EVERY THING I NEED 2 KNOW ABOUT AIRBRUSHING?????????????

try not to leave the paint inside an airbrush for a long time. or else, the paint will start to clogg up the needle. you can still add more thinner to "wake up" the paint, but still, it can still hold a strong grip on the needle.

i have used enamel paints and tamiya acrylic paints. but i mostly use lacquer thinners to clean the airbrush. and even if i use lacquer thinners, there are small little acrylic and enamel paints that are stuck to the needle everytime i use the airbrush.

i need to take out the needle and wipe it off with a little thinner as well.

i seriously don't know the proffessional way to clean an airbrush though. especially the front of the airbrush where the paint shoots out from. how do you go inside the inside of the airbrush? so i am not 100% sure if thinner is all i can use to clean the airbrush.

as for consistancy of the paint, i guess it all matters on how you want it to look. in order for the paint to come out smoothly, i find that putting more thinner than paint helps i come out more smooth. sort of makes the paint come out more wet though. which may take a longer dryin curing time, if you shoot too much paint.

if you're gonna do detail painting, like masking off alot of parts, i found out that it is better off to use up alot of time to make it as perfect as possible to your liking, rather than just leave a sloppy paint sittin as your model.

i like to think paint as somewhat like food coloring. you only need to put a small amount so the entire thinner is pretty much the color that u want. i just let the thinner do the rest. but this is what i like.
masking is a pain. if i try to mask over tamiya acrylics after like 5 minutes, it sometimes works. sometimes the paint just chips off. so be very careful as to how much paint and how fast you apply the paint.
Fast = High Psi and how strong you pull that trigger.

bodner007s advice is excellent and you need to follow it. However you need to renumber the list and place Shermies advice at #1 and #7.

You really need to practice on a model for it all to work right. So find what I refer to as "paint hulks". I've got a couple that I've either screwed up so badly or have been damage so badly they aren't worth anything other than salvaging parts from. In addition, last summer I picked up a bunch of models at a yard sale for next to nothing. Was only interested in a couple of them but had to take them all. So now I have a bunch of old Frog, Airfix and Aoshima kits that once you strip out the wheels and props, aren't worth attempting to build. So I'll eventually slap them together and they'll end up with 150 coats of paint. (plus they're great to practice new things on, like scribing etc).

QUOTE: Originally posted by rkoenn I use only acrylics so far. I have a Paasche dual action and clean by spraying a cup of water through it after I am done painting. The next day I always need to clean the insides with the cleaning rod as the needle always is stuck. This is relatively easy to do though but I didn't know that when I first got my brush.

Try cleaning your airbrush with airbrush cleaner or the appropriate thinner for your paint. I use alcohol to clean Tamiya acrylics and I never have needle clogs. Water is not a good thinner or cleaner even though acrylics are "Water Based"

QUOTE: Originally posted by rkoenn I at first didn't use a thinner but am now using denatured alcohol to thin my Tamiya paints and it seems to help a bit, probably does help to keep the paint coating "thinner."

I almost exclusivly use Tamiya acrylics. I've found that thinning with alcohol sometimes leaves a gritty finish. (The paint dries before it hits the model) I prefer using the Tamiya thinner. They add some sort of agent that makes airbrushing finish much better. (I use a 3:1 paint:thinner ratio)

1) Religiously clean the airbrush when you are done.
2) Test your paints/thinner ratio. Different paint types and brands use different thinners and ratios of paint/thinner for airbrushing. (I always use the "Consistency of Milk" rule of thumb)
3) Use many light coats of paint. Don't try to cover the area with heavy color in one or two passes. The paint will pool-up and splatter.
4) Keep the brush moving. Never hang out in one spot for two long...or you'll get the same problem as in #3)
5) Let the paint cure before messing with it! (24-72 hours depending on paint type.)

Amendments:
a) Practice your masking techniques. I recommend:
- Tamiya masking tape
- Post-It notes for overspray protection and quick touch ups
- Parafilm-M for masking canopies or complex jobs. (this stuff is awsome) Always use a SHARP razor or exacto when cutting masks.
- Try using that low-tack rubber gum stuff people use to temporarily hang posters up. (also called blue-tac) Use little pieces of that to raise masked shapes (masking patterns) to give you a feather edge. Raise the edges up about 1 or 1/2 cm and spray perpendicular to the mask. If you don't, you'll spray under the mask...which is not good.

Take your time, practice and you'll get awsome results.

The most important thing about airbrushing

practice, practice, practice

I don't know exactly what to say as I am a relative novice also. However some things I have learned in the last year. I have noticed I tend to put on too much paint, too thick. Try to be moderate in applying the paint. I found I "fix" previous painting mistakes by painting over the mistake and that just adds to the thickness of the paint. I am trying to learn to stop doing this.

I use only acrylics so far. I have a Paasche dual action and clean by spraying a cup of water through it after I am done painting. The next day I always need to clean the insides with the cleaning rod as the needle always is stuck. This is relatively easy to do though but I didn't know that when I first got my brush.

I noticed also that when doing camoflage I would get a bit of overspray around the edges of the pattern. I wondered if this was normal, I thought it probably was, and the guy at the hobby shop said it was and is not controllable. If you want a tight edge on the camoflage then you need to cut a pattern to be applied and use it as a light "mask" while you spray. I suppose the overspray isn't really a problem as it doesn't look too bad. The "experts" here can probably say more on that.

I at first didn't use a thinner but am now using denatured alcohol to thin my Tamiya paints and it seems to help a bit, probably does help to keep the paint coating "thinner."

I am still learning, I have a long, long ways to go and as so many other posts have noted, practice is the key but the pointers here do help answer some of the questions.

Have fun, I am.

Congratulations on the new airbrush, there's nothing more rewarding than mastering an airbrush. From the sticky topic in this section there is a link for you, check this out, it's "ABC of airbrushing", most recommended: http://www.finescale.com/fsm/article.aspx?aId=287

Happy spraying!
/Marcus