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Supplies Baby's first airbrush experience

Sep 10, 2022

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    1. Baby's first dual action gravity-fed nail-art airbrush with compressor purchased off AliExpress (currently $39.99 USD plus free shipping) - worked perfectly. BUT - see this excellent comment about the weakness of nail-art air compressors by @Ara - I used the airbrush for sealant and primer only.

      For sealant, I used Army Painter Warpaints Air: Anti-Shine Varnish - $6.50 USD plus shipping for 100 ml bottle, ship to US and Europe. It worked beautifully. The sealant dried in about five minutes, and I got an excellent toothy surface once it dried. It's non-toxic, water-based, and odorless (I certainly couldn't smell anything). A little bit goes a long way. I filled the airbrush well about half-full and sprayed a full SD-sized doll in two layers. When I was done, I poured the rest back into the bottle. I used only half of what I put in - so use sparingly. Also - it's ridiculously humid where I live, and that didn't appear to affect the sealant. I had no issues with white patches, cloudiness, or flaking. The biggest complaint on the Army Painter forums appears to be that this sealant makes any shine disappear, which - lol. Did you, uh, read the description?

      My set-up was a big cardboard box that I turned on its side. I put the doll parts into the box and sprayed them one by one. The spray came out in a light mist. It was so easy - just point, press, and spray. I'm now kicking myself for not doing this sooner. The air around me didn't fog up or fill with mist as far as I can tell, but I did have a fan blowing in my direction, just in case.
      Warning for cat owners - turn the box upside down when you're done (opening facing the floor), or otherwise... cat trap.

      I did NOT have success with the Army Painters Warpaint Air: Primer White ($8.50 USD plus shipping for 100 ml). I hope I got old product. When I was pouring product into the airbrush well, long, stringy clumps of white paint came out of the bottle. Vigorous shaking did not fix the issue. The paint had separated inside the medium and would clump at the bottom of the airbrush opening, clogging it. Coverage (when I could get anything to spray at all) was thin and poor.

      Sorry - can't post pictures of the doll (I don't think. Let me check with the mods). Next up is going to be that Dream Valley mantis doll after I take it apart. Expect lots of photos, because I am dreading it. :atremblin
       
      #1 MaleficentMrsofEvil, Sep 10, 2022
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    2. This is really helpful! Have you tried any of the Army Painter air paints other than the primer?i got the set and a similar airbrush but haven't tried them yet and keep psyching myself out about it.
       
      #2 quilleth, Sep 11, 2022
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    3. Not yet. I already purchased a bunch of acrylics and pastels, so I want to use those up first. But thanks for asking!
       
      #3 MaleficentMrsofEvil, Sep 11, 2022
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    4. Update: day 2 was... not so great, and I 100% blame that primer. It completely clogged up the inside of the airbrush. I'd take the airbrush apart, clean it, pull out clumps of dried primer (gross), run water and airbrush cleaner through it - only for it to clog up again. Took it apart, found more primer, cleaned it, put it back together again. Refill it with sealant, and it clogged again...
      Mind you - I cleaned the airbrush with water and airbrush cleaner after using it previously.

      I ended up completely disassembling the airbrush pen and soaking the whole thing in acetone. As it's metal throughout, it didn't appear to damage anything.

      Lesson learned: I'm going to be very picky about what I use in my airbrush from now on. If it's not a product with excellent reviews, I'm not buying it, and I don't care how good the price is.

      Going to try to spray sealant again tonight.
       
      #4 MaleficentMrsofEvil, Sep 12, 2022
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    5. Update, day 3: soaking the disassembled airbrush pen in acetone was the perfect solution. As it is made of stainless steel, I don't see any damage. But the amount of dried up white primer that came glooping out... grossssss.

      The primer is now in the trash where it belongs IMHO.

      Another spray of sealant for everybody, and once again, the sealant and the airbrush worked like a dream. I am taking @Ara up on their advice and investing in a more powerful compressor. I will also be stalking their profile to look for the promised discussion of converting acrylic paint into airbrush paint.

      Unfortunately, I spoke with the mods, and the tentative answer is that the body I've been experimenting the most on (abusing, more like) is banned, so I will not be posting pictures. But I will post pictures of on-topic dolls as I get more done.
       
      #5 MaleficentMrsofEvil, Sep 25, 2022
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    6. Whoops, I don't remember saying anything about how to "convert acrylic paint into airbrush paint"? :ablink:
      Or maybe I just forgot.

      As it is, technically you can blast anything through an airbrush as long as you can turn it into a...blast-able liquid :lol: People do it with acrylics, gouache, watercolor paints or dry pigments. The biggest issue when trying to do that with dry pigments, or thick paint, is usually flaking. It doesn't really bind well, or it's not possible to get an evenly smooth liquid. Or whatever binding agents it has originally acts up when you add your thinner. In case of thicker acrylic paint for example, that sometimes means you get some very liquidy base, but with a shitton of thick gummy flakes floating around it. Dry pigment often ends up with the pigment just setting down in the gun, unless you keep constantly stirring it. If you have an airbrush with a bottom feed (like those glass pots screwed onto the bottom), you can shake it more easily.

      So if you use acrylic paint for example, either use the ones that are already labeled for airbrush use (like Schmincke Aero, Vallejo Model/Game Air) OR buy ones that are liquid by default (like Mr. Hobby Aqueous Color). The latter is usually more than fine with being diluted further. I only had a very couple few that showed some weird "splitting apart" effects (like my one pink will split apart into visible red and white pigments as soon as you drop in the thinner).
      Personally I sometimes thin down the airbrush paints too, especially the metallic ones. But I also work with smaller needles usually :sweat

      Also reading about your issues right now: primer and sealant are notorious airbrush clogging monsters. The primer usually because it's rather heavily pigmented, and the sealant because it's just sticky as all hell.
      On top of that is white probably the worst thing to airbrush. It dries very fast, and to be opaque/bright enough it again needs to be extremely pigmented. That's true for colors as well. Every time I have to airbrush or paint a lot of white I just want to cry :lol:
       
      #6 Ara, Sep 25, 2022
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    7. Well, it's only been... 18 months? And I have updates.
      Baby upgraded the compressor - grabbed one off Amazon that came with 3 pens for $130.
      Baby also got smart and upgraded the paint. I have learned that there is one place where you can NOT skimp, and that is on paint. Get the best you can. Vallejo, e.g. Weak pumps can take a break to cool down. Cheap pens just need a little water to clear. Cheap paint? You might get one or two sprays, and then you have to tear everything apart, only to reassemble, get one or two sprays, and - boom. Clumps.
      I still haven't invested in one of those fancy, brand-name pens. Right now, I'm in the middle of painting a doll body to color-match a head, and I am learning a lot from trying to cover a lot of real estate. I'll be back later with pics, but so far, I am very happy.
       
      #7 MaleficentMrsofEvil, Feb 16, 2024
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