not able to find perfect setting!

M

MarieLune

Guest
I need help. I have a Grex airbrush with .3mm nozzle, Genesis XB and Iwata sprint jet compressor, I'm not able to find the perfect match between the PSI and the dilution of the paint.

How many PSI sould be put into the compressor? And when we speak of PSI that is before or after pressing the trigger?

I use Createx paint, I have Acrylic Golden Fluid too... I have reducer from Createx and airbrush medium from Golden, but my airbrush jamm very often and if i put more PSI the paper is wet. I try putting Createx paint without dilution, it does not work well, it gives me small splatters. What is the ratio of dilution in general?

It's been a week since I tried different dilution ratio but I can not find the right combination with PSI.

Should I buy another .5mm nozzle airbrush? Iwata eclipse?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
hey maria, try this, put your psi on about 20-25 , put bout 10 drops of reducer in you cup, then one drop of paint, .3mm is a good size needle, also since this is not much help airbursh tutor has a video on how to thin paint to the rite consistency, check it out, it might help you, thats a big problem we all have when starting out, it pretty much trial and error, but dont get discouraged, it just paint and metal. lol good to have ya here
 
I think the 0.3mm nozzle should be fine for a start, even a 0.5mm is easier cause the paint can be abit thicker then.
But with the 0.3 you will be able to get more details after you are better with the controll of the airbrush. I have never
used the Golden paints or the normal Createx. The pressure is always set when the trigger for air is pressed since you always
lose some when you press for air. I would go for a setting around 30 to 35 psi for a start. Then a reduction of the createx with
the ratio of 1:2 . Means 1 part paint to 2 parts reducer or water. Then make a test spray on a paper, if the paint looks grainy it
needs more reduction or more PSI. Usualy you never pull back so much on the trigger. Best is to paint with very reduced paint
and then paint in light passes on the paper pulling back the trigger just a little. I know too good when i started out half a year
ago that we all are abit trigger happy at the beginning lol. Well all i can say is play abit with the reduction and always add some
more reducer when the paint still looks abit grainy. Hope i could help you out abit.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
If you continue to have problems spraying an evenly flowing paint jet please try the following, which is how I usually adjust airbrushes when giving classes to students who use Createx paint.

On your air pressure dial of the compressor set the pressure to less than 1 bar or 14 psi with your airbrush blowing air.

With a pipette like this - [url]http://www.scuddlebutt3.co.uk/pipette.jpg[/URL] - put 20 drops of water in the paint bottle. Add one drop of paint, mix well and you should be fine.

The paint is quite diluted according to this method and you will probably have to spray more than one layer to get the right color intensity, but you will be able to spray fine lines without spattering and reduce tip dry (accumulating of paint around the tip of the needle).

What I do usually is to hold a piece of paper in the hand that is not holding the airbrush. I start spraying here and play with the trigger until the spray is the desired fineness. It takes airbrushes some time to stabilize. Usually if you have the desired line width, you have to let the trigger move forward just a little bit to get a stable spray of the desired line width, because the width gets a little bit wider after a second or two. But once the spray has settled you will be able to spray a continuous line width.

If you have have become familiar with this method of spraying, you could experiment by turning down the air pressure even more (to 7 psi or so). Your lines will become finer still.

There is a lot more possible settings to fiddle with, but try this first please.
 
Forgot. The paper in the hand not holding the airbrush I hold close to where I want to spray. When the spray is stable I 'jump over' to where I want to spray. If the stream of paint becomes more coarse I quickly move the paper between the airbrush and surface and re-stabilize the spray and then continue. Sometimes you need to give a short big blast of paint and air on the test paper to unclog the airbrush before you are able to stabilize the spray again.
 
thank you ignis, I try that and I have a pipette for my watercolor (Golden acrylic fluid with water, it's the same thing, except for redilution on paper once dry), by the way, if you can find the Fabriano watercolor paper hot or cold press grana fina, it is really great, the colors are extra on this paper, you should love for color super diluted. The hot press has no texture, cold press has a texture and is a bit more absorbent than hot press, both are 100% cotton.
 
Ignis, I tried what you said, just a word.... WOW!!!! Perfect! Amazing! ok... 3 words ;) I make a gradient two fingers in the nose! (French-speaking) lol!

A big big thank you!
 
Back
Top