Rusty and overwhelmed

[JayC]

Hi everyone. I came across this forum when doing a search. I haven't built a model in 10 years or more. When I did I didn't have all the right tools so I didn't get the best results. After years of assault from cats I threw most of my models away (ships, cars, planes). I've been wanting to start building models again for some time. I was surprised earlier this week when my sister bought me a model of the Revell USS Constitution at a garage sale. It's still got the wrapping (box has a date of 1979). I figure now is as good a time as any to start building again. I want to start on something easier, though, like a car model before attempting a sailing ship. Anyway, I want to get the right tools this time. My first on that list is an airbrush.

I got a Campbell Hausfeld 1-gallon air compressor today at Lowes. Amazon has the same thing.

http://www.amazon.com/Campbell-Hausfeld-FP...132&sr=8-22

The thing is, I have no idea what is a good budget airbrush. I know the good ones cost a lot, but I'm on a tight budget. I'm thinking $50 or less. Are the Testors Aztek brushes any good? I'm not looking for museum quality, but I want something better than a spray can.

Any other tools I should get? I have an X-Acto knife from before, some tweezers, and one of those things with multiple little clamps (is part of a soldering kit).

[59 Impala]

JayC, if you have a Harbour Freight near you, they have a real nice airbrush for about 19 bucks. It is a copy of a Badger I think. I have one and use it more than the Paasche airbrush I have. It sprays very good and is cheap. I don't know if anyone else sells these airbrushes. As far as other tools, you can use some riffler files and different grades of sandpaper. I also use Testors liquid glue plus their tube glue. Also I use super glue on other stuff like brass or resin parts. I'm sure others will have more to say in this department. Hope this helps ya. Dan

[JayC]

I never even thought about Harbor Freight. Thanks for the suggestion! There isn't one nearby, but I could order off their website. They have a couple airbrushes listed on their site. Is the airbrush you mentioned their deluxe model?

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/disp...temnumber=95810

Would that airbrush be able to do fine painting along with, say, camouflage? It doesn't say if it is dual action or not. When I did the search for "airbrush" on their site this is what came back:

http://search.harborfreight.com/cpisearch/...h&Submit=Go

Are there any other accessories I should get? I'm thinking I may need that brass airbrush adapter, but I'm not sure. Will an airbrush fit the coil hose of the air compressor?

Sorry for all the stupid questions.

[59 Impala]

I never even thought about Harbor Freight. Thanks for the suggestion! There isn't one nearby, but I could order off their website. They have a couple airbrushes listed on their site. Is the airbrush you mentioned their deluxe model?

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/disp...temnumber=95810

Would that airbrush be able to do fine painting along with, say, camouflage? It doesn't say if it is dual action or not. When I did the search for "airbrush" on their site this is what came back:

http://search.harborfreight.com/cpisearch/...h&Submit=Go

Are there any other accessories I should get? I'm thinking I may need that brass airbrush adapter, but I'm not sure. Will an airbrush fit the coil hose of the air compressor?

Sorry for all the stupid questions.

Yes, it is the deluxe model. It is a dual action airbrush. I don't know if you will need any accessories or adapter for your setup. I also haven't used it for camoflage so I can't answer that. I use it for painting cars, trucks and airplanes, but no camo so far. As far as the coil hose goes, you'll have to check it out. I don't know the answer to that either cause I don't use a coil hose. I did buy a quick disconnect for it and the Paasche so I only need one hose. That I got at an art supply store. I hope this helps ya out a little. And no question is a stupid one my friend. Take care and happy modeling. Dan

[JayC]

I suppose if the coil hose that came with my air compressor doesn't fit I can order something off HF. Does the airbrush that HF has have a way to adjust the nozzle pattern from, say, wide to narrow and vice-versa? I think some airbrushes have adjustable nozzles (I'm not sure, though).

[charlie8575]

I have an Aztek A320, and it's a very nice airbrush. They're around $60.

The slightly less expensive Testors airbrush with the several interchangable nozzles might also be worth a look.

I recommend very strongly finding a little extra money and getting one of the Testors Mighty Mini air compressors. They're aren't "cheap," at around $90, but they'll pay fort themselves very quickly in propellant. You might be able to find one on eBay for short money, or another small compressor.

Another option is to buy a couple of inner tubes and make sure they're both full so you don't get caught by surprise.

Charlie Larkin

[sak]

Hey, to chime in. Take a look here. Great deals to be found.

http://www.badgerairbrush.com/Garage_Sale.asp

Personally. I would choose a gravity feed single action over a dual-action syphon feed. Like a 200 series for example. It might be difficult to learn how to adjust air and paint at the same time. I have been using mine for about three years and I still can't pull back the trigger while keeping it at a constant air flow. Get a good regulator and adjust that as needed. About the coil hose, it will not fit, and if you plan to get a badger or any of the badger knock-offs, get a good quality non-badger hose, like an Iwata style. You will need the adapter too, but you will need that for any airbrush hose. A few more links to get an idea of what I am typing about.

http://cgi.ebay.com/6-BRAIDED-AIRBRUSH-HOS...id=p3286.c0.m14

http://cgi.ebay.com/ADAPTOR-COUPLING-REG-F...id=p3286.c0.m14

Jeff

Edited September 20, 2009 by sak

[JayC]

Thanks guys. I'm thinking I will just try the airbrush from Harbor Freight. It's not that much and it would be a good brush to learn with. Once I get the hang of it I will probably get a better brush. HF has a 10 ft. braided nylon airbrush hose. It has a 1/4" NPT and 1/8" NPS connection. I'm not sure what the difference between NPT and NPS is, but it looks like the coil hose that came with my compressor would screw into the 1/4" end and then the 1/8" end would go right onto the airbrush. I'm thinking I may not need the adapter. Here's the HF airbrush hose.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/disp...temnumber=95813

When looking at the brass airbrush adapter at HF, it doesn't even look like it would work unless I had an airbrush hose with a 1/8" connection at both ends. With the hose I linked above, the adapter wouldn't be needed. Am I right? Here's the adapter.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/disp...temnumber=47986

Thanks again guys. I appreciate the help.

[Guest Gramps-xrds]

Thanks guys. I'm thinking I will just try the airbrush from Harbor Freight. It's not that much and it would be a good brush to learn with. Once I get the hang of it I will probably get a better brush. HF has a 10 ft. braided nylon airbrush hose. It has a 1/4" NPT and 1/8" NPS connection. I'm not sure what the difference between NPT and NPS is.

The difference in NPT and NPS is npt is national pipe tapered and nps is national pipe straight. Buy the 10 ft hose and take the coiled hose to the garage and stick it on a shelf and forget where you put it. Those things only cause you headaches. They used to buy them at the plant I worked at and every time they gave me one I threw it away. The braded hose will hook to any 1/4 NPT fitting. That's a standard size for air compressors and regulators.

[JayC]

Thanks for the reply. If I get the airbrush hose, I think I would then need a 1/4" to 1/4" type of adapter. Is such a thing available?

[Guest Gramps-xrds]

Ya there sure is. Their called pipe nipples (found at any hardware store) They come in various lengths from close to 6in. You just tell them what length you want and they'll sell it to ya

[george 53]

Jay, this might sound weird, but go to the make-up section at the "Mart(any MART) an get you a pack of various grits of emery boards. They're invaluable for getting into tight spots an general clean up work. You can cut them up to get even smaller sizes to do intericate work, an their CHEEP! so you can get a coupla packs to have in reserve! Hope this helps.

[sak]

Hmmm. I have never seen a campbell compressor with a 1/4 outlet. I uploaded a picture of what I have to give you an idea.

The hose and airbrush are compatible, I assume so don't bother with that little brass adapter. That I believe is needed to connect the compressor to a badger airhose. That Central pnuematic airbrush appears to be an Iwata knockoff and not badger. The hose looks like an Iwata style too. But basically, if you can actually get ahold of somebody at harbour freight, try to find out what the thread size of the airhose is. And then find out the threadsize of the outlet of you're compressor. It should be 1/2 inch. Then goto any place that sells compressor parts and get a male-male coupling.

[Guest Gramps-xrds]

I looked at the compressor, but it doesn't say what size the outlet is, but the hose says it's 3/8 which is still not a problem. If it's 3/8s all you'd have to do is get a 3/8 to 1/4 adapter for the airbrush hose. There's always a way to get what you want. All the regulators I have ran across over the yrs have been 1/4 in so you'll more than likely have to reduce to that anyway.

[JayC]

Hmmm. I have never seen a campbell compressor with a 1/4 outlet. I uploaded a picture of what I have to give you an idea.

The hose and airbrush are compatible, I assume so don't bother with that little brass adapter. That I believe is needed to connect the compressor to a badger airhose. That Central pnuematic airbrush appears to be an Iwata knockoff and not badger. The hose looks like an Iwata style too. But basically, if you can actually get ahold of somebody at harbour freight, try to find out what the thread size of the airhose is. And then find out the threadsize of the outlet of you're compressor. It should be 1/2 inch. Then goto any place that sells compressor parts and get a male-male coupling.

This is the hose that came with my compressor. The picture is not the right color, though. My hose is blue.

http://www.chpower.com/webapp/wcs/stores/s...87403_-1_search

Whether I use the 1/4" coil hose or a 1/4" braided hose, I will probably need some sort of adapter to go to 1/8" (like what I posted in my other thread).

[Guest Gramps-xrds]

This is the hose that came with my compressor. The picture is not the right color, though. My hose is blue.

http://www.chpower.com/webapp/wcs/stores/s...87403_-1_search

Whether I use the 1/4" coil hose or a 1/4" braided hose, I will probably need some sort of adapter to go to 1/8" (like what I posted in my other thread).

No you won't need an adapter. The braided hose is 1/4 NPT on one end and 1/8 NPS on the other and will hook right up to the airbrush.

[Guest Gramps-xrds]

Jay you're tryin to make this a lot more complicated than it really is. Maybe if you see these things you'll understand better. So here's what it'll look like.

This what the braided hose is like w/ the disconnect fittings on and hooked to the airbrush.

This is what the others are like. The green hose is what I use for my air tools. The next is the coupler with a plug in on because I have 2 different style couplers and this is an adapter between the 2. The others are plug ins that will go on the airbrush hose and the coiled hose.

I hope this clears it up for you. The only other thing would be the compressor discharge. It doesn't make any difference what size it is. 1/4, 3/8 or even 2 in. All you'll need to do is get a pipe reducer from the compressor size to 1/4 and install the quick disconnect and you can use both hoses.

[JayC]

Jay you're tryin to make this a lot more complicated than it really is.

I've got a bad habit of doing that. I promise to stop being such a PITA before too long! I like to visualize things in my mind and if I can't I get confused and start making it harder than it is.

I think I understand about what you are saying about the quick disconnects - get one for each hose and then swap out the hoses. Then on the hose I want to use for other tasks, I would put another quick connect fitting on the other end. I guess I would still need the pipe nipple for the HF hose, though, right? My compressor has male ends on the hose and female hookup on the compressor. Do other air compressors have the opposite?

Edited September 21, 2009 by JayC

[Guest Gramps-xrds]

Most compressors have female fittings so yes you'll still need a short nipple to go from the compressor to the coupler.As for being a PITA, Don't worry about it. If you don't know something it's better to ask questions than mess something up.

Edited September 21, 2009 by Gramps-xrds

[JayC]

Well, I ordered the deluxe airbrush and 10' braided airbrush hose from Harbor Freight. Next time I get a chance, I will look for some quick couplers and a 1/4" to 1/4" adapter. Hopefully, then, I can finally find something to put together for the time in over a decade.

Edited September 21, 2009 by JayC

[RodneyBad]

standard airhose to airbrush adapter

[JayC]

I wanna thank everyone for their help, especially Gramps for putting up with my questions. Anyway, yesterday I had received the shipment notice from Harbor Freight that my airbrush shipped. I didn't pay too much attention to the e-mail because I just assumed everything would be included. I get to looking at it this morning and I just see the airbrush listed. I thought that was strange so I went to the HF site to see the order status. They refunded the cost of the braided air hose, but show it as not backordered. They didn't ship it. That makes me mad. So, on the interim, it looks like I will be getting the 1/4" to 1/8" adapter like I posted in my other thread if I can find one like that. I agree the braided hose is a better choice than coil hose, but for infrequent modeling, should be sufficient for now.

[Guest Gramps-xrds]

That's no problem Jay. If there's a Michaels near, they usually carry airbrush parts and the hoses come in different lengths.

[sak]

Yes also try an arts supply store, they should have airbrush hoses in many different styles if you decide to get one in the future.

[Aaronw]

If you go back to Lowes or Home Depot where you bought the compressor you can probably find the adapters you need.

When I got back into modeling about 10 years ago I bought a Craftsman air compressor and a Paashce VLS double action air brush. I wasn't sure what I needed for adaptors so I just bought an air compressor accessory kit from one of the big hardware stores, it included a hose, air gun, chuck for filling tires, a needle for filling balls, many sizes of adapters etc basically all the stuff you might need for your compressor. It was about $15 and was easier than trying to find the exact fitting I needed.

I never have really taken to the air brush, I pretty much just use spray cans for cars. I'm glad I have it, an airbrush can do stuff spray cans and brushes can't, but it isn't something I use frequently.

If you decide to buy another air brush you will find they are almost like a religion, many people have very strong opinions about brands and types (single / double action, gravity / siphon feed etc). I bought the Paasche because that was what my LHS stocked, I like it, but I don't have much experience with others to compare it to.

LHS = Local Hobby Shop, you will see this abbreviation used frequently, if you haven't already seen it.

Edited September 23, 2009 by Aaronw