Just back into the hobby.

What are everyone's recommendations on good airbrushes. It seems the aztec stuff is everywhere. Are they good. What models? Thanks.

Marineers to the posts!!!!!
Welcome to Armorama. You will be very delighted here because all your questions will be answered. (Accept I do not know the answer to this one
:(................................................... s o r r y...............

(Me sprays with homemade sprayer, Me too greedy to buy one from the shop :-) :-) :-) )

Tanks! Komet

Hey Amraam,

You will find a multitude of answers on here about the million dollar question.

What airbrush to buy??

I started out with a Badger 350, which I thought was the great, until I got a hold of a Badger 200, and I had no idea what I was missing by going to the 200.

Recently I purchased a used Aztek 4709, as I wanted to try my hand at a dbl action brush, and since I got it off of Ebay for about 1/3 of the cost of a new one, I decided to give it a try, and it works well. I haven't practised with it nearly enough to be proficiant with it, but it works well none the less.

Now having said that, I still use both the Badger 350 and 200 still, just depends on the task at hand.

hi Scott

whats the difference between a double action and single action airbrush?

i need to gather all necessary info on airbrushes too!

You will find as many answers as airbrush users... it really is personal preference. I use and aztek 430 db action and I love it. Some here don't like aztek and some do. I beleive all the popular brands eg badger, aztek, passche and Iwata are good. Just need to find what is right for you.

Hope that helps even though it isn't a definite answer.

HastyP

HAsty, I assumed that was the answer. Thought it was worth a try.

I had a single action external mix badger years ago. I liked it but now that I have the resources I would like a good dbl action that has some capability if I continue to move forward.

I tend to like the Aztek, there are different nozzels that do different things, fine spray, med. spray. large area spray. along with some specialty nozels that say, splatter and what not. but i heard they are a little picky when it comes to acrylics. i use enamles so i have had no problems

if you go to the tools and supplies forun and scroll through it you should get some ideas on airbrushes its mostly down to personal choice at the end of the day

Hi Danny, If you haven't already got the answer put simply a Single action airbrush has a basic on/off press button -you get air and paint out when you press.
A double action airbrush has a press and pull action. Press and you get air only. Pull back and you get paint too. The further you pull back, the more paint you get.
Single actions are good starting places. A double action airbrush gives a great amount of control, but it's harder to work.
Hope this helps

I had a single action external mix badger years ago. I liked it but now that I have the resources I would like a good dbl action that has some capability if I continue to move forward.[/quote]

I always suggest people just buy any airbrush and use it. You will work out what fits best for you...
The one piece of advice I give if pressed on what type is "How quickly can you get it fixed if it breaks on a Sunday afternoon..?"
That means I use Badger air brushes as the local Hobby Craft store is open on Sunday and is around three miles away.
I've got two Badger 200 single actions and I'm thinking about getting a double action 150 or 100 soon.
That's my advice. But see what works for you - just use it and as soon as you possibly can get a compressor, those air cans arte a pain in the ar** :-)

you dont need to get an aircompressor that is specificaly for hobbys, go to your local hardware store and pick up one with a holding canister. i bought mine for 79.99 usd. instead of paying over 100.00 usd for one that has hobby in the lable.

hi Howard, thanks for the info

so you mean with a single action, you cant control the amount of paint?

is a double action recommended for a person who had no experience with air brushing?

I have an Aztek A320, and its perfect for me. I usually use it for multiple paint schemes and camo ones, and its great. I clean it pretty good after I am done using it and it works everytime.

~Chip

Welcome AmRaam, I've been picking thru all the advice, and a lot of it is sound, and makes sense, when they say quality counts, you don't want to buy a cheap one the best you can afford, without going to extremes.
Your just starting out you just as well start with a double, or you will haft to learn all over again later when you do change from a single to a double, like a lot of the others have, of course it is all up to you.

Gravity feed, for lower pressures, and more precision work. This is if you feel real serious about it, and feel confident you want to stick with it.

Straightedge

Hi Danny,
With a Single action airbrush you adjust the needle via a screw at the back before you start spraying, experience will tell you how much to screw back. Then you just press the button and move the whole airbrush to spread the paint.
With a double action you have another control to worry about - the amount of paint you are adding.

I'd start with a cheap single action - for my choice it would be a Badger 200NH with a medium nozzle assembly. This is a bottom feed airbrush - ie it comes with a small glass bottle that you can fill with paint that fits underneath the 'brush and the air sucks the paint up and atomises it. You also get a small metal cup that you can use to airbrush smaller amouts of paint.
Get yourself to your local tobbacconist shop - where you'd get pipe tobbacco - and get a pack of pipe cleaners. These little dudes are ace to get paint out of tight corners when your cleaning up. Get a bottle of isopropyl alcohol from your chemist/drugstore - provided you sre over 18 of course :-) and use it to clean up with.

After a while you will get enough experience to decide if you want a double action airbrush in a year or so.
Oh, BTW if you are thinking of a Badger remember that the "fine" "medium" and "coarse" nozzles describe the type of paint oyu want to spray, not how fine the line you can spray is Took me a while to realise that one

A few tips.

1. Double-actions are harder to learn, but more versatile.
2. Single action can cover more area in less time.
3. I waited for the 50% off coupon and bought mine at Hobby Lobby. Same for another compressor.
4. Peek at my feature on "Air Compressors" in the "Tools" section for some air compressor tips.

Sealhead

Thanks for the input guys

I had a Badger Single Action when I first started.. nice brush espeically for a beginner..

Got an Aztek a couple of years ago... HATE IT HATE IT HATE IT!... I use it for Junk work now.. powders and future..

Bought a Paasche VL LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT

Aztek =

Paasche =

I have an Aztek. So far so good.

ive had an aztek before, enjoyed it quit well, only regret i had was not being able to use it properly( hey i was a beginer )

now i have a badger 150 that i payed 80$ whish is 1/2 of what they usualy sell it for ( my dad has good prices at a car shop nearby) and i truly love it! works like a charm it perfect for everthing you want to do, sure you might not be able to spray fine lines right away, but it will come fast enought

take a look at car shops!

Frank

Everyone has their own preference.. I started out with Aztec single actions got an aztec double action thought i was doing ok with it till I picked up a Badger 175 at Michales craft store with a 50% off coupon. and my results improved dramiticly.. Then splurged on the Badger Universal 360 (cause u can use it as a bottom feed for using bottles or a top feed for touching up with a drop or 2 of paint...) and I love it.. the badger 360 is prob the best airbrush I ever used.. the learning curve is a bit more than single actions and they can be a little frustrating at first but once you get your paint mixing down and practice a bit they are great.

also i got my Badger 360 at Hobby town usa. they market it as a hobbytown airbrush with their name on it instead of the Badger 360 name but its the same brush and sometimes can be found cheaper at hobbytown.

Delbert

Well, I like my Iwata HP-C it's kinda expensive but been worth every penny so far!!!