I was needing to replace my old airbrush after many years of hard use. I was about to look into the more expensive brands when I saw one for TWENTY DOLLARS in the HarborFreight magazine. On a whim I thought, why not... it arrived last week, and I can't belive what a great deal this was. Chrome body around brass internals, mixing cup, syphone bottle and syphon metal cup, 6' of hose, brass adapter ring, wrench, extra needle and even a nice case! And it works WONDERFULLY! Easily as good as my $150 Badger.... don't know how long this sale will last, but it is Item #01500 (www.harborfreight.com) - you won't be disappointed!

Wow, $20 and it's a good one eh? What brand is it or is it unbranded? Not that it matters much for me, never had an airbrush nor know how to use one and am looking to start learning. For $20, that just might be the ticket for me to start learning! Thanks for the tip!

Any tips on compressors to use with this brush? I'm looking for something relatively cheap, quiet and small.

How about this one? Since I'm a complete neophyte with AB's, I have no clue what I'd need as far as a compressor goes but this is a small one so I thought I'd ask and see what everyone thought as far as pro and con's went and other compressor suggestions you may have. Thanks!

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=47407

hotlinked http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=47407

That compressor will work fine. Just be sure to get an inline moisture trap also.

I also checked the link you posted that compressor has more than enough power for an airbrush, and that aibrush sounds like a great deal.

Thanks guys! How loud will that compressor be? Just want to check so I know what to tell the boss when she asks. lol I'll be using it in the garage anyway but want to know ahead of time. I know they make quiet ones too, not sure which I should get but the price on this one for a beginner like me looks really good.

Another stupid question (shows how little I know about AB's). Does this compressor (or any compressor for that matter) completely make its own air or does it need to be filled? It says 2 gallon so I wasn't sure if it needed to be filled with air to be used or it made its own air. Thanks!

Hi Moezilla,
The tank capacity represents how much the tank on the compressor will hold after it fills with air, you will know because the motor will shut off after the tank is full. However as soon as you start spraying the motor will kick on again to fill what you just used. Make sure yiou have an in-line moisture trap because condensation will form in the tank and you don't want it getting into the paint mix.

Thanks, that explains it. Sorry to sound like an idiot but I know nothing about AB's and have been figuring I'd avoid them until I could justify the expense with more model building experience. For this price though, I could get both the compressor and AB for about the price of a nice, brand name AB alone. So it's a good, cheap way to get started with AB's.

Thanks for the tips and info guys, going to place an order.

By a moisture trap, do you mean this?

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=42221

One thing you have to watch with H/F is their shipping. I had a shipment get split due to an out of stock item. They then charged shipping on the out of stock item when they sent it to me.

The compressor you might want to look locally. Shipping might not make it such a good deal. Sears, wal mart and most of the super lumber store have them. Also look for a tool store in your area. They usually have good deals on small compressors.

SB

Funny you say that, I just got back from lunch where I took a trip to my local Harbor Freight store. Didn't even know they existed until this post and then found out they had one local to me. So I checked the store out and picked up the AB and while I was there found out that the compressor I was asking about here was there and it was on sale! Picked up the compressor for $59.99 and $20 for the AB, now I just need to find out what needles will work with it (comes with 2 35mm needles) and I should be set to start learning using an AB.

Also have to pick up the moister trap before messing with it but for the price of a nice AB, I was able to get both AB and compressor. Nice deal!

I bought my air compressor locally at WalMart for $79... but it sounds like the local HarborFreight stores have a better deal... sometimes they offer free freight (I bought my A/B spray booth for $69 with free freight!)....

If you are on a budget, you can just buy a Campbell Hausefield compressed air tank for around $25 and just take it to the local gas station to fill it up with 5 gal of air.... but in the long run, you are gonna WANT to have a compressor.

Someone asked the brand name of the airbrush... it is sold under the "Central Pnuematic" line, but that is just a Harbor Freight brand. Most of their stuff is made in Asia.

I've been an online customer for them for about three years, and buy a lot of supplies through them. Sign up for their online catalog... they always have great deals on sanding blocks, tongs, clips, clamps, etc.

They sell spray booths too? Good deal, have to check that when I'm ready to start messing with my AB.

wow,i paid mine 80 bucks can and thought that was a good deal!

Frank

Not neccesarily. Not to undermine your point at all but...
Being a former contractor and now a machinist, I have been using compressors for a long time. Normally a compressor made for an airbrush is tanklesss and runs constantly but very quietly.

With a tanked compressor such as the one you are looking at here, once the tank fills, the regulator is used on the output of air. The regulator senses when there is not enough air in the tank to provide the PSI you are using and will kick the compressor back on to fill the tank. I run mine on a 6 gal tanked compressor (the smallest I have) and with a 10-15 psi. output, it rarely kicks on to fill.

With the 2 gal, it will kick on a little more often, but still, at the outputs that airbrushes require, it won't be very often.

With that said, it will be loud, or much louder than one of the whisper jobs that are made for airbrushes. Remeber, most of the tanked compressors are made for heavier duty outputs (usually 90 psi.) such as air tools, sprayers and such. However, I have found that with the moisture trap and properly regulated output pressure, my "workhorse" does just fine for all of my airbrush needs, although it is a bit bulky. Fortunately, it has a permanent home right beside my spray booth.

Another point. I noticed that the compressor at HF didn't give the horsepower rating. Probably 3/4 horse. The HP rating on the compressor is not very important for an airbrush. All it means to you is, the higher the horsepower, the shorter the motor will run when filling the tank. It won't have a problem keeping up with a little airbrush.

Well, I broke it all open last night to check it out and now all I need to do is figure out where to get a moisture trap that will work with this setup. I'm assuming they're kind of universal?

Moe - go right back to harbor freight and you can find the moisture trap for around another $10.... or you can go to home depot ... they have a better selection, but cost more.



http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=43242

Pretty much! It's all about the fittings.

Cool, I'll stop over there this weekend if I get a chance to pick up that trap!

Often a "brand" manufacturer in the States or Europe will send a design to China for a comparative manufacturing bid... the chinese factory builds molds and prototype but then doesn't win the bid... so they use the new molds they have just created to market a knock-off.... hapens ALL the time... they have all the specs for a fine piece, and they just sell on price... and yes, by golly - this does remind me of the Badger older 2x brushes!