Wondering on air brush recommendation for metal art

Z

zeaifgfl

Guest
Hi,

I'm new here and wanted to seek recommendations on air brushes for painting metal sculptures (personal hobby). When I've asked painters in the past, they always suggest HVLP auto paint guns. I tried out a mini-gun with a 1.0mm tip and painting some 1" square tube produced a lot of overspray, so I was looking toward a smaller setup like an air brush with a tip half that or even smaller. Even if it takes more time with a smaller tip to paint a flat surface, I'm fine spending the time when finishing. I'm new to airbrushing and painting but looking to get a setup to learn, fail and get better.

Thanks
 
Best place to start is the Airbrushtutors page, check out the information and tutorials there, that will give you a huge head start. Also, head along to the introductions page and tell us a bit about yourself... I mean we can;'t just be giving out secret airbrush information to any Tom, Dick or zeaifgfl who comes along and asks... :) Where do you live, what paint do you use, what sort of sculptures are you doing... Read the nettiquette as well, explains a bit about us and how the forum works. Look forward to hearing more from you.
 
Best place to start is http://www.airbrushforum.org/introductions/ with an introduction.
Airbrushes are all different for the person using it. They all will paint any surface or paintable material. So any airbrush will work But they question is what paint system are you using or plan on using?
All automotive paint will run through an airbrush, Waterbase designed for the airbrush will also work.
But not knowing where on this planet you live does not give us any room to recommend a vendor of where to buy supplies like airbrush, moisture traps, paint and reducer,
Next is how big are the sculptures ? Size of the piece also has to be considered when picking out the right tool for the job.
 
if you are after something a little smaller than a mini gun to paint with an airbrush is quite a step down from that- but when i was working as a paint sprayer we did have a gun that was inbetween mini gun and airbrush, they are harder to come by though. depends what you are wanting to use it for. i know dagr do a large airbrush/tiny mini-gun (havent used it so cant comment on if its decent product or not). im just presuming you are wanting a larger spray patter if you have been using things mini gun size? also if you drop down to airbrush size you may need different compressor set up so smaller adaptors and air hoses etc too :) i run two compressors a large one for the spray guns and mini guns and small one for the airbrushes. hope that helps a little.
 
I'm guessing if you have a largish area to cover you will be wanting to use a suction fed airbrush, so that will narrow your choice. More info will help us be more specific, :)
 
if you are after something a little smaller than a mini gun to paint with an airbrush is quite a step down from that- but when i was working as a paint sprayer we did have a gun that was inbetween mini gun and airbrush, they are harder to come by though. depends what you are wanting to use it for. i know dagr do a large airbrush/tiny mini-gun (havent used it so cant comment on if its decent product or not). im just presuming you are wanting a larger spray patter if you have been using things mini gun size? also if you drop down to airbrush size you may need different compressor set up so smaller adaptors and air hoses etc too :) i run two compressors a large one for the spray guns and mini guns and small one for the airbrushes. hope that helps a little.

@bex - you mention a DAGR. I don't mind getting two, depending on the job. I've got an 80gal/11cfm w/air dryer and 0.1micron setup. I was thinking of getting a smaller compressor. Can you recommend guns/setups for both?
 
i run a 50 gal compressor that just about copes with my mini guns demands. i dont use anything thats branded, but i do go through them quite quicky, devilbiss and iwata are well know as brand leaders for all big guns and its devilbiss make the dagr airbrushes they are the only brushes i can think of (off the top of my head) that are larger than conventional brushes. so good for painting sculptures where you want to throw more paint out. i have used one to paint wall displays- theater props and backgrounds was a really good brush.. but there are some large suction feed brushes too, i just prefer gravity fed.- (someone else will probably be better with advice on suction feeds) it depend what you are wanting to use your airbrush for, what size sculptures are you painting? if you want a smaller airbrush - ther is LOTS of choices there are lots of good brands and styles and paints and setups.. so a better idea of what you do - maybe some pics of what you do!! :)
 
Maybe one of the below links maybe suitable for your needs. It has 2 tips- a round pattern and a flat pattern style tip (much like a spray gun fan). For both you can buy larger paint cups up to as big as 150mm for the procon boy I think. The fan pattern on he iwata can be sprayed to a width of around 65mm and I imagine it would be much the same for the procon boy.
Best of luck

http://www.amazon.com/Iwata-HP-TH-Airbrush-japan-import/dp/B004DUHUKG

http://www.amazon.com/GSI-Creos-Procon-Trigger-Airbrush/dp/B0007U92MU
 
i run a 50 gal compressor that just about copes with my mini guns demands. i dont use anything thats branded, but i do go through them quite quicky, devilbiss and iwata are well know as brand leaders for all big guns and its devilbiss make the dagr airbrushes they are the only brushes i can think of (off the top of my head) that are larger than conventional brushes. so good for painting sculptures where you want to throw more paint out. i have used one to paint wall displays- theater props and backgrounds was a really good brush.. but there are some large suction feed brushes too, i just prefer gravity fed.- (someone else will probably be better with advice on suction feeds) it depend what you are wanting to use your airbrush for, what size sculptures are you painting? if you want a smaller airbrush - ther is LOTS of choices there are lots of good brands and styles and paints and setups.. so a better idea of what you do - maybe some pics of what you do!! :)

@bex Appreciate the advise so far. I do like the larger nozzle and I'm sure I'll be doing a bit of learning. Some examples have been attached. All is Kylon'd so far but did last a NH winter. My reason for getting into this is I'd like to do my own paint for finishing.

I've read and been told that PPG offers some of the best paint out there for metal. I know I can spark a polemical debate here but I've never heard bad about their products. Is this true?

Do you have a page on gravity vs. siphon I can read about? I've experienced both with sandblasting and if that offers any input, I do know the differences.
 

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I have the HP-TH linked by michael13 above, which I got for broad coverage on models. It's not good for fine detail, but if you want something that's a step between an airbrush and a mini-HPLV gun, it's good.

It can do lines down to maybe 3mm, though anything smaller than 5mm or so is harder to control because the width of the nozzle makes it hard to see what you're doing. Lines crayon-size or larger it can do as well as any regular airbrush.

It's excellent for general coverage though. Produces more fogging than a regular AB, so it does need to be used with good ventilation, but produces no more overspray on the actual work piece than a regular AB. It's a top feed, which limits its capacity (you can get larger cups for it, but the largest is hard to source), but it can handle large particle sizes with ease (metallics, pearls, non-airbrush/spray brands of paint).

Oddly, it also has the finest atomization of any of my airbrushes.

Looking at the example pics you posted, it would do that very nicely, though you'd want to get the largest size paint cup.

The GSI Creos one looks very similar. GSI Creos is I think a good brand (for mains and other tools they are, but I've never seen or tried their ABs), but I don't think they'd have the parts range of Iwata (important for the cup), and parts availability and service will be nonexistent outside of Japan.
 
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I have the HP-TH linked by michael13 above, which I got for broad coverage on models. It's not good for fine detail, but if you want something that's a step between an airbrush and a mini-HPLV gun, it's good.

It can do lines down to maybe 3mm, though anything smaller than 5mm or so is harder to control because the width of the nozzle makes it hard to see what you're doing. Lines crayon-size or larger it can do as well as any regular airbrush.

It's excellent for general coverage though. Produces more fogging than a regular AB, so it does need to be used with good ventilation, but produces no more overspray on the actual work piece than a regular AB. It's a top feed, which limits its capacity (you can get larger cups for it, but the largest is hard to source), but it can handle large particle sizes with ease (metallics, pearls, non-airbrush/spray brands of paint).

Oddly, it also has the finest atomization of any of my airbrushes.

Looking at the example pics you posted, it would do that very nicely, though you'd want to get the largest size paint cup.

The GSI Creos one looks very similar. GSI Creos is I think a good brand (for mains and other tools they are, but I've never seen or tried their ABs), but I don't think they'd have the parts range of Iwata (important for the cup), and parts availability and service will be nonexistent outside of Japan.

In terms of parts I have read on a number of sites that the Procon boys and iwata airbrushes share very similar characteristics and the parts such as nozzles and needles from either brand are interchangeable.
 
I have the HP-TH linked by michael13 above, which I got for broad coverage on models. It's not good for fine detail, but if you want something that's a step between an airbrush and a mini-HPLV gun, it's good.

It can do lines down to maybe 3mm, though anything smaller than 5mm or so is harder to control because the width of the nozzle makes it hard to see what you're doing. Lines crayon-size or larger it can do as well as any regular airbrush.

It's excellent for general coverage though. Produces more fogging than a regular AB, so it does need to be used with good ventilation, but produces no more overspray on the actual work piece than a regular AB. It's a top feed, which limits its capacity (you can get larger cups for it, but the largest is hard to source), but it can handle large particle sizes with ease (metallics, pearls, non-airbrush/spray brands of paint).

Oddly, it also has the finest atomization of any of my airbrushes.

Looking at the example pics you posted, it would do that very nicely, though you'd want to get the largest size paint cup.

The GSI Creos one looks very similar. GSI Creos is I think a good brand (for mains and other tools they are, but I've never seen or tried their ABs), but I don't think they'd have the parts range of Iwata (important for the cup), and parts availability and service will be nonexistent outside of Japan.

I like the 0.5mm size. It seems like a great middle between a regular HVLP gun and a fine detail airbrush. I don't mind waiting a month for it to come from Japan. Where can you get the largest gravity cup? eBay? Do you know the CFM @ psi requirements for it?
 
Yeah, eBay's the only current source I know of. There are some legit hobby export sites that carry it in their catalog, but always seem to be out of stock or backordered. The part number you'd want to look for is HPA-CB3. Kind of expensive though, so I haven't yet gotten around to getting one myself.

The middle size is what I use, which is actually the cup from the HP-KTR (part# 1-070-7).

If you need/want needles or nozzles, check your local vendors for HP-KTH parts. The TH is distributed in the western market as part of the "Kustom" series (in Japan it's part of the "High Performance" series). The KTH is the same brush, just comes with a metal case, grip filter, and 300% price hike (dunno why this particular model gets such a disproportionate markup).

According to the manual, the optimal pressure range is between 15 and 30 PSI (actually says .1 to .2 MPa; I guess the Japanese use MPa instead of BAR or PSI for airbrushing). Manual doesn't specify airflow volume, but the Iwata-Medea website says 1.2 CFM. It runs fine on my little .9 CFM Badger compressor though. Might run even better if I had a more powerful one, for all I know, but it does well as is.
 
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@zeaifgfl if the vendor is shipping via EMS then you won't need to wait very long, in the past I have ordered on a Friday and come Monday morning delivery to my door (australia).

Just google "hobby shop Japan" and you should bring a a few Iwata sellers, another great source is Rakuten jp they have plent of iwata stuff but the search can be a little difficult with the translation of English to Japan.

Maybe contact the vendor in the link below and ask if the Procon boy cup fits the iwata HP-TH since they carry both products, good luck.

https://www.hlj.com/product/AIWHPA-CB3/Sup

https://www.hlj.com/product/GNZPS-290B/
 
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