Airbrushing for a beginner

Those brushes just need a little tuning up and they should work fine then. Now I do a couple of things different than the guy in the video but same principle. I polish the needle with fine steel wool and I bees wax the threads rather than out side the nozzle. Something he doesn't show is you can also deburr and polish the trigger. anyway here's the link for the vid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkqCwc5-tbA

Hi BB - welcome to the world of airbrushing! I started (Christmas before last) with a similar kit, compressor almost identical to yours, but with just the one airbrush.  I watched every video & read every article I could find, and the wisdom I managed to distil was: paint thinned to a milky consistency, medium pressure, steady movement of the brush, and - as has been said here several times - practice.  I still use the original brush, although I also now have a better quality one, and I'm still practicing - it's great fun!

    Happy modelling,

              Hutch.

I bought the same set up.... The compressor itself works like a dream(for what it is)... However did find the brushes more of a freebie than part of the kit.. And very quickly found myself upgrading the brush to a badger... Hope all works out for you.. Good luck and enjoy 

Air pressure & thinning...... and patience.

Got my kit yesterday. Cant wait to get her set up and start airbrushing!

Wingman_kz

That's great that you were able to try out a friends setup. Airbrushing is a lot of fun. I'm sure you'll have your moments with it but hang with it. It's just a matter of experimenting and practicing. Enjoy!

 

And experimenting and practicing, and practicing, and practicing ad infinit...

Well I wish you well with it !!! Let us know how it goes for ya.

So my buddy has the exact same airbrush kit from amazon that I put a link to in the first post. The other day I went over and we mixed some paint and he let me try it out. I was immediately hooked and I see why so many people prefer airbrushing. 

I caught right on and was painting in no time. Then I was on the hunt for the kit to purchase. I ended up finding this kit from TCP global and purchased it. It should be here next week. 

https://tcpglobal.com/products/abd-kit-3ab-20?variant=20829249765446

Spray cans for the hull wouldn't be the greatest sin on earth lol. That's a lot of area to shoot with an airbrush unless you know it well and know it can do a good wet 3 inch swath ( pattern) or better.

Save your money, time and effort and get a great product that will last a life time and will not break the bank. Get a simple and efficient Badger, preferably a gravity fed one. I bought my Badger 150 back in the middle 1970s and it still works like new. I own several models and I love them all.

Here is my review of that airbrush.  Maybe that will be useful.  I can't imagine using it to paint a 5 foot model.  A Paasche H would be more efficient, but I think I would try the spray can.

Don

There is something intriguing about these Master sets. Personally if to go that route I'd spend the extra $ 50 or $60 and get the next kit up because the compressor has a tank. Then later on you don't have to be concerned if you get a brush like the Paasche H which has unrestricted airflow and could pulsate on the compressor with no tank ( you would need an adapter to Paasche or to Badger for that matter for the airline but that's a common occurance anyway). If you're going to be shooting 5' long hulls you're gonna want an airbrush that can both push some volume and a fairly wide pattern. This Master with the large needle might do that but I can't address that not knowing the brand...

I've seen videos of how to tune up chinese airbrushes. It basically boils down to sealing mating surfaces and threads out in the nozzle area with bees wax and polishing the needles with a little rubbing compound or some ultra fine sand paper. Deburr the trigger and lube with some glycerin. Then they spray really pretty decent, actually very well. Now I'm not familiar with these Master brushes but I've taken that advise I saw about the Chinese brushes and even applied it to name brands and to my Ganzton Iwata knock off . No harm done and I feel like maybe even those spray a little better.

Then there is the thought of spraying a 5 ft hull with spray cans lol ! To be honest I'd probably do that if in your shoes unless you are just flat out ready to take on the airbrush routine.. I've painted many a large model and more with spray cans, no shame in that.

Another thing to look at is to go through"Don's Airbrush Tips".  Lots of good information there and he is a member here and pops in often.

I got a NEO from Hobby Lobby for my first a/b, and am very happy with it. I think they have gone back to being able to use the 40% coupon on them, but under $100 either way

Since you are aware of the pitfalls of less expensive products, this setup should be fine to get you a feel of airbrushing. It will not be as easy or as high quality is better items, so if this is understood then go ahead, it will paint models fairly well. Remember that you will still need to learn about thinning paints appropraietly, finding the best air pressures for paints that you use and will need thorough cleaning after every session. Let us know what you do and how it works out for you. Be prepaired, you will still be told that it's not worth it and you should invest in this or that item but if you are really on a budget, ignore that and go with this setup.

I started with a similar starter kit from Point Zero that came with the same type of compressor, still using the compressor, nice and quiet, but eventually upgraded air brush. In my opinion that starter kit shoud give you a good base to start with. You'll probably upgrade your brush within a year but that's all you'll have to upgrade. You'll never look back once you start with the airbrush. Good Luck