Thread: Airbrush Compressors

When buying an "Airbrush Compressor " make sure you check to see that it is rated for the type airbrushing you will be doing. Airbrushing T Shirts, Models whatever. Also make sure it is rated for the type of airbrush you will be using. Very few of these little "Airbrush Compressors" will give you enough PSI to run a VL and use createx paint. (VL requiring 35 to 60 PSI to spray createx effectively)
Take the time to read the suggested uses for the compressor you want to purchase and ask questions of other experianced airbrush artist BEFORE you buy.

Hello Don,
I am new to all this, and wanted to ask if an ordinary compressor is ok to use.

I will be undertaking a course on airbrushing very soon, but I am looking at buying some equipment now, as we are having a few sales around here.

Not knowing anything at all I thought I would ask you for some advice first.

My goal is to do murals on cars, motor bikes and helmets, so would an ordinary compressor be ok for this or do I really need to get an airbrush one?

Thank you

Gypsy

The full size compressors work very well for airbrushing. Gives you a better range in air pressure, only down fall is the noise. Make sure you get a good moisture trap for it.

Clinton

I use a full size compressor only because I already had it. I am fine with the noise, one good thing is with a large compressor it does not cycle on that much when using an airbrush (more noise but not as often). Make sure you have the moister trap. If you use other tools with the air compressor and you use an oiler in your line, have a seperate hose for your AB and T off before the oiler.

Lowrider

Thanks for all the info Im so glad about this, I went and checked out the smaller ones yesterday and they are more expensive than the bigger one I looked at! Amazing really.............

I have ordered my gun, it should be here in less than a week Im all excited about getting started but don't know where to start LOL, I suppose you all had that at the beginning.
Im lucky in a way, my husband is a panel beater.........(not sure what you call them in the States, ) and he has a few old bonnets (hoods) off cars laying around, as well as bumper bars and some other stuff, so I will have something to practice on, my sons also have a collection of motor bike helmets I can't wait to get going.
Thanks agian.
Gypsy

here's a couple places that might help I publish free airbrush basic lessons and tech tips, info on these web sites check them out, I add to them as time allows
www.howtoairbrush.com , www.airbrushhowto.com , www.howtocustompaint.com

I bought my firstair brush, Badger Anthem 155.
My husband has a new Porter cable portable compressor with regulator.
It has two quick connects on the top. There is a smaller connector for running a hose from to conect to the control panel so you can lift the panel off and have it near where you are working. What type of hose or adapter would I need for my Badger Anthem? Sorry to sound so dense but as you can tell I,m completely new to all this. I was going to buy the badger hose they have at the craft store where I bought the airbrush.

just a badger hose from the airbrush to the compressor would work fine, it should srew right onto the compressor fitting, have fun

For best results don't forget to get a moisture trap and pipe that in. *Usually* you put the moisture trap before the regulator. I had to add about a 6" piece of 1/4" pipe between the pressure switch and the moisture trap, and then attach the regulator onto output side of the trap.

All compressors should have one, even if you are only running air tools on them. Helps to keep them from internally rusting. Also, if hubby adds an air tool oiler, make sure to place it AFTER a "T" off for your airbrush and non-tool use (tire inflation, etc.) I also have a seperate hose I ONLY use for airbrushing. One of those 1/4" poly coil hoses and it's screwed directly to the braided air brush hose. The poly line has a male quick connector on it to conenct to the compressor.

GOOD Advice from Pmmay!!!! Moisture trap is almost essential if your compressor has a storage tank!!! And DEFINITE heed his advice if you happen to use a "auto oiler" or just dont use it at all!!! Some Water traps are combined with oilers and as long as you dont use it or can get it split off from the airbrush air line...this is fine.

here is an illustration of a typical airbrush system set up.


To my knowledge, unless the newer hoses have changed, the Badger Airbrush hoses WILL NEED an adaptor coupler to hook up to the 1/4 NPT thread standard air hose.
It looks like this

and can be found at DixieArt.com online or at most hobby stores that carry Badger airbrushes.
Heres the link to DixieArt..scroll down about halfway.

Hope that helps!!!

I just wanted to say thanks for the great info, I,m sure I have found the right place.I,m on some other forums for different subject and many times newbies don,t get their questions answered.
I,m going to get the Badger hose today and my husband says he already has the moisture trap. The compressor is oil less.

NiaDoll, Don't forget to wrap all of your connector(s)' threads with Teflon tape. or else they WILL leak air. DrD

Concept, I supose that all depends on what type of gun your using and how big of job your doing.
If your doing something say the size of a door panel, then something like KB Kustoms suggested should work just fine. A 2Hp. 2Gal. around 120 PSI. compressor should work for the small jobs and you can get them with wheels so they are portable.
If your spraying the whole vehicle I would suggest a larger compressor like maybe a 7Hp. 80Gal. size.

That's the size I use only because I already had it. My compressor sits outside my shop in a shed so the noise is minimum considering the size it is. A regular compressor hose (I think 3/8 size) runs off of that into the shop about 25 Ft. to where it ties into 2 moisture traps then a regulator, then runs into more traps as it ties off into 4 directions. One runs off another 25 Ft. hose where I then plug in my air compressor set up which contains of another regulator and trap that then my regular air brush hose plugs into which is only about 10 Ft. to 14 Ft. long.

So you see you don't really need an extension hose for your air brush or do you need a portable compressor if this is the way you set yours up.

I would suggest getting a smaller compressor to start and get set up painting. You'll figure out what works for you once you get going and be able to assemble your arsenal then.

You can get good, cheap compressor at Harbor Freight.
Hope this helps.

im new to this also.....what brand of oil traps do you people recommend? is there a certain type i should get? how much do these run for? and where do i get em....thanks

I got my OIL / Moisture trap at Lowes. Any brand should be good, just make sure it can handle enough PSI. You can buy them with regulators too if you are looking for that also. Generally they are around $15 - $30. Maybe a little more with a regulator built in.

« Alex »

It only takes .5 cfm (cubic feet per minute) to run one airbrush. This is roughly a 1/12 hp compressor. So a 1 hp will work for general applications. You can burn up a small compressor using it with big air tools and large guns. Check what cfm the equipment you plan to use in the future and get a compressor that will run it easiyl. You don't have to have a mega monster to run an airbrush. What is most critical is to have a compressor with a storage tank. One without just makes a good door stop. The larger the storage tank the less the compressor will cycle on. The less the compressor cycles on, the less hot air caused by the comresson of the piston running all the time. The less hot air, the less moisture in the lines, the less moisture in the lines the less you have to dry or trap.

All compressors will create heat and hot air, some more than others. Make sure you have a water drain on the storage tank, (to keep it from rotting) and at least a moisture trap down the line at least 25 feet from the tank. This will give the air a chance to cool and the moisture to seperate from the air. Then the moisture trap will collect it. If you do like some people and have the regualtor/moisture trap on the side of the tank you are defeating the purpose of having one. Hard lines from the compressor tank is always good, black pipe is safest. It will also cool the air quicker. You can run a candesent filter on the end of your airbrush hose that hooks into the 25 foot hose to help for sure. If all of this sounds crazy let me know and I will send you a simple diagram of the set up I give all my students for suggestions on a compressor system.

This is only an experienced suggestion. roger

Hi gang...this is my first post...newbie to airbrushing...I plan on doing billboards, motorcycles, vans, and been looking for the right equip...Iwata BCS auto airbrush seems to be what I need...couldn't find a Badger or any other brand that seemed better but would like your opions...my main concern is compressor size and noise...I don't think I could stand the constant noise while painting...does anyone make one that is relatively silent? The video I bought shows a "Super Silent 50" for pros who want quiet operation...any suggestions would be greatly appreciated...thanks in advance, Cindy

You might look into CO2 tanks, cheap to fill, lots of different sizes and last a long time. VERY portable. I have a friend that uses one, it's all he will use because of the noise of the compressors.

roger

Just thought I would add in some additional stuff about my experience with compressors thus far.

The first one I purchased was a Campbell Hausfield (I think that's spelled right) it was supposed to be a "Super Quiet" model. Well, it was loud enough to be heard through the concrete floors of my apartments and I has some pretty upset neighbors knocking on my door at 1am...so that one went back. It also took a long time to fill and was very hot at the end of filling. Had a 1 or 2 gallon tank and took about 10 minutes to fill...then the fan would stay on for about 10 minutes cooling it down. It was no where near as loud as most compressors...but loud enough for my apartment. The regulator worked very well and I could adjust the pressure from 5PSI to 100PSI fairly accurately. For the $100 I spent on this one I liked it besides the noise. I also had a much better water trap on this one.

Next up was an AirBrush compressor from Harbor Freight (you would think I would learn my lesson about their stuff) It works o.k., it's not as loud as the other one, but at low PSI it doesn't keep a constant air flow. Up at 30PSI it works well, but anything below 12 and I have problems with puffs of air. Also the threads on the compressor aren't standard so I had a very hard time rigging up something to connect my Iwata to it, had to hit the plumbing section of home depot...Also the filter and regulator it comes with leaves a lot to be desired. I clear the water trap daily but today as I was spraying I started to get bursts of water in the line in all honesty it works o.k., I think I paid $70 for it so I guess I can't expect the thing to work good as a SmartJet. I'll probably get a better water trap and regulator for it fairly soon.

Moral of the story is to get something that will last you a while. It might cost a little more up front but will end up saving you time, money, and headache in the end!

Good water traps and retulators are also worth the extra $$$.

Jared

Hello everyone. I am also new to the forum and airbrushing. I have an airbrush and have been thinking about the small compressor idea also since I have a hobby room. I was wondering what you thought of the snap on compressor linked below. I know it may be a little expensive but I have an account with them and if it's good for my uses then thats what I'm looking at. I want to airbrush cpu cases,game consoles, and maybe later on motorcycle pieces. I dunno if it's any good but I bought the snap on airbrush a couple weeks ago but haven't used it. Thanks for all the advice ahead of time.

http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/item....re&dir=catalog

Thanks,
Ryan

Sorry Rayn, won't do.
In fact, I have a bridge I can sell you in NY
I can not belive they are chaging that much money for that compressor!
I just looked at the price of the brushes they are selling and would probably return what you bought and get something else if I were you.
An Iwata Eclips CS is about $109, hose is about $20.. you get a good qualty brush that is suited for the type of work you are looking to do.
Not everthing Snapon sells is worth the price. I was an automechanic for a good part of my life and I speak from experience. The weekly payment plan does make it easy if cash flow is low, but I think you can get a better tool buying one made by an airbrush company. Not rebranded and marked up buy snapon.
Just my 2 cents worth.
Doug

Wow, that really is WAY too much money for that compressor.

Here is what I did that works very well for me. The compressor is one of the cheapies that harbor freight wells...once you get it take the regulator off and throw it in the trash. Next pickup a good quality air filter and a REAL regulator. Total cost for mine was about $75. It's quiet and with the proper regulator it will hold any pressure I set it at, from 1PSI to 40PSI. The advantage of this is that the compressor effectively loads up, unlike the other regulator that comes with it that has a blow off, by loading the compressor it has a constant pressure at the output end.

The downside is the loading it up like this probably causes some unneeded stress on the compressor, and it is a little warm after I get done using it. But for the price it's great!

The best solution is to get one with an air tank and pressure switch so that the compressor kicks on at a given pressure and fills the tank back up. Initially I bought one of the Campbell Hausfield "Quiet" ones. It was about $100, took forever to come on and was in no way Quiet!

Hope this helps, here's a picture of my setup with the HP-CS, which is a great little multipurpose brush. Don has the best price on them that I've found!

Jared

Well I hope the brush is good cause I'm kinda stuck with it, I bought the BF360 linked below. I will definetaly pass on the compressor then. I need one that is quiet and cost friendly, I found a compressor called a DW4000 but no idea if it's any good or how much. Can I run off CO2 bottles for now or will that damage my airbrush?

http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/item....re&dir=catalog

Thanks,
Ryan

Originally Posted by Gypsy

Hello Don,
I am new to all this, and wanted to ask if an ordinary compressor is ok to use.

I will be undertaking a course on airbrushing very soon, but I am looking at buying some equipment now, as we are having a few sales around here.

Not knowing anything at all I thought I would ask you for some advice first.

My goal is to do murals on cars, motor bikes and helmets, so would an ordinary compressor be ok for this or do I really need to get an airbrush one?

Thank you

Gypsy

Gypsy, this is kind of a loaded question. What is a "normal" compressor to one person may be something completely different to another.

For your work intended work, would you be doing that at home/shop, or going mobile (car shows, bike meets, etc.)?
Would you be using a bigger gun to spray base coats or clear coats?

When you are planning, always think bigger than what you would normally forsee in usage. It is always easier to use a big compressor for tiny jobs than to use a tiny compressor for big jobs.

If you are going to want to go mobile, then you would want a compressor with a generator to run it, or you might consider a CO2 tank for the mobile work, and possibly for the home/shop too. They don't require electricity, no noise, no maintainance (other than refilling it occasionally), and extremely flexable in usages. You may find that a combination of CO2 and a compressor is what will work best for you.

The more info you can supply, the easier it is to help you.