Paashe VL

Hey Mose, glad to see you're fiddling around. To be honest, that's the only way to really learn. One thing you'll likely figure out is that if you want to spray really thin lines, then the paint needs to be quite thin and the pressure will need to be fairly low (8-10psi). I generally use the #3 needle and tip combination and find it is quite good for general use. Others will recommend using the #1 needle and tip. Try them both and see which one you like best. Personally, I found the #1 to be more...finicky. I switched to the #3 and found everyhing to work a bit smoother/better.

Good luck and have fun with your new toy.

Murray

Mose,
I have a paasche VL bought it about 9 yrs ago but have only used it twice...Well Im going to be using it alot more since my return to the hobby. I was in the LHS today talking with one of the guys about the airbrush and acrylics(Im switching over soon).

As far as cleaning murray pretty much hit it on the head!
Now about MM Acryls...Use distilled water to thin(Want it the consistency of milk as stated above)...thats what I have been told...Will it shoot straight from the jar?Sure at about 40 PSI....One other thing Bob(LHS) told me was badger makes a siphon filter...get one of these as acrylics can tend to clump...this filter will prevent your brush from clogging. They run 4-7 bucks depending on where you find it. You can take the red plug out of the top of the siphon filter and drop it right in a MM jar...perfect fit. He gave me some other tips but to be honest I dont remember them all....next time Im in Ill have him write them up and I'll post it here.

Chris

Thanks Murray! Actually I've been fooling around with it a bit. I thin with the tiniest amount of alcohol and it picks up fine. Also 15 lbs is the pressure I settled on! I really like the double action. I can point right at where I want the paint and just ease the trigger back to paint. Couldn't do that with the single action Aztec!! Thanks for the needle info. All the "manual" said was to insert the needle until it was visable at the tip(???). "Gotta go do some masking. The camo looks good on the Sturmovick, but now it needs a blue sky bottom!

Mose,

Here's a few points to get you going...

1. Congrats on your new purchases. I've had a VL for several years and it hasn't disappointed me. It takes some time to get used to, but all in all it's a trusty tool that is very versatile.
2. Pressure ratings really depend on the paint and it's consistency. If your paint is really thin, then you'll likely use a lower air pressure like 8-10 psi at the least. If it's thicker, you will likely use anywhere from 15-25 psi to get the paint out. In some cases, you may go even higher, but I haven't found alot of need for anything over 25 psi. If you're looking for a 'starting' pressure, try 15 and work around that.
3. I haven't used MM Acrylic paints, but you'd likely be better off to thin it rather than shoot it right from the bottle. I assume that alcohol will work, but perhaps other forum members have more experience with this paint. I think you'll find that paints will flow best through an airbrush if they're thinned to the consistency of skimmed milk (if you're in doubt, go buy some skim milk and put it in your airbrush jar/color cup to get an idea of the consistency. Dip a brush into the milk and watch how it runs off the brush. Take a toothpick and 'drag' it up the side of the color cup to see how it runs down the side of the cup. You'll get the idea pretty quick.)
4. When you clean the needle, be sure to clean the rest of the airbrush parts too. When I put it back together, I put the small brass 'cone' and it's matching piece onto the airbrush first. Then, I insert the needle. On my VL, there's a slight bit of resistance to the needle when it hits the 'seal'. Go slow and push the needle past the seal and slowly keep pushing it until it seats into the brass 'cone' that is already installed. I just nudge it up so it meets the cone and then tighten the screw at the back of the brush so the needle is locked in.

Hope that gives you a start. Just remember one thing. Using a tool like this is a bit more of an art than a science. A lot of the paint consistency and pressure stuff is more from experience and feel than anything else. Keep asking questions though, there's a lot of accomplished artists here willing to share what they've learned. As for myself, well I'm still learning too.

Enjoy your new set-up.

Murray