More Airbrush Woes

[The Neverborn]

TL:DR Are expensive airbrushes worth it?

 

I've been airbrushing for 8-10 years, usually using Neo's

 

I got a second-hand HP-C for the same price of a new Neo, I'm not actually noticing any difference, the same frustrations I had with the Neo i'm having with the HP-C. The Neo's don't last long, when they break, it's quicker/cheaper to get a new one than fix it.

 

After breaking of the nozel while trying to clean it (something that was never an issue with the Neo) and at the same time replacing the Needle and getting a tool for the Nozel (which cost as much as brand new neo). The trigger now keeps on Jamming and the needle gets stuck when trying to remove or insert, but only around half the time, despite lube. - any ideas here. Thing is turing into a money pit. I could sent it off to be stripped evaluated, that costs 75% the cost of a Neo (before parts). Maybe I should have bought new, that's around 2.0x the cost of a Neo and I'm not seeing any difference.  Thinking of going back to the buy an Neo and chuck at first sign of a problem. Then again the next person is saying he's been using the same airbrush for 20 years. 

 

I do clean them regularly with recommend products.

Edited September 6, 2021 by Battle Brother Abderus

[Bung]

To be honest for what do you use your airbrush?

If its only priming and basecoating you wont need an expensive airbrush to be honest.

 

My question would be, how much do you abuse your gun, that you replace them?

 

The problem could be the previous owner.

I would get that gun checked from someone with experience.

[The Neverborn]

To be honest for what do you use your airbrush?

 

About  90% of these lovely 3 guys where painted with a Neo - http://bolterandchainsword.com/uploads/gallery/album_16186/gallery_54638_16186_53251.jpg

 

By "Abuse" what do you mean?

[Bung]

I was referencing this sentence

 

Thinking of going back to the buy an Neo and chuck at first sign of a problem.

 

I dont have much experience with Iwata as i use H&S guns.

 

But mostly the more expensive guns have tighter mechanical tolerantes and are able to spray a finer line with the matching nozzle.

My experience with H&S and a Custom Micron.

Sometimes expensive guns come with more features compare the H&S Evolution and Infinity for example.

 

Thats why i ask for what you use your airbrush.

Cause thats mainly how i dicide which gun i use / buy.

 

As you bought your HP-C used you dont know what the previous owner did with the gun.

Thats why i say get that gun to someone who has experience with it. They can better decide if it works properly.

Its better if you dont know how that gun should work If you lack experience.

 

For myself, i am happy to have bought an Infinity after the Evolution and still consider a Custom Micron which is twice the price of an HP-C.

[Lucien Eilam]

I wouldn’t recommend buying an expensive airbrush if you’re routinely breaking cheaper ones. You‘re paying for greater precision and manufacturing tolerances more than anything, which will only make it more vulnerable to whatever it is you’ve been doing to your Neos.

 

Great job on the daemons, you obviously know what you’re doing when it comes to painting with an airbrush. But you’re pushing air and fluid through an object made of steel and brass. It shouldn’t be breaking from normal use.

 

It’s impossible to diagnose what’s going wrong from text over the internet, but most problems I’ve seen in person come down to rough handling during maintenance and/or incorrectly reassembling it when you’re done.

 

If everything is in proper order, it should barely need lubrication. If a component is bent or misaligned, no amount of cleaning products or lube will fix the problem.

[Arkhanist]

One thing about the neo, and iwata brushes in general is they do have teeny tiny fragile screw on nozzles. I still have my neo (my first 'proper' airbrush rather than the no-name chinese crap that came with the compressor) but god it was the absolute bastard to get clean, so it's relegated to my 'in case of emergency' drawer. It's worth pointing out the neo is not a proper Iwata made in Japan, it is a budget version made under licence in china.

 

Rather than a high-end airbrush, which actually also tend to be somewhat delicate and highly machined (you're paying for the ability to spray very fine detail i.e. sub mm with inks, which is largely overkill for model purposes) - I can recommend the badger patriot 105.

 

It's a very solid workhorse brush, with a floating (non-screwed on) large nozzle that you can trivially pop off and clean or soak in cleaner, and also clean the paint channel at the same time. I tend to clean it at every end-of-session. I've had it spray OK with what turned out to be a great lump of dry paint still stuck in the nozzle; it was only when it was completely clogged that it started to sputter. It looks a bit like it's made out of welded shovels compared to a high-end brush, but it does just keeps on trucking compared to any other brush I've used. Price wise, you should be able to get it for about the same price as a neo. (it's often discounted)

 

I primarily use the patriot for primer, big areas and varnish (because I also have an H&S infinity, and have to justify the cost to myself by using it for fine detail!), but the patriot can still do a hair thin line with the standard needle if you need.

 

The only gotcha is that badger uses a different airhose standard than everyone else. Most hoses and airbrushes (including iwata) are 1/8" BSP. You can get a cheap badger to 1/8" hose adapter or a badger-sized 'tail' for a standard 1/8" cheap 'quick release' adapter if you like to switch between airbrushes without having to decompress your air tank.

[Bloody Legionnaire]

BLUF: Yes, the quality and tier range (low range, mid range, high range) matters.

I was introduced to Airbrushing at a fairly young age by my father who had a testors aztec airbrush. It is fairly decent, but poo-pooed by most purists. It got the job done for a siphon feed airbrush. 

My first purchase however was a Master G444. It came as a kit, and it was about $100 dollars of wasted spending. I did get a compressor and tank out of it which remained useful until one day it tipped over and the air transfer tube broke with the threads stuck inside the tank making it useless. Yes I understand the topic is about airbrushes and I'm talking about tanks but the over all point is buy once cry once.. (more on this when I get into airbrushes). If you plan on continuing this hobby it will pay off to have quality parts that will hold up to abuse.

Now, back on topic. My first purchased airbrush was fairly demoralizing, and that is for someone who previously had some familiarity with airbrushing. The edges in the paint cup were rough, and collected paint which made smooth mixing in the paint cup difficult. While it came with 3 different size needles and nozzles none of the parts were accurately made and would fail easily. Clogs were an issue. Cleaning was an issue. Thinning was an issue. Decent spray patterns were an issue. Maintenance was an issue. I was about ready to give up on airbrush entirely for hobbying purposes and did for years.

Flash forward about 3 years, I had a full-time job and the disposable income to purchase a "nice" airbrush. I did my research and went with the Iwata HP-CS. The quality was outstanding. Night and day difference from the Master brush. Its spray pattern, smooth operation, and high-quality produced parts made it infinitely easier to paint with from anything I experienced before. I found the attempts to re-create what I saw artist do on youtube completely within my grasp because I had the right tool for the job. It didn't make me an awesome airbrusher over night.. but it did help me get to where I was at today because I had a tool that allowed me to push pass my personal boundaries. 

All that said, there is still a learning curve to the art of airbrushing. I have ruined my fair share of nozzle tips and needles which admittedly are expensive ($30 USD for a new nozzle $15-30 for a new needle depending on retailer). The better I have gotten to know my airbrush, the easier time I had with keeping my paint appropriately thinned and the airbrush properly cleaned so that I kept the wear and tear down. I also figured out ways to remove the parts which lessened the likelihood of damage when conducting cleaning. 

I do not want to insult your intelligence, but maybe your airbrush is outclassing you right now. You should not take what you know about your neo airbrush and apply it directly to a precision tool like the HP-C. It's completely understandable that precision tools break from operator error. That, can absolutely get expensive really quick. It's also possible that the HP-C is not the tool that fits *your* needs. I would probably recommend to you the Iwata Revolution HP-CR. It has a .5mm nozzle instead of the smaller .3mm and I find it is still accurate enough to do some finer detail work. It doesn't appear you desire a tool that can do extremely fine detail so something like a .3mm or smaller is not going to be the tool you need. 

So, again, to directly answer your question.. higher quality (and yes sometimes expensive) airbrushes are worth it... for those who understand how to use them. The quality of work you'll be able to produce and (once you've learned your brush) the amount you'll save on parts because you're using quality items will be night and day difference. Also, once you have that experience you'll be able to push your techniques and paint things you never would have been able to before with low-end cheap airbrushes. 

In your case, I would say something like the Iwata Revolution HP-CR, or the Badger Patriot 105, would be a good option for you that would probably fall into what you'd call "expensive" as they are both about $100 USD. The airbrush I mentioned before, the Iwata Eclipse HP-CS is also and excellent option. It does have a .35mm nozzle so you may run into some of the same issues you're running into now, but it is a hobby work horse and I've loved all my time I've worked with it.

Hope it helps.. 

[BLACK BLΠFLY]

You never see them used for any master class.

[Bung]

You never see them used for any master class.

Myles from Lil Legend Studios does His videos with an Iwata Custom Micron.

 

The difference is, a Custom Micron is at least twice the price of an H&S Infinity or Badger Sotar 20/20 which are already good guns and cover all needs an average miniature painter has.

Even big names like Angel Giraldez mostly uses a H&S Evolution Al Plus.

 

There are alot of things that you need to consider If you want to buy one.

 

H&S is easier to aquire in Europe while Badger is easier to find in the US Just to name one thing.