Best least expensive airbrush??

[sonnyamorales]

Hello,

New member and new to airbrushing.

I know this sounds odd, but I am looking for reccomendations on the best/cheapest entry level airbrush??

I do not want to spend a fortune, as I am unsure how far I'm going to take this . For the mean time the main purpose of my airbrush will be to paint gaming controllers and such, though I will dabble in tshirts/canvas art an other plastics.

Any suggestions would be great. I want to stay relatively cheap for the time being.

Thanks

 

[wmlepage]

I started with a cheap brush from Amazon, total waste of money. My next brush was a Badge Patriot, about $70, bullet proof, and I still issue it all the time. The Patriot is a .5mm set up, so great for beginning. Parts are reasonable as well . Of you live near a Michaels in the states you can get spares there. Along with Spectra tex paint.


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[airbrushtutor]

Hi Sonny, will recommend the badger renegade krome mate- retailing around $115 US I believe? That's the cheapest I'd go and it's a decent gun

 

[ad fez]

Hi Sonny, will recommend the badger renegade krome mate- retailing around $115 US I believe? That's the cheapest I'd go and it's a decent gun

but then you do wear chinchilla underwear

 

[Melbee]

Hi Sonny, you haven't said where you live but if you are in the USA and near a Hobby Lobby I believe you can print out a 40% off coupon and get an Iwata HP-CS Eclipse 0.3mm gravity feed airbrush which is a great beginner airbrush and one you will use for the rest of your airbrushing career. With 40% off it is very good value, I love this airbrush, it is solid, reliable and great to use.

People who live in the US will be able to tell you more about this.
cheers Mel

 

[ulltraz]

hey man i´ll recommend first that you use the intro section so we can know and greet you properly,and i´ll recommend also that as far as i know best and cheapest airbrushes are the badger krome,the paasche talon,and any eclipse iwata airbrushes.

hope this helps!!!

 

[sonnyamorales]

I started with a cheap brush from Amazon, total waste of money. My next brush was a Badge Patriot, about $70, bullet proof, and I still issue it all the time. The Patriot is a .5mm set up, so great for beginning. Parts are reasonable as well . Of you live near a Michaels in the states you can get spares there. Along with Spectra tex paint.

Did you get the Badger from Amazon also or somewhere else?

Hi Sonny, will recommend the badger renegade krome mate- retailing around $115 US I believe? That's the cheapest I'd go and it's a decent gun

mmm $115 is a little more than i wanted to spend, but i will look into and compare with others, thanks

Hi Sonny, you haven't said where you live but if you are in the USA and near a Hobby Lobby I believe you can print out a 40% off coupon and get an Iwata HP-CS Eclipse 0.3mm gravity feed airbrush which is a great beginner airbrush and one you will use for the rest of your airbrushing career. With 40% off it is very good value, I love this airbrush, it is solid, reliable and great to use.

I do live in the USA, sorry i forgot to mention that and I love the sound of 40% off.. guees ill check out their site and see about the coupon..thanks

 

[wmlepage]

Did you get the Badger from Amazon also or somewhere else?



mmm $115 is a little more than i wanted to spend, but i will look into and compare with others, thanks



I do live in the USA, sorry i forgot to mention that and I love the sound of 40% off.. guees ill check out their site and see about the coupon..thanks

I got one Patriot from Amazon and I think another from Ebay. look around you can find good prices. Michael's has discount coupons as well, but the Patriot is sold at MSRP at Michael's. Thats about $160. I think I got both of mine for less than $80 each.


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[sonnyamorales]

I got one Patriot from Amazon and I think another from Ebay. look around you can find good prices. Michael's has discount coupons as well, but the Patriot is sold at MSRP at Michael's. Thats about $160. I think I got both of mine for less than $80 each.


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Ya i did a quick ebay search and found some..will post links (if its ok) to make sure its same as you are talking about..

 

[sonnyamorales]

cant post links till a certain number of post

anyways amazon shows this "[h=1]Badger Air-Brush Co 105 Patriot Fine Gravity Airbrush"[/h]for $72 shipped..

ebay has an auction for one that comes with a Chicago compressor and is at $50 right now, though think the compressor would be to loud for my indoor use..

 

[HCP-draggin]

You will not find a "cheap" AND "good" airbrush. There are some decent airbrushes at reasonable prices, and really great airbrushes with a matching price tag, but if an airbrush is cheap, you can bet the farm that it's also junk. Once in a while you'll see people saying how much they love there "Master" airbrushes (which are just re-branded chinese ebay rip-offs) and how they think there G-45 is as good as any Iwata micron. Those people are, at best, wishful thinkers, and, at worst, idiots.

Bottom line, if you're spending less, you're getting less. Whether it's material quality, machining precision, durability, design, or function, there is ALWAYS a trade-off. Always.

I would highly recommend the Iwata HP-CS as a great first airbrush. It's not too expensive, it's durable, it's designed to be beginner-friendly, and it works really well. It's one of very few "beginner" airbrushes that you simply don't outgrow. Eventually you'll want to get a dedicated detail airbrush (or, if you're like me, 6 or 7 of them. Or until you just run out of room for them. ) and possibly a siphon-feed airbrush with a larger tip for painting larger areas, fades, etc. But, the HP-CS can stay you're main airbrush through out your career (and it will easily last that long, too).

Had I known when I started what I do now, I would have bought an HP-CS right away, and saved myself a lot of headaches and money.

 

[Squishy]

Yup, draggin said it all. A cheap brush will just waste your money, as you will soon have to buy another one. Also, even though I'm sure that once you get started you will be as addicted as the rest of us, if for some reason you decide airbrushing isn't for you, you will be able to get some of your money back buy selling the HP-CS on, provided it has been well cleaned and maintained.

 

[sonnyamorales]

You will not find a "cheap" AND "good" airbrush. There are some decent airbrushes at reasonable prices, and really great airbrushes with a matching price tag, but if an airbrush is cheap, you can bet the farm that it's also junk. Once in a while you'll see people saying how much they love there "Master" airbrushes (which are just re-branded chinese ebay rip-offs) and how they think there G-45 is as good as any Iwata micron. Those people are, at best, wishful thinkers, and, at worst, idiots.

Bottom line, if you're spending less, you're getting less. Whether it's material quality, machining precision, durability, design, or function, there is ALWAYS a trade-off. Always.

I would highly recommend the Iwata HP-CS as a great first airbrush. It's not too expensive, it's durable, it's designed to be beginner-friendly, and it works really well. It's one of very few "beginner" airbrushes that you simply don't outgrow. Eventually you'll want to get a dedicated detail airbrush (or, if you're like me, 6 or 7 of them. Or until you just run out of room for them. ) and possibly a siphon-feed airbrush with a larger tip for painting larger areas, fades, etc. But, the HP-CS can stay you're main airbrush through out your career (and it will easily last that long, too).

Had I known when I started what I do now, I would have bought an HP-CS right away, and saved myself a lot of headaches and money.

As in most cases it is "you get what you pay for" and i understand that, which is why i said it was going to sound weird asking for the "best/cheapest" the better thing was probably to see what the best beginner brush would be. And I have gotten some good recommendations.

I would like to stay in the $100 or less range and if I can get that 40% of hobby lobby the other person was talking about, I could get that Iwata

Though that badger for about $70 doesn't seem to be a bad deal either..

I will research all the ones that get suggestion and go with what fits my needs best.. I also have to think about a compressor

 

[HCP-draggin]

As in most cases it is "you get what you pay for" and i understand that, which is why i said it was going to sound weird asking for the "best/cheapest" the better thing was probably to see what the best beginner brush would be. And I have gotten some good recommendations.

I would like to stay in the $100 or less range and if I can get that 40% of hobby lobby the other person was talking about, I could get that Iwata

Though that badger for about $70 doesn't seem to be a bad deal either..

I will research all the ones that get suggestion and go with what fits my needs best.. I also have to think about a compressor

For the Hobby Lobby discount, I think all you need to do is sign up for their newsletter on their website. Even without the discount, I'd very highly recommend going with the Iwata over the Badger. Just don't get the Iwata "Neo". For some dumb reason, they are having some factory in China make those for them, with pretty predictable results.

For compressors, unless you really need a silent compressor, ignore the "airbrush" compressors. They're just an over-priced, under-powered marketing gimmick. A compressor from any hardware store will work just as well, if not better, and cost 1/2 as much. My general advice is to get a compressor rated at at least 1-2hp, with a 3-5 gallon holding tank. Also, I'd avoid "oilless" compressors entirely. They're loud, inefficient, run hot, don't last long, and worst of all, put a bunch of moisture into your air lines.

My main airbrushing compressor for years was a 2hp, 5gal twin tank unit from Harbor Freight that I paid about $100 or so for. When I moved operations into my shop, I had no need for a separate airbrush compressor anymore, so it's now running nail guns and the like for my brothers roofing/siding business. I'm not typically one to recommend Harbor Freight anything, especially when durability is a factor, but those models of compressors seem to be the exception to the rule.

 

[wmlepage]

Looks like the Amazon link is about what I have. With the Patriot you can swap out parts and have needle/nozzle ranges from .3-.7mm. But the Iwata Eclipse is a great brush too.


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[sonnyamorales]

For the Hobby Lobby discount, I think all you need to do is sign up for their newsletter on their website. Even without the discount, I'd very highly recommend going with the Iwata over the Badger. Just don't get the Iwata "Neo". For some dumb reason, they are having some factory in China make those for them, with pretty predictable results.

For compressors, unless you really need a silent compressor, ignore the "airbrush" compressors. They're just an over-priced, under-powered marketing gimmick. A compressor from any hardware store will work just as well, if not better, and cost 1/2 as much. My general advice is to get a compressor rated at at least 1-2hp, with a 3-5 gallon holding tank. Also, I'd avoid "oilless" compressors entirely. They're loud, inefficient, run hot, don't last long, and worst of all, put a bunch of moisture into your air lines.

My main airbrushing compressor for years was a 2hp, 5gal twin tank unit from Harbor Freight that I paid about $100 or so for. When I moved operations into my shop, I had no need for a separate airbrush compressor anymore, so it's now running nail guns and the like for my brothers roofing/siding business. I'm not typically one to recommend Harbor Freight anything, especially when durability is a factor, but those models of compressors seem to be the exception to the rule.

Online at hobby lobby they have an Iwata HP-CS Eclipse kit, which comes with some paints and a pistol grip filter, which with the 40% off you can get for $120 plus tax and what not..think i might check my local hobby lobby and see what "kits" they have with it...

As far as the compressor goes, I do need something somewhat quite as I will be doing it in a basement though i think i can get away with something that isnt to loud but doesnt have to be completely silent..

 

[sonnyamorales]

Looks like the Amazon link is about what I have. With the Patriot you can swap out parts and have needle/nozzle ranges from .3-.7mm. But the Iwata Eclipse is a great brush too.


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ya looking like its between the eclipse and badger

 

[AndreZA]

It's not the cheapest there is but the GMC or California air compressors are pretty quiet. they go for about $200.

I'll second the Eclipse. With the combination of the two, you will be going for many years.

 

[donec]

Welcome Sonny. A lot of people have been giving some great advice and I know nothing about airbrushing yet, but I have been researching a lot and have found some very good reviews about the Thayer & Chandler T89 Omni 4000 Airbrush good enough that I ordered one and still waiting for things to arrive. So I thought I would mention it.

 

[sonnyamorales]

It's not the cheapest there is but the GMC or California air compressors are pretty quiet. they go for about $200.

I'll second the Eclipse. With the combination of the two, you will be going for many years.

eh 200 is a little high right now, though i know compressors aren't cheap, unless you want a loud one that overheats hahah. Thanks for the input, i will look around and see what is out there...

and yes looking like the eclipse is the way to go, assuming i can save the 40%