Acrylic is water based. I have used distilled water, water diluted with 70% & 91% Iso alcohol, water with jet dry from the dish washer, various spray pressures, distance from model, tip/needle adjustments both single and dual action spray brushes with zero success. In all fairness I just started air brushing again after a 30-year hiatus but did not have this much difficulty learning with the very toxic Floquil paints thinned with acetone or lacquer thinner.
Yes, sorry about the imprecise language. Tamiya makes two lines, I should have said Tamiya lacquer (acetone). It's not the manufacturer that drives my workflow but the solvent. Mr Paint is also lacquer (acetone solvent)
Thank you!
Thank you!
Nice work
I do use them as intended, with bristle brushes. Theya re great for wood structures, scenery and so forth.
No one is saying water based paints are not as good as solvent based, but rather that using solvent based for base coat provides the opportunity to freeze ones work at the base coat stage so that when weathering (especially as a newer user) one can revert to that clean base coat more easily if mistakes are made when applying the weathering. Another way is to spray the project with dull or gloss coat prior to weathering. This becomes less of an issue as one gains experience and, of course, someone who becomes an "expert" is able to skip these intermediate steps.
If your compressor can manage 25-30 psi it should be more than enough. A lot of folks I know use compressors that don't even have a tank so that pancake should exceed requirements. I learned a long time ago so perhaps I've forgotten a lot of the pain of acquiring the needed skills
I wasn’t suggesting either was better than the other. Not sure how you got that. Acrylics are less toxic of course, and they handle a little differently, but in my experience you can get equally good results with either system. I don’t notice any difference between the two when it comes to weathering. Applying a flat coat for me is generally the first part of the weathering process. Gloss coats may be required for some brands prior to decaling. Stripping off poor weathering is a dice throw. You may damage the finish no matter what your base coat is, or you may not. Same with bad decaling. I’ve used both systems when doing commissioned projects, though I haven’t painted for others in years now. I prefer solvent based because it’s what I learned with. Acrylics offer water based cleanup and low odor, great for apartment dwellers. I don’t advocate either one. It’s a matter of taste. You are correct, there is no “one way”. When teaching airbrushing and in my years as an Iwata dealer I always opened classes and discussion in the booth with this statement. My way isn’t the only way.
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. In the end it’s a mater of practice and more practice. A good quality airbrush is important. Beware of some of the Chinese cheapies if you are learning.
If we're talking about the same thing, a pancake compressor that comes from a big box store like Home Depot or Lowes, they generally go considerably beyond 20 PSI. They are designed to run things like nail guns . The one at my model railroad club is capable of up to 120 PSI. I'd recommend you put a quality regulator on it. You'll notice a big difference immediately.
