Help needed regarding airbrusing process

Hello to everybody...many thanks for your comments and best wishes...I'll take into account all your suggestions, try to adquire some bigger cups and do a youtube research, also I have already read many of the FSM post and How to videos availabe, I have bought also some styrene shhets and I will practice there...let you know what happens....an many thanks again

Very important!  If you have not airbrushed before, practice on scrap plastic for awhile before going after the model!  I would do at least a half hour of practice- an hour is better, getting the feel of it.  So many folks ruin a model trying out a brand new airbrush.

I also recommend practice first if you change airbrushes, or types of paint.

Enamels (real enamels not acrylic enamels) take anywhere from an hour for flats to days for gloss.  For gloss enamel I made a heated drying box that speeds up process to a couple of hours.

If the paint is dry, you can airbrush any paint ove any other paint, acrylic over enamel, enamel over acrylic, laquer (Testor's gloss/dull coat) over acrylic or enamel. I've done all of the above with no problems. I paint mostly with acrylics and seal all my kits with Testor's Dull Coat with no problems.

For your big Stuka, consider getting a larger reservoir or a bottle from an Iwata dealer. If you mix too much paint, you can dispose the excess. Paint is your cheapest product.

Before investing a lot of time on a large kit and risking a bad finish, take a junker kit, or find a cheap one to slap together to get the feel of the airbrush. there is a learning curve here. If you don't have a junker, pick up some Plastruct card stock, or even an toy to practice on.

Keep your nozzle close to the surface to avoid overspray. Do a search on Youtube for tutorials. I just did a quick look and there are plenty. Even if it doesn't reference your brush, the techniques are teh same for just about any brand.

Hi Paco7425,

In addition to what Nathan posted, I'll add the following:

paco7425

   Hello Friends:

 

 I would appreciate your help regarding my following beginner’s level questions, I will use for the first time in my life an airbrush (It’s an IWATA Eclipse HP SBS Double action, that I bought 11 years ago and remains packed). I will try it on a Hasegawa 1/32 Stuka JU87 B., but:

Wow, 11 years! Great airbrush practice and start using it.

1.- How much paint do I have to prepare for painting the entire model in a single base color?, The airbrush has a 1/8 oz cup,  How many cups do I require in your experience?.

I've only done a single 1/32 model but I mixed 1/2 ounce of paint (50-50 acrylic and thinner) and had some left when I was finished. If you thin and then spray thin coats you won't use a lot of paint.

2.- I read that It’s advise to apply many thin layers of same color paint until you are satisfied, Do I have to wait days until the previous layer is dried in order to apply the new one?, or it could be applied in the same day?.

With acrylics you don't have to wait long between coats (I sometime hasten drying with a hair dryer) because the coats usually dry quickly - 5 minutes between coats is more than enough. Enamel takes a lot longer to dry - in my experience a day or two.

3.- Mostly of the paints for the model are acrylic but I couldn’t get an acrylic color for another color used in the fuselage, Could I use Enamel instead for that color?, Could I combine enamel and acrylic paints in the same model?.

Yes, you can use different types of paints on the same model. If using acrylics and enamel, I would enamel first then spray acrylic.

saludos and thanks in advance for your supporting.

Have fun!!

Its hard to tell how much paint you will use, as it depends upon how much thinner you add,and how thin you apply the paint. What brand of paints do you have available? Just guessing on a 1/32 stuka, you would have to fill your 1/8oz cup up at least 2 or 3 times?? You can mix and match types of paint. Just wait until the previous layer is good and dry.

As far as re-coating time, it depends on the brand. You want to add the next coat as soon as the paint looses its tackyness, and is just barely tacky, and no longer has a wet look to it. This could be a matter of minutes, or even 30 seconds. For slow drying enamels or gloss coats, this could be 10-15min. or even up to 30 min.