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Airbrush vs. Paint by Hand Advice


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Hello all.  I’m a modeling and forum newbie looking for advice on restoring an RF-101 factory desktop model.  I need some advice on the method I should use to paint - airbrush or paint by hand.  My overall goal is quality of the finished product and I’m willing to pay a premium to achieve my goal.

 

A little bit about my project:  My father was an RF-101 pilot in the 60’s in the KY ANG.  Sometime I believe around 1968, he obtained a factory desktop model of the RF-101 (see photo).  Unfortunately his children wanted to “fly Daddy’s plane” and tied a string to it and spun it around their heads with glee.  Well, it was all fun and games until yours truly lost his hold and had a major model mishap.  The tail broke completely off as did the top of the horizontal stabilizer.

 

To his credit, Dad took it in stride, glued it back together and placed it back on his desk where it remained until just recently when I got it from Mom (see photo).  I decided that since I was the twit that broke it, I would restore it back to its former glory.  I started watching a plethora of YT videos on modeling and looked for a forum for practitioners of the art.

 

I’ve gotten to the point where I’ve completed 10+ cycles of putty and sanding (some big chunks missing that needed to be filled).  There are a couple of pits in the tail that need to be filled and remaining decals removed before painting.  But in order to paint - I need to decide on what method to use - airbrush or hand painting.  I’ve watched plenty of YTs on airbrushing and am just a bit intimidated, but I also know as a boy building models my hand brushing was abysmal.  So I’m asking for advice on what I should decide.  For an added bonus - I’m open to feedback on my puttying!  Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

 

Chris

OriginalRF101TDM.jpg

RF101Putty.jpg

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Airbrush for sure unless you are good at blending/feathering the new paint into the existing paint with a paint brush.  Learning how to use an airbrush will pay dividends over time.  Just like learning how to write cursive, it's not that hard.

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18 hours ago, RichardL said:

Airbrush for sure unless you are good at blending/feathering the new paint into the existing paint with a paint brush.  Learning how to use an airbrush will pay dividends over time.  Just like learning how to write cursive, it's not that hard.

Thanks Richard - appreciate your feedback.

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Take it from someone who up until now has hand-painted models exclusively - get an airbrush! Especially if you want that fresh "from the factory" look. And you'll want to test on something else first - could be as simple as a sheet of scratch paper. 

 

BTW those are some amazing skills you've got in that resto!

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Great choice check out Coastal Airbrush they have a great selection awesome customer support. If I could give some advice I wish someone had given me years ago. If you have the means I would invest heavily into your airbrush that can be $600 or more and look at a compressor with a reserve tank a good one is $700. You get what you pay for in airbrushing. If you want professional results and not alot of down time trying to figure out why your cheap airbrush isn't working then use what the pro's use. I like iwata

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products precice engineering here is a sample of the control. 

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If I added up all the money I have spent on cheaper equipment giving shotty results I could have saved myself alot of frustration. Airbrushing is easier than it looks good paint helps and with all the new paint lines Vallejo, AK Interactive, Meng just to name a few it's easier than ever.

 

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