Inspired by James May
Discussion
As a beginner I think it is worth a punt on the Badger Precision Airbrush Kit from the cheapest place I can find it (stick to the aerosol can before investing in a mini compressor).
Now if I get this, what paint do I use? Can you just stick in the acrylics I currently have, or do you need special paint or a special method to make it all work?
Now if I get this, what paint do I use? Can you just stick in the acrylics I currently have, or do you need special paint or a special method to make it all work?
This is opening a can of worms.. but more kids are making models now than anytime in the last 15 years.
They are making Warhammer models,thousands of them. It really is a huge market, and it is model making as these figures are no longer white metal molded pieces. The most poular products they sell are plastic multi part kits.
Mr May's point was kids arent making model spitfires anymore.. or at least it should have been.
Kids are still making models - it's just they aren't as interested in what mainstream manufacturers are offering.
They are making Warhammer models,thousands of them. It really is a huge market, and it is model making as these figures are no longer white metal molded pieces. The most poular products they sell are plastic multi part kits.
Mr May's point was kids arent making model spitfires anymore.. or at least it should have been.
Kids are still making models - it's just they aren't as interested in what mainstream manufacturers are offering.
Edited by beefcake42 on Thursday 5th November 11:52
RacingPete said:
As a beginner I think it is worth a punt on the Badger Precision Airbrush Kit from the cheapest place I can find it (stick to the aerosol can before investing in a mini compressor).
Now if I get this, what paint do I use? Can you just stick in the acrylics I currently have, or do you need special paint or a special method to make it all work?
Normal enamels and the more modern acrylics are perfectly suitable for airbrushing. Almost ALL of these need nto be thinned to some extent before sprayed through the brush.Now if I get this, what paint do I use? Can you just stick in the acrylics I currently have, or do you need special paint or a special method to make it all work?
Enamels can be thinned using white spirit, turpentine or turpentine substitute. Most of the enamel paint manufacturers sell their own thinners as well but it is usually more cost effective to use general hardware store products.
Acrylics vary a bit - most can be thinned with tap water. Some manufacturers prefer you to use either distilled water, alcohol or their own-brand thinner. I generally use Xtracrylic paints so I do use their thinner. I have found the Xtracrylic thinner also thins Tamiya acrylics effectively.
Edited by Eric Mc on Thursday 5th November 12:06
I love these discussions on PH
marvellous
This is my baby, a favourite thirty years ago, but I haven't seen one mentioned anywhere recently
It is a Paasche Airbrush, bought for me by my wife about thirty years ago and replaced a basic Badger (prolly a 200) external mix brush I'd had beforehand
the external one can be used for delicate work but by its nature will need far more efficient masking (I presume this is what the blue tack sausage method entails) holding the masked material above the surface so a certain amount of over/underspray passes the edges and gives the blended look
With this Paasche however a fine enough feathering can be achieved from the nozzle, with practice.
but this level of expense needs some justifying, then lots of practise to get the results
I used Humbrol, Airfix and several other "enamel" type paints before I won a large number of the NEW TAMIYA acrylics...*
Wow what a difference they made, I think I would advise acrylics for ease of drying and cleaning up afterwardsness
anyway, the Paasche... I love it even now
marvellous
This is my baby, a favourite thirty years ago, but I haven't seen one mentioned anywhere recently
It is a Paasche Airbrush, bought for me by my wife about thirty years ago and replaced a basic Badger (prolly a 200) external mix brush I'd had beforehand
the external one can be used for delicate work but by its nature will need far more efficient masking (I presume this is what the blue tack sausage method entails) holding the masked material above the surface so a certain amount of over/underspray passes the edges and gives the blended look
With this Paasche however a fine enough feathering can be achieved from the nozzle, with practice.
but this level of expense needs some justifying, then lots of practise to get the results
I used Humbrol, Airfix and several other "enamel" type paints before I won a large number of the NEW TAMIYA acrylics...*
Wow what a difference they made, I think I would advise acrylics for ease of drying and cleaning up afterwardsness
- must have been over twenty-five years ago
anyway, the Paasche... I love it even now
Racing Pete
heed Eric's words about thinning enamels, white spirits is equal to any speciallised thinners, I always used the Tamiya thinners to "thin", (came free but they are not huge jars) the acrylic thinners Eric suggests for use should be good.
If you do get involved I suggest you take your participation very lightly (at first, at least)
Researching and detailing CAN take over, trouble is that you can often miss out on the sheer pleasure of making the miniature world come to life that way
Bill
heed Eric's words about thinning enamels, white spirits is equal to any speciallised thinners, I always used the Tamiya thinners to "thin", (came free but they are not huge jars) the acrylic thinners Eric suggests for use should be good.
If you do get involved I suggest you take your participation very lightly (at first, at least)
Researching and detailing CAN take over, trouble is that you can often miss out on the sheer pleasure of making the miniature world come to life that way
Bill
I do heed that advice, the reason I want to do more is that I enjoyed building the first model so will not get too obsessed over the specific type of modeller knife I need to use. Really my questions are based around making the end result looking good but not letting the tools get in my way and thus getting everything right to start with.
I much preferred using the acrylic paints due to the clean up afterwards so will use those in the air brush, probably go for the little pots of Hummel with some tap water to start with.
I much preferred using the acrylic paints due to the clean up afterwards so will use those in the air brush, probably go for the little pots of Hummel with some tap water to start with.
Evangelion said:
I'm told one can use isopropyl alcohol to thin Tamiya acrylics; it's a fraction of the price of the Tamiya thinners and my local chemist tell me they can order it in litre cans ... when I've had a chance to try some I'll report back.
Indeed you can - I used acrylics for the first time on my latest model, and used Isopropyl Alcohol for thinning, I diluted it 50:50 with water. In fact, about 10 mins ago I ordered some more IPA from the local chemist (£6.03 for 500ml). I'm told you can also use Wynns Pink Windscreen wash too, but I haven't tried this yet.
One tip : Tamiya acrylics are very prone to 'dusting' ie drying before hitting the surface of the model, so be aware of this. Also, as soon as you have finished spraying (even temporarily), put the entire airbrush in a jar of IPA to prevent the whole lot from harnening. Its a nightmare to remove once dry.
Edited by dr_gn on Thursday 5th November 15:02
Ice lolly sticks and a piece of Blue Tac is a good combination for painting small items too.
I tend to remove small items from the sprue so I can clean up the piece before painting. To prevent the item from going walkies, I place a blob of Blue Tac on a lolly stick and push the piece into the Blue Tac to hold it steady.
I tend to remove small items from the sprue so I can clean up the piece before painting. To prevent the item from going walkies, I place a blob of Blue Tac on a lolly stick and push the piece into the Blue Tac to hold it steady.
dr_gn said:
I'm told you can also use Wynns Pink Windscreen wash too, but I haven't tried this yet.
In the US they have a thing called Windex which they use for the same purpose, could this be the local equivalent I wonder? I did try Somerfield Non-Smear Window Spray which worked ok. It's a sort of emerald green colour but doesn't seem to tint the paint.Paasche, deVilbiss etc are the racing Ferraris of the airbrush world. Fantastic precision engineering, but utterly lost on anyone who isn't a professional artist. Why not go for the equivalent of a Monaro or Mustang and get a cheap Chinese copy? You are paying external mix single-action money for a much much more capable internal mix dual action brush. Ebay is awash with them and they are perfectly usable brushes. I have had mine 2 years and it is still capable of far more than I am.
e.g. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PRECISION-AIRBRUSH-KIT-DOUBL...
£87:49 would get you 2 airbrushes plus a decent compressor with a tank: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/AIRBRUSH-COMPRESSOR-KIT-WITH...
It won't take many air cans before you could have paid for that compressor.
ETA: Obviously that's the UK, but whatever country you are in, there will be an equivalent.
e.g. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PRECISION-AIRBRUSH-KIT-DOUBL...
£87:49 would get you 2 airbrushes plus a decent compressor with a tank: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/AIRBRUSH-COMPRESSOR-KIT-WITH...
It won't take many air cans before you could have paid for that compressor.
ETA: Obviously that's the UK, but whatever country you are in, there will be an equivalent.
Edited by Zad on Thursday 5th November 17:54
Zad said:
I have one of those compressors, so I just measured it. 6ins wide, by a foot high and a foot long (including regulator / water trap).
Not massive, but pretty big for storing in my limited cupboard equipped flat. Is that the usual size for the compressors or are there smaller ones which aren't stupidly expensive?Edited by RacingPete on Thursday 5th November 19:38
You can get the same compressor without a tank, which is more or less half the size. However, this does mean the compressor has to run all the time, and you don't get quite the same smooth air flow. Some people run industrial compressed air or CO2 bottles, but I don't know how small they make those.
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