How much do I need to spend on a compressor?

[Doggy]

Hi all. I want to buy my first comp and airbrush set up. I was going to buy a starter set which could cost up to £300, I thought that would get me a reasonable kit.

Trawling through ebay I see loads used and new ranging from £50 to way up. Airbrushes can be as little as £10 too. So what do I do? Buy the kit I think is best or hunt for a bargain and learn the ropes so to speak?

A couple of things I've noticed, some only go up to 35psi, is that enough for the airbrushes? And if it says manual on/off I assume I need to switch it on as the pressure drops?

Thanks guys.

 

[Adrian "Marvel" Reynolds]

There will be loads of advice and options forth coming but heres what I started with last year

COMPLETE AIRBRUSH KIT + AIRBRUSH COMPRESSOR WITH TANK | eBay

It was only £75 last year so a little increase in price, but the compressor has a tank, auto cut off, variable psi and I never spray anything above 35psi anyways and its very quiet !!!!. The airbrushes worked well for me as I learnt how to use one and I honestly cannot fault it as a package deal. My LHS sells just the compressor alone for £125.

I now use an Iwata airbrush, take a look at the ones in the shop here, again I have the cheaper of the range as my skills cannot justify spending more just yet

Adrian

 

[Doggy]

Thanks Adrian. With the smaller tank how often does the comp keep cutting in?

I was going to buy something along the the lines of a Sparmax tc610.

 

[Adrian "Marvel" Reynolds]

I tend not to notice to be honest, even when it does its so quiet I dont realise, I used to use a huge one my brother got me I used to jump outta my skin when that topped up !

 

[Doggy]

Lol

 

[phalinmegob]

thats the same compressor i use, and performs perfectly for me , i never spray at more than 20psi myself.

 

[Doggy]

EBay is loaded with compressors. Not sure if they are rebadged sparmax or just cheap copies.

 

[tecdes]

I would not buy a starter set Doggy. Save money & go for the real thing. All after this is from hard experience I have gained.

Split it into an Airbrush & Compressor. As long as you have a good air supply the airbrush will work.

Airbrush. I would take a bet that the majority of serious model makers on this forum use either an Iwata or Harder & Steinbeck.They are both the tops in Airbrushes & they will last a life time. They both have replaceable parts & also have seals which stand up to the stuff we shove in an airbrush. Very rare that you will find anybody having an problems as they are engineered to high standards & with the experience of years. I bought a cheap one & had a mass of trouble & that was made by a well known manufacturer.

Compressor. First it needs a air pressure indicator & water filter attached. Do not as I did originally go for one without a pressure tank. Now have one with a tank & they are far better. When I looked around I found that one for instance was twice the price of another. The expensive one look remarkably like the cheaper version but re-badged & painted black & marketed by an Airbrush manufacturer. Again I would bet that most use an AS Series.

I had the same thought as you buy the best. But I could not find one the majority, if not all, come out of China and all look the same. There are some Sparmax for instance which are more expensive you also pay for the casing etc & they take up near twice the room needed. My thoughts were Sparmax near £200. An AS Series single cylinder £100 approx or a double cylinder £110. I could buy two for the cost of a Sparmax. Same air comes out of each. So gambled on the two chance option.

What ever you do buy a compressor designed for airbrushing. Garage models etc. as history on this Forum tells a tail, are mostly not the correct type. They give "stuttery" supplies which is exactly what you do not need.

This is my tale.

Laurie

 

[Adrian "Marvel" Reynolds]

I would not buy a starter set Doggy. Save money & go for the real thing. All after this is from hard experience I have gained.Split it into an Airbrush & Compressor. As long as you have a good air supply the airbrush will work.

Airbrush. I would take a bet that the majority of serious model makers on this forum use either an Iwata or Harder & Steinbeck.They are both the tops in Airbrushes & they will last a life time. They both have replaceable parts & also have seals which stand up to the stuff we shove in an airbrush. Very rare that you will find anybody having an problems as they are engineered to high standards & with the experience of years. I bought a cheap one & had a mass of trouble & that was made by a well known manufacturer.

Compressor. First it needs a air pressure indicator & water filter attached. Do not as I did originally go for one without a pressure tank. Now have one with a tank & they are far better. When I looked around I found that one for instance was twice the price of another. The expensive one look remarkably like the cheaper version but re-badged & painted black & marketed by an Airbrush manufacturer. Again I would bet that most use an AS Series.

I had the same thought as you buy the best. But I could not find one the majority, if not all, come out of China and all look the same. There are some Sparmax for instance which are more expensive you also pay for the casing etc & they take up near twice the room needed. My thoughts were Sparmax near £200. An AS Series single cylinder £100 approx or a double cylinder £110. I could buy two for the cost of a Sparmax. Same air comes out of each. So gambled on the two chance option.

What ever you do buy a compressor designed for airbrushing. Garage models etc. as history on this Forum tells a tail, are mostly not the correct type. They give "stuttery" supplies which is exactly what you do not need.

This is my tale.

Laurie

I've been using my "starter" compressor for a year now and completed 10 models with it, it has all the features I originally listed and also you did, I have in the last 3 months replaced my airbrush with an Iwata as stated, the reason was simple my skills grew to be able to benefit from the better airbrush. Of course I could have gone out and paid £125 for a compressor and £100 for a very decent airbrush but I would have not been getting the best results at my lvl of expertise. Its true you take a chance with all what we buy, but I am more than happy with my compressor , its not let me down yet and the original airbrushes are now used for base coats ans also still work fine. They are good starting points to build upon later with better airbrushes is all I meant,

Adrian

 

[tecdes]

Not critising Adrian I was just telling of my experience.

Laurie

 

[Adrian "Marvel" Reynolds]

Not critising Adrian I was just telling of my experience.Laurie

I never thought you were Laurie, just sticking up for my little compressor

 

[BarryW]

It looks like the AS186 compressor that I use, currently available for £79 plus VAT and delivery (see here airbrush-pro.co.uk offers airbrush airbrush compressor autoair paint airbrushes createx paint)

I have been using mine now for well over a year and it has performed faultlessly and I think is a great buy. It certainly does the job.

 

[tecdes]

That is a very competitive price Barry.

Laurie

 

[Adrian "Marvel" Reynolds]

It looks like the AS186 compressor that I use, currently available for £79 plus VAT and delivery (see here airbrush-pro.co.uk offers airbrush airbrush compressor autoair paint airbrushes createx paint)I have been using mine now for well over a year and it has performed faultlessly and I think is a great buy. It certainly does the job.

Yeah, thats what I paid for mine last year, much cheaper than the one in my LHS

Adrian

 

[Doggy]

It looks like the AS186 compressor that I use, currently available for £79 plus VAT and delivery (see here airbrush-pro.co.uk offers airbrush airbrush compressor autoair paint airbrushes createx paint)I have been using mine now for well over a year and it has performed faultlessly and I think is a great buy. It certainly does the job.

The airbrushes and compressors on that site are really cheap. are they really any good?

 

[john]

If you have £300 to spend then the iwata revolution cr and either the sprint or smart jet pro, 10 year guarantee on the airbrush, spare parts readly available and free delivery at the moment Special Offers

 

[BarryW]

Yes - Doggy, as I said it does the job well. Clearly you get what you pay for though and if you have deep enough pockets John's suggestion is good but if not then the AS186 is a good buy, I have not had any trouble.

 

[blitzbob]

dont over spend on the compressor, i paid £75 for mine off ebay. very happy with it but went for a good brush, a Neo.

bob

 

[Doggy]

I thought the Neo was the cheapest brush? I was going to spend over £100 on a brush, is that too much?

 

[tecdes]

I thought the Neo was the cheapest brush? I was going to spend over £100 on a brush, is that too much?

Doggy (not your real name is it ?). I used to play cricket. My talent was not to bad. I saw no prospect in spending a Saturday & Sunday playing what I thought was the best thing that happened in my life with out the best. So much pleasure was had. I saw little prospect for enhancing that love by buying a cheap Cricket Bat & being miserable with it. Blaming it.

Same with model making. All those hours & the final product depends at the end on the finish. So my opinion is go for a good brush. Think you will probably be spending £125 or perhaps more to get a good pro. brush. eg an Iwata or Harder & Steinbeck. As said before you will never need another. It will last for ever & every part is replaceable within probably 48 hours. Over 10 years £12:50 a year or a cheap brush perhaps £5:00 if the spares are available.

Just to say this is just based on my experience from which cometh the opinion.

Laurie