Airbrush FAQ/Tutorial

The first thing you want to consider after you've decided you want an airbrush is what kind of airbrush you need. There are two types; single action and double action airbrushes. Single action airbrushes have, as one might gather from its name, a single "action" you can perform with the trigger; pressing it down to make the paint spray out at a set size/rate. Double action airbrushes allow you two "actions" to control paint flow; depressing the trigger (Causes the airbrush to spray only air, no paint) and pulling it back to make the paint flow. You can affect the amount of paint coming out and the size of the area you cover; pulling the trigger back a little will cause a little paint to come out and cover a very small area, pulling the trigger back all the way will make a lot of paint spray out and cover a larger area.

Double action and single action airbrushes obviously have their pros and cons. Single action airbrushes are easy to clean, simple to use and are pretty cheap to purchase. They do not, however, offer you the delicate control over paint flow that a double action airbrush provides. So if you want to do preshading/MAX-style shading, you'd be better off with a double action airbrush. Double action airbrushes can be expensive, depending on what you want (Really, you don't need an overly expensive/complex airbrush set-up to get nice results.), and require more maintenance than single action airbrushes. However, the wide range of effects you can create with a double action airbrush really outshines any of the cons if you ask me. Single action airbrushes are good for learning the ropes, but if you want fine control, double action is the way to go.

Within double action and single action airbrushes, there are 2 other options to consider; internal mix or external mix. Internal mix airbrushes mix the air and paint together inside the airbrush right before it is sprayed, and external mix airbrushes mix the paint and air outside the airbrush. Double action airbrushes are usually the former (Though there is an exception, more on that shortly) and single action airbrushes are usually the latter. The external mixing of paint and air outside the airbrush in single action airbrushes is the reason why they are easier to clean. Double action airbrushes have to be partially disassembled for a thorough cleaning, and some parts have to be oiled from time to time. Still, that shouldn't put you off from buying a double action airbrush; airbrushes in general are not terribly complex creatures :). And that exception to the internal mix rule for double action airbrushes? It's the Paasche AB. But as you can see from reading, it's primarily used for retouching photo negatives, not something you'd really use for painting a model kit. For the curious, my personal airbrush set-up is an Iwata air compressor (Smart Jet compressor, though I am hoping to upgrade to a Power Jet very soon) and an Iwata Eclipse (bottle feed, double action) airbrush. I like the Eclipse series in general because it gives a really wide spray pattern with one nozzle and needle (Pencil line to 2 inch diameter, I believe), and the bigger needle/nozzle size means I can spray heavy paints, like paints with pearl pigments in it. I used to use a Badger single action airbrush to spray topcoats, but now just use the Eclipse because I like the control it gives me. Other brands I've heard good things about are Paasche and Aztek.

One more thing to consider before we get into air source discussion is whether you want a bottle feed or a top feed airbrush. With a bottle feed, you'd pour the paint you want to spray into a bottle, then attach it (usually) to the bottom of the airbrush. With top feed aibrushes, you pour the paint into either a small notch in the top of the airbrush, or more commonly, into a small color cup located either on the top or side of the airbrush. The main pro to bottle feed airbrushes is that you can work with a large amount of paint in one session, while its main drawback is that if you only have a little bit of paint left, you kind of have to get inventive if you want to spray every last bit of it. Top feed airbrushes are really great for spraying that aforementioned tiny amount of paint, but its main con is that you can generally work with a little paint at a time. The solution? Buy one of each :p! While that's not an option for everyone, I personally prefer bottlefeed airbrushes; sometimes I don't get my airbrush completely in the holder when I put it down and it slips out. If it were a top feed airbrush, my paint would go all over the place, but since it's in a bottle, the paint stays where it should. And, like all good modelers should, it's a good idea to get in the habit of mixing too much paint for a model than too little; you can then avoid running into the "tiny bit of paint left, but the bottle's nozzle can't reach it" problem. Now, onto air source discussion