Somehow I never came across someone explaining the difference between thinner and flow improver until now. I'm definitely going to have to experiment a bit with both now. Thank you so much
Same here, though, I just bought a huge bottle of Golden airbrush medium thanks to Marco NJM...but I never knew the difference until this video either...
@@Titus_Vespasianus Same, clogged my airbrush more than I painted models with all the time thinking how the hell this happens since my paint was soooo thin.
I don't have an airbrush (yet) but am always drooling over them. I can say unequivocally that this is the BEST airbrushing overview and guide I have yet to see. Thank you!
Go cheap to see if you like it - one of those with a rechargeable compressor attached is a fine starting point. More expensive kit is better but the benefits will only show as your skill improves. You don't want to go dropping 3 figures on a H&S / Badger / Iwata setup until you know you're going to get some good use out of it, and how to take care of it.
@@laurencepenfold ah, now this is the one thing I disagree with. Go cheap, get problems. Those cheap compressors don’t create enough pressure and break super quick. Cheap airbrushes are the same. And you then assume they’re all like that and end up spending more just to fix the issues. If you want to drive like an F1 driver, you don’t start in a second hand Golf cart. Wanna learn to swim? You don’t jump in a dirty puddle. Weirdly with airbrushing the advice is always to buy cheap. Cheap airbrushes and compressors CAN work. But man, it’s a totally random encounter finding one that doesn’t doesn’t break, spray wrong, shut off, clog endlessly, bent needle, faulty cheap seals, cheap parts. And it’ll kill any excitement you had for spraying. Buy cheap. Give up easily. Because hey, it was cheap! Spend more, learn well. Because you WILL NOT let your money be wasted! 🤣🤣
Wow! Thanks! I did make the video just for you. 🤣🤣 Another tip as you were so kind. If you can find a pair of womens stockings they work better than a sock as they let more air through but catch particles. I didn’t say it in my video as I didn’t want all the men people stealing stockings from the women in their family! If you have thicker socks, just cut a few small holes in them for airflow! Remember: don’t wear that sock again!! 🤣🤣
Being a 40 something you end up running out of ideas for birthday presents. So this year I put on my list airbrush/compressor , spray booth, cleaning pot, thinner, cleaner & flow improver. Clearly I had been a good boy this year as I was presented with all the above on the day with a bonus of the "this is your latest 5 min wonder isn't it?" look from my wife. Now as I sit with every gadget known to airbrush man I would like to thank you @thestateofplay2023 for demystifying all the steps and variables in using a airbrush. So next steps for me are to screenshot and print out the chart at 9:56 (hope you don't mind, its for personal use only (not like that!)) and then find a model to test this weekend! Thanks again for an excellent video and keep up the great work from your newest subscriber :)
🤣🤣 How relatable! Being almost 50 and having done this for nearly 33 years now I’ve collected almost everything you can in this hobby. Some I use everyday. Some I look at with abject confusion. They say “a bad workman blames his tools”… but without enough tools there’s nothing to blame. So the more the better for our ageing sanity!!
The Delegation of the Space-Deprived appreciate your input and will motion to further explore your wet-sock-based solution at the next Grand Meeting of the Hobby-Salty 🙏
Wow, you're great at explaining the dynamics of an airbrush. Never had it all explained in one lesson with such great presentation! Easy sub! Cheers from Florida!
@@thestateofplay2023 I think it's always been easier for me to learn from people who teach as if they're learning along with you. You do this, as does Tabletop Ready. Truly excellent.
Hello friend, recently found your channel and im currently in the progress of binging all your videos. I love your charisma and your unique, more "down to earth" approach to the hobby. Looking forward to many more videos from you in the future. Thanks for making great content.
Born from reading social media about airbrushing. Where a very simple question always ends up with 47 completely different answers…🫣 and you’d have been better informed by not asking in the first place. 🤣
I totally love your refreshing honesty. Yeah, I don’t recommend one way or another because it really is a tool you can do without. But the amount of people I know who bought one, and then shoved it in a box due to frustration, is insane.
Even if you do nothing but base coat minis. It's an amazing tool and time saver. It also doesn't have to be a 400$ one. Save that for when you really do use it and need that extra ypu get from a quality air brush. Get a cheap one and play with it might just change your life.
This was such a well put together beginners airbrush intro. I've been an amateur fantasy airbrush artist for years, so I'm not a modeller, but I think you have nailed all the important aspects. Great video.
Ok - I will give mine one more try. I have managed to get some use of it by priming, but actually painting -- that's eluded me so far. I really like how you presented this.
@@thestateofplay2023And that is the key, if the cup of the airbrush is clean, it does not matter if you pull the needle out from the front or back. My source for this info: Harder & Steenbeck RU-vid channel, a video titled 'Airbrush cleaning for lazy and easily bored artists!'
I do this with my Iwata (smooth needle), but I do worry about the indented sections at the back of my H&S needle (the markings showing the needle size) damaging the seals if you pull it out the front.
Oh boy! The first ten sentences. They bear so so much truth. I was so flabbergasted when I tried airbrushing first time. I actually questioned my abilities and brain
🤣🤣 Me!! “Oh look at that guy on RU-vid. Airbrushing must be easy.” Fast forward to day one and “what?! This ain’t easy at all. HOW many things do I need to juggle!”.
@@thestateofplay2023 you hit the nail on the head so incredibly precisely I actually had to pause and "fuck this guy is right" - which startled the dog :) I never knew what the FUCK it meant *milky consistency" and "just spray". It was described as magic and it was torture. It kinda is okay now. The only time it was really "magic" was with streaking grime. That shit is magic out of a bottle.
I don't use it for any precision work yet but last year I painted 50 or so models. Now with an air brush to prime and base coat I did 45 simple models over a weekend. You can prime 500 models with an airbrush faster than you can paint it on 20. Vince Venturella has a good intro to airbrushing. My advice is use the "chemicals" they sell for painting, they sell because they work. I always use flow aid while brush painting I always use airbrush thinner while airbrushing i always use glaze medium when glazing
This also reminds me of a funny story: my brother in law knows I love painting, so he gave me this airbrush that he had purchased and (evidently) only used once. Naturally I'm curious why he only used it once, but it becomes immediately obvious as soon as I look at it. It was completely clogged with dried paint. I don't think he read the instructions or had any idea of how to thin the paint or anything. Next time I see him, he asks me if I tried using it. I didn't even know what to tell him.
I love using an airbrush, best thing you can do is to learn how to take it apart, and to use it all the time. It makes cleaning it easy and effortless, and I can't imagine going back to life without one. Never used a pressure control valve though, so thanks for the tip.
Yeah I do know exactly what you mean. The idea of going back and brushing things I now do with an airbrush seems weird, and time consuming! And the FPC valve or Mac valve is such an amazing tiny thing that stops you needing to keeping adjusting your compressor!
I put your tips into play today. For the first time since I've owned an airbrush (5+ years!) I've enjoyed the session. The biggest difference was the inline regulator. I had a quick-attach for my airbrush but didn't realize that the regulator was a part of it. I'm using mostly washes right now, and I'm so pleased with the result. Thank you, thank you, thank you! My daughter's cosplay horns are saved!
Great vid although the milk thing is useful IMO. Best way I’ve heard it explained is: When you pull milk up the side of your mixing tin you’ll see it flow back into the dish but leave an even film along the side, this is approximately how you want the paint to behave from that point you can thicken it or let is down.
Oh I know the milk theory. It’s a great starting point but you have to admit it’s still completely guess work with any colour other than white. 🤣🤣 And if you’re a full fat milk drinker it skews all your hard work. 😜👍🏼
Amazing video. I know these are all old but ive just got an airbrush after taking a 15 year break from warhammer (due to injuries i cant hold my hand steady) and these are helping me greatly!
When you break it down like that, it makes more sense. I do keep a model car body for doing what you suggested and I use that as my test dummy. I also have plain white plastic spoons that I've primed and will practice on those. Great, helpful video.
Thank you, sir, for this video. Finally, somebody has finally put out a video that is keep it simple stupid and understandable! I have watched a lot of videos on airbrushing but this one makes a hell of a lot more sense to me thanks for the advice.
This is by far the most educational and helpful video I've seen out of the 12+ I have seen. Thank you for the great video. Please keep up the great work.
I rarely comment, but I have to say - phenomenal video. The everyman's guide outlining and dealing with the niggles and concerns many of us have with this tool. Great work!
lol the squirt bottle and cup is how Vincy V has shown to do it and that was probably posted years before Ninjon. I am sure Ninjon got it from Vince as they get together every year here in columbus for their own painting session.
@@jamesgillam6478 mines bigger now than it’s ever been but…what you see on camera is tidied up. And by that I mean everything moved out of shot so the rest looks like a trash dump!
Great tips for airbrush use. Most of my frustration comes from using inks which gives me a dry tip; messing with the air pressure and consistency is key. Now I’ll try your recommendations to see if I can reduce the problems. Thanks!
Thin paints like inks will also require you to “pump” the trigger. Like little squirts and spritzing. 👍🏼works wonders. Trying to be trigger precise with inks is a nightmare. Grab an Xbox or PS Controller and practice pulling the thumbstick backward quickly with your airbrush finger, letting it go, and repeating. Great exercise for airbrush
Very recognizable, sometimes spraying you're on fire when airbrushing your models and the other you're fighting to get some decent paint on your aircraft or other project. Things goes mostly south when the air humidity comes in play 60% and higher. Mostly I use an plastic spoon to look what the thinned paint does works for me. 👍 But great video
I don't even have a box-spray-booth (after this video i'm definetely going to build one lol), I use a trash bag to protect my paint rack, since I only have a desk as a hobbie space, where I have to do basically everything... However, I do have a big door next to a balcony near the desk, which I open for proper ventilation, and I've been using a 3m mask with the proper filters for organic stuff. So far so good.
Cleaning is generally very easy. Never leave paint to dry in the airbrush. To clean, have an old toothbrush to scrub the inside of the cup. Have a container handy for dumping the cup water into. Don't try and blast the water through the airbrush with all the paint particles you just cleaned out of the cup with the toothbrush. They will clog the nozzle. Have an stiff bristle synthetic brush, flat type, to clean deeper in the cup around the needle. After you have cleaned the cup using your 2 brushes, and dumped the water and rinsed it a bit, flush water through the airbrush. Use the toothbrush to clean the tip while you are spraying water. If your done painting for the day, or you have sprayed vanish or undercoat through the airbrush I like to run a little airbrush cleaner through, then flush with water. The real key to the whole process is to leave the cup filled with water after it all. Either put the airbrush into a jar with the cup submerged, or just fill the cup with water and leave the airbrush sitting on its holder for next time. When you come back to it, you just blast the remaining water in the cup through the brush and away you go. On occasion you will get lazy and try and flush larger dried particles through the brush and the nozzle will clog. If that happens you need to disassemble and it's a pain. If you follow my instructions above, it will rarely happen.
I just got a cheapo airbrush and compressor unit to get into airbrushing my tanks. Luckily the RU-vid recommendations came in clutch and had this appear on my feed.
This is by far the best advice for airbrushing video i've come across, thank you! You've given me the motivation and confidence to dig out my airbrush and give it a go.
Thank you for making this, I just had one of the most frustrating and wasteful airbrushing sessions ever last night. Trying to paint up my dark elf army.
@@death2all79zx to be honest, I haven’t tried. With the higher pressure on my compressor the primers have sprayed fine. However I don’t see why it wouldn’t work, it’s a better medium than thinner because it’s a binder and not alcohol.
This is just great content about airbrushing. I've tried so many times and watched so many videos on youtube. Even though I already picked up on some of these tips, the "engineering" or "economist" way you frame it is very helpful. I will definitely take mine out of the box again and try it.
@@thestateofplay2023 I'm not an engineer, but in college, I got bombarded by Economics Classes and it's always ended with the "Ceteris Paribus" rule (the effect of change 1 economic variable assuming everything else stays the same) which for me was bollocks in an economic context. But I guess it stuck to me. Lol
@@hvbarata you’re right. The ceteris paribus is very relevant with airbrushing. One variable has direct effect over another provided we make most of the other variables remain the same. I guess the difference being, all variables in airbrushing directly affect all the others.
Damn. This came at just the right time for me. Got some airbrushes some time ago.Worked with one, it was ok. But never went back. Now getting back into painting and this vid shows up on my feed and now I want to get home and try it all over again. Thanks mate.
First video of yours I've ever watched just appeared on my recommended as I've watched few airbrush videos now. Thanks for the video, its given me some confidence when I purchase my first airbrush.
Honestly, I'm glad I watched this, I won't be getting an air brush even if it does speed things up. Its just not right for my current situation. This video has saved me a massive potential headache and also perhaps my wallet. Thank you.
Glad it helped! It is after all, a tool you 100% don’t need, as I said. I got away without one for 20 odd years. But in the U.K. our weather sucks so eventually I wanted to spray indoors. 😜👍🏼
Nice and informative as always! And yeah, the cleaning aspect is why I usually don't pull out the airbrush for 1-2 minis. Also, those darn spray booths are quite loud. (-. Flow improver is just Paint thinner & paint retarder mixed into one. (-: So getting a bottle of each gives you lots more bang for the buck and more control over how the paint behaves. And gives you the option of creating pre'mixed bottles. The pressure stated on the meter, when the compressor isn't in use is actually higher then the working pressure. If you spray air out of the airbrush while checking the meter, that's the actual working pressure. Not that it matters much as long as you got a setting that you're happy with. Cleaning with a tattoo bottle is awesome! If you use hot water instead of cold, you get even better/quicker results. Think it was Vince that tipped me to this in one of his Hobby Cheating videos. (:
I think over the years I’ve bought almost every bottle of everything for thinning paints. I felt like Goldilocks and the 3 bears. Too thin, too dry, too wet, too thick, too annoying! Yeah, agreed on the pressure aspects. I may do a follow up video on the actual spraying aspect. Especially after watching a friend spray like he was air freshening his kitchen . Press, pull back, hold forever. Then complain of all manner of issues. And Vince V is who we all worship. 👍🏼
@@thestateofplay2023Yeah, know what you mean! Been using a bunch of different brands myself, but the last years i'm happily using UMP thinner with AK retarder. Will certainly pick up a bottle of Golden to try out the next time I visit the art supply store. Their paints are great so have doubt this will be of high quality too!
Awesome Video for beginners and intermediate hobby painters. The only thing you didn’t mention that is resolved is your example is you are spraying in the same environment!!! Humidity and Temperature changes everything. So if you are having problems using the same solutions as discussed in this video then it(H or T) is most likely what the problem is. And don’t for get to have a minimum of one in line water separator. Compressed air creates heat. Water will develops in time! Once again a great video and a perfect place to start. FYI I can do fine detail work with .04 needle all day long!! Cheers!!
Thanks Alan. Yeah I sometimes forget that my compressor has all the bells and whistles for moisture. And I always forget that in England our climate is generally quite stable(ish). 🤣🤣
When it comes to cleaning your brush, one thing i have just great success with its taking it to the sink and running tap water into the bowl. Then i would blow back like some do to mix the paint, and then run more water in it. Repeat a few times. Then i will finish with loading up some alcohol and run that through. I only have to syrup and clean the brush about once a week, and i airbrush daily.
The suggestion with only using your airbrush for one modell and laugh about yourself while doing this is the best tip I´ve ever heard in airbrush topics. Have my sub.
Brilliant work, just bought a second air brush, and although still pick it up regularly looking forward to using all these tips to make the process more painless. Really impressed with the video quality, your channel absolutely deserves to grow.
The usual description of the milk reference is that your paint should have the same flow and transparency as milk on the side of your glass or cup when you tip it and then return it to flat. Not the liquid bit at the bottom of the glass, but on the side where it left a thin coat that is still running down. Easier said, than done in most cases. It is more of a guide than a rule. Another suggestion is airbrushing coloring books to help with training distance and aim of the airbrush. You don't have to worry about going over the lines the same as you might feel about a miniature. When you are ready to step up your challenge you can get some clear plastic sheet covers over the coloring book page to get the effect of painting plastic instead of paper. With the added bonus of being able to wash the plastic afterwards to reuse it. The only other recommendation I didn't hear in terms of airbrushing. Always start to depress the air button down when you start first, and when you are done, always push the trigger forward all the way before letting off the button for air. Releasing the air and trigger at the same time will leave paint in the recesses of the airbrush and this will lead to splattering paint afterwards.
Totally agree on all points.and I may do a follow up video on actual airbrush usage. On this one, I wanted to try to get people using them first. Airbrush can be intimidating and too much info in one go puts people off. On the milk thing however, it sounds great in practice but every colour tend to look totally different on the side of the cup so the milk thing just stoped me from airbrushing. 🤣
@@thestateofplay2023 I will look forward to more videos! I think experimenting and playing with the airbrush is a good start. Not trying to aim at your goal down the road. An Airbrush is a tool at the end of a day and your skill in using that tool will take time and practice. Anything that helps you practice more often is key.
As someone who likes to use an airbrush here's a trick you may want to try, put a round piece of dense foam on the trigger, tyr different lengths. This will change the ratio of the pull and you may find it more comfortable on the finger. Grate video.
Good tip!! Harder &Steenbeck do a better trigger on the Cult of Paint infinity airbrush BUT they won’t sell it as a separate part. I tried contacting everyone about it. There was no way I was buying a whole new airbrush just for a triigger that could absolutely be sold on its own. But hey, sponge it is!!
I've been airbrushing for years now. One thing I learned early on was to get a compressor with a tank, a good water trap to keep moisture out of the line. The next was it was so much easier to just buy paints designed for an airbrush for painting WW2 armor, of which there is little or no thinning and can use straight out of the bottle. There were a ton of choices for that. Airbrushing is also great for zenithal priming and priming when its too cold or humid outside.
I can’t agree more. I think the problem many new users face is quite a lot of “air paints” on the market still require thinning and it confuses people. And yet products like Molotow one4all with are actually for acrylic markers spray like a dream!
@@thestateofplay2023 Just wanted to thank you again, experiment went well and I might need to keep testing a bit more, but it works so much better for me now ♥
I haven't played WH40k in years, mostly the one local shop closed down, and life got in the way. Also at the new place...... seriously people need to be less weird, it's kinda uncomfortable to play with someone who can't make eye contact, or hold a conversation. That aside.... air brush for base coats and vehicles, brushes for details. Shadowing and Stencils for patterns aside, thats how I was able to make my models POP on the table.
I love the quick color change section. That’s where I struggled the most! I would dedicate an evening to painting a single color. And maybe a mix that involves that first one. Then I’d spend the rest of my hobby time cleaning… became a chore
Great information, I am new to the hobby and have been struggling with my airbrush. I had a pressure valve near my airbrush but had no idea what it was used for. Will also be buying some golden airbrush medium. Thank you!
That’s what I used to do. But I had to buy two bottles of things and play chemist. 🤣 Now I buy one bigger bottle of Golden because sometimes I don’t want the paint thinned. 👍🏼
just buy multiple airbrushes and clean them in ultrasonic while you work with the other. adjust pressure while spraying, it drops when you start. generally don't use water for acrylics, it reduces adhesion. for airbrush use thinners and retarders, for paintbrushes use mediums. for zenithal priming use white ink but check lightfastness first (liquitex white is good), much finer droplets
Distance from model actually has a trick to it... use your ears, not just your finger. just try it.. airbrush with air at 30 psi, then move the brush closer.. you will actually be able to HEAR when you get to the distance where your pressure is too high, and the paint will bounce off the model. You still need to practice, but this will teach you faster
