Newbie looking for advice

[radams2525]

First off, let me appologize cause I know this gets asked a million times. I'm very new to airbrushing and will be working with small scale models for 40k. We're talking miniatures and small scale vehicles. I want to be able to base coat large numbers of models or vehicles, do some detail work like camo patterns and/or small mural type stuff on the vehicles. I will be using acrylic paints as I'm most familiar with using those.

After doing a ton of reading, I want to get an Iwata Eclipse HP-CS or an Iwata HP-C Plus airbrush. However, I read posts from modellers that use both of these airbrushes for that purpose but all of the official tables and whatnot don't include these airbrushes as suitable for modelling. Why is that? Should I ignore that and just go with the experience of others? Are my choices bad?

Also, I'm going to want to get a compressor. But none of the compressors on the review page of this site got rated very well by reviewers. I'm considering this one here because it's cheap and seems adequate, but there's not enough information on airflow. Any advice on this? I want to use it in my home, will only be using one airbrush at a time, so hopefully something that isn't too loud.

Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices

Am also looking at this one here, from Airbrushdepot, the TC-20T:
http://www.tcpglobl.com/airbrushdpot/abdkit40.aspx

Thanks gang for your time,

Rick

[redneck]

Rick , welcome to the forum, I not able to tell you anything about the airbrushes , the harvest freight compressor may be a high noise but it will work for a while if you do not tax it too badly

[fontgeek]

Your choice of compressor should be based upon what your needs are, not just the price.
Getting a little compressor because you can "get a deal" on it only helps if the compressor will fill your needs. And those needs are based upon the pressure, volume, and work time you look at putting in.

You may want to consider starting out with a CO2 tank to do your painting, that way you can see what your actual needs are for pressure, volume, etc., without having to lay out big dollars for something that may or may not work for you. You can lease the bottles from welding supply and gas supply companies.

For the brushes, What kind of scale are you talking about HO, N, etc.?
For doing the base coats enmasse, you might want to consider a mini-hvlp spraygun. For the finer detail, an airbrush with the 0.3mm nozzle and needle will let you spray some pretty heavy material, and still let you get some decent detail too. However, looking at the kind of work you are considering, I would look at a side mounted cup rather than a top mounted gravity feed like the C+, the side cup models let you spray straigh down or straight up without any problems, for standard top mounted gravity feed, or siphon feed brushes, these kinds of extremes present problems. The other nice thing about the side mounted cups are that, like the siphon feed brushes, they allow you to use larger size paint cups or reservoirs without blocking your view of your work.
Do lots of looking before you do any buying, don't get yourself sold on a brand just because that's what "everybody" uses. If you are looking at doing large numbers of pieces, then you will probably find yourself with a brush loaded for each color you use.
I would also do a bit of experimenting with the type and brand of paint you use. I love acrylics, but they aren't the answer to everything, and plastic models can present quite a challenge. To get the paint to where it will stick, you have to spray it fairly heavy, but when you go heavy with it, you can lose a lot of detail.
Good luck!

[lsabourin]

Rick, I've been modelling for years with only an HP-CS. Works fine for every scale. If you can spend a bit more $ I would go for the HP-C + cause it's 0.3mm instead of 0.35mm. it also has the option of taking a 0.2mm needle and nozzle.

L