Alert, Alert!! Newb here.

I use a Snap-On airbrush, which is basicly a copy of your VL. My tip " builds up " when I am using too much pressure. Try turning down the pressure. I find (depending on the paint I am shooting) that 10-15 psi works great.....

Don't use paper for practice as paper is pourus. use plastic, like empty milk jugs, trays, anything that has a flat surface and is "plastic".. old models will also suffice.

Kevin - Createx is an acrylic and I think you are experiencing what is called 'tip dry'... the paint dries at the tip as it is coming out of the brush eventually forming a blockage.

What I do is keep a little shot glass of acrylic thinner or even windex with a q-tip in it. every so often, especially if I notice the spray getting fuzzy or lighter I wipe the tip of the airbrush... be sure to pull back the needle before you wipe the tip (and don't press down on the trigger! )

That should help you a lot. It is the bane of painting with acrylics but I think they more than make up in other ways.

Another few things that help are needle lube, available from www.dixieart.com or www.greatmodels.com, they are named Regdab needle juice and Medea Super Lube.

The second thing that works well with acrylics is a retarder, it slows the drying time a bit so there is usually less tip dry. You can get that at Hobby Lobby and Michaels and other art stores. Golden airbrush medium and Liquitex airbrush medium are the name of just two of several brands out there. A few drops in your paint and it will help you spray and have a nicer even coat when it does dry...

QUOTE: Originally posted by KrazyKevin 1 Talking Createx opaque black, is this paint considered thin, medium, or thick? 2. Depending on the answer above, what pressure should I shoot this at? 3. Does what I'm painting go into what pressure I shoot at?

Everything tho9900 said is spot on. That being said, you can get a baseline from us, but you are going to need to find what works for you.

There are three basic variables when airbrushing. Thinner, Air Pressure & Distance. You have to tweak what works for you. The basic premise is like this...

More thinner / Less air pressure / spraying close = fine lines / less paint / less coverage (If you go overboard here, the paint will be thin and run all over)

Less thinner / more air pressure / spraying far = thick lines / more paint / more coverage (If you go overboard here, the paint will be thick dry up before it hits the model, causing a gritty finish)

now, the tricky part is you can mess with al these variable and find different combos to get the "result" you want.

My advice: Experiment and Practice, like luis_420925 said, on something non-porous...like plastic or even an old model.

Good Luck!

Thanks to all of you. I would have replied sooner, but my internet was down yesterday. Createx, from the bottle, does it need to be thinned that much? On a thickness scale of 1 - 10, where is it compared to other airbrush paints? I thought when you bought a airbrush paint, that it was ready to shoot. Thanks again for all the help guys.


Kevin

Kevin - I haven't sprayed models with Createx.. so I can;t help ya there... not all paints even those advertised as airbrushed ready are ready to airbrush with... I use Valljo paints mostly (acrylic) and even though they are advertised as airbrush paints it still says to thin with 10% distilled water of a 3:1 ratio of their branded thinner.. go figure!

You might want to see if createx has a site and if they have thinning ratios and such. you might try that retarder I mentioned, most art stores have them by the artists acrylic paints... I can get them at both Hobby Lobby and Michaels... With more practice you will learn it.. don't worry!


Oh yeah did I mention practice is a good thing to do?

you know I just forgot... my wife bought a bottle of createx crylic paint awhile back and wanted me to airbrush a Tshirt for her.. compared to the modeling paint I shoot I would consider it somewhat thick.... check on the bottle for what they recommend to thin it with,. or their website... if nothing else distilled water is good to try... but start at like a 2:1 ratio of thinner, if it still seems thick try 3:1 etc... find what works for you...

basically you want to get it till it is like milk... not real thin and watery but when you tip the bottle you mix it in, the paint will leave a little residue on the side of the bottle..

Good luck!!!