Thread: Anyone airbrush their props

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Does anyone airbrush their props? I got a Badger 350 airbrush from Michaels last year, having never airbrushed before. I could never get it to work because it kept clogging up. I bought paint called "airbrush paint." Every 2 minutes it would clog up and I would have to stop and clean it. I kept adding more and more water to the paint to thin it out and finally was able to get it to work OK, but it never really worked the way I would have liked.

I was just wondering if this was normal. I need to airbrush some props this season and I wasn't sure if I should buy another airbrush or if this was a common problem with airbrushes. Its very frustrating to have to keep stopping and un-clog them.

They have a few cheap ones at Harbor Freight that I was considering buying and trying out but didn't want to waste my money if I would have the same result.

Here are the links
Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices

Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices

When I use acrylic paint in my airbrush, I thin out the paint to the consistancy of condensed milk and then strain it through nylons. It helps prevent clogging.

Hm...

Chilipete,
I am in the same boat. Someone bought me one of the cheap Harbor Freight airbrushes and I haven't been able to use it until just this week (finally got a compressor). I could not get my paint to come out -- when it did end up shooting out, it was so watered down that it looked horrible.

I really can't help you, just saying I'm there with ya! Right now it's back to the trusty brush until I can figure out PSI, paint thickness, etc, etc.

NO JOKES OR TRICKS HOW TO ADJUST YOUR AIR BRUSH , First thing is to know how to adjust your airbrush , hook up your clean air brush to air source I run 20 pounds psi not get a brown paper bag and open it up on the table . Next find the adjustment wheel most are brass in color needle moves foward = less paint fine line painting., needle moves backwards = more paint wide spray. Now fill your bottle with Water ( why water easier to see and wont clog) play on paper bag making lines , curves, spots and so on , write your name like you sign it. some Airbrush adjustment are under the rear cover this unscrews check your book that came with it. Air Brush paint should be strained before spraying also some need to be thined with thinner read paint label.
Hard part google halloween and find the link to halloween air brush make up this is a free guide to follow helps on monster faces. If you have problems E-mail me I'll help you find the links theres over 600 airbrush links
CoffinKathy@aol.com Im glad to help you I been air brushing for 10 years now.

i have just recently started air brushing, and the best advice i can give is just keep at
it. its not somthing that you get right the first time it takes some time just to learn
how to thin your paint for your gun and how to adjust the air pressure but the
end results are well worth it you just have to be patient.
oh keep your brush as clean as possible

Originally Posted by Coffin Kathy

Hard part google halloween and find the link to halloween air brush make up this is a free guide to follow helps on monster faces. If you have problems E-mail me I'll help you find the links theres over 600 airbrush links
CoffinKathy@aol.com Im glad to help you I been air brushing for 10 years now.

Hey I'm glad to see that there is another GUN SLINGER out. That's good advice, for everyone that wanst to learn, Just Do it and keep trying.

I think that one of the biggest mistakes newbie airbrushers make is failing to clean their brush properly. If you use a Q-tip in your brush, you absolutely MUST backwash your brush afterward or the tiny fibers from the cotton tip will clog it.

Even if you don't use things like a Q-tip or tissue, backwashing should always be part of your cleaning routine.

To backwash, put some distilled water or cleaner in the paint cup and while applying air, place your finger over the tip of the brush (be careful not to bend the needle though). This will force the air back up through the brush and bubble/flush any remaining particles into the water in the cup.

Originally Posted by Cassie7

I think that one of the biggest mistakes newbie airbrushers make is failing to clean their brush properly. If you use a Q-tip in your brush, you absolutely MUST backwash your brush afterward or the tiny fibers from the cotton tip will clog it.

Even if you don't use things like a Q-tip or tissue, backwashing should always be part of your cleaning routine.

To backwash, put some distilled water or cleaner in the paint cup and while applying air, place your finger over the tip of the brush (be careful not to bend the needle though). This will force the air back up through the brush and bubble/flush any remaining particles into the water in the cup.

Quite right Cassie; but, let us add take the bottle off the GUN (airbrush) before you back wash, IF the air hole in the top of siphon bottle is blocked the back wash will pressurize the bottle and can blow it of the gun and the contents will flow-spray-shoot back up the connecting neck and make a mess as well as SCEAR the Cr@p out of you. It did me the time when I start to learn LOL.
I just use a water based paint (Createx AutoAir, and AQUA Flow) and to clean them I use a 40% Windex 70% water mix to clean with. by spraying into a close filter trap I made from a 5
Gal paint bucket, a 3 foot section of 3" PVC with a 45 degree angel at the top to shoot into and hole in the part in the bucket with and old pair of dress paints to collect the paint on.

I use FW Acrylic Artists Inks.
It's alcohol based, rain won't wash it away. The only time I've had any clogging is when I use white. The pigment is very thick in the white.
Give them a try, I absolutely love them!

Check for it at Micheal's or Dick Blick art stores.

Add me to the list of those using the "crappy" Harbor Freight airbrushes - I have the "nice" cheapie, and the really ugly cheapie...both do their jobs well enough for my props.

The ugly cheapie is a siphon design with a brass cone insert, compared to a needle, and it's a work-horse...I just ran latex paint (barely thinned) through it, to paint up my PVC and hot glue faux candles this year, and no clogging. (it did take a bit of cleaning, however, to get all that crap off of it)

For the "nice" cheapie, I just use slightly thinned acrylics, and usually get fine results - sometimes there's a bit of clogging, but a couple quick adjustments to the needle, and sometimes increasing the air pressure to blow the clog out, and I'm right back in business.
(one of the nice things about cheap airbrushes: if I destroy it through mis-use, it's not too much of a loss - and so far, no matter what I've thrown at it, as long as I clean it well after each use, it's ready to go again)

Something I will recommend to new users - distance from the brush to the project. If you're too close, you'll end up with drips and smears where the air can actually blow the paint around on the project. Too far away, and the paint simply doesn't make it, or is so dispersed, it takes forever to get any coverage. So, practice with your distance.
Also, the air pressure. Keep it fairly low (I would say 30psi is too high), but of course, high enough to blow paint. May take some experimentation there as well.

Wish I had some sound advice other than those two obvious points.
Air brushing is great, however, once you start getting used to it.