I used to have an airbrush a long time ago, but I got rid of it, and swore I’d never go back to it, cause they take to long to clean.
But, I recently got an Azteck airbrush for Xmas (thank you, dear brother and sister-in-law!!!) and I love it!! It takes all of just 1 minute to clean, and it’s so simple!!![:D][:D]
So now my question is, has anyone tried that compressor that MICRO-MARK sells for $150? How big is it? How quiet? I live in a small apartment.
NOOOOOOO!! It’s a complete piece of crap…I burned up two of them before I got wise. It’s also very noisy, not good for an apartment.
For less money, you can go to Home Depot (or a similar store) and get a good compressor with a reservoir tank and regulator already built-in. I bought a Husky (I’m not at home at the moment, so I can’t tell you the model number off the top of my head) and it’s much quieter - plus the motor only runs long enough to keep the tank up to pressure…most of the time you’ll be running off what’s built up in the tank, and it’s a much smoother air flow than the “puff-puff-puff” of the one MM sells.
I use a regular size compressor a (haus campbell) I believe…anyway it is a big compressor …the only thing i had to do was hook up an airbrush regulator and a dehumidifing filter and it works like a charm…it is noisy though…I usually drag it outside when it runs and run the airhoses into my train room…one of these days i’m going to fit the hoses permanently in the building so i can keep the compressor outside at all times…Chuck[:D]
I agree with GrayLoess, get a compressor with a reservoir tank and a regulator. There are several manufacturers that make decent small units these days designed for hobby uses (like airbrushing). I bought a small Haus Campbell at Walmart for $89 more than a year ago and it works great.
It usually takes a minute or two to fill the tank but then I can do a small building just with the air in the tank. Even if the compressor does kick on, there is never a pulse at the airbrush. I set the compressor under my modeling bench on a piece of carpet and my wife has no complaints. She says its quieter than the vacuum cleaner and only runs for a few minutes at a time.
Steve
I have a compressor,with tank. I’ve had it for 16+years.
It is a little noisy and it works quite well,and is a little bit on the large size.
I’m NOT sure I would recomend it for apartment dwellers[:)]
And your brother and sister-in-law got you a GREAT present,I’ve had my
Paasche H model for over 40 years(still going strong) but have ‘thought’
about replacing it,when I can afford to[:(][:)]
Azteck also has a great compressor with a tank though it costs about $300 I think. But it sure works great, quiet too.
my 2 cents
Hello guys.
You are right, get a real thing for the job. I bought a Devillbiss, is a flap compressor, very noisy but NO OIL. You can go for a simple house freezer compressor, which is very silent ( you don’t here your freezer working), get a gas tank (water pressure tested) an all the gadgets needed (safety relief valve, gauges –two needed- fast connector, regulator, and a pressostat or pressure shutdown valve) and you can build your own. The other way get a pancake compressor which is the same I described, but all ready built. Now I’m building my third custom compressor (the other two gave them away).
Enjoy your hobby.
A full size compresssor is nice, but I use a Badger model 180-1 diaphragm compressor with about 5’ of hose. It is very quiet and I don’t get pulsing as the hose is enough of a resevior to prevent that. Been using it 10 years now w/o any problems. I think this compressor is a better choice for and apartment. Compact and quiet. But but a mositure trap for ANY style you choose or you’ll end up with water in your paint depending on the ambient humidity.
You can use a pulse compressor, just buy a small hydraulic resevoir (empty and clean of course) and let the compressor feed the resevoir. It will take all the pulses out; you can also hook up a cutoff switch and a regulator to it. Put the cutoff swith at the in side and the regulator on the out side. Been using a set up like this for over 15 years without a problem.
Here’s my tip…splurge out on the best regulator you can justify…the quality of airbrushing IMHO depends on the pressure of the delivered air and I have found that a good regulator allows excellent pressure adjustment. The results have amazed me. And cleaning up ? I just have a container of solvent - whatever it is for the paint being sprayed - and I submerge the entire business end of the airbrush in the container and spray away …clean - up is then easy and mess free.
I personally would recomend one of those small one gallon talk compressors you can find at Home Depot, Wal-Mart etc. I have one, don’t know of the brand offhand, that works well. Adjusting the pressure is kind of tricky at first, but is easy to get used too. Its also pretty quiet, not as quiet as the fridge or freezer, but should be fine for your apartment.
I forgot to mention that I use two regulators on my airbrush. I have a regulated line coming from the compressor that I set at 40 psi. Where the air line goes through the wall to my train room I have a regulator with a built in filter bowl with a drain valve on the bottom. I set this one between 10 to 20 psi depending on my requirements (airbru***ype of paint, paint thickness) Besides ths Aztec, I have a Thayer & Chandler double-action artists airbrush. For smaller detail work it does a better job, but I only have a small color cup with no top and it takees a lot longer to clean. The cup holds enough paint for most work butwith no top it can be messy.