Air Brush

[ABC3]

I am thinking about buying an "air brush" for final coat. (Maybe even Dyeing, down the road - although I dip at present). I am concerned about mess & cleaning up. I know you can find them from $15 to whatever. But what would a good "air brush" cost & where would you suggest starting to look.

More than that - would you even suggest going that route?

I have bubbles in my final coat, brown dye is not good at all & all in all, not a very professional product.

Just looking for a way to get better.

[Deb59]

I am thinking about buying an "air brush" for final coat. (Maybe even Dyeing, down the road - although I dip at present). I am concerned about mess & cleaning up. I know you can find them from $15 to whatever. But what would a good "air brush" cost & where would you suggest starting to look.

More than that - would you even suggest going that route?

I have bubbles in my final coat, brown dye is not good at all & all in all, not a very professional product.

Just looking for a way to get better.

I know there was a tutorial posted by Citizen Kate on Airbrushing a while back, I don't remember if she had any specific recommendations on brands of airbrushes, but I have met her and seen some of her work and it looks great! You can probably search and find the info and if you have any questions give her a PM. Hope this helps - Deb

[CitizenKate]

I am thinking about buying an "air brush" for final coat. (Maybe even Dyeing, down the road - although I dip at present). I am concerned about mess & cleaning up. I know you can find them from $15 to whatever. But what would a good "air brush" cost & where would you suggest starting to look.

More than that - would you even suggest going that route?

I have bubbles in my final coat, brown dye is not good at all & all in all, not a very professional product.

Just looking for a way to get better.

There are several threads on the topic of using airbrushes for various purposes. Here's the one Deb mentioned. If I have time later on, I'll try to get back here and look up a few more that I know are there.

I have a cheap single-action sprayer that I originally bought to dabble in airbrushing. I quickly upgraded to a double-action airbrush for doing dye work, but I still use the single-action to spray on finishes with, and it works great for that. Mine is a Badger 250 (just to show you as an example of what I'm talking about), but any brand will work fine. Incidentally, Badger currently has some on sale for $12 on their garage sale page.

Kate

[ABC3]

Deb & Kate;

Thanks for your help. I don't know if this is the way I want to go or not. I'm wondering if the mess & clean up would be worth it.

But I'll check out the site.

[Shorts]

While it takes a little extra time for cleaning, the result of the airbrush is worth it. Especially if you are not putting out oodles and oodles of items. The projects you do build you do want to take the time to get it right. That is quality and craftsmanship that can be readily seen at the very beginning of your work. It shows you do take the time to get the details right to achieve the best result possible with the resources you have to work with.

I started using the $5.99 airbrush and compressor kit from Harbor Freight. Just recently I picked up a Badger 350 (IIRC) that is the name brand equivalent of the HF one.

[howardb]

Deb & Kate;

Thanks for your help. I don't know if this is the way I want to go or not. I'm wondering if the mess & clean up would be worth it.

But I'll check out the site.

Tom, go for it. I have the cheapest of cheap TESTOR plastic crappy air brush with a little plastic cup. I wouldn't waste time trying to do any detail work with it, but it sprays on the leather sheen perfectly. Cuts down the application time (thin coats dry very fast) and doesn't mess with my dye work! I use dyes like watercolor paints, so brushing or wiping finish usually smears color all over. All hail the airbrush!

Brent

[ABC3]

Thanks Brent,

Which one would you get and what about a compressor. Will it spray Oil dyes as well.

I'm about talked into it. I just want to have a big mess in the shop.

[CitizenKate]

Thanks Brent,

Which one would you get and what about a compressor. Will it spray Oil dyes as well.

I'm about talked into it. I just want to have a big mess in the shop.

You can buy cans of compressed air to plug into those things. They don't cost as much as an air compressor, but if you're going to do a lot of project with it, buying cans of compressed air will overtake the cost of a small air compressor in no time. I bought a few of the cans when I was dabbling. When I decided I was going to use it on all my projects, that's when I invested in the compressor.

I have a regular 125 psi, air compressor with a 3 gallon tank that I got at Sears on sale for about $75. It is a bit noisy, however, but since I use it out in my garage, it doesn't bother me. Some people prefer the quieter compressors that are specifically designed to use with air brushes. Those start around $200 or so.

Kate

[sodapop]

this aircompressor below is a good choice...and don't believe you'll find it for less $$$$ anywhere else...i know a couple of us have this unit...except i bought mine from a specific airbrush supplier and paid about 50 bucks more ...you'll be good to go with this one ;0)

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/sto...54872_200354872

darryl

[MikePatterson]

Tom I to have been thinking about using a air brush but have the same questions you had. Now that we know it will work and give a much better finish we need someone to tell us how hard clean up is and how often you have to clean one. Can you just leave the leather sheen or what ever in it if you will be using it every day or two.

Thanks for asking !!!!

Mike