap.
how it works . with a single action gun you push down on trigger to get paint and air and you pull back on trigger to get wider lines most single action guns have a needle of a .04mm or bigger.and they are bottom feed .

Dubble phase or dubble action. is the best guns out. easy to find ,but costs much more.
how it works . with a dubble action you push down on the trigger you get air and when you pull back the trigger you get paint. most guns have a .02mm needle. and can paint hair line lines they are also found in either buttom feed, top feed or side feed and you can even get them with air p.s.i control right on the gun also called m.a.c.


now on to paints. you can use any thing form inks to auto paints with any gun with the right thinning.

inks. are good to learn how to air brush they are cheap. and you can also use the to do weathering.

water base acrylic paint. you can find this in most model paints, craft paints.
model paints are common and alot of people use them cost around 1.00 - 7.00 a bottle.
craft paint. is a good sub for model paint. cost around .50 - 1.50 a bottle.
all acrylics are easy to thin and have great coverage.

enamel paint. this is used in the rc and auto graphics.
enamels cost 4.50- 9.00 bottle.
are used to do rc cars and in the auto graphics.

Thinning. this is the big qustion. what is the right mix alot of people say 4:1, 5:1 ect,ect

WELL NO MATTER WHAT PAINT YOU THIN YOU WANT IT TO BE THIN AS A GLASS OF MILK. SOME PAINT NEED MORE THINNING THAN OTHER OF THE SAME BRAND.

THIN TILL IT LOOKS LIKE A GLASS OF MILK. ........................................

start with paint and slowly add you thinner..

a good mix for acrylic paint get you a bottle and fill it this way.

1/2 water from tap or bottled water.
1/4 rubbing alchol.
1/4 window cleaner.
you will get a great thinner. and prep cleaner all in one .
this mix will dry great and clean up easier off your guns.


Air sorce.

a good starter air sorce is a tank less but as time goes by you will upgrade to a tank . a good size is from 1-5 gal.
A MUST HAVE " WATER TRAP" AND AIR REGULATOR" ...........



thanks for reading and hope this can help with some unanswered qustion.
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#2
Scooby, I have a single action gun. It just has a button on top that opens it up to shoot both paint and air mix. I think on mine, if I remember correctly, I have to twist the cone in front to adjust the width of the spray pattern. When ever I'm able to set up a spray booth again, I want to get a double action gun. I thought all guns that are set up to push down a trigger and then pull back were double action and that when you push down you got air and when you pulled back you got paint. It sounds like from your description, a gun the has a trigger that pushes down and pulls back could be either single or double action, is that right?
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#3
you are right i have both single action guns that are mix paint and air as it come out of the gun so when you push down the trigger you get both paint and air and as you pull the trigger back you get wider lines. i also have guns that mix the air and paint in the gun. but i use them for the higher jobs i do. you would love a dubble action gun all control with one hand right at the trigger. no turning that pain in the *** screw at the tip of the gun.
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#4
You could buy a CO2 bottle and regulator, this way you will always have dry "air" to run your airbrush.......just remember to chain the bottle to the leg of your workbench so that it doesn't tip over, knock the valve off and turn into a land torpedo. The cost to recharge the bottle is relatively low and will last you for many, many hours of painting. I used a setup like this for years when I was an apartment dweller and never had to worry about the neighbors complaining about the noise from a compressor at 2AM. The compressed air tank mentioned is a cheap way to get started but you'll find that running out of air in the middle of a session can be a real pain in the rear and the air you get at some service stations can have oil in it if they also run their air tools off it in the shop. I've found that a lot of gas stations charge you anywhere from 25 to 50 cents a minute for air so filling the tank to 100 psi could be an added cost.
I now have an air compressor with a 25 gallon tank that sits in the far corner of my garage with steel pipe running from the garage to my shop in the basement to supply air. I also have water traps and an air separater/filter in the line and at the spray booth I have a regulator and an inline heater to warm the air before it goes through the air brush. Just depends on how much painting you do as to how much you're willing to spend for your air source. BTW, I also use my air compressor to run tools when I work on cars or my house so the air line to the basement was a minor addition to the cost.
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#5
I retired from work as a transport refrigeration mechanic, and have a small set of tanks with dry nitrogen that I used for leak checking refrigeration units. The dry nitrogenis the same stuff NASCAR race teams use in their tires. The tanks, cart, and pressure regulator cost about $400.00 if I remember correctly, but the cost to refill with dry nitrogen to 2500# is very cheap. I think it was about $10.00 per bottle the last time I had them filled.
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#6
Just went to a small tank-less compressor to start airbrushing with. I have a tank compressor as well, but only used it twice as it is way too loud to have thundering away in my basement in my small little work area. The sound resonates throughout the entire house. I was looking at going to CO2 however the suppliers I have come across charge an annual $50 rental (which covers inspections / maintenance) and $25 for each refill for a for a 10 or 20 lb tank...I honestly can't recall. They are also only open from 9-5, Mon - Fri. I cannot honestly, justify taking the time off work every time I need a refill. Which also leads to actually spending $100 a year on rental fees for two tanks, as I'd hate to be in the middle of something and run out of gas...literally.

I also looked into the cost of purchasing the tanks and the distributor in my area, who was very candid, indicated that for my use rental would be cheaper and safer as the tanks require frequent testing and inspections in order to keep up with local regulations. The tanks are not cheap either when you factor in the cost of replacing them every five years as that is when they expire. Even if the tanks were given to me for free, I don't know if I trust a gas like CO2 in my house.

I picked up a Scorpion II compressor for just over a couple hundred bucks, complete with moisture trap, air regulator, and its nice and quiet. So tonight, I'm going to go home and play with some ink before I start thinking about finishing up some projects long overdue.

Misngth
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#7
I know what you mean about the cost of tanks. I have a small oxy-acetylene welding set and a set of nitrogen tanks for leak checking refrigeration systems and I think I have about $800.00 tied up in them. Now that I'm retired I don't do a lot with them, but plan to use the welding set occasionally for odd jobs. I figure to use the dry nitrogen for painting.
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