Airbrushing PE

chatles

Is there a trick to airbrushing screen/grill PE with acrylics. I have and usually end up with some of the screen openings painted over and plugged up.

There's a number of possibilities:

(a) Your paint hasn't been thinned sufficiently

(b) You're laying the paint down too heavily

(c) both of the above

As a response to your second part, did you mix the paint well? Sometimes even with acrylics the pigment settles, perhaps it just wasn't throughly mixed.

Indeed painting fine screens are a problem, whether airbrush, rattle can, or paint brush.  You have to put on a very thin coat, which means quickly. I even prime my PE with a rattle can primer, but I use a really quick shot (one of those watch want to see it again things).  At least with an airbrush you can dial down the paint flow so you don't need to be quite so quick.  Also, if you do bridge some holes of the mesh, blow hard on the PE immediately.  With the rattle can I have to use my breath.  With a DA airbrush you can just get close and use pure air blast, no paint.