Beginners Help Please!!

[ac322j]

Hi all, I'm just starting out getting into airbrushing so ill try to explain best as possible. As im just starting out i needed to buy a full kit ready to paint. So from Amazon i bought a complete Master brand kit with a G44 Master airbrush, a tc20 compressor with moisture trap, regulator and tank. Im using the supplied paint which is from US ART SUPPLY. Ive only started out on poster board. Im currently working at 30-40psi. Ive only done a total of about 4 or 5 things and could only get 1 picture to upload which is the first flame i did. So ive really only been airbrushing for a few weeks and am still getting used to it. I want to start doing t-shirts eventually when i get the hang of it. But for now only poster board. Online i havent been able to find any specifics on working pressure. Everyone said the reducing ratio and working pressure all depends on ambient conditions (temp,humidity,etc) and brand of paint and wven color. Other people say the best paint consistancy is like skim milk(slightly liquidy). So if im always mixing the paint the same i think im good. NOW..... My issues are
- I need a general pressure to work on paper. Im trying to do a few thin detailed lines as well. I would also like to know what pressure would be good for when i switch to shirts.
- Sometimes when im trying to achieve those detailed lines or even when im trying to pull way back for a lot of paint for the background color sometimes nothing comes out unless i switch to scrap and snap the trigger back and forth until paint starts flowing. NOTE: I know to leave the air on before i start with paint. So that isnt the issue. It seems like the gun gets clogged sometimes and i have to mess with the trigger. Ill even take the paint out clean the cup, backflush it, take the needle out and clean it, even dissamble the front which is almost always clear! Once reassembled it works good until painting for a while. Every few minutes during painting i clean the tip with an absorbant makeup sponge and some airbrush cleaner so its not tip dry all the time. So what could it be?
Is it the pressure im using?
Is it the consistancy of the paint?
Is it the gun? Ive done research and can even feel it when i assemble it that some of the threads are not machined perfect.
I have already ordered a badger 155 so i can utilize the tip design so i dont have to switch parts for different designs but havent recieved it yet.
Any and all advice, help, tips, are welcome. Thank you very much.

 

[ac322j]

Also forgot to say im in south florida and i do this on a half covered carport. Its shaded and not very windy. And i keep a small fan on low speed hitting the compressor so it doesnt overheat and turn off.

 

[RebelAir]

Hi....What was the "supplied paint"..if it was createx thats prob half your prob..There is no set working pressure I hate to say but there are ball park figure...
High end detail gun at higher reductions above 5-1 sprays at around 10-20 PSI
Good brand Medium Detail Gun (o.3 needles) same reduction about 20-25 PSI, thicker paint add 5-10 PSI
Generic gun- Whatever works on that day LOL

Siphons add 5-10 PSI to gravity values...You will find once you get a brand gun thats not a master (Alright to start with but are in essence a bargain basement gun) things will seem a little easier..Try a better paint also if its createx ya got in ya pack as thats basically a tshirt paint and wont paint very well at lower reductions or pressure, often 40-50 PSI for that paint, other paints may serve you better like etac, spectra, trident or the wicked air ranges..good luck, experimentation is the answer to most of your questions though, fiddle and play with various reductions and pressures for each need...Good luck

 

[ac322j]

Hi....What was the "supplied paint"..if it was createx thats prob half your prob..There is no set working pressure I hate to say but there are ball park figure...
High end detail gun at higher reductions above 5-1 sprays at around 10-20 PSI
Good brand Medium Detail Gun (o.3 needles) same reduction about 20-25 PSI, thicker paint add 5-10 PSI
Generic gun- Whatever works on that day LOL

Siphons add 5-10 PSI to gravity values...You will find once you get a brand gun thats not a master (Alright to start with but are in essence a bargain basement gun) things will seem a little easier..Try a better paint also if its createx ya got in ya pack as thats basically a tshirt paint and wont paint very well at lower reductions or pressure, often 40-50 PSI for that paint, other paints may serve you better like etac, spectra, trident or the wicked air ranges..good luck, experimentation is the answer to most of your questions though, fiddle and play with various reductions and pressures for each need...Good luck

Well.... I was scared of that. So basically i have a cheap gun that could be the problem. And im using cheap paint that could be the problem. The paint is from Us Art Supply and other than that it only sais Airbrush Paint and states to be sprayed at 35-40psi i think. Which is too high for paper. Is there a certain kind of paint i should be using for paper work and a certain kind that would be best for t-shirts?

 

[Squishy]

Hi ac322j. I've moved this thread to beginner questions - hopefully more people will notice and step in to help. Though looks like RebelAir pretty much has you sorted. Unfortunately it's one of those buy well, buy once things with airbrushing. It's expensive to start out, but without decent kit many people give up or think they can't do it, when really they need proper gear.

And yes, it sucks, but there is no magic formula for paint/reduction and air, there are too many variables. It's trial and error, although the skimmed milk consistency is a good starting point. When you have a smooth flow and can do clean fine lines and non grainy larger areas, that will be your base mix. From there you can adjust as needed regarding weather/humidity, and even different colours which can also behave differently.

Also pop over to here http://www.airbrushforum.org/introductions/ and let us know a bit about yourself, where you are, what your ultimate airbrushing goals are, what style you like etc, and whatever else you like. (I know you mention some stuff, but it's where people check when they want to advise later on), plus folks will want to welcome you on board

 

[HotAirKustoms]

View attachment 42923 Hi all, I'm just starting out getting into airbrushing so ill try to explain best as possible. As im just starting out i needed to buy a full kit ready to paint. So from Amazon i bought a complete Master brand kit with a G44 Master airbrush, a tc20 compressor with moisture trap, regulator and tank. Im using the supplied paint which is from US ART SUPPLY. Ive only started out on poster board. Im currently working at 30-40psi. Ive only done a total of about 4 or 5 things and could only get 1 picture to upload which is the first flame i did. So ive really only been airbrushing for a few weeks and am still getting used to it. I want to start doing t-shirts eventually when i get the hang of it. But for now only poster board. Online i havent been able to find any specifics on working pressure. Everyone said the reducing ratio and working pressure all depends on ambient conditions (temp,humidity,etc) and brand of paint and wven color. Other people say the best paint consistancy is like skim milk(slightly liquidy). So if im always mixing the paint the same i think im good. NOW..... My issues are
- I need a general pressure to work on paper. Im trying to do a few thin detailed lines as well. I would also like to know what pressure would be good for when i switch to shirts.
- Sometimes when im trying to achieve those detailed lines or even when im trying to pull way back for a lot of paint for the background color sometimes nothing comes out unless i switch to scrap and snap the trigger back and forth until paint starts flowing. NOTE: I know to leave the air on before i start with paint. So that isnt the issue. It seems like the gun gets clogged sometimes and i have to mess with the trigger. Ill even take the paint out clean the cup, backflush it, take the needle out and clean it, even dissamble the front which is almost always clear! Once reassembled it works good until painting for a while. Every few minutes during painting i clean the tip with an absorbant makeup sponge and some airbrush cleaner so its not tip dry all the time. So what could it be?
Is it the pressure im using?
Is it the consistancy of the paint?
Is it the gun? Ive done research and can even feel it when i assemble it that some of the threads are not machined perfect.
I have already ordered a badger 155 so i can utilize the tip design so i dont have to switch parts for different designs but havent recieved it yet.
Any and all advice, help, tips, are welcome. Thank you very much.

.
There is not much point in me repeating what as already been stated, so i will give advice on your practice mediums. If you want to do tee's the get some discontinued rolls of wall paper and paint the reverse side, it behaves like tee's, its cheap and with the money you save you can invest in some spectratex or like purpose made paint which will make learning easier. Tip: If you use plain water to reduce your acrylics then make sure it is distilled water and add 2-3 drops of glycerin per 10ml of water it help flow and reduces tip dry some what. Hope this helps

 

[bex]

i cant even see my dials to tellwhat pressure im working at anymore,, but what i can suggest is do some practice lines and dots (airbrush tutor always goes on about them) they sound boring to do as your not creating a picture as such but you are learning (and in time perfecting) your airbrush control.
i would practice lines with different pressures of paint turning up and down so you get a feel for what its like and what pressure you prefere i would all do that with reduction as well . you will get a feel for what happens when you have too much air or too much reduction or too little air and little reduction- they kind of go hand in hand.

some acrylics are better than others so when i started trying to with vallegio and they were very gritty paints that didn't reduce well at all. then i went to createx which was like using glue, i since moved onto wicked (too much tip dry for my liking) then inspire h20... then i gave up on acrylics and im back painting with solvents, obviously solvents are no good for t-shirts. - but again i dont paint t-shirts so my paint choices are made as they fit what i do which is mainly metal work and the airbrush i use which is a fine detail airbrush. but thats a bit of info on what i found out about some of the brands i used. so ask around , ask other t-shirt painters etc. read through peoples experiences with paints and guns and surfaces. i have heard e-tac mention for t-shirts , leather and fabric but i have no experiance using this paint. others will advise better.

if you have some spare cash saved up i would buy a bottle of white and another colour (for me white paint always seems to be the most problematic thickest and most prone to tip dry. so if i like the white paint in a brand im happy witht eh white i presume the rest of the colours will paint nicely) from some of the other paint companies and see what brand you prefer. ask aroud what others use aswel.

also practice on the surface you intend to paint on, get old t-shirts from a charity shop or ask family and friends if they have any that they intend to chuck out you can use.

and keep practicing thats the huge starter point play around and learn from mistakes and experimentation.

 

[RebelAir]

Well.... I was scared of that. So basically i have a cheap gun that could be the problem. And im using cheap paint that could be the problem. The paint is from Us Art Supply and other than that it only sais Airbrush Paint and states to be sprayed at 35-40psi i think. Which is too high for paper. Is there a certain kind of paint i should be using for paper work and a certain kind that would be best for t-shirts?

The master airbrush can paint good work, many start out with similar and if you really push yourself through its occasional bad days you will actually gain very good skill, you probably just really wont notice how much skill you've gained until you do get that better brush and all it seems a lot easier..If you plan to do TShirt work I highly recommend you consider a Badger Anthem Siphon..Its the go to brush for most TShirt artists, combine that with createx or any other paint really but if you want to practice use whatever ya can intially in the way of paint but get used to working much higher pressures for TShirt work as generally most TShirt artists are using in the realms of 40-55 PSI as they generally dont want to reduce paint on T's as you want those bright vibrant colors in comparison to watered down or reduced color that will likely wash out or fade out fast..Speed is the key in Tshirts, pump it in hard and fast...Good luck.

 

[Respo]

For what it's worth, I have found newsprint to be very economical to get started and practice the various ab strokes you need. I bought a couple of pads of 24x36 newsprint for 10-12 USD on amazon. I then discovered that my local paper puts the tail end of rolls out in back of the printing press room. They're free to anyone, and you can get several yards off of these rolls. You may want to check with your local newspaper and see what they do with the ends of the rolls after a print run. I just hate to see you buying poster board to practice on.

 

[Sprzout]

For what it's worth, I have found newsprint to be very economical to get started and practice the various ab strokes you need. I bought a couple of pads of 24x36 newsprint for 10-12 USD on amazon. I then discovered that my local paper puts the tail end of rolls out in back of the printing press room. They're free to anyone, and you can get several yards off of these rolls. You may want to check with your local newspaper and see what they do with the ends of the rolls after a print run. I just hate to see you buying poster board to practice on.

Awesome! Now, if I could just FIND a place that prints newspapers still...Most have gone the way of the dodo here in San Diego.

 

[Respo]

Awesome! Now, if I could just FIND a place that prints newspapers still...Most have gone the way of the dodo here in San Diego.

Lol. I guess my local fish wrapper is a bit of an anomaly in that regard. Still, if anyone lives in a small town it might be worth checking out. As for dodos, if you find you're running short I'll be happy to send as many as you need. Colorado is lousy with em XD

 

[Devil's Breath Gfx]

I started out with a master g22, bought wicked color paint, bought poster board, all that. I live in alabama so we get some of the humidity . What I found out through trial and error is this: g22 with a 3mm needle. I used a ratio of 4 :1. 4 drops wicked to 1 drop w500 reducer. It flowed great. I can get the super fine lines and great base coverage. To me I love the w500 over the w100. Here is the great part... once you get a patriot 105 all you gotten used to with the master, toss it out the window. You will find the mix ratio has to change. I am going back to spectra tex for fabrics. Staying with wicked and candy 2o for metals.
I hope this helps from 1 newbie to another!

 

[Devil's Breath Gfx]

I forgot to mention I operate at 20 to 25 psi generally for fabrics, but keep in mind I am using a gravity feed with reducer. I seen multiple videos of Kent lend using a siphon feed at 50 to 60 psi.
Like everyone eles has said, play around and find the sweet spot that feels right and works for you brother.

 

[corey hallberg]

You can buy news print by the pad at Walmart or an art supply store, another option is to use paper towels to practice on, which if your goal is to be a shirt squirter is actually better. You have to crawl before you walk. Dots, daggers and lines will teach you trigger control. I cant tell you how many rolls of paper towels I went thru. Then you move to shading. That's where u learn to control your oversparay. Just remember your not gonna pick up a ab and be a mike learn overnight. Practice practice practice.