How difficult and time consuming is it to master airbrushing miniature models?
>>3002804I just started learning this for slot car racing.I have some unique practice: Rust.The game has an MS paint in it for signs and I got so good with it I was selling art for people's bases and the style is so much like air brushing.My initial attempts are good really, I'm using craft store acrylic and medium with filthy water scooped from the garden fountain, but it seems to mix fine. I stopped using the thimble filters in the cup right away.
There's a lot of masking but I am getting metallic candy coats right off the bat.
>>3002809the purple crap smeared on the toy hauler body came with it, I'm trying to clean it. This is the first car I did.
>>3002804Depends on your standards.
>>300280420 hours to get good.https://youtu.be/5MgBikgcWnY
>>3002804>How difficult and time consuming is it to master airbrushing miniature models?Pretty easyabout 3 months
>>3002804>How difficult and time consuming is it to master airbrushing miniature models?Depends on how quickly you pick it up and what your goals and standards are. Something like laying down base coats or tossing on some rust like in your pic is relatively easy, camouflage and flawless final coats are harder, stuff like simulated lighting and photo-matched details are a lot harder. There are multiple threads on multiple boards with relevant links and people who can answer questions - /wip/ on /tg/, /smg/ on /toy/ and the gunpla/plamo threads on /toy/ and /m/.If you want to cut your teeth airbrushing I would honestly recommend starting with HG gunpla; they're dirt-cheap for the level of quality that you get and most models have a nice mix of larger flat areas, weird shapes and pieces, decals, etc. and it can even get you started with paint matching as there are official paints and official formulas for matching various models. From there move on to whatever you want.
>>3002947How does brush painting compare to airbrushing?
>>3002975Ones more like a hamaster and the other more like a dog sat on a barstool
>>3002975Not at all. I'm not good at it but I have a double action (is that the term) airbrush and use it sometimes.You have to control more parameters than when painting with a brush and while those do matter with a brush, speed, distance/pressure and angle matter much more. Lastly it requires more coordination. Not only because of how angle and distance (analogous to pressure with brush maybe) matter more but also there's that part where you need to control either air and paint or both with one control.
>>3002975Easier for detailing by far, no need for masking and easier set up/clean up. Airbushing is vastly superior for production painting and basecoating
>>3002804>How difficult and time consuming is it to master airbrushing miniature models?mastering? eh that could take a while. However, you can get serviceable results quickly. Priming and base coloring only takes a few tries to give you the feel for paint consistency and how not to flood the model. Free handing camo, streaking, and other fine detail work does take effort and the right equipment. I've used acrylics and lack of a venting system as an excuse to not push my airbrushing to better levels, so I've wallowed in mediocrity for years. >>3002975once you get an airbrush, 90% of your painting will be with it, it's just that much better and faster. You do need both though, like the black dividing lines between camo colors was done by hand.
>>3002804t.won awards for this shitYou need practice AND an artists eye AND the right paint n equipment. Some people get to one. Fewer get to two. Practice makes up for a lot. Good luck.
>>3002975Brush is a pain in the ass to get smooth streak free finish, i'd only use it where it doesn't matter eg miniatures/40k shit.Trains/Planes/Automobiles it's airbrush all the way.
>>3002804Easy to learn, hard to master. Building and painting scale models/minis is a great hobby on its own, and airbrushing is an especially fun part. I would say to get an airbrsuh as soon as you know you are serious about the hobby, and don't cheap out of on it, either.
>>3003072How was the 04 number on the side made? No way that was done by hand
>>3003333kit supplied decal
Over the long term how expensive is this?
Has anyone used a CO2 tank with a dual stage pressure regulator and an inline moisture trap instead of a traditional air compressor?
>>3003398I have since I use CO2 as MIG shielding gas, for tire inflation and bead seating, and short impact tool use.The dual stage regulator is a good idea for fine flow control and if you want dual use in future you can use a dual stage acetylene regulator by either replacing the nipple and nut with a CO2 nipple and nut (I buy crush washers by the bag and zip tie several to the regulator).CO2 rapidly cools as it expands so for airbrush use I suggest using a long pneumatic hose as I do so it has room to expand and warm up. You won't need a heated regulator for air brushingI use brass (not steel) high quality Milton pneumatic chucks and nipples. Your long hose can step down to the small airbrush hose. The Western catalog is worth a look since they dominate industrial welding gas fittings in the US. Once you learn CGA fittings you can do many cool things. If you decide you'd benefit from an inline CO2 heater those are available. CO2 refills are easy at local welding suppliers. I buy used cylinders since they're exchangeable and always have a couple handy. I also made a transfill whip to fill paintball CO2 cylinders to try them out for small work like air brushing but never got around to trying them out.
>>3003379A good airbrush (~$220+) can potentially last you a lifetime, with a couple of o-rings/needle changes. Compressors are generally cheaper, and it depends a lot on a type. But a good one can do a decade fine if you take care of it. Acrylic paints will potentially outlast you if stored properly. All in all, I would say it's a fairly cheap hobby, though with a bit of an initial investment.
What is the best paint booth to buy?
>>3003379>Over the long term how expensive is this?Not very. Spend a few hundred bucks on a compressor and an airbrush and aside from maybe needing a few replacement parts here and there (worn O-rings, being a dumbass and damaging the needle, etc.) both of those things will pretty much last indefinitely. That said, while you don't NEED a booth you need a booth. Lacquer fumes are nasty (and if you're not going to be using lacquer then what's even the point?) and even acrylic will start to deposit in a fine layer over everything (including what you're working on) sooner or later. I'd also recommend one of those discharge pots as well as some other accessories that aren't strictly necessary but are very handy like those alligator clips on a stick as well as a base to jam them into.
>>3003429A cheap one, just take it easy on the spraying, you can always upgrade the fans later
>>3003434Airbrush cleaning pots are imo a must. Like yeah, you don't need it, but it makes EVERYTHING so much better it's not even funny.
Any advice for airbrushing outside? I don't want to setup a paintbooth inside.
