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Can anyone recommend a really good airbrush?


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12 hours ago, admiralcag said:

Interesting. I have a similar problem with my Revolution, but have never had that problem with my Eclipse nor any Eclipse I have used. One of the modeling clubs I am in teaches kids to airbrush with Eclipses and we have never had an issue.

 

Vern

Not sure what to say. That was my experience with both airbrushes at the time. I was using them 5-6 days a week. I'm not going to say Iwata makes a bad product, that's hardly the case. It's just after replacing the spring 2-3 times, when the opportunity presented itself at a hobby trade show I decided to investigate. I was already familiar with the Genesis XA single action airbrush and impressed with what it could do. The first time I tried out the Genesis XT (predecessor to the Tritium TG and TS) I was blown away with it's performance and comfort. No more having to hold the airbrush way from the model and shoot a shot of air to avoid tip spatter. I could keep the airbrush right where I wanted it when I painted German WW II camo. 

 

Also, one other issue, a minor one, but I liked that the Grex had (still has) a stainless steel fluid nozzle. With my Iwata airbrushes, they had brass fluid nozzles. I never "split" an Iwata fluid nozzle but after a year's use I compared my fluid nozzle to a new one and there was easily a describable difference in the size of the fluid nozzle opening. Brass is a "soft" metal and over time it gradually opened up. It happened so slowly I didn't notice any significant performance drop off at any one time but I noticed the difference when I put the new fluid nozzle in. With a stainless steel fluid nozzle it won't open up like that but if the needle is jammed hard against it, it will split and cause spatter. So like anything there are advantages and disadvantages. With reasonable care I get much longer life out of a stainless steel fluid nozzle than I do a brass one. I'm not going to bad mouth Iwata, nor am I going to tell the consumer they made a bad choice should they choose an Iwata airbrush. I'm only speaking from my experience. There's a lot to be said about product loyalty and I respect that.  

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  • 3 weeks later...

Sounds like you either pushed the needle in too far and split the nozzle like I did once while in a hurry and a bit absent minded, or some paint residue built up, which prevents proper mixing of air and paint.
My H&S Evo is one of the pre-series and still does its job like on the first day, but then again, I fieldstrip it after every color I spray and also use a tiny pipe cleaning brush etc. and treat it very well.

I also used some older Badgers and still use Iwata HP-B and -C, but cleaning them is a royal pain.

Don Wheeler's site is probably still the best source for troubleshooting: https://sites.google.com/site/donsairbrushtips/ 

 

HTH

 

István

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I just bought an iwata neo gravity feed until I have enough funding to purchase the one I want. It's a nice airbrush. Easy to clean, it being for beginners to airbrushing and all. For spraying car bodies, it does the job well enough. When I get my income tax back, I think I'm going to go with the Iwata eclipse.

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My personal preference is the Paasche H for general purpose work and the H&S Infinity for detail work.  The classic H's reputation is well deserved, and the Infinity has the smallest tip diameter (.15 mm) of any "modeling" airbrush that I know of.

 

Having said that, there are many good airbrushes that perform great once you learn how to use them. 

Edited by DutyCat
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7 hours ago, caudleryan said:

I just bought an iwata neo gravity feed until I have enough funding to purchase the one I want. It's a nice airbrush. Easy to clean, it being for beginners to airbrushing and all. For spraying car bodies, it does the job well enough. When I get my income tax back, I think I'm going to go with the Iwata eclipse.

Ever since I got the Eclipse, I hardly use my Revolution. Very little drama when I paint...it just works.

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On 1/22/2017 at 1:00 PM, MacStingy said:

Ever since I got the Eclipse, I hardly use my Revolution. Very little drama when I paint...it just works.

 

I had both and sold the Eclipse. the revolution CR does everything I need. Hmm, maybe It could be I didn't use the eclipse enough to really see its full potential. 

 

what do you mean by "very little drama when I paint?" 

Edited by randypandy831
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12 hours ago, randypandy831 said:

 

I had both and sold the Eclipse. the revolution CR does everything I need. Hmm, maybe It could be I didn't use the eclipse enough to really see its full potential. 

 

what do you mean by "very little drama when I paint?" 

I have the Eclipse HP-CS SJ. I moved up to the Revolution from a Badger 350 and entered a new world with dual action and gravity feed. I still enjoy the Revolution but I find that the Eclipse, when I got it, gave me more control. It has a smaller nozzle and needle and I find that I don't have to work as hard to do fine lines. It also cleans a lot easier. It all comes down to what you're comfortable with. I even still use my old Badger from time to time.

Cheers

Paul

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