Airbrushing Craft Paint

You will find people that swear by them and others that swear at them!

I think its one of those things where you just have to practice and work with craft paints to find the sweet spot. Basicly figuring out the paint-thinner ratio and what thinner to use. May not be the same for all craft paints.

I use craft acrylics (FolkArt, Apple Barrel, Anita's etc) almost exclusively an am quite happy with them. Sometimes I prime and sometimes not -  I do when I anticipate a lot of masking though I don't think it necessary. Adhesion can be a problem but I always add GAC 200 when thinning (helps adhesion) and I thin with 1) Future, 2) airbrush medium, 3)windshield wiper fluid or 4) very infrequently just plain water. I clean the AB with Windex or Purple Power and spray water as a final step. If I end up with dry paint in the cup I use acetone or lacquer thinner on a rag to wipe it off. I usually do a thorough AB clean after each painting session. Some craft colors can be an exact match for our model needs but generally not so mixing to match can be a bain to some or, like me, another aspect of the hobby. The only craft 'color' that I haven't found is silver so I use Alclad when I need silver.

Yes I have but..........You need to prime the part (s) first before spraying otherwise the paint will scratch off or lift if masking. I decant Krylon primers and use that for the primer coat. I have mixed some acrylic retarder and flow improver along with Testors Universal Acrylic thinner and it sprayed ok with a regular tipped Badger. I have also thrown in Future in the mix to get a glossy or semi glossy surface for pin washes.