The fun begins!

Bgrigg wrote:

Yeah, not the most exciting video, but wow, what a nice airbrush!

Yes it is but then again so are many others. I really don't see the attraction to these overpriced airbrushes but that's just me. For close to $300 the thing should be able to paint itself.

keilau wrote:

MikeV wrote: Skootching eh Bill? I need to write that one down as well. As Bill said, the closer you get the smaller the airbrush will paint. With practice you can get 1/4" away from the surface for the finest lines but it takes practice.  The alternative is to get an Harder & Steenbeck Infinite airbrush. See the Youtube video.

I almost fell asleep watching that video.

Postal wrote:

I am finally about to start my adventure into airbrushing, just got news that my Iwata HP-C+ is waiting on my doorstep and I already have the Sparmax TC610/h/ compressor.  My housemate will also be doing airbrushing with me, do you think this compressor will be powerful enough to operate 2 airbrushes simultaneously...fingers crossed :S  Below are the specs of the unit.

Postal, you get plenty of compressor for two. However, the Iwata HP-C Plus may need a very steep learning curve. The very small nozzle (0.19 mm) is more suitable for ink and watercolors used by artist. I don't have the C Plus. I have the HP-CS which has a 0.35 mm nozzle and I still have dried tip problem now and then. 

Some modeler perfer more open nozzle such as the 0.76 mm one on the Badger 100LG or the 0.5 mm one on the Iwata HP-CR.

MikeV wrote:

Skootching eh Bill? I need to write that one down as well. As Bill said, the closer you get the smaller the airbrush will paint. With practice you can get 1/4" away from the surface for the finest lines but it takes practice.

The alternative is to get an Harder & Steenbeck Infinite airbrush. See the Youtube video.

Skootching eh Bill? I need to write that one down as well.

As Bill said, the closer you get the smaller the airbrush will paint. With practice you can get 1/4" away from the surface for the finest lines but it takes practice. 

Postal wrote:

I also ment to ask, is there any adjustment on the airbrush to get fine line, i.e. the needle chuck part or do you just hold the brush close the to model and only use a little paint?

On a dual action you leave the needle alon, and use the trigger to vary the amount of paint volume. Skootching (that be a highly technical airbrushing phrase, so write it down) up real close helps. I thin my paint a bit more than usual and drop the air pressure a tiny bit, as well.

I also ment to ask, is there any adjustment on the airbrush to get fine line, i.e. the needle chuck part or do you just hold the brush close the to model and only use a little paint?  I have the pressure at 20psi wen the trigger is depressed, is this appropriate.

Postal wrote:

Hi Mike, I appreciate that, I just feel the paint is wrong or the mix is wrong if the tip is drying so fast, either way I persisted last night and painted the trailer for my Flak gun and wow the finish is flawless compared to brush application.

Tip dry is a fact of life when airbrushing acrylics. You can get some retarder and add a drop or two to your airbrush and mix it in to help slow the tip dry. That is one reason I like an airbrush where the tip of the needle is exposed and you can get to it with your fingernails and scrape the paint off it while blowing air through the airbrush. That is an old T-shirt airbrushing trick.

Hi Mike, I appreciate that, I just feel the paint is wrong or the mix is wrong if the tip is drying so fast, either way I persisted last night and painted the trailer for my Flak gun and wow the finish is flawless compared to brush application. 

It takes practice, lots of practice to become a proficient airbrusher.

Keep practicing as skill takes time as with anything else. 

Hmm, well it didnt go well really....  I loaded up the gun with some Vallejo Game Colour and a fair ammount of water, consistency or skim milk.  I start spraying and it seems to be working okay, then after a very shjort time the paint virtually stops.  I pull the front of the gun off and there is dry paint on it.  I take the paint off with a rag and it seems to work okay but then another 20-30 sec later and its dry again.  It does not seem to matter how much water I put in the paint it will just keep doing it.  I am wondering if i should try another brand of paint? 

Also I am finding fine lines hard to do, is this done by just holding the airbrush right up next to the paper?  There was actually a piece of paper in the airbrush case which looks like a test piece from the factory and it has some extremely thin lines on it. 

Does anyone know of any videos or documentation on how to use the HP-C+, the Japanese instructions that came with it arnt much help......