RMweb Gold Sweet pea Posted January 26 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 26 Been thinking about purchasing an airbrush for a while now. Can someone advise me on which airbrush is best for wagon spraying. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Hal Nail Posted January 27 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 27 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium ColinK Posted January 27 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 27 I phoned airbrushes.com and told them what I needed it for and they gave me recommendations. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy_C Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 I used this retailer. https://www.everythingairbrush.com/product-category/airbrushes/?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIhYOR4Nv9gwMVfJ1QBh3rEgJuEAAYASAAEgLHRPD_BwE Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
idd15 Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 I have both a Badger 200 single action airbrush which is siphon fed and a Sparmax 4 double action gravity fed brush with an inbuilt paint cup. Of the two I prefer the Sparmax because there is a lot less to clean! The Sparmax is also clever in that you can configure it to act a as single action airbrush. However, as I also spray the odd RC model aircraft then the Badger is the one to use because it can hold a lot more paint. To my somewhat untrained eye as an infrequent sprayer the quality of the finish is the same. HTH idd Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom s Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 I have a Sparmax 3 (different nozzle size to the 4) that I have been enjoying, it feels like a good value choice before you come across the very expensive brushes. Just gotta be careful of the nozzle because it will break incredibly easily with the spanner. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold 57xx Posted January 28 RMweb Gold Share Posted January 28 I think you'll get as many suggestions as responses on here. I've got a Harder & Steenbeck Silverline as my posh airbrush. I also use the cheap Chinese one that came with my compressor. they both give good results. The H&S is much easier to clean and feels nicer to use, but as far as the end result on wagons, both do the job well. It all depends on your budget really. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Torper Posted January 29 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 29 I've got a couple of Sparmax brushes, one with a trigger and the other with the more conventional push-button method of operation. I've been very pleased with both. If you're only going to using the brush for wagons you won't want a particularly fine nozzle. Have you got a compressor? If not you'll need one. Many compressors costing less than £100 are sold together with a couple of cheap airbrushes and these airbrushes can often give perfectly adequate results. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete the Elaner Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 38 minutes ago, Torper said: Have you got a compressor? If not you'll need one. Many compressors costing less than £100 are sold together with a couple of cheap airbrushes and these airbrushes can often give perfectly adequate results. They can be variable. If you get a good one, then great. If you get a poor one, then spares may not be the easiest to get hold of. But they cost barely any more than just the compressor & you will learn a lot about what you want from an airbrush. Knowing what I know now, this is definitely the path I would recommend. On 27/01/2024 at 14:16, idd15 said: I have both a Badger 200 single action airbrush which is siphon fed and a Sparmax 4 double action gravity fed brush with an inbuilt paint cup. Of the two I prefer the Sparmax because there is a lot less to clean! I started with a Badger 200 & upgraded to an Iwata Revolution. The Iwata feels nice to use & is easier to clean, but the Badger gave perfectly good results whether for re-spraying stock or fine, light weathering. The limit with my setup is the user. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
walrus Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 I dithered about getting an airbrush until my daughter bought me a cheap Timbertech kit as a birthday present (usual disclaimer). It is said an ounce of practice is worth a ton of theory and that certainly proved to be the case here. My normal instinct would have been to avoid this type of cheapo solution but using this has de-mystified airbrushes and airbrushing far more than endless reading. Yes it probably won’t last a lifetime and spares might be unobtainable if it breaks. I might upgrade anyway as my experience grows. Whatever I feel much more confident now about spending three figures on quality kit. 2 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LMSfan72 Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 I started with a cheap generic one which worked ok but didn’t last very well (clumsy cleaning). I upgraded to a Neo for Iwata - when they were significantly cheaper than they are now! I did that because spares were available and that also meant I could buy a second needle and nozzle etc at a different size for different jobs Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Torper Posted January 30 RMweb Premium Share Posted January 30 Airbrush prices seem to have increased substantially since I last bought one! That being the case, the Sparmax Max3 seems particularly good value at between £60 and £70. It's a quality brush, with readily available and reasonably priced spares - check out the online reviews. If you prefer a pistol-grip trigger airbrush, then try the Sparmax GP-35 - it's the first airbrush I owned is still going strong, but is a bit more expensive at about £100. Sparmax have been making compressors for decades and supply Iwata with components for their compressors. Clearly there has long been collaboration between Iwata in Japan and Sparmax in Taiwan and indeed a few years ago the two co-operated to form a new company, the Anest Iwata Sparmax Co Ltd., based in Taiwan and Sparmax brushes continue to be manufactured there while Iwata airbrushes continue to be made in Japan.. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattR Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 I got the cheapo Chinese airbrush/compressor combo from Amazon. I've been using it pretty regularly for two years now it's been great. I had some teething issues with it at first with clogs, despite my best efforts to meticulously clean it out after each color used. The game changer came when I stopped trying to run straight IPA through it and got some Iwata Airbrush Cleaner instead. Run a few squirts of that through the brush after each color and I've had no flow problems since. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Rathbone Posted February 4 Share Posted February 4 35 years ago I bought a Badger 150 dual action, which has a detachable bottom feed cup or jar for the paint. I am still using it after painting well over 1600 locos and coaches in 4 & 7 mm scales. In that time it has had two new heads and needles but the internal seals have never been replaced. It is easy to clean and strips down to all its component parts without fuss. You get what you pay for. I would suggest you get a mid-range dual action air brush from a named manufacturer, avoid unbranded Chinese airbrushes or any bundled up with a compressor. Ian R 1 3 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Right Away Posted February 13 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 13 An Iwata CS Eclipse has served me very well over the years. Easy to clean, lovely to use, but take care when cleaning as parts ain’t cheap if they decide to go walkabouts! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dj_crisp Posted February 13 Share Posted February 13 My experience going from a cheapo setup to something more mainstream is focus on the compressor first. I now have a better spearmax one that's way better than my original cheapo giving me better spraying results. The most important thing I have is to have a constant air supply that you can vary pressure. I find every mix of paint I do I need to subtly change air pressure to get the paint to flow as I want. The cheap Chinese airbrushes work well to start with but tend to wear out quickly. But to get u started and have a practice they're fine. I currently use a Neo and a H&S brush now and plan on sticking with these two. All I'll say is airbrushing has transformed my enjoyment of modelling. I also keep re-reading George Dents book on airbrushing which is a great manual on the subject. Well worth a read before buying anything first. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluestag Posted February 14 Share Posted February 14 16 hours ago, dj_crisp said: .... I also keep re-reading George Dents book on airbrushing which is a great manual on the subject. Well worth a read before buying anything first. What's the title to that book? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium St Enodoc Posted February 14 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 14 11 minutes ago, bluestag said: What's the title to that book? Google is your friend: https://www.crowood.com/products/airbrushing-for-railway-modellers-by-george-dent Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluestag Posted February 14 Share Posted February 14 4 hours ago, St Enodoc said: Google is your friend: https://www.crowood.com/products/airbrushing-for-railway-modellers-by-george-dent Thanks for the sarcasm. I DID google it, did not find it. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
NBL Posted February 14 Share Posted February 14 2 hours ago, bluestag said: Thanks for the sarcasm. I DID google it, did not find it. First result when googling George dent airbrushing 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium St Enodoc Posted February 14 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 14 2 minutes ago, NBL said: First result when googling George dent airbrushing That might depend where one is, of course. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dj_crisp Posted February 14 Share Posted February 14 7 hours ago, St Enodoc said: Google is your friend: https://www.crowood.com/products/airbrushing-for-railway-modellers-by-george-dent Thanks - That's the book i refered to. Cheers 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluestag Posted February 15 Share Posted February 15 Back to the topic at hand: I recently purchased https://spraygunner.com/holiday-gift-ideas/gifts-for-kids/gsi-creos-mr-airbrush-procon-boy-ps-290/ Apparently it is built in the same factory as the Iwata. I like the trigger. I will likely buy a larger cup for it. I'll see, as I try to paint my 7mm six wheel coaches. I have failed to get enamels to work in either my Iwata or Mr Airbrush. I have successfully sprayed lacquer with a smooth finish. For $100 I think I did well. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dj_crisp Posted February 15 Share Posted February 15 10 hours ago, bluestag said: Back to the topic at hand: I recently purchased https://spraygunner.com/holiday-gift-ideas/gifts-for-kids/gsi-creos-mr-airbrush-procon-boy-ps-290/ Apparently it is built in the same factory as the Iwata. I like the trigger. I will likely buy a larger cup for it. I'll see, as I try to paint my 7mm six wheel coaches. I have failed to get enamels to work in either my Iwata or Mr Airbrush. I have successfully sprayed lacquer with a smooth finish. For $100 I think I did well. I'm sure if you post about your enamel spraying someone will be able to help. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hibelroad Posted February 15 Share Posted February 15 I’ve used Iwata airbrushes for the last 20 years and never had any problem spraying any modellers paint type. Coupled to a decent compressor l would recommend Iwata to the OP. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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