Airbrush FAQ

I'm pretty new to my airbrush but when I'm spraying, I tend to clean the brush quiet thoroughly between colours, good old wipe in the cup, water and cleaner mix in the cup and through the needle until it runs clean and also take the needle out and give it a quick wipe. The only time I don't is if I'm swapping to a similar colour in which I'll just sort of give it a quick wipe and blast out with water and cleaner, and dump in the next colour. At the end of the day I just do the same but wipe it and the needle down more and run more cleaner through it. Once a week or so I have a look and see if I need to take it partially apart and clean any extra bits.

Yes sir, in this video I believe: https://youtu.be/g0A9Ju61Xz4 Thank you very much!

You have an affiliate link in you videos for it right?

That sounds like dry tip is happening too often. What are you thinning with? Try adding some drying retarder or flow aid.

I think this is probably a waste of time largely. Are you painting exclusively competition models? If you make mistakes on a mini, you can just redo it if it's that awful and likely it won't be because airbrushes apply paint very thinly. Painting a mini with an airbrush is like dead lifting. You will train a whole bunch of skills actually painting a Miniature instead of doing rudimentary training targeting specific talents.

Probably doing an overall zenithal highlight on a model and little zones of more intense lights.

Depends on the range of colors you're using

Booth probably isn't necessary unless you're working with something that's actually toxic. Respirator is probably sufficient, however I'm not a subject matter expert on these matters, this is just my opinion.

Thinning depends entirely on what you're trying to do and it also depends on the contrast paint being used. Magos purple? Probably not much thinning. Flesh tearer red? Probably more thinning. Generally I've relied on back flow mixing but I believe that's a bad habit to form which I talk about in the video.

Yes, you need a compressor. Brand largely does not matter.

Something with more of a satin finish

how to deal with dry tip? I have lowered my air pressure and thinned my paints more but for some reason i still get dry tip on my air brush if i pause for like 10 to 15 seconds.

Should I change - and thus buy - needle and nozzle depending on the thinness I’m looking for? Should I thus buy a model with several options?

What non mini things can I do teach myself trigger control and confidence?

Lirazel

How detailed do you get with the airbrush? What is a reasonable expectation for someone who’s just getting started?

Kevin Fitzpatrick

My models are coming out glossy what am I adding to much of that is making them glossy instead of matte.

I'm not Scott but I had similar concerns regarding to compressors. My neighbours are relatively sensitive to noise but they never have complained so far. And I use a spray booth as well.

Ted Beneky

Is it necessary to buy/build a spray booth for airbrushing or is it enough to have a good breathing mask? Do I need special cleaning fluid when I switch colors or is it enough to fast clean the airbrush with water/distilled water? For now, I use Vallejo AB cleaner but I feel I use it way too often.

Ted Beneky

How much noise does the compressor make? Thinking about the smell maybe, is it suitable to use in a larger room (living/dinner room)? Thanks Scott!

Do you think the contrast paints and washes? They seem pretty thin already so I wasn’t sure. Also, is doing the back flow thing enough to mix the paint or should I have an old brush to mix it in the cup?

Do you need a compressor? With a tank? What brands?

Fred Novy

I would like to +1 the fairy question for visibility

Which colour line do YOU recommend for painting with an AB?

What is the most efficient way to clean between colors? (not as something I need to know now, but something I worried a lot about when I started)

While not Scott, i may be able to answer this. Common nozzle/needles are like a 0.4mm. I have a 0.25mm nozzle that can do the equivalent of a super fine ink pen. So pretty fine. Smaller than that i think the durability of the needle becomes questionable, but there may be smaller nozzle/needle pairs than 0.25mm

How fine can airbrushes generally go?

Cody Thompson

Can I thin with water? What do I clean it with when paint gunked up the inner parts?

Cleaning, fast cleaning for color switches, post painting cleaning, basic care of the tool were all things i was looking for when I first started airbrushing. PSI and avoiding spiderwebbing, were helpful too. Taking a heavy body paint and thinning it for airbrushing to show proper consistency could help demonstrate you dont need special paints for this tool.

How do I decide what needle size is right for me? Also when do the magic airbrush fairies come out and golden demonize my minis? I have been base coating my minis for days with glitter and no sign of the fairies.

Berry Kay

How thoroughly do we clean it between colours? When we’re done for the day should we do a full tear down/at least remove the needle and clean it off?