Advice needed - airbrushing with acrylic paint

[bh1701]

I am going to try to master airbrushing again. Will be using a Paasche single action H-3AS this time. I have a double action airbrush, but unfortunately never seemed to figure it out. 🙁

I specifically want to use acrylic paints - Tamiya, Mr. Color, and craft store paints (Apple Barrel. Ceramcoat, etc.).

Here are some questions:

1) For each type of paint mentioned above, what can/should be used to thin the paint?

2) What's a good paint to thinner ratio to start with for each of the paints mentioned above.

3) What's a good compressor setting to start with for each of the paints mentioned above.

I appreciate everyone's advice on this!

Wish me luck - I will get the hang of this someday!

Thanks,

Bart

 

[Miatatom]

For the thinner, I use 150 ml distilled water, 75 ml 91% isopropyl alcohol, 10 ml Liquitex Slow Dri Retarder and 10 ml Liquitex Flow Aid Flow Improver.  I clean the gun with a 90 ml windshield cleaner, 90 ml distilled water, 50 ml 91% isopropyl alcohol and 10 ml glycerin mixture.

Experiment thinning your paint till it sprays the way you want it to. Start with 50% paint and 50% thinner.

Start with 20 psi for the pressure. It's a learning process with mixing, pressure, hand speed, distance, etc.

I like the Anita's brand of craft paint.

 

 

Edited March 4, 2023 by Miatatom

[Miatatom]

An additional note. I'd use Tamiya's thinner with their paint, Mr. Color's thinner with their paint, etc. The home brew formulas are what I use for craft paints.

[Bugatti Fan]

Like Tom, stick with the manufacturer's own thinner. It is formulated to be used with their specific paints.

[Dave G.]

The Paasche H is rated to spray between 20 and 75 PSI. Many airbrushes, even top brands have an upper limit and or are restricted for max pressure, you could set 50 psi but only get 30 for instance. This is not the case with the H. And it likes air. So here is the point, if you miss on your mix and the paint is a bit thick you can bump up the pressure. I learned this in shooting T Shirts with little or even no thinner with Createx paints with both the H and VL airbrushes. Most of those guys are shooting 50 or even 60 psi. But the thinner you mix it the lower the pressure can be. When you flash the paint it will lay down flat with craft paint, Createx and some others ( I use a hair dryer between coats). And just for the record my Paasche H and VL pretty much live around 23-25 psi, I mix my paint accordingly. I have brushes for lacquer and washes where I shoot 15-20 psi. I just shot a 53 Ford pickup with Liquitex Fluid silver and then Createx Red over that @ 28 psi. That was all over white Stynylrez primer shot @ 25 psi two days before.

Some paints don't like drug store alcohol, my generic formula for craft and artist acrylics is much the same as Toms but now and then you can hit on a paint that will gel. Parts of one paint line that will do this is DecoArt. So for that I sub out the alcohol and put in the same portion US Art Supply thinner ( I believe that's the name, will confirm when I can get to my thinners cabinet). That thinner does two things: no alcohol so no gel and it sustains rather than dilutes the binders in acrylic paint. But on it's own,outside my mix it tends to turn flats into satin coat.

Ok so this comes down to application now. With any acrylic put on two very fine mist coats letting each flash before the next. Once that base is on you can now paint as normal with wetter coats, still flashing off before the next coat. Without that base you can get a runny mess if put on too wet. Also you want to prime the model first, many acrylics don't stick to plastic for beans but they do stick to primer very well.

Thinning paint isn't always ratio but it is viscosity. Wipe some up the side of your mixing cup, the bulk of it should return right back down to the paint in the cup in a second or two but leave a film behind. If you're waiting 15 seconds it's too thick and if everything runs back instantly it's too thin. There are some paints that seem to defy this, like Createx with their thinner and 4030 additive for instance.

Now with Tamiya acrylic thinned with lacquer thinner ( suggested at the Tamiya web site for a harder finish) you can mix 50-50 or so called 1-1. That is one part paint to one part thinner or even a bit more thinner. Nice paint too.

I can't speak for the " Mr " acrylics line because I shoot those in solvent not acrylic. But I'm 100% sure it's easy enough to figure out. Once you stop fighting ratios and shooting an H at 18 PSI things become much easier, the H likes air as I already mentioned. Ya it will shoot water or watery paints at 15 psi but it literally isn't designed for that, though people do it.

[ctruss53]

I use Tamiya acrylic paints almost exclusively. I just thin them with tap water. It works totally fine, I have never had an issue.

Thin them about 50:50 in most cases. This will get you close enough. Tamiya paints are so forgiving, I have accidentally shot them through an airbrush without thinning them. It worked, but it was also a flat paint so maybe thats why it worked. I don't know.

[jaymcminn]

The Paasche H, as Dave mentioned above, does like a strong air supply. My Iwata Smart Jet compressor couldn't produce the CFM to operate it. A pancake compressor should work just fine, however. I used to just thin Model Master acrylics with water but recently switched to using Vallejo thinner medium for Vallejo and Revell acrylics and Tamiya thinner for their acrylics. Acrylics seem to go down smoother and cover much better using a specialized thinner. Water evaporates too slowly and can lead to paint puddling and poor adhesion.

Edited March 7, 2023 by jaymcminn

[Dpate]

On 3/3/2023 at 8:40 PM, bh1701 said:

I am going to try to master airbrushing again. Will be using a Paasche single action H-3AS this time. I have a double action airbrush, but unfortunately never seemed to figure it out. 🙁

I specifically want to use acrylic paints - Tamiya, Mr. Color, and craft store paints (Apple Barrel. Ceramcoat, etc.).

Here are some questions:

1) For each type of paint mentioned above, what can/should be used to thin the paint?

2) What's a good paint to thinner ratio to start with for each of the paints mentioned above.

3) What's a good compressor setting to start with for each of the paints mentioned above.

I appreciate everyone's advice on this!

Wish me luck - I will get the hang of this someday!

Thanks,

Bart

 

Well you can get good with a airbrush, but mastering it will take a very long time.  If you want to "master" a brush you need to master a double action because a single action is just a better version of a spray bomb.  If you're wanting true acrylics than Tamiya is a hybrid and mr color is a lacquer, and I'll answer your 3 questions now.

1. Tamiya & Mr color thin with Mr leveling thinner and for acrylics a dedicated acrylic thinner or water. Mr leveling thinner will work on any hybrid or lacquer paint, and probably the best thinner on the market related to the hobby.  

2.This depends on needle size and air pressure, but for tamiya and mr color 1:1 or 1:2.

3.Again depends on needle size, but i do know tamiya & mr color works just fine between 15-20 PSI .5 iwata eclispe.  You might need higher PSI for the paasche as i only use double action brushes only.

If you want the best finish for tamiya and mr color use mr leveling thinner if you're able to get it.  I don't really use Tamiya X-XF series anymore I'm moving towards there LP series which is straight lacquer.  There much better especially the metallic ones.  If you want the acrylic version of Mr.Color check out there aqueous line up as Mr.color is lacquer. 

Edited March 7, 2023 by Dpate