Brush vs airbrush?

[Mark1]

Never used retarder! As for thinners,some might like there paint a bit thicker or thinner then others,depending on ab size and what kind of coverage they want, I just use vallejo ab thinners for everything.

 

[BarryW]

I reckon Steve (Stona) has raised an excellent point. If acrylics need extras such as thinners, retarders etc. why don't the manufacturers include them in their formulations?

I have often wondered that. I suspect that it’s because the main varying issue relates to humidity and is changeable.

 

[outrunner]

So many variations like needle size, pressure, type of paint, how much to thin (if any), distance from subject being painted etc, you just have to play and find out what is right for you.

Andy.

 

[Deleted member 5496]

I reckon Steve (Stona) has raised an excellent point. If acrylics need extras such as thinners, retarders etc. why don't the manufacturers include them in their formulations?

Like salt pepper & vinegar on your chips. It is what suits you Dave.

Laurie

 

[Deleted member 5496]

I'll probably go this route, if I get an AB at all. I find a small brush so much better for small details.

I would say that is not the route to go Dale

First airbrushes are remarkably flexible in what they can do.

When I first started it seemed the rule was 6" from the subject which is idiotic.

Pressure set for the air. The trigger gives all the amount of paint you want to release.
The distance from the object. How if any thinners you are using with the paint.

You have therefore an enormous number of choices. 25PSI full on for the whole fuselage 10 PSI or less great close ups for effects
you can get down to virtually touching the object.

As an every day choice I would go for a 0.35 needle/nozzle. That will get you through most of what you want as a novice.

Started with H & S but by more luck than judgement I bought an Iwata HPBS. Very small but does all of the above. Superb
all rounder. In length there is not much smaller. The cup is beautifully recessed into the barrel giving superb views of your
work as your are airbrushing.

Superbly balanced. Lay off, in my view, a brush with a huge cup. They are not well balanced & are hampered by this large
cup both in eyesight & cumbersome not easy to get into small spaces. It is so easy to refill a small cup during a session.

95% of my work is with this brush. I do have an Iwata with a 0.2 which I use for detail but that accounts for a very small
amount of my airbrushing.

Laurie

 

[dalej2014]

I reckon Steve (Stona) has raised an excellent point. If acrylics need extras such as thinners, retarders etc. why don't the manufacturers include them in their formulations?

Vallejo do. They have model colour for brush, and model air, for AB. Other manufacturers settle for thinners and so on. Probably sell more that way? Thinner, retarder, primer and so on.

 

[dalej2014]

I would say that is not the route to go Dale

First airbrushes are remarkably flexible in what they can do.

When I first started it seemed the rule was 6" from the subject which is idiotic.

Pressure set for the air. The trigger gives all the amount of paint you want to release.
The distance from the object. How if any thinners you are using with the paint.

You have therefore an enormous number of choices. 25PSI full on for the whole fuselage 10 PSI or less great close ups for effects
you can get down to virtually touching the object.

As an every day choice I would go for a 0.35 needle/nozzle. That will get you through most of what you want as a novice.

Started with H & S but by more luck than judgement I bought an Iwata HPBS. Very small but does all of the above. Superb
all rounder. In length there is not much smaller. The cup is beautifully recessed into the barrel giving superb views of your
work as your are airbrushing.

Superbly balanced. Lay off, in my view, a brush with a huge cup. They are not well balanced & are hampered by this large
cup both in eyesight & cumbersome not easy to get into small spaces. It is so easy to refill a small cup during a session.

95% of my work is with this brush. I do have an Iwata with a 0.2 which I use for detail but that accounts for a very small
amount of my airbrushing.

Laurie

Would you be able to AB an eye, and a pupil in 54mm? That's the level of detail I'd like to aim for. I imagine I'd still need a brush for that. Who knows though, with practise

 

[Deleted member 5496]

Vallejo do. They have model colour for brush, and model air, for AB. Other manufacturers settle for thinners and so on. Probably sell more that way? Thinner, retarder, primer and so on.

I found with Vallejo Model Air you need to thin. Plus I found theModel Air notorious for needle tip drying. They now market a Flow Improver which is superb.

 

[Jim R]

One small point. With a brush you can get a hard edge. With an AB you will always get a soft edge to some degree unless you mask.
Most use both a brush and an AB. Both require skill to use to their best advantage.
Jim

 

[Deleted member 5496]

Would you be able to AB an eye, and a pupil in 54mm? That's the level of detail I'd like to aim for. I imagine I'd still need a brush for that. Who knows though, with practise

No idea Dale way outside my experience. Certainly for instance a 1/48 figure I would hand brush.

 

[Tim Marlow]

No idea Dale way outside my experience. Certainly for instance a 1/48 figure I would hand brush.

Which is exactly the point about airbrush main coats and hand brush detail that Dale made in the first place. As to close work, you can actually work right at the end of the needle. It’s why one airbrush accessory, the crown shaped needle protector, exists. In fact, some artists actually work with the protector removed all together. The hot rod tail I have fitted to my Iwata has the facility to store this fitting when working that close.
A valid point that has not yet been made is that the majority of modellers do not actually use it an airbrush as a brush. They use one as a small spray gun. The high end airbrushes (200 ukp or so upwards) then become vanity purchases because the vast majority of users or purchasers simply do not need the finesse that they can deliver.
As to acrylic additives, take a trip around an art shop some day…..the range on offer there is broad, for both acrylics and oils, and similar ranges are produced by all major long established artist paint manufacturers. They are not an “afterthought”, they are a method of producing different effects with the same paint or tailoring its responses to make it do exactly what it is you want. This is not interior decorating, where you need a tin of dulux to go on smooth, cover well, and dry quick every time, and do nothing else. Once you get into the weathering and distressing aspects of modelling you are moving into the realms of art. Brush (used by air or hair) paint therefore needs to be flexible enough to perform all of the tasks we ask of it, and mediums and additives endow it with this resilience.

 

[Deleted member 5496]

Vallejo do. They have model colour for brush, and model air, for AB. Other manufacturers settle for thinners and so on. Probably sell more that way? Thinner, retarder, primer and so on.

Yes they do Dale. Air for Airbrush & Model for hand brush. But I use air a lot with handbrush thinner & I find easier to use.

I use thinners & their Flow improver both in hand airbrush. However for most work use Tamiya but Tamiya I find just very difficult to brush as it goes off very quickly.

Have a look here they do an enormous array of paints & bits & pieces.

Laurie

 

[Deleted member 5496]

Which is exactly the point about airbrush main coats and hand brush detail that Dale made in the first place. As to close work, you can actually work right at the end of the needle. It’s why one airbrush accessory, the crown shaped needle protector, exists. In fact, some artists actually work with the protector removed all together. The hot rod tail I have fitted to my Iwata has the facility to store this fitting when working that close.
A valid point that has not yet been made is that the majority of modellers do not actually use it an airbrush as a brush. They use one as a small spray gun. The high end airbrushes (200 ukp or so upwards) then become vanity purchases because the vast majority of users or purchasers simply do not need the finesse that they can deliver.
As to acrylic additives, take a trip around an art shop some day…..the range on offer there is broad, for both acrylics and oils, and similar ranges are produced by all major long established artist paint manufacturers. They are not an “afterthought”, they are a method of producing different effects with the same paint or tailoring its responses to make it do exactly what it is you want. This is not interior decorating, where you need a tin of dulux to go on smooth, cover well, and dry quick every time, and do nothing else. Once you get into the weathering and distressing aspects of modelling you are moving into the realms of art. Brush (used by air or hair) paint therefore needs to be flexible enough to perform all of the tasks we ask of it, and mediums and additives endow it with this resilience.

....

 

[JR]

Dale a word from the wise, if all else fails set fire to the model.

 

[Deleted member 7917]

Dale a word from the wise, if all else fails set fire to the model.

Don't forget to don the respirator before doing so ...

 

[Jim R]

One of the big advantages of owning an airbrush is you can use it to give your loved one a spray tan before that trip to Magaluf

 

[dalej2014]

One of the big advantages of owning an airbrush is you can use it to give your loved one a spray tan before that trip to Magaluf

A lovely brown flesh tone, but I think someone forgot the highlights!

 

[David Lovell]

Well I bet you wished you'd never asked. Dave

 

[David Lovell]

Well I bet you wished you'd never asked

 

[David Lovell]

Your original question , i suppose the answer is a paint brush can do plenty a airbrush can't and vice a versa , you and only you will teach you to use the airbrush. Way too many myths and legends to this aspect of our hobby.