No idea...

[jbuckley421]

I've recently started having an issue with splattering after I release the trigger. I'll get the line I want, then when I go to release the trigger, instead of the nice taper of a dagger stroke, I end up with a splatter of paint. I have what I though was a pretty good understanding of dagger strokes and other basic techniques, so I'm not sure if this is somehow the result of a bad habit I've developed, or something hardware related.

Second question: I'm struggling to get an even coverage with shading gray, as you can see in the pic(Especially around the shadow of the skull). I'm using Golden High Flow Acrylic. I've tried reducing it, and adjusting pressure both ways, but can't seem to get the consistency i want.

 

[airbrushtutor]

Picture looks great @jbuckley421 I think you're being quite fussy, but i get what you're saying. I'd say this is an issue with technique and overlapping. Are you double actioning correctly? is your air always on? If it is then it will be a hardware issue, but it looks like you're turning your air off. You will get splatters from this.

 

[jbuckley421]

Picture looks great @jbuckley421 I think you're being quite fussy, but i get what you're saying. I'd say this is an issue with technique and overlapping. Are you double actioning correctly? is your air always on? If it is then it will be a hardware issue, but it looks like you're turning your air off. You will get splatters from this.

Thank you! I am happy with it, for the fact that I'm still pretty new to airbrushing, but Im not sure I would consider it acceptable if it was a commissioned piece. We're all our own worst critics though, haha. I'm pretty sure I'm double actioning, but I do have a habit of releasing the air at the same time on occasion. I pulled the brush apart, and found a lot of gunk in the nozzle, so that may play a part. I have yet to try it after cleaning. I will try to be more conscious of double actioning, and seeing that may be the issue. Thank you for the advice!

 

[Bodyworx]

Honestly, i think it looks great. Only thing that stuck out to me was the shadowing under the skull. The shadowing under the skull will not be so uniform because the skull is suspended over a wavy surface. When the skull is over sections of the flag that are low, it will have both a Softer shadow and more broad in size. Where the skull is closer to the flag, the shadow would be a little darker and more closely following the skull. Hopefully that makes sense.

 

[jbuckley421]

Honestly, i think it looks great. Only thing that stuck out to me was the shadowing under the skull. The shadowing under the skull will not be so uniform because the skull is suspended over a wavy surface. When the skull is over sections of the flag that are low, it will have both a Softer shadow and more broad in size. Where the skull is closer to the flag, the shadow would be a little darker and more closely following the skull. Hopefully that makes sense.

I get what you're saying. Thats definitely a subtle difference that makes or breaks the effect! I neglected to really take it into account. My main concern was trying to get an even/consistent texture with the shadow. I guess the picture I took doesn't really do it justice. I think the shading came out rather splotchy and inconsistent. If you look at it from a foot or 2 away, its not very apparent, but if you look at it up close, it is very obvious. With a piece like this, I don't think its a huge issue, but in the future, if I'm doing an automotive component or helmet or something, I think it is going to be looked at a lot closer, and I would like to be able to fix it.

 

[Bodyworx]

I believe that even the shadowing could be added to. It's always easier to Add then subtract so you're probably still ok. The shadow around the skull can just be added to in the low spots of the flag. Also, yeah .... it's hard to see the splotchy area you are talking about. Trust me, i am my own worst critic too.

 

[jagardn]

The extra bit of paint you are getting at the end of a stroke is likely a dirty nozzle. I've had it happen before and a good cleaning takes care of it.

Easier quick steps to try at first.

Clean off any possible tip dry with a damp sponge.

Loosen your needle chuck and spin your needle with a very light pressure toward the nozzle. If there is any paint caked in the end of the nozzle, that will loosen it. Re tighten your chuck and spray a very heavy blast of paint. It should blow out any small obstructions.

If those both fail, your nozzle probably needs to be soaked and cleaned.

 

[boneman65]

looks good....my 2 cents would be what i need just practice...

 

[Cpt.Nemo]

I get that splatter a lot too and it's mostly from junk in my nozzle. What I do is pull the trigger all the way back without air, sit for 3 seconds, then full burst air once or twice. That seems to clean it out nicely. Also someone suggested that I wasn't releasing paint flow before air flow on my daggers. U miss that once and you get more build up. Even though I thought I was releasing trigger, then air, I wasn't. So I over exaggerated it, stop paint, wait 1-2 sec, then stop air. Helped me a lot, not much splatter. As for the splotchy my advice would be to do the shadow around half-all of the skull in one stroke if possible. Doing 3-4 inch sections makes it splotchy. once your first layer of black is splotched then it's almost impossible to fix. But WOW! That flag is amazing!!! So jealous of your flag talent haha. Skull looks great and if hadn't mentioned the shadow I wouldn't have noticed. Give yourself a break and improve on it next time! Awesome work!

 

[splasha]

Totally agree with all the above.
Yes, I know practice is as boring as ......... well, practice, but it is necessary for every one of us.
Try painting really big, exagerated daggerstrokes.
This will highlight any technique related issues you may have, but I'm more inclined to think it might be flakes in the nozzle.
A good soaking and cleaning should eliminate this.

 

[Cpt.Nemo]

$20 ultrasonic cleaner off amazon. Best accessory I've bought. I would recommend one with better timer, mine runs for 3 min so I have to put it through about 5 cycles. If u can find one with longer cycles it's less of a pain. I just put super hot water and dish soap in. If I paint for more than an hour with multiple colors the brush goes in here. I clean major junk off with a wet toothpick-it's like a hard sponge at that point. In the cleaner it goes for 15 min and POOF! It's super clean. It's much faster breaking my Iwata eclipse down and throwing it in the machine than trying to clean it in one piece

 

[jbuckley421]

I'm thinking it was mostly a dirty nozzle, and partially releasing the air too early. I'll experiment with it tonight.

I actually really enjoy practicing with the airbrush! Probably half the time I'm "painting", Im just making random lines on a piece of paper. I'll try getting as thin or fine of line as possible, then try to make really straight lines, dagger strokes, squiggles, etc. I've spent a lot of time just experimenting. Theres something therapeutic about it, haha.

Thank you everyone for the compliments and helpful advice on this piece!

 

[jbuckley421]

[QUOTE="Cpt.Nemo, post: 190178, member: 7532"
$20 ultrasonic cleaner off amazon. Best accessory I've bought. I would recommend one with better timer, mine runs for 3 min so I have to put it through about 5 cycles. If u can find one with longer cycles it's less of a pain. I just put super hot water and dish soap in. If I paint for more than an hour with multiple colors the brush goes in here. I clean major junk off with a wet toothpick-it's like a hard sponge at that point. In the cleaner it goes for 15 min and POOF! It's super clean. It's much faster breaking my Iwata eclipse down and throwing it in the machine than trying to clean it in one piece[/QUOTE]

I think I have the same brush. HP-CS? Do you know if the ultrasonic cleaner negatively affects any of the rubber seals?

 

[jbuckley421]

I just picked up this months (and my first ever) edition of airbrush action, and was surprised to find that my method of cleaning was pretty similar to the one suggested in the article. The main difference being that I don't typically break the brush all the way down unless I absolutely need to. Usually, I just rinse really well with water and acrylic cleaner in-between colors, and even more so when storing it for the night. After finding all the paint buildup in the nozzle though, I think I may need to do it a little more frequently. In my experience so far, bad things happen when deep cleaning. Needles get bent, springs get dropped, my dog knocks over the trash can, etc. so I tend to avoid taking it apart.

 

[Cpt.Nemo]

Yeah that's the brush I have, gotta love it! So far I haven't noticed anything, but I rarely clean my airbrush body as seen in the picture. Just the tip and tip housing and such, which don't have any washers. The body is large enough that I can squeeze a q tip in to clean. I'll only put it in once a week or some but I haven't noticed any wear. I do notice the chrome wearing off the bottom of the body cup. Where the paint sits... Not sure what that's from but I don't think it's the cleaner or chrome would be wearing in other parts as well

 

[Cpt.Nemo]

Also for cleaning during use, I run some AMMONIA FREE window cleaner through my brush. Between color changes and now and when I run out of paint. The spray bottle makes a nice large-bubble foam and at 40psi those bubbles seem to really suck out debris. Is a gigantic help!

 

[jbuckley421]

The chrome is wearing out on mine as well, and Its only 2-ish months old. everywhere else is powder coated, so I can't really comment on wear in other areas. Sounds like that may be standard though. I might try the window cleaner. Sounds more economical than the expensive "acrylic cleaning solution". I'll sometimes use a pipette to squirt it in the bottom of the cup, then suck out all the debris that it loosens, which seems to be effective. The sonic cleaner sounds ideal for all the smaller parts! Might look into it.

 

[jbuckley421]

Update: After a thorough cleaning, I'm not getting the splattering issue any more.