Using Finishes With An Airbrush

[Urshag]

I'm going to be using an airbrush for the first time and I'm going to experiment with my leather finishes. I'll be using a Badger model 250 with a can of Propel (I'll get an air compressor if I like what happens with this experiment.)

I'll be testing with:

1. Acrylic Resolene
2. Super Sheen
3. Leather Sheen
4. Bag Kote

My main question is, Do I need to cut these with anything, and if so, what and in what amount? Or can I use all of these straight from the bottle?

Also, what do I clean the airbrush with in between finishes?

Also, if you have an suggestions, tips, warnings etc. Please feel free to say so here, I am a babe in the woods when it comes to airbrushing anything. lol

Dennis

[TwinOaks]

I use a different set up, with a larger needle, so I usually spray from the bottle. Keep in mind, though, that thinner sprays better. The first 3 could be cut at 50/50, and should do fine.....not sure about the bag kote. Any sputtering or spitting means you need to go thinner. When spraying any finish, you need to make several passes, overlapping for coverage, and......let it dry before doing another coat. Get some cheap acrylic paints and thin them to watery consistency for practice. The color of the paint will give you a good idea of how much medium you're spraying at different settings. It will also indicate how long you need to clean it.

VERY IMPORTANT: If you spray any of the acrylics, you need to clean thoroughly after use, and don't let it dry inside. You should be able to do this with just water as they are all soluble in water. Just keep running water through at a full spray until you're getting ONLY water.

[Urshag]

I use a different set up, with a larger needle, so I usually spray from the bottle. Keep in mind, though, that thinner sprays better. The first 3 could be cut at 50/50, and should do fine.....not sure about the bag kote. Any sputtering or spitting means you need to go thinner. When spraying any finish, you need to make several passes, overlapping for coverage, and......let it dry before doing another coat. Get some cheap acrylic paints and thin them to watery consistency for practice. The color of the paint will give you a good idea of how much medium you're spraying at different settings. It will also indicate how long you need to clean it.

VERY IMPORTANT: If you spray any of the acrylics, you need to clean thoroughly after use, and don't let it dry inside. You should be able to do this with just water as they are all soluble in water. Just keep running water through at a full spray until you're getting ONLY water.

Thanks for the reply!

What do I thin the first three with? Water or paint thinner or something else?

Thanks again for taking the time to reply!

Dennis

[Colt Hammerless]

Resolene is thinned with water. I haven't used the others, so can't help. If you do a search for "thinning Bag Kote" or something similar, you may get your answers.

Colt Hammerless

[drphil]

Thanks for the reply!

What do I thin the first three with? Water or paint thinner or something else?

Thanks again for taking the time to reply!

Dennis

I am getting ready to use my air brush for finishes as well. I would be interested to hear your report on the outcome of your experiments.

Resolene can be diluted with water. Super Sheen can as well. Since TwinOaks said that leather sheen can be cleaned out of the airbrush with water I would say that Leather Sheen can be diluted with water as well. I have no experience with the Bag Kote so I can't offer any advise there. Sorry. When I use Resolene I always dilute 50/50 (1:1) with water. I would start at 1:1 with all the others too.

Remember water is on tap so use a lot through your sprayer to get it clean! Nothing is worse that having a gunked up unusable air brush.