Thinking about adding a 3rd airbrush to my arsenal..

I've got two Iwatas and a Peak C-5 (Iwata knock off).  While all three are really good brushes they don't compare to the Harder & Steenbeck Evolution 2 in 1.  I got mine from Obeelik's.  Though overseas, excellent service, delivery and price.  With the Evolution you get two needle choices, two color cups.  The Evolution feels better and cleans faster than the Iwata.  Best of all, with the Evolution you can remove the needle from the front of the brush thus avoiding having to pull a dirty needle back through the airbrush body.  You owe it to yourself to check it out before you decide.

Sounds like a plan. I will check it out.

cbreeze wrote:

Best of all, with the Evolution you can remove the needle from the front of the brush thus avoiding having to pull a dirty needle back through the airbrush body.  You owe it to yourself to check it out before you decide.

You can pull the needle out the front on practically all airbrushes except the Badger 360 and Anthem.   

Get a Badger!

 

What you say is probably true with some degree of disassembly and some type of tool.  I looked at my Iwata and don't see how I could pull the needle through the front without taking the front apart.  With the Evolution, no special tools are needed.

The Evolution blows the competition away.

I just pull the needle out the back as it does not matter.

The needle bearing is there for a reason.

I am sure the Evolution is a nice airbrush but I will stick with American made airbrushes that are easy to get parts for.  

Chuck,

Saw your posting about the Harder and Steenbeck Evolution airbrush.  I have searched the web and have found other Iwata and H&S Evolution owners who prefer the H&S Evolution.  As a result, I'm seriously considering purchasing an Evolution FPC Silverline 2 in 1 from Obeeliks in Belgium.  Curious to know how your Evolution is holding up.  Also would appreciate some advice as to which nozzle/needle combinations I should go with:  .15mm and .4mm, or .4mm and .6mm.  Thanks for any info provided.

John R

OK I'll be the wet blanket. What do you want the third AB to do? The Sotar will do fine detail work, the Aztek might work() and you wanted a medium or wide coverage airbrush? Stick to looking at airbrushes designed for the job you need to do. Will your money be spent best if you have three AB's that do the same job? I could have the Badger 100LG, an Iwata Eclypse and a Harder& Steenbeck Evolution. Three good AB's but they all do the same thing. Just a thought. Greg

Devildog7381 wrote:

Chuck, Saw your posting about the Harder and Steenbeck Evolution airbrush.  I have searched the web and have found other Iwata and H&S Evolution owners who prefer the H&S Evolution.  As a result, I'm seriously considering purchasing an Evolution FPC Silverline 2 in 1 from Obeeliks in Belgium.  Curious to know how your Evolution is holding up.  Also would appreciate some advice as to which nozzle/needle combinations I should go with:  .15mm and .4mm, or .4mm and .6mm.  Thanks for any info provided. John R

If I were you, I'd begin with a .15 and .40 set, with a cap for each cup ( 2 ml  and 5 ml ) so it won't rain paint on your work (just in case) with the "first aid" : one extra nozzle of each, two extra needles of each. Take notice that the Evolution is fitted with a quick connect to the air supply in NW 2.7 gauge, so for the adaptation or the airhose. I own "older" (pre Silverline) models and adapted the FPC in approximately 1 min and 12 sec on each airbrush. I am nobody but one thing I can say is: the more I play with my airbrushes, the more I like my Evolutions, on the same row with top Badgers and top Iwatas.

Long ago, in 1981, the word for the presidential campaign in France for François Mitterrand was :"La Force Tranquille" ( The Quiet Strength ). Let's leave alone the history and politics, let's only keep the phrase; that's what my Evolutions make me think of : the quiet strength.

By the way, people at Obeeliks are very very nice.

Hope it will help you.

 

 

 

I needed a nice mid range brush. The limitations are:

 Aztek is nice, but every now and then I will get a sputter problem. The main issue with it, it cannot do fine detail work. Its a great airbrush though, it does the big work very easily. Also easy to clean up as well. Just unscrew the nozzle and drop in a paint jar of thinner.. done.

 The sotar is fantastic for detail work. It can dot the eyes of a 120mm figure its so fine. The main problem with it is the small cup. If you open the Sotar all the way up it will go through a cup in about 8 seconds. That really becomes a hassle having to remix paint constantly. Thats why I would use the Aztek.. but the Aztek just could not do small work. It would always have trouble.

 So I got the HP-CS and it arrived in the mail yesterday. Going to try it out today. I have an interior I need to do.

 

Things right off the bat.. it has a huge cup! With a lid... very cool. Cant wait to test it out. 

Congrats Ron on the purchase of the CS.

I think you will enjoy it very much.
After I got mine it became the AB I reach for more and more. From fine lines to overall coverage it performs smoothly.

Good luck and have fun!

I'd like to add a bit of info here instead of starting another topic if you don't mind.

There seems to be a lot of discuss constantly regarding - "I need another AB to do this or to do that, mine won't produce fine enough lines or details". Granted, certain AB's just aren't meant to produce such fine details. But in general most "quality" AB's can, sure gravity feed is better at it than bottom feeds. But don't forget, it's in the hands of the user that makes the biggest difference. I'd like to share an article that Don Johnson wrote on Airbrushing fine lines and details (yes there are pictures). So practice, practice, practice...

On another note regarding the Harder & Steenbeck AB's... Don't have to travel to Belgium any more, they are offered here in the U.S. now. Check out Mike's German Airbrush. Me likes the black 381. I need a raise in my allowance... oh, oh... Am I starting to get bit by the collect AB bug? What will become of my model collection then? 

Happy Modeling...

 

 

A little precision though about Mike German's Airbrush : it seems that he doesn't stock the Evolution which I think is the most versatile for what we need in modelling. As for Hansa, this company belongs to Harder & Steenbeck the same as Thayer & Chandler belongs to Badger, so you'll find the same quality, but they seem to be a bit "programmed" ( the big cup goes with a .30 needle, the little one with a .20, though you can add other gauges) As for Grafos, you must know that, apart from the side feed, the only gravity one is the T1 which has a little cup. Moreover, they are synchronised airbrushes (the more you pull the trigger, the more you get air/paint) so they have a different behavior. The Hansa Topline are built in the same way.I think this shop should stock Evolutions.As for the prices, an Evolution Two in One is a real bargain. 

i have a question

i don't own an airbrush and don't know anything really about them but.....

if you have a perfectly good working unit why would you want more then 1-2

 

Apart from the pleasure of owning a lot of different tools(toys?), I think it is because there is no universal airbrush as there is no universal car or plane.As for me, I will never be as rich as to own a sample of the most famous cars/planes/boats/guitars/paintings... but I could afford the most famous airbrushes and the bonus is that I can do something terrible or less terrible with them, and I may be a little mad, but for me owning something only to own it is near to a sin, whatever a sin can be, but I feel comfortable with getting another tool (in fact, I own some airbrushes twice and even one thrice, yes you guessed right it was an Evolution )

Well, I love this airbrush. It has worked fantastically. It goes wide and it goes small. Most importantly, it has a monster cup on it with a lid. Works great. It's relatively easy to clean. Nowhere near as easy as my Aztek, but I like it.

 The only problem I have so far is that it cramps up my hand. I am not used to the odd shape of it. I will get used to it though. The second time I used it it wasnt as bad.

 Now I am looking for that post about cleaning Iwatas and how often.