Air Brushing

gwc

New Member
With great trepidation I cast out my question to the group. I have been gifted an airbrush kit complete which is very tuneful. I am about to build the Renault R17 tank from GPM, but convert it to the US/Canadian version. That means the hull colour needs to change. I've seen on the Czech site that someone sprayed a kit but no discussion on what or how. I have an idea but don't want to bugger it up. I have looked through the site and perhaps I have done a man look, if I have my apologies and please guide me to where I have overlooked. In the event I have not....

So, has anyone airbrushed a paper kit and is willing to provide guidance. I realize that practice, not on the kit is necessary first, but it is the second part....Thanks in advance folks.
 

spaceagent-9

Right Hand Man and Confidant
Moderator
I airbrushed surf boards and some posters back in the 80's. I know you need a stencil, and a what we used to call a cutter, which was just cheap card board shaped like a crescent moon, and then held on the side of the spray so you don't get droplets on your target. they will bleed and smear so you move your cutter with your spraying for a clean paint. A nice warm room maybe with a hot lamp or heater helps the paint dry. if you have a cup that's on the airbrush, you will want to clean it every time it empties so you don't get globs spraying out. if its a bottle on the bottom, you can spray longer and you still have to clean the nozzles. I would watch a YOUTUBE video on air brushing and maybe look for HOW TO do gradients with an airbrush.
 

zathros

*****SENIOR ADMINISTRATOR*****
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
Youtube has bazillions of tutorials on Airbrushing. It was after viewing many of them, I decided I didn't have the room, but if you get good at at it, there is money to be made.
 

gwc

New Member
Thanks for the info, I did the youtube search and have marked a couple, but thought I would ask the community as well. cheers
 

zathros

*****SENIOR ADMINISTRATOR*****
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
Please, post your progress. We can all learn from your learning. :)
 

subnuke

Banned
Learning to use an airbrush is a large topic and there are other sources to help with all the different types. Learning to mix the paint is another big topic and comes with experience. The big issue there is that there are a lot of different types of paint to use and you have to learn what works best for you. When I airbrush, I use the cheap craft acrylic paints you get in craft/hobby stores and they work fine for me.

If the paint won't stick to what you are painting, you will need a primer. You don't always need a primer though some say you do. A primer is only a layer between your subject and the paint that is compatible with both. If you are painting a printed kit, I would assume you could use a primer. I bet you could get away with a simple clear acrylic coat, preferably by Krylon. Light coats at first, but make sure you fully coat the model.

I learned to paint on plastic in the 80s and brushed with a lot of air and with Polly S paints that were lightly thinned. They were not very runny like many tend to use. I got a lot of clogs, but they worked great for me. Some will tell you that you need to thin to a particular percentage, but that is not completely true. It depends on the type of brush, the air source and flow, the paint, and other things. Some paints might need a flow chemical to help. When using acrylics some paints are opaque and some are transparent and some paint companies do not tell you which they are. Delta Ceramcoat does tell and they work well for me.

I suggest you practice a lot before you attempt to paint a paper kit. It is common practice in Poland so it does work. Get some card stock and practice, changing the variables until you get something that works for you. Remember you can use a regular brush for touchup work or to paint markings and letterings. You might need stencils but I rarely used them. Depends on what you are trying to do. You can get a coloring book, scan and print onto cardstock, then airbrush the image. Great practice. Practice and experiment. Try this on models you print yourself to get your system down, but remember a printed kit like GPM has a different finish so you will need some kind of primer to keep the paint from running. Practice, experiment, repeat as necessary, there are no shortcuts in this skill. Using the brush is a skill to learn, the art comes from what you do with it.
 

Gandolf50

Researcher of obscure between war vehicles...
Staff member
Moderator
With great trepidation I cast out my question to the group. I have been gifted an airbrush kit complete which is very tuneful. I am about to build the Renault R17 tank from GPM, but convert it to the US/Canadian version. That means the hull colour needs to change. I've seen on the Czech site that someone sprayed a kit but no discussion on what or how. I have an idea but don't want to bugger it up. I have looked through the site and perhaps I have done a man look, if I have my apologies and please guide me to where I have overlooked. In the event I have not....

So, has anyone airbrushed a paper kit and is willing to provide guidance. I realize that practice, not on the kit is necessary first, but it is the second part....Thanks in advance folks.

Mine are always air-brushed to some degree or other... Before I ever start I spray the sheets with acrylic matte lacquer, the cheap stuff from Walmat, helps on the build and stops curl when gluing large sections together, like for inside and out of frames which have to be straight as an arrow, spray both sides of the sheet, just enough that it starts to turn translucent but not wet, it will dry just as it was before but your glue will work better and your paint will have a good matte surface to grab on to, I have had no trouble with the print running, but I always scan a copy to be safe, just in case I mess up and have to reprint something..

I mix my own paint and colors from tube acrylics and the liquid squeeze bottles, with a matte medium, and just enough distilled water to get a nice smooth base, don't thin to spray consistency till I am ready to apply the paint to the model, I will take a teaspoon of my (mix) and put into a long-nosed squeeze bottle add water and maybe some more matte medium if I need more translucent coverage , depends on the test swatch, I also, add NO MORE than ONE or TWO drops of dish-washing liquid which helps the flow and breaks the surface tension. Then slowly, build a layer at a time till done! Use painters tape only when absolutely necessary as it will sometimes stick and tear the top layer off the card stock!!! I tend to use scrap from the recycle bin and cut it to shape, then use tape that I have "de-sticky-ed" by sticking on the desk till it has lost a lot of the stick!

Oppss Forgot to ask, what type airbrush did you get , single or 2 stage?
 
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