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My whole goal with this web
site is to help you step in to the world of airbrushing and have a positive and
fun experience . Please at least give airbrushing a fair chance by buying the
best equipment you can afford . Check out my new on-line Airbrush Magazine it's
packed full of useful airbrushing tips , tricks and technique How To Articles .
Check it out !!
Airbrush Compressor's / Air Sources
My personal feelings on this
is to purchase a good air source, one that supplies steady , dry air. You need
at least 10 to 30 psi for airbrushing models , fine art , illustrations ,
finger nail art, bike and car murals, 5 to 12 psi for body art, 40 to 60 psi
for t-shirts, textile art and large wall murals. For a spray gun like a Sata or
RG 3 you need a 3 to 5 horse power compressor . If your are on a limited budget
spend your cash on a good airbrush , as a fancy air compressor will not improve
your airbrushing results, a good airbrush will.
CO2 tanks
might be the best choice for the artist on a limited budget. It will supply a
steady supply of dry air depending on pressure you're running 20 to 30 hours.
For fine art, models, helmets, auto murals, body art, finger nails would work
great .Check with your local welding supplier or beverage supplier for rental
rates.
Piston driven commercial compressors like you buy at Home
Depot, Eagle Hardware etc. work just fine. Usually you can get a good 1 or 2
horse power commercial type compressor for under $200.0 . As long as this type
of compressor has a pressure regulator on it, moisture trap it should work just
fine . Before buying ask to hear the compressor run, hear for yourself how loud
it might be. You can always build a plywood box to fit over the compressor and
insult the inside with stro foam to provide sound dampening. Cut two holes one
each end for air flow .This type of compressor is the best way to go if
airbrushing t-shirts.
Silent compressors: are nice if you
have the coin to buy on . Good for just about all airbrush applications. Make
sure the silent compressor is rated for the type of airbrushing you will be
doing before you buy it. Most use a refrigerator compressor with air storage
tank, pressure regulator and moisture trap. Most are oil lubricated with piston
driven motors which eliminate friction and noise. An attached air tank allows
the compressor to store air which than shut's off when the tank is
full.
Diaphragm compressors: try before you buy. These are
small airbrush compressors marketed toward the start-up airbrush artist. Make
sure they supply a steady flow of air. Best if you can find one with air supply
or storage tank attached. For about the same amount of money you can get a mini
oil less piston compressor, much better off with this type compressor than
small diaphragm compressor like a Paache D500.
Cans of Air:
If this is what you have put the can in pan of hot or warm water when using
will work better. You will never understand what Airbrushing is really like
using these. A waste of money in most case's.
Oil less piston
compressor's like Spar Max TC 2000 , Stealth 5000, Medea Smart Jet,
Intruder 100. These are made in Taiwan and are very good compressors. Most are
a great buy for the money. Great for just about any airbrush application, just
make sure the one you buy is rated for the type of airbrushing you intend to do
. Smart Jet, Intruder 100, Spar Max Gold, work great for fingernail art,
models, crafts, illustrations, fine art where you need 30 PSI or less. For
Textile, T-Shirt art you would want the TC 2000 or Stealth
5000.
Compressor terms what they mean:
High Viscosity or thick
paints ( createx , Aqua Flow , Auto Air ) require a high pressure
compressor.
Low Viscosity or thin paints ( com-art , water colors )
require less pressure than the above.
High Volume Airbrush's ( VL , BCS
) require high pressure ( 30 to 60 ) compressors.
Low Volume Airbrushes
like gravity feed HP-B or HP- C require lower pressure compressors.
PSI
means pounds of air per square inch.
Max PSI means maximum air
pressure.
Auto Shut-off usually means compressor turns off with the
airbrush or when air tank is full.
Cooling fan cools the compressor
AIRBRUSHES
External Mix
Airbrush Single action airbrush, looks good price wise but of very
limited use. Amount of paint to be sprayed is adjusted separately from the
trigger, usually by turning fluid cap front of the airbrush.
Double action
airbrush is the way to go for airbrushing just about anything . Again there are
many different models, types. In a nut shell by pushing down on the trigger you
get air and by pulling back on the trigger you get paint ( on independent
double action). The further back you pull the trigger the more paint you get.
So pushing down on the trigger and pulling back on the trigger at the same time
gives you both air and paint. Most will produce spray pattern from pencil line
size to 2 inches. How big a spray pattern you get is determined by how far you
are from the spraying surface. Two main types of double action airbrush's are
the siphon feed (either bottom or side color cup. container) and the gravity
feed (color cup on top of the airbrush) Generally speaking you can get better
detail from a gravity feed airbrush than a siphon feed airbrush.
There
are two basic kinds of fluid tips or nozzles use by just about all airbrush's.
The floating tip, nozzle being one such as the Vega 2000 airbrushes,. With this
style tip the nozzle just sits in the end of your airbrush held in place by air
cap or nozzle cap. Screw in tip is the other type used and these actually screw
into the body of the airbrush, like Iwata HP-B. You can general get better
detail from this style tip , nozzle than with a floating style. For t-shirts,
textile art, wall murals, background fine art, bottom siphon feed Airbrush
works best. Fine art detail, finger nail art, models, bike and automotive
murals gravity feed Airbrush works best (Iwata HP-B , HP-C) Above is a very
fast overview there many good books on the subject if you need further
info.
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Example of a double action gravity feed
airbrush. Paint would go in small cup on top of airbrush, hose connects to
bottom by screwing it on. Behind the color cup is the trigger.
Example of a double action bottom feed, siphon
feed airbrush, paint or color goes in bottle on bottom, hose screws on post
next to color bottle.
Example of a double action
side feed, siphon feed airbrush, you can see color cup, paint container on the
other side of the airbrush, plugs in usually friction fit, hose connects to
bottom and screws on the post.
Please don't let what other people say
about a particular airbrush determine what you yourself can do with that
airbrush. I can take one of my $49.00 airbrush's and get just as fine a line as
I can with $500.00 airbrush. And that is not to say a $49.00 airbrush is as
good as a $500.00 airbrush its not. But it is how you have trained your finger
and mind to use and control the airbrush. Just like most things in life your
going to get out of it what you put into it. Take the time to learn the basic
airbrush strokes no matter what you want to airbrush, finger nails, , models,
Harley you will get better results.
Airbrush Paints
This can't be stressed
enough if you are just learning to airbrush use a good AIRBRUSH specific paint.
Paints made for use in the airbrush in other words . Golden Airbrush Colors or
Doc Martins, Com-art are colors that are very easy to use. They are inexpensive
paints that will make your learning experience a lot more enjoyable. Airbrush
textile paints, hobby paints or model paints, most of which are fine products
probably, but not what you want to use while trying to learn how to airbrush.
Use the one of the above mentioned products on paper until you are comfortable
using your airbrush. You will find you get less tip drying and clogging with
these so instead of messing around trying to get your airbrush to work you can
actually be using it. After you have become comfortable with how the airbrush
works you can use just about any kind of paint you want.
Paint terms what they mean:
Opaque is impervious to the passage of
light. To enhance airbrush colors use white first as its very opaque , like
when airbrushing on any dark surface, black t-shirt. for example
Transparent will transmit light so that the colors beneath can
be seen. Combined with opaques will create beautiful pastels.
Fluorescent colors will fully cover any white or light colored
surface. Gives you that neon look or hot look.
Pearlescent
covers both dark and light colored surfaces , creates satin-like sheen and
shimmer.
Metallic covers both light and dark colored surfaces,
creates metallic like sheen, reflective properties.
Iridescent
is permanent, light fast capable of producing an array of rainbow colors,
covers dark surfaces without base coating white first.
Chameleon
magically changes color with reflected light for maximum effects use it on dark
surfaces.
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I hope you
found this article helpful.
Two more great resources to learn more about
airbrushing, kustom painting are my airbrush, kustom painting magazines. Check
them out via the links below. Until next time "It's just paint" have
fun.
Airbrush
Technique Magazine
Airbrush Artist Magazine
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