All we ever wanted to know about air brushes and compressors!

[OCtoolguy]

Once again the search function let me down. I know someone recently posted a reply to a thread and mentioned wanting to buy an air brush. I've lost sight of who posted it so I'm opening a whole new thread for anybody who knows anything about air brushes can offer up their expertise/experience with them. I'm toying with buying one and I just purchased the H/F $10 set of bottles that come with a spray attachment. I've jumped in and have been watching a ton of videos on the subject and what I have found is I still don't know what I want. So, if anybody can offer their own personal choice as to the air brush itself and also what compressor you are using it with. Thanks in advance for any info that is added.

 

[Scrappile]

This one?  I just searched here for Harbor freight.

 

[OCtoolguy]

1 hour ago, Scrappile said:

This one?  I just searched here for Harbor freight.

I tried "air brush". Next time I'll try something more vague. Thanks Paul.

 

[Scrappile]

you gotta work the system.  And like I stated in another thread,, I have always been a little out of wack.. you search for a post about air brushes using "air brushes.". I immediately search using  "Harbor Freight" and do not understand why you searched as you did! 

Edited September 29, 2022 by Scrappile

[OCtoolguy]

I'm leaning toward this one because of price and after viewing a few videos on youtube. It comes with 3 air brushes which may or may not be of any quality but for what little I'll use it, at least at first, I think it will fill the bill. 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M72W5OV/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_1?smid=A10PRH2DFOVNA8&psc=1

 

Edited September 28, 2022 by OCtoolguy

[Scrappile]

You can buy a carton of those jars off of amazon also

[BadBob]

I have a large collection of airbrushes from cheap china ones to Made in USA Badger airbrushes. If I could only have one it would be the Badger 155 Anthem.

[OCtoolguy]

@BadBob, what compressor are you using. Thanks for your comment on the air brush itself. I've been watching one particular guy do lots of testing on many different brushes of all price ranges and so far, he is impressed with many of the "cheaper" ones. Harbor Freight is one of them that he was impressed with.

 

[kmmcrafts]

I don't have much experience with air brushes, my older brother had a nice set for doing custom work on cars back in the 70's that i used to play with on my bicycles, LOL

Coming from a spray gun perspective from the old siphon feed days to going to the newer HVLP gravity feed spray guns I have to say I like the gravity feed stuff way better.. you can mix just enough paint and not have to worry about keeping enough in the cup to keep it from sucking some air and spitting etc.. plus there is very little to no paint waisted since you can spray it out until it's dry.. always had to keep a ounce or so in the bottom of a siphon feed to toss out.. I don't know if the air brush is the same way or not and I highly doubt you're going to be working with some of the auto paints that can be $200 on ounce too so your waist would be minimal compared to what I work with on car paints. LOL. But if you get the gravity feed you may save yourself from having it suck up some air and mess up your paint job is what I'm getting at.. again.. don't know much about the air brushes.. may not be like that just a thought I guess and if I were buying a set I think I'd go with a gravity feed set up.. unless research says otherwise..

[OCtoolguy]

2 hours ago, kmmcrafts said:

I don't have much experience with air brushes, my older brother had a nice set for doing custom work on cars back in the 70's that i used to play with on my bicycles, LOL

Coming from a spray gun perspective from the old siphon feed days to going to the newer HVLP gravity feed spray guns I have to say I like the gravity feed stuff way better.. you can mix just enough paint and not have to worry about keeping enough in the cup to keep it from sucking some air and spitting etc.. plus there is very little to no paint waisted since you can spray it out until it's dry.. always had to keep a ounce or so in the bottom of a siphon feed to toss out.. I don't know if the air brush is the same way or not and I highly doubt you're going to be working with some of the auto paints that can be $200 on ounce too so your waist would be minimal compared to what I work with on car paints. LOL. But if you get the gravity feed you may save yourself from having it suck up some air and mess up your paint job is what I'm getting at.. again.. don't know much about the air brushes.. may not be like that just a thought I guess and if I were buying a set I think I'd go with a gravity feed set up.. unless research says otherwise..

I'm thinking the same Kev. I also bought that cheapo set with 5 bottles so I should have all bases covered. I'm trying to decide on a compressor and I like the idea of having one with a tank to keep the cycling down. I know when it does run that it will run longer. The Zeny at $87 is pretty nice and was recommended. I'm also looking at a Wagner folding booth. All I will need is space and that is a constant battle. 

[kmmcrafts]

6 hours ago, OCtoolguy said:

I'm thinking the same Kev. I also bought that cheapo set with 5 bottles so I should have all bases covered. I'm trying to decide on a compressor and I like the idea of having one with a tank to keep the cycling down. I know when it does run that it will run longer. The Zeny at $87 is pretty nice and was recommended. I'm also looking at a Wagner folding booth. All I will need is space and that is a constant battle. 

Don't know much about the small compressors either.. I have a small one that runs constantly that I use for my laser for the air assist. I hate the thing because it's noisy and runs constantly.. a couple weeks ago I ran a temporary hose upstairs from my 80 gallon 2 stage compressor.. I have a regulator turned down to 5psi.. running the air continuous the big tank once full only turns on about once every 30 - 40 minutes, LOL and it don't take long to pump back up and shut off maybe 5 minutes or so. I think I'll be running hard line up to the loft where the laser rest eventually. The small pump is nothing more than a fish tank pump.. Might be enough to run a air brush but the air pulsates a little as the piston cycles.. I would think it would work but that pulsating air seems like it'd mess up the paint flow.. I'm assuming most any of the tankless compressors would be sort of like that. I think you're better off with a small tank compressor rather than a continuous one. Even if it's just one of those pancake ones. But again, I don't know maybe there is some real good tankless ones out there that have a better air flow. You'd be amazed at how much you might actually use compressed air though for blowing dust out the driveway and what have you.. I just looked at HF to see what those pancake pumps cost.. LOL about $10 more than the stupid fish tank pump I got.. while the little 3 gallon tank would require it to run I'd still rather just run hardline from my big compressor, and it may run quite a lot for you as well.. just you'd have better air flow control with the tank ( I would think ). 

My father used to air brush some of his scroll saw portrait backers with skylines etc. He didn't have a compressor but he lived not too far from a gas station and he had a air tank for inflating tires etc. Pretty good sized one maybe 7 gallon? anyway.. he'd be able to do quite a lot of air brushing on that tank so if you already have a tank you probably could put a short piece of hose with quick connector on it so long as you have a source nearby to fill the tank. Now days fuel stations etc. charge to use the air.. That's because idiots would steal the tire inflator fittings etc. Friend that ran a station was putting a new hose etc. on the outside air about 2 times a week just to be helpful to people so they could air up tires etc. He finally broke down and made it a pay one.. still happens but more so by accident and he's able to make enough to pay for that when it does happen. 

[BadBob]

 

10 hours ago, OCtoolguy said:

@BadBob, what compressor are you using. Thanks for your comment on the air brush itself. I've been watching one particular guy do lots of testing on many different brushes of all price ranges and so far, he is impressed with many of the "cheaper" ones. Harbor Freight is one of them that he was impressed with.

 

I have a two-stage compressor with a 30-gallon tank that I use most of the time. I also have a Harbor  Freight Compressor that was given to me. Much to my surprise, the Habor Freight compressor works fine. I can't attest to its durability because I don't use it much. The larger two-stage compressor is almost 40 years old and can be used for many things besides airbrushes.

[Rolf]

I have a California Air tools Compressor 1.6 gallon Super quiet! My wife bought it for me along with a Vortex F5 power carver.  The compressor is really quiet and I use it with my air brush. 

The Harbor Freight https://www.harborfreight.com/air-tools-compressors/air-compressors-tanks/1-gallon-135-psi-ultra-quiet-hand-carry-jobsite-air-compressor-64592.html Fortress brand has gotten good reviews and is a clone of the California compressors. (Personally I would go with the 2 gallon)

I would recommend a compressor with a tank as the tankless one will run continuously with constant noise. I find that to be annoying and a distraction.

Air brush I recently bought a Badger 105 Patriot. it is good for what I want to do I also have an Aztec that I bought 20+ years ago.  All of require cleaning which usually takes longer than the actual painting.  

As you see in Bad Bobs picture you will end up with lots of accessories besides paint,  This is great https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0154HN2NA/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It combines a holder and cleaning capture vessel.

[OCtoolguy]

Thanks to all. Info is gold. I appreciate all the input. I'm not artistic at all but I thought having the ability to add color might be nice. My luck with spray cans hasn't been favorable so having a more controllable method makes sense. I've always wanted an air brush. I should have bought one back when I was selling tools. I could have saved 40% and all the price increases since then. Lol.

[kmmcrafts]

An air brush has always crossed my mind of something I might like to have.. as you say I just never bit the bullet.. not that they're pricey unless you're getting very high end stuff to work in the auto industry. Having spray equipment can be nice, I've often thought about buying a small spray gun or air brush for my crafts.. My issue with spray guns is that most my stuff is finished not in a production type manor.. If I get a order today for a clock or? I make it asap and many times I'm just finishing the one item.. for me the clean-up for a spray gun would be more wasteful than just using a spray can.. most things I make don't even get a top coat.. because of time constraints from customers.. Got a order yesterday and the customer needs it for a birthday on the 7th.. it'll be approximately 3 days just in the mail.. and to make the grain "pop" I dip in danish oil so it needs a few days after that before I can top coat IF I even top coat.. many times, actually most times I do not top coat.  If I was running production run of several items to top coat then yes a spray gun would be and has been used.. But it's not feasible most of the time for me and my set up.. That could change with me adding more laser cut stuff.. since the laser cut items smell like a campfire I spray a top coat on most all of that stuff to block the smell. Mostly use water base poly on it.. since it dries super fast.. or lacquer but the smell of lacquer I do not like at all, LOL 

[OCtoolguy]

I just pulled the trigger on this kit. They are currently sold out but should be back in a couple of weeks. For $40, how can you go wrong? For the time being I'm going to use my 2.5 gallon compressor and dial it way down. I want to get a feel for using an air brush and also thte cheapy set from Harbor Freight. I have got to figure out what paints to buy. Probably a basic set of acrylics from Hobby Lobby to start. Something that can be cleaned up with water. 

 

[Scrappile]

keep us informed on your experience with it.  Did you buy plastic spoons to paint also?  I am still thanking @jollyred for explaining to me why paint spoons.  That one had me pre-plex-ed!

[OCtoolguy]

2 hours ago, Scrappile said:

keep us informed on your experience with it.  Did you buy plastic spoons to paint also?  I am still thanking @jollyred for explaining to me why paint spoons.  That one had me pre-plex-ed!

Yeah, me too but after watching many of his videos I now get it. I won't be needing to do any of that because I'll only be working with wood. I do have one project that my wife wants done though. We have a metalwork tree on the front of our home that has become weathered so I'm going to try to do some antiquing on it. Gray, brown, green. Here's a pic.

[kmmcrafts]

10 minutes ago, OCtoolguy said:

Yeah, me too but after watching many of his videos I now get it. I won't be needing to do any of that because I'll only be working with wood. I do have one project that my wife wants done though. We have a metalwork tree on the front of our home that has become weathered so I'm going to try to do some antiquing on it. Gray, brown, green. Here's a pic.

 

Easiest way to antique it would be to leave it out there another 10 years.  

[zimmerstutzen]

thought you might like a story that happened to me.  Out Lions club has a small park open to the public.  Every few years we paint the tables, pavillion. and shed.  They had been doing it with brushes and it took a work crew 2 days to paint everything.  So I bought the $19 paint spray gun at HF and brought my HF air compressor.  We mixed the latex paint with water as the instructions said and went to town.  I couldn't believe how far it sprayed or how fast I got coverage.    I have most of the tables painted before noon.  A buddy wanted to try painting and he painted the pavilion supports and ends in short order.  His 18 yr old daughter wanted to try it, so he handed the spray gun to her.  As he did so, I noticed the bottom of the screw on paint can was no longer dished in but dished out.  Within a second or two the can cracked and spewed paint all over the girl.  Medium blue latex.  She looked like one of the Blue Men musical group.   We shut the compressor down and one of the members, who works on and paints old cars said, how high did you set the pressure?   Then he said, "I see by the puzzled looks that you did not reduce the pressure."  The daughter was hosed off immediately and we got about 85% of it off her.  Then she was driven home, in the back of Dad's truck where she got in the shower.  The mother wasn't too happy over the blue residue in her egg shell white shower stall.

[OCtoolguy]

55 minutes ago, zimmerstutzen said:

thought you might like a story that happened to me.  Out Lions club has a small park open to the public.  Every few years we paint the tables, pavillion. and shed.  They had been doing it with brushes and it took a work crew 2 days to paint everything.  So I bought the $19 paint spray gun at HF and brought my HF air compressor.  We mixed the latex paint with water as the instructions said and went to town.  I couldn't believe how far it sprayed or how fast I got coverage.    I have most of the tables painted before noon.  A buddy wanted to try painting and he painted the pavilion supports and ends in short order.  His 18 yr old daughter wanted to try it, so he handed the spray gun to her.  As he did so, I noticed the bottom of the screw on paint can was no longer dished in but dished out.  Within a second or two the can cracked and spewed paint all over the girl.  Medium blue latex.  She looked like one of the Blue Men musical group.   We shut the compressor down and one of the members, who works on and paints old cars said, how high did you set the pressure?   Then he said, "I see by the puzzled looks that you did not reduce the pressure."  The daughter was hosed off immediately and we got about 85% of it off her.  Then she was driven home, in the back of Dad's truck where she got in the shower.  The mother wasn't too happy over the blue residue in her egg shell white shower stall.

As we live & learn. Great story.

3 hours ago, Scrappile said:

keep us informed on your experience with it.  Did you buy plastic spoons to paint also?  I am still thanking @jollyred for explaining to me why paint spoons.  That one had me pre-plex-ed!

Yeah, me too but after watching many of his videos I now get it. I won't be needing to do any of that because I'll only be working with wood. I do have one project that my wife wants done though. We have a metalwork tree on the front of our home that has become weathered so I'm going to try to do some antiquing on it. Gray, brown, green. Here's a pic.

[BadBob]

Acrylics are very easy to clean up. I use cheap window cleaner from the dollar store for this.

When thinning with water, I always use distilled water. There is no telling what is in tap water that might react with the paint, especially if I use bottles and want to save the paint that is left over.

[BadBob]

21 hours ago, Rolf said:

As you see in Bad Bobs picture you will end up with lots of accessories besides paint

That is only about half of what I have. If I counted right, I have ten airbrushes and maybe 30 paint bottles.

Craft acrylics can work quite well if adequately thinned. I have also sprayed house paint successfully. The red, green, and yellow car bodies in the photo are craft paint, the cheapest I could get at Walmart. The blue, pink, and lavender colors are house paint. Oops, paint from Home Depot.

One of the advantages of using an airbrush is the ability to get custom colors. Paint stores and places like Home Depot will mix custom colors.

Edited September 30, 2022 by BadBob

[Rolf]

I did this project with my airbrush.  The pieces are all beveled inlay and spray painted individually before assembly. The finish and uniformity was far superior to what I could do with a brush.  I used Acrylics, some where already thinned for air brush use. But I did buy this stuff Vallejo Airbrush Thinner 200ml Paint a couple of drops mixed into the paint will really help with the flow.   This stuff is also great for cleaning the gun. Iwata-Medea Airbrush Cleaner (16 Oz.) 

And yes the clean up is a pain. 

 

 

Edited September 30, 2022 by Rolf

[OCtoolguy]

2 hours ago, Rolf said:

I did this project with my airbrush.  The pieces are all beveled inlay and spray painted individually before assembly. The finish and uniformity was far superior to what I could done with a brush.  I used Acrylics, some where already thinned for air brush use. But I did buy this stuff Vallejo Airbrush Thinner 200ml Paint a couple of drops mixed into the paint will really help with the flow.   This stuff is also great for cleaning the gun. Iwata-Medea Airbrush Cleaner (16 Oz.) 

And yes the clean-up is a pain. 

 

 

That's beautiful Rolf. Great work. Thanks.