Even results.

T

Tull

Guest
Hi folks.

I've had an airbrush for approximately 1 week so that'll give you some idea of my experience level!

So far the major thing I'm struggling with is getting the same quality of spray each time I pick up the brush. I clean it through with the provided cleaning fluid each time I put it down for any amount of time. But I'll pick it up for the next bit and I get a completely different spray quality.

The brush is a Steenbeck Ultra, gravity feed. 0.4

The Compressor is a cheapo Aldi 120 special, but with an additional regulator

Paints are the Vajelo? Javelo? Valejo? I'm not near the paints at the moment, the RC versions anyway. I'm shaking them all up the same, I'm wondering if I'm cleaning correctly, but I'm not sure what else I'd do. I half fill the cup, swirl the cleaner and spray it all through, then wipe out the bowl with clean tissue, then blow through another bit of cleaner.

I was told by the supplier to never touch the needle, which I haven't up till now, so how would you make sure that's spotless?

This is obviously a brush towards the budget range, are more expensive brushes easier to get along with?

Many thanks.
 
Here is a link from one of our members on how to clean your airbrush
Now what PSI are you trying to spray at? are you reducing the paint ?
 
attaching a picture of it would be a good idea, from what i saw so far determining spray pattern seem easier to identify the possible cause. i dont used a javelo (saying it this way is cute ) but it seem to be quite thicker, and you might getting a tip dry so bad there, the paint reduction is still that thick to have it flow good through, and finally by not touching the needle to do airbrushing might need any special kind of power or above a normal human logical ability, its recommended to read the airbrush manual for better understanding, atleast pulling out the needle to have it a good soft and gentle wipe.

Sent from Knockoff i-Fone [emoji14]
 
Here is a link from one of our members on how to clean your airbrush
Now what PSI are you trying to spray at? are you reducing the paint ?
This should never gonna let you down man.

Sent from Knockoff i-Fone [emoji14]
 
I've been testing PSI from 20-30, I've seen you tubes where people say they use 50, but I get extremely random results at that pressure.

I'm not reducing the paint at all, the supplier advised it didn't need any thinning, and that was kind of the point of getting it, hopefully one thing taken out of the learning equation. I'm happy to thin it, but I don't want to use anything nasty and I understand using just water can be a problem.

Ball batted back to you folks. :)
 
From what I've heard, these "airbrush ready" paints usually need at least a bit of reducer to work correctly. Things like climate conditions, different airbrushes etc. can really alter the proper paint thickness. I would recommend using the manufacturer's thinner to get started at the very least. I'm not familiar with the vallejo line so I'm not sure what you might need specifically.
 
I've been testing PSI from 20-30, I've seen you tubes where people say they use 50, but I get extremely random results at that pressure.

I'm not reducing the paint at all, the supplier advised it didn't need any thinning, and that was kind of the point of getting it, hopefully one thing taken out of the learning equation. I'm happy to thin it, but I don't want to use anything nasty and I understand using just water can be a problem.

Ball batted back to you folks. :)
Would flow much better with reduction. i am using that range of psi & the reason for that is im doing ab on tshirt. tshirt abrushing works great on high psi, refer to the paint application guide on the internet & might be worth tl check out a few blog & article by those who used it at most for their airbrush, any dried paint might become a chunks and clogs, most of the time it wasnt visible to see as it happen mostly in the nozzle and on the needle.

Sent from Knockoff i-Fone [emoji14]
 
Firstly, you didn’t do an introduction, we like to know a little about our new members, mostly what gear they have, why they got into airbrushing and where in the world do you live.. this info helps us guide you to local reputable suppliers and tailor our answers.

As far as I can tell you may not have been given correct info or may have misunderstood the info provided, it’s hard when you’re starting out and you’re given all this information but because of a lack of understanding you misinterpret what is said.

Let’s get to basics.
Your compressor- you have a regulator on it which is a good thing. set the regulator at around 30psi while pressing the trigger on the airbrush. Doing it without airflow will result in a significant drop in pressure when you use the airbrush, maybe so low you aren’t getting enough pressure to atomise the paint properly.
You should always remove the needle at the end of a session and wipe it down. Your common sense has come through on this! What your supplier likely meant was don’t touch the needle to the surface of what you are painting, this will cause the tip to bend/break. H&S needles are notoriously fragile.
As for your paint.... if after making sure your pressure is correct at the airbrush you are still having flow issues then you may well need to reduce slightly. Always use what the manufacturer recommends when first starting out.

Remember that manufacturers test paints etc in a climate controlled environment - very few of us are that lucky at home.

Your cleaning routine should be as per the video above by ‘Airbrush Dreams’

Anyway I hope this additional info gets you heading in the right direction and it all helps,

PS: airbrushing isn’t as easy as YouTube makes it look. Most of what you see on there are by people that have been doing it for 10+ years. The good news is that you have come to the best newbie friendly place around, if you are serious about learning then we are serious about helping..... with the occasional laugh and thread jacking involved
 
@Tull, I do use Vallejo paints for model painting: Vallejo Model Air. While the manufacturer, Vallejo, says they can be used directly in the airbrush, the truth is you have to thin them more to get proper results. The other lines of their paints require even more reduction as they are intended for hair brushes not airbrushes straight out of the bottle.
 
The video link posted on cleaning. Do you all clean like that after every use? I really enjoyed that video from that member...does he have more?

Found it.
 
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The video link posted on cleaning. Do you all clean like that after every use? I really enjoyed that video from that member...does he have more?
Most people just do a cleaner rinse out, backflush, rinse out and a full clean occasionally or as needed. As he points out in the video, he does a day to day cleaning and then once a week does a full clean. Less wear and tear on components, like nozzles.
 
The video link posted on cleaning. Do you all clean like that after every use? I really enjoyed that video from that member...does he have more?

Found it.
ive switced into that method after watching that vid, and the result is amazing, its affected my whole painting session to be a much better.

Sent from Knockoff i-Fone [emoji14]
 
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