What PSI for beginner

S

Snowbird1

Guest
Hi Everyone

Newbee question what psi would you run at for practicing dagger, strokes, dots and shading?

Another question airbrushing animals,trees any type of illustrations what's a good psi to work at?

Thank you
Susan:dejection:
 
30-35 for the basics with a gravity feed airbrush. A siphon feed may want 45 or so.

I , like many of us , don't go by psi, it's more of a feel thing, we all run MAC valves on our hoses. I would say 20 or less though, with an over reduced paint in most cases, like 4:1 , reducer to paint , probably mrs reducer than that though, upwards of 10:1 depending on brand and how it flows.
 
What Wayne said start at 25-35 with a gravity feed .More with siphon I would stick with this for practice and your art for now Keep it simple..try to use a paint like com-art or createx illustration which need no or VERY little reduction at this pressure It is all about learning control
Have fun ,Kurt
PS spidering and skipping are to be expected Your finger on the trigger ALOT will solve this
 
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Thank you both for your advise it really means a lot to get great answers to your questions. You guys rock.

Susan
 
PSI really depends on many factors, what type of brush you have, what nozzle size, what paint brand, and what the weather is like even. That is why this information is hard to find on the net, because it varies for everyone. I use Wicked paints, and my starting point for paint/psi ratios is 3 drops reducer to 1 paint @ 20 PSI, then I can make slight adjustments with pressure or add another drop of reducer or more etc if needed. Some people using different paint brands will reduce 10 reducer to 1 paint at 5 PSI, they will have to make very very many passes to get to the colour they want, but get amazing control.

If you can be more specific with the brush and paint you are using, it will be easier to help, but you will still need to experiment a bit to find what works best for you.

Also if you haven't already, have a look at the airbrush tutors vids too. The crazy Ozzie has done some with exercises and sheets to print out to help you learn all the strokes you will need.

And you might be interested in this http://www.airbrushforum.org/oc-challenge/8694-race-face-newbie-challenge.html. It's just a friendly little challenge for newbies. Don't be put off if you think you aren't ready for it, it's not the end result, but the learning process which is important.
 
Thank you for the great advice Squishy. Ok I bought cheap a Master G22 and a S68 from TCP Globle createx paint and a crappy little compressor. I bought it to see if I can learn to airbrush and then I will go to a better set up. I also went out and bought wicked black detail and reducer w100 so I am going to give it a try today. I also have a blue hawk compressor my other half bought a month ago so I am going to give that one a try and see if it holds the psi and then I might get a sound proof box made and adapters to try that one out if it doesn't work for me then I will bought the California compressor that is much more silent. Yes my crappy compressor only stays at 22psi when I am practicing airbrushing stroke and dot. I hope this gives you a little more info on what I have for now.

Susan (Airbrush Rush)
 
It has already been said, pressure depends on a lot of things. It's good to remember that your airpressure is also a tool you can use to get specific effects. I myself am constantlyadjusting the presure while airbrushing.

High pressure (2,5+ bar):
-Thick paint (opaques when you want to flood fill an area)
-Long distance from work (again generaly when floodfilling)
-Fast moves (doing long hairs in one stroke)

Medium (normal) pressure (1,5-2,5 bar)
-Basicly all the work you do while your not verry close or verry far away from your work with normaly reduced paint.

Low pressure (less than 1,5 bar, for me normaly under 1)
-When you generaly need more controll (thin lines, fine detail, soft shadows, slow moves)
-Over reduced paint (higher pressure will than cause spiders)
-Verry close on your work (again to avoid spiders)

Beware that what is high or low pressure also depends on your airbrush, the above is generaly the case when I use 0,15-0,2 nozzles. Bigger nozzles might requier more pressure.
 
Thank you for the great advice Squishy. Ok I bought cheap a Master G22 and a S68 from TCP Globle createx paint and a crappy little compressor. I bought it to see if I can learn to airbrush and then I will go to a better set up. I also went out and bought wicked black detail and reducer w100 so I am going to give it a try today. I also have a blue hawk compressor my other half bought a month ago so I am going to give that one a try and see if it holds the psi and then I might get a sound proof box made and adapters to try that one out if it doesn't work for me then I will bought the California compressor that is much more silent. Yes my crappy compressor only stays at 22psi when I am practicing airbrushing stroke and dot. I hope this gives you a little more info on what I have for now.

Susan (Airbrush Rush)

I think you will find the Wicked much easier, the createx is specifically for textiles and designed for brushes .5 and above, and pretty high PSI. Also does your crappy little compressor have a tank? If not and it it running all the time, it is probably pulsing making it impossible to get any consistancy. Hope the new paint, and different compressor do the trick!
 
Hi Squishy No my crappy compressor does not have a tank it sucks but I hope it will be good enough for a little bit while I practice and then I want to buy the Califorina Air compressor. So I will keep hacking at for now lolo.

Susan :loyal:
 
See, I run 25-30psi. But, depending on what I AB?, I change my PSI. I agree with the others. And then, when you have things figured out, do whats comfortable to you. Thats my best advice. But, to do a tshirt? Crank thats PSI up!! Lolol
 
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