Air Compressor Tip Request - New To Airbrushing

Shadoweclipse13

Shadoweclipse13

New Member
Hey guys!

So, I decided that I'm finally gonna take the plunge and get into airbrushing for my painting needs. I've got a few pistol and SW lightsaber hilt kits and really want to paint them. I've been perusing posts on hereand decides, per suggestions from you fine folks (and on a recommendation of Adam Savage per a tested video) to grab a Paasche H-series single-action airbrush.

But I was wondering about the compressor. I'm a hobbyist woodworker and professionally a boiler room operator and industrial mechanic, so I've got plenty of tools at home, including a small air compressor. I plan on upgrading it whenever we buy a house, but since we are only in an apartment for the moment, I've already got a little Bostitch 6-gallon 150-psi pancake compressor. It's got multiple output ports, so I could get some smaller quick-connect hose connectors from Grainger or the like, to fit the airbrush hose (and wouldn't have to remove my 1/4" stuff for general shop use). My question is: what pressure should I use for airbrushing? I didn't know if the pressure being too high could damage the airbrush itself, and obviously don't want to be fighting myself just trying to paint either.
 
If you don't already have one, a regulator with a moisture trap is important.
Working pressure for most air brushes is 30 psi. To achieve some splatter/speckling effects
you'll turn the pressure down even lower, and you definitely want to keep the moisture in the air
stream to a minimum.
 
Pressure should be set according to paint type. Usually it's 30PSI to 40PSI. Also, a moisture trap is a must to avoid burst of water into your paint while airbrushing.

Edit: I was slower in my answer; Cappy beats me to it;)
 
Thanks for the replies guys!!

My little compressor has a built-in regulator, but doesn't have any sort of moisture trap or filtering, so I'll get one for that.

And thanks for the psi settings you use!! As for paint-specific settings, I'll most likely be using Mission Model paints, but I haven't bought any yet.
 
It all depends. Paint viscosity, acrylics vs enamels, nozzle size, coverage you're shooting for, and even brand all change your needs. Best advice is mix up extra paint and shoot on a piece of carboard before you put it on plastic to dial it in. I keep a mostly completed, messily assembled model as a test bed to try new paint mixes and techniques out on. Kind of looks technicolor after a while.
 
I'm just starting to take airbrushing seriously myself and I agree with Chrgr440RT that you should start with that piece of cardboard first. Also, thin your paint!
 
Chrgr440RT said:
It all depends. Paint viscosity, acrylics vs enamels, nozzle size, coverage you're shooting for, and even brand all change your needs. Best advice is mix up extra paint and shoot on a piece of carboard before you put it on plastic to dial it in. I keep a mostly completed, messily assembled model as a test bed to try new paint mixes and techniques out on. Kind of looks technicolor after a while.
Click to expand...
^^Yes to that! (y) I have the Paasche VL series double action. The box contains 3 different nozzles (the one inside your airbrush, not to mix with your nozzle cap; an exterior part) and 3 different needles also. You have to experiment with those also: one type nozzle goes with its proper needle.
Medium are also a must. While the viscosity of the paint might be absorbed faster by a cardboard base, the same viscosity cannot work on a piece of plastic, or metal...and so on and so forth.;)
 
One thing not to underestimate is how loud the compressor is. Not sure what your compressor is like, but I changed compressors quite a few years back and the new one was a larger but similar version to the ones you see in fingernail studios... it was so much more quieter even so, but concealed inside a floor cupboard I hardly notice when it turns on.
 
it's funny that you mentioned adam savage's recommendation here to get a single action airbrush. don't get me wrong i appreciate adam savage very much he is a great craftsman and knows a lot of things very well but unfortunately he is 1000% wrong with this totally outdated beginner/recommendation. buying a single action airbrush today is just a total waste of time and money. anyone who knows a little bit about airbrushing in model making will confirm that. the absolute minimal technical standard today is: gravety feed double action airbrush....periot
and trust me...10 minutes as a total newbie and you figured out how a double action airbrush works. and the handling and technique potential of a double action airbrush tool increases by about 70% compared to a single action airbrush...sorry adam.

unfortunately, his second recommendation to start with acrylic paints isn't exactly the best either, at least not as far as water-based acrylics are concerned. the fact is the hotter the paint the better it flows to your airbrush, the fewer problems with clogged airbrushes and tip dry and the better the result.
With the pressure, you can't give a general answer and I absolutely agree with Chrgr440RT. but basically it's always between 15 and 35 psi when airbrushing. for water based acrylics between 15-25 psi and for alcohol based acrylics and lacquer based paints 20-35 psi


maybe your shop compressor is ok fpr the beginning except you need a pressure gauge and a moisture trap. unfortunately the volume
is often far too high for workshop devices
 
ZeroSum said:
Adam recommended the Iwata dual action because that's what they used at ILM and recommended the Paasche single action because that's what they use at Weta.

Of course, it depends on what sort of airbrushing you're doing, but if it's good enough for Weta...

Ask Adam Savage: Airbrushing Tips and DIY Tools
Click to expand...
it is like adam said in the video...if you ask 10 modelmaker the same question you get 13 different answer, at least mostly...but first you turned it uside down he used of cause they used mostly singel action at ilm because it is 25 years ago and they had basicly no model shop there anymore and just a very few minitures to paint because of green screen and cgi ( which bw hasn't done the sequels any good imo) and most things which has to be painted was life sice....and what he then says is the crux of the matter...that he had a persenal problem his hole life with doing 2 different motions at the same time which is no big deal for any body usely and then he is giving a stoopid advise because of his personal coordination problem which makes his recommendation even more stoopid. fact is you burn your money if you spend it for a single action air brush. at the moment you get a double action airbrush between your fingers you will never use the singe action ever again that is for sure...but do what you have to do this are just my 2 cents
 
You're ignoring that Weta also uses single action. They currently make models.
I don't think it's a useful contribution for you to say that everything Adam said is wrong and that he has a co-ordination problem, then follow it up by saying it's just your 2 cents. It might be your opinion but it's not constructive. People will use tools they find appropriate for what they're working on. In a world of multiple types of airbrush, Adam's opinion is useful and credible for guiding a newbie to a starting point. If Shadoweclipse13 outgrows a single action or finds it not suitable for his task, he has the option of changing to a dual action.
 
I have both single and double action airbrushes, it just depends what I'm using them for. Different tools for different jobs.

As for testing on cardboard, I don't recommend it. You should test on similar material to what you'll be spraying on.

Pressure regulators and moisture traps are a must.

This is the compressor I have.

2369246.jpg



It's a great little compressor and super quiet. However not nearly big enough for my bigger spray guns.
 
swgeek said:
I have both single and double action airbrushes, it just depends what I'm using them for. Different tools for different jobs.

As for testing on cardboard, I don't recommend it. You should test on similar material to what you'll be spraying on.

Pressure regulators and moisture traps are a must.

This is the compressor I have.

View attachment 1656852


It's a great little compressor and super quiet. However not nearly big enough for my bigger spray guns.
Click to expand...
Bigger spray-guns need bigger power for sure;) as you well know. You're right to say that using a single-action airbrush is a good way to spray one general color to avoid the clogging of details that a spray-can mist tends to do; especially when the details are very small or the scale is below a certain size.
 
ZeroSum said:
You're ignoring that Weta also uses single action. They currently make models.
I don't think it's a useful contribution for you to say that everything Adam said is wrong and that he has a co-ordination problem, then follow it up by saying it's just your 2 cents. It might be your opinion but it's not constructive. People will use tools they find appropriate for what they're working on. In a world of multiple types of airbrush, Adam's opinion is useful and credible for guiding a newbie to a starting point. If Shadoweclipse13 outgrows a single action or finds it not suitable for his task, he has the option of changing to a dual action.
Click to expand...
I don't think it's a useful contribution for you to refer to and link to a video that you obviously either didn't see at all
or after sniffing too much pattex and here is why.

1.adam used the single action brushes at ilm (more then 20 years ago)

2.then years later at weta he bought the exact same airbrushe model they are using and it was a double action airbrush and said: "this double action air brush changed my life" !! then he explains the difference between single and double action airbrushes and goes on to say:
"using a dubble action airbrush correctly is a level of.....tabing your head and rubbing your stomach (aka: doing 2 different motions at the same time) i was never good at. "
this is a coordination task that is super easy for the brain to master after a few minutes of practice...usually!!
some people have a problem coordinating this combination of movements, which is called a coordination problem.
and he even says it himself in the video !!

ok i will summarize it again in one sentence for you. the dobble action airbrush he used years after working at ilm at weta, changed his life but to use it properly a skill is needed he was never good at and then he recommend a single action airbrush because he can't handle the lifechanging double action airbrush right??????

did you now get what a double action buxxxxit beginner recommendation that is? i think you do !
I know it's a tough nut to crack as a fanboy when your hero gives this kind of no brainer advice. but to put your mind at rest...that's the only time he's done such nonsense....at leastas far as i know.
and because you may have missed it...i appreciate adam savage very much as a craftsman as you can read in my initial comment.
my advice for you for future commenting:
you better be sure what you talking about. parroting something that you picked up wrong somewhere
was never a good idea
btw "this are just my 2 cents" from my last comment was a sarcastic joke because you obviously
have no idea what you're talking about... happy commenting my dear
 
There is some good advice here (I'm staying out of the above). Just in regards to the moisture trap, if your tank won't allow for the fitment of one, you can have a trap right under your airbrush :Moisture trap
I run 2 traps - one at the compressor and one of those traps under the airbrush. I had to use 2 because I was getting a lot of water through the hose despite the trap at the tank. It has saved a few paint jobs now, so worth the small outlay for one
Good luck with your airbrushing. I get the impression that you'll get used it it quite quikly
 
Last edited:
ZeroSum said:
You're ignoring that Weta also uses single action. They currently make models.
I don't think it's a useful contribution for you to say that everything Adam said is wrong and that he has a co-ordination problem, then follow it up by saying it's just your 2 cents. It might be your opinion but it's not constructive. People will use tools they find appropriate for what they're working on. In a world of multiple types of airbrush, Adam's opinion is useful and credible for guiding a newbie to a starting point. If Shadoweclipse13 outgrows a single action or finds it not suitable for his task, he has the option of changing to a dual action.
Click to expand...
Woo! Late reply! This year has been insane, sorry for that.

I do appreciate all the opinions, but the nice thing with being new with this is that I don't have any feel for it either way, so as far as I'm concerned, I'll get used to what I have. I like the idea of picking up a double-action at some point, so I have one of each, but for now the Paasche single is what I've got. Plus, the Paasche single was like $70, so not a huge deal there.

As for compressor, it's also what I've got at this point. If it turns out that it's too loud, I can always get a smaller one like an indoor shop or nail salon might have as well, but at this point, I figure it's a nice way to start out, since as a woodworker and maintenance mechanic/boiler operator professionally, I've already got tons of tools that use this compressor. Why buy more if you don't need it, at least to start with, right?

Madhatter, I appreciate the advice and link for the little in-line moisture trap. This is what I (finally) bought a month or so back:
PneumaticPlus Filter Regulator. It'll work for other uses in my garage, and I can always change it out for something different if I need to. Unless it's not recommended for reasons of airflow, I might just add a little in-line moisture trap like you recommended in addition to the filter regulator combo I bought.

I haven't had the time so far to start messing with things this year (crazy short-staffed at work, house-hunting with my wife), but I'm hoping that between having a filter finally now, and the house-hunting season slowing down, I might finally get to some painting. I've got mostly lightsaber kits to paint, and thankfully, it's all just for fun for myself, and no one is waiting on anything from me in a professional kind of way or anything.

Thanks for all the help and recommendations guys! I'll be sure to update once I've started working on some stuff and painting a bit :-D
 
Not so pro-tip. Get your tank up to pressure, then shut it off. I left mine on, and it about scared the, you know what, out of me, when it kicked on.

YMMV.
 
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