I Don’t Own An Airbrush

[Mike]

I always get turned off when I watch a tutorial that uses an airbrush.
I don’t plan on buying one to be honest, am I missing out?

I don’t paint much and play less, is it that worthwhile unless you paint a lot?
Is it that worthwhile at all?

[willz]

I had an airbrush about 40 years ago, and never got it to work.  Kinda want one but it seems a lot of hassle to clean it, maybe I am lazy.

[Mike]

I can see it being useful if you have a lot of foam type terrain though.

[irishserb]

I tend to react to tutorials using airbrushes the same way.

I’ve got two or three of them downstairs, and haveat least hundreds of hours with an airbrush, You can do some fantastic stuff with one, but, I don’t enjoy it.  Having to fiddle with the airbrush turns fun into work.

It is one of those thinks that makes me feel less connected to the “art” of the process, making the models and miniatures feel more “manufactured” than “created”.  I’ve considered this at some length, and realize that it is just a tool like the paint brush, or my knives and sanders for making terrain, but never the less, I find it to be the experience of using it to be dispassionate.  Somehow, for me, it feels like “cheating”.

I would say that if you don’t feel inclined to try it, you aren’t missing anything.

[Darkest Star Games]

I find them useful for the big stuff, and most specifically getting nice blending across large areas.  I don’t use them on figures, I don’t have that kind of control, and especially not on 6mm stuff!  (ok, other than spaceships).   I agree with everyone on them being a pain in the butt to clean, and the constant attention and trying to keep the nozzle from clogging, etc etc.  That part drives me totally nuts.

"I saw this in a cartoon once, but I'm pretty sure I can do it..."

[Sane Max]

Coinkikinkly, I was watching a tutorial a week or so ago. – the content creator stated – “OK, I know I am going to lose 75% of my viewers when I do this, but I am going to use an airbrush”

So I guess it’s not just you 🙂

I regard Airbrushes the same way I regard 3D Printing – I already HAVE a hobby, I don’t want to have to get another hobby to do the hobby I already have.

[Andrew Beasley]

Always been torn over the control they give compared to rattle cans and when I was building plastic kits they where the only way to get a smooth coverage on large areas such as wings etc.

At the time, the main  negative was the larger compressors being noisy and propellant cans gave lots of problems as the pressure changes as temperature / volume changes (Boyles Law for those interested) and get really really cold…

Cleaning is obviously easier now with acrylics (rather than the old Humbrol enamels) and dust can be handled with a booth but no real plans to return to them (even for terrain / scenery) at this time.

Saying that, if I was going to splash out I would head for the Sntieecr 67 PCS airbrush compressor kit (around £70 when bookmarked) – this has great reviews, easy on the hand (and wallet) and has a decent quiet compressor that’s suitable to sit on the desk.

Not good enough for fine line work but suitable for undercoat / large area work.

[Etranger]

I’ve got two. The cheapie occasionally gets an outing for scenery but the ‘proper’ one has lived unused in it’s box for many years. Nice to have but by no means essential.

[Norm S]

I have one, they tend to be used to prime the big stuff like vehicles and buildings and to put a blast of varnish on bases. They seem a healthier option to me than rattle cans. I run mine in a utility room with a fan booth.

yep cleaning is a chore, but hey-ho.

[Andrew Beasley]

Norm S wrote:

… to put a blast of varnish on bases…

Thats one task I had not thought of. I’ve been lucky with rattle cans and not had any white spots up to now but found the bottle varnish way easier to use as it normally needs just one coat.

[Steven Francis]

Picked up a super cheap one for nails off ebay to undercoat the pile of shame… So far just used it to get Bardsung coated but have revert back to the brush for smaller numbers as the faff of cleaning does put me off. It’s not perfect but does let me get a lot of bits done quickly and I think more cheaply than a spray can.

[willz]

I use spray cans for undercoating, an air brush of sorts😀.

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