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Airbrush advice

edsr

edsr

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Joined
Oct 7, 2017
Messages
415
Location
Cheltenham
This is what I pulled out of my stocking at Christmas and I’m finally getting around to looking at it.

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The manual is in Chinglish so might as well go in the bin.

I think I need:

1. Some sort of paint starter set that comes with some colours I can mix - people mentioned The Range?
2. A colour wheel
3. Some newspaper to practice on and for masking up
4. Masking tape
5. Some frisket paper for when I’m feeling brave enough to point it at my pinball machine cabinet (I don’t think they do stencils for Baywatch)
6. Xacto knife

I’ve heard that acrylics are the way forward as they will wipe off if I mess up. And then clear coat over the top to toughen the finish.

Questions:

So these acrylics are water based and I don’t need any special thinners?

Are there any health and safety issues spraying with an air brush in your living areas?

Are there any good how-to guides for getting a complete noob started? (I mean total noob; what are all the different adjustable knobs for etc) The last time I used one was ironically the same year my BW was rolled off the production line during my GCSEs!

Should I be looking to touch up and blend-in small areas or spray the whole section of that colour?

How do you do fine lines? Draw them on after? I’m really referring to this bit which is looking like it might be fiddly...

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The Createx range of paints spray straight from the bottle and cover really well. I got a set of 6 opaque from fleabay for about £28.
 
That looks like a iwata knock off. The knob under the paint cup is to control the amount of paint the one on the back is to control how far you can pull back the trigger.
Depending on which acrylics you end up using will depend on what you have to thin them with (not all acrylics are water based). You can clean out the airbrush with IPA. If you use createx they need to be heat cured
 
I love this forum. Not even got up and four people have tried to help me. Cheers fellas! I’ll post the results soon. Happy Friday [emoji482]


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astyy said:
Good luck my NIB airbrush from last September is still NIB.

I found this very useful to explain mixing colours
Click to expand...

Thanks man - great resource - feeling like an expert already ;)


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Thanks all for the messages and comments.

I’ve got a few more questions having done some further reading and with one eye on an amazon basket...

Sandpaper - 600 grit to prime any existing paint we are spraying on to?

Createx paints? Damn they’re expensive. I guess I need a set of primary opaque colours like this? https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000NW182O/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_Do7yAbFMWNFS8

These are the original colours I need to put back on. http://www.ipdb.org/showpic.pl?id=2848&picno=8134


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The Creatix paints are cheaper on eBay at £28 but they do need to be cured with heat. I brought my set to do playfield repairs with a clearcoat over the top.
You may need to look into different paints if you are doing cabinet repairs without clearcoating afterwards.
 
Toxteth O'Grady said:
The Creatix paints are cheaper on eBay at £28 but they do need to be cured with heat. I brought my set to do playfield repairs with a clearcoat over the top.
You may need to look into different paints if you are doing cabinet repairs without clearcoating afterwards.
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Thanks that’s a good point. I was planning on using createx and then putting a couple of gloss clear coats, followed by one Matt clear coat (apparently gloss is tougher but it’s a satin finish on the cabinet).

But I did read a post from vid on Pinside about using ‘house paint’ but this involves taking a colour sample (I.e the cabinet!) to the paint shop to be colour matched and assume US house paint is for timber and not masonry, so may now be an option over here.

Definitely want to do this right and would be good to avoid having to CC the whole cab if I’m just touching-in a few small areas, so would welcome any tips!
 
^^ That's good news, I took scraps of paint to the shop to match and bought the closest to start. Then took photos of which mix worked.

I'm unclear as to whether you should airbrush indoors? I see people doing it but @Moonbus crop dusted his whole house yellow :tut:

Tbh, edsr for your cabinet damage I'd have probably touched it up with brushes.

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Haha yeah I read that on @Moonbus thread and laughed as I did exactly the same thing (with black) having just bought a new set of (white) dining chairs. Oh yes, she was in awe of my skills that day.

I’m thinking from what moonbus has told me, (unless I can get a clear decal made up with the outlines for the bubbles on) I will probably shoot the blocks of colour (see how ‘pro’ I’m *sounding*!) and then do the bubbles using a fine artist brush and an acrylic template with the different size circles on.

It’s the orange sunset on the side that’s going to be a royal PITA, because it’s got a gradient to it - gonna take some time practicing that one!


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RudeDogg1 said:
Personally I wouldn't bother with createx paint. Any good quality acrylic will be fine
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thanks Rude, can you recommend a cheaper yet good quality acrylic brand? Someone mentioned The Range in another thread..?


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That may have been me, I buy acrylics from The Range typically Reeves but in the above case their Winsor & Newton had a better match. Our Range has a bin where they sell tubes off cheap that are squished or have some paint on.
 
astyy said:
That may have been me, I buy acrylics from The Range typically Reeves but in the above case their Winsor & Newton had a better match. Our Range has a bin where they sell tubes off cheap that are squished or have some paint on.
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Sweet. That sounds like a sensible place to start. And I can drag the family down there under the pretence that we are shopping for nic nacs and other stylish home decor.
 
Well I airbrush inside all the time no probs here. I have a lil sorry booth tho. I wouldn't use a sorry gun inside tho unless in a garage. Which I'm assuming is what moon bus was using as a airbrush wouldn't normally do that.

Windsor and newton are very good I use them for everything as well as model paints. Any good quality model paints are good like Vallejo. What ever you use unless it's pre thinned you want to thin it so it's the consistency of milk and about 20-25psi. I thin using my homemade thinners which is 1/3 IPA, 2/3 water, 10 mm retarder, 10 mm flow improver
 
RudeDogg1 said:
Well I airbrush inside all the time no probs here. I have a lil sorry booth tho. I wouldn't use a sorry gun inside tho unless in a garage. Which I'm assuming is what moon bus was using as a airbrush wouldn't normally do that.

Windsor and newton are very good I use them for everything as well as model paints. Any good quality model paints are good like Vallejo. What ever you use unless it's pre thinned you want to thin it so it's the consistency of milk and about 20-25psi. I thin using my homemade thinners which is 1/3 IPA, 2/3 water, 10 mm retarder, 10 mm flow improver
Click to expand...

Boom. Nice one Rude - that’s just the ticket. Appreciate the help [emoji106]


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I was reading another thread that said you could use humbrol paints to spray cabinets and not have to Clear coat after. Being new to this I bottled it and went for the createx (so I can wipe off if I mess up) ones on eBay as recommended by @Toxteth o’grady as these were the cheapest/good option that had all the primary colours needed to mix any colour and match it.

Does anyone know if these need thinning, and whether any other potions or accessories are needed - any tips for cleaning the brush after use etc?
 
edsr said:
I was reading another thread that said you could use humbrol paints to spray cabinets and not have to Clear coat after. Being new to this I bottled it and went for the createx (so I can wipe off if I mess up) ones on eBay as recommended by @toxteth o’grady as these were the cheapest/good option that had all the primary colours needed to mix any colour and match it.

Does anyone know if these need thinning, and whether any other potions or accessories are needed - any tips for cleaning the brush after use etc?
Click to expand...

If I remember rightly yes they need thinning. Need to be the consistently of milk. And remember createx paints need to be cured with a lil heat. To clean empty the paint cup and wipe it out. Pour in a lil water using a paint brush give the inside of the cup a good going over, then with the water still in the cup put our finger over the end of the nozzle cover and push the trigger down and back slightly as if you were spraying paint (this is called back washing). Empty cup and wipe out, pour in a small amount of cleaner (I use Medea airbrush cleaner) but u can use IPA or any other airbrush cleaner do the same as with the water but u can pull the trigger further back. Empty and wipe. Run a cup full of cleaner through. Carefully remove the needle and clean it off. Pour cleaner in the cup and back wash if clean just shoot it through. That's if u have finished a session if you are just changing colour just clean the yup out and shoot a cup of cleaner through it
 
Thanks Rude, that’s most helpful - I’ll update when I finally get to fire her up! :)


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I'm actually waiting for a second airbrush to arrive which I'm just gonna use for primer, clear and maybe base coat. It's got great reviews and is a good workhorse. About a third of the price of a high end one but still miles better than a China knock off.

https://www.umpretail.com/ I got one for about £20 cheaper because it had a couple cosmetic scratches on the outside
 
edsr, have you fired the bad boy up yet and blasted some air through it? I still haven't, it was a birthday present and 6 months later I'm starting to get looks as its still not out the box:tut:
 
astyy said:
edsr, have you fired the bad boy up yet and blasted some air through it? I still haven't, it was a birthday present and 6 months later I'm starting to get looks as its still not out the box:tut:
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Tonight’s the night @astyy

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NFI what I’m doing but there’s some paint open! I’ve spent most of the evening on google and YouTube trying to work out what the hell im doing.

I’ve bought some createx in the end and some createx 4030 to mix with it - by the sounds of it, I may be able to avoid using clear over the top if I use this 4030 stuff to thin it - it’s a kind of clear urathane to help flow the paint and make it more durable.


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