All of what you say is true, Douglas, and contributes to the success of the paint project. The primary benefit of the regulator is that it provides a steady flow of constant air pressure.
Rich
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Not sure if it helps, but my AS-186 compressor from Amazon (looks mostly the same as the Vevor one) came with only one pressure gauge, on the side of the regulator. There is no gauge for tank pressure. There is a safety valve as well, also on the Vevor model.
I own a Vevor spray booth and am very happy with it. Quiet and easily sucks fumes away through a duct included with the booth, and a narrow outlet piece designed to fit in sliding windows so the outlet it only 1-2" thick (so you can keep the window mostly closed).
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It’s a circular ring with female threads, which screw onto the threads from the top (above the sheet metal piece). The ring holds the filter/regulator up onto the thin metal horizontal piece.
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If you want the short 1 line story, this is not for you 
I am saving you a ton of money, because good airbrushes are expensive, and a quiet compressor, that does not force you to wear hearing protection, is even more expensive. With the LOUD stuff, you will spend around USD 300 just for a good basic airbrush kit. I did, and never used it again. That was about 25 years ago, when I had a wee extra money. Now, I am disabled and tight all around!
I spent over a year (2023/24) experimenting with model paint jobs. The result was old tossers I threw away, because the motors quit, or the chassis were too bent to work. Paint jobs came out good or rotten.
The final suggested kit contains exactly 4 things. Well, maybe 5, but I have not tried #5 yet. List is below!
First of all, the best airbrush kit has NO airbrush at all, because there is one type of paint you can actually brush on with fine brushes, and it dries WITHOUT brush streaks! It is formulated to shrink, stretching the surface straight and flat, and it really works! After it dries for a day or two, you can also alter the appearance by carefully and very lightly rubbing it with DRY fingers (degrease them!), giving a smooth and polished look. You can of course always add a clear coat as well, which will harden and protect the paint.
Best part is, there is zero waste, unlike with airbrushes, where most of the paint floats off in vapours. The 17ml (0.57 Oz) bottles look small, but are much bigger than the old Revell and Testors bottles, and much cheaper per volume! They thin with water and/or alcohol. You gotta love ethanol thinner! SKOL! Do NOT buy the “denatured” stuff, it really is no longer ethanol at all, because straight ethanol is C2H5OH, the stuff we drink! A 40% solution with water is available in supermarkets and goes by different brand names. I always buy the cheapest store brand, as by legal definition, vodka is pure alcohol with water, so any “special luxury” thingy is a rip-off!
Why no airbrush? MESSY! OK, I use one particular spray-paint for priming, but that is just a quick “pfft” outside, and itis done. No artwork using spray-paint or airbrushes!
Over 20 years ago I bought a couple of Badger airbrushes of the type that SciFi illustrator legend Jim Burns used. HE has not (or maybe just rarely) used air brushes in over 20 years himself, because he knows how messy they are, as he stated in interviews and at a chat at Norwescon many years ago. As an artist, he is hooked on digital, without any chemicals or paint or paper.
Anyway, so I used my airbrush kit on the kitchen/dinner table in my apartment for some fantasy-art. By the time the 50x80cm or so (20x30in) was done, the white cabinets in the kitchen were greenish brown, because the vapours had settled everywhere!
NOPE, did not do any airbrushing after that!
The ONLY spraying I do is with “Seymour Paint 11-10 Fresh-N-Quick Multi-Purpose Spray Enamel Flat Black” (from Amazon) outside on the balcony, when it is pleasantly warm, and I use a spray can for the base coat. A quick “pfft” from the top left and top right side of the model, done! A can last a long time and is dirt cheap compared to other base coats. SMOOTH, satin finish. DO NOT USE RUST OLEUM!!! It ruins plastic, tosses little tiny blistery bubbles, a second layer peels off the first, just lousy!
PRACTICE this on some disposable plastic stuff, like old flatware or something first!
You can also use one of the parts of the second item on the list, the black brush paint in the box, but if you have many bodies to cover, I prefer to save these paints for the actual scheme!
THE LIST, aside from paint brushes, which you can get everywhere any school supplies are sold:
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Spray paint for priming. Plastic friendly, comes off in alcohol bath. Beautiful satin finish, so also good for straight steam engine paint or Penn Central jobs. Amazon sells it, but you can get it at other places too:
“Seymour Paint 11-10 Fresh-N-Quick Multi-Purpose Spray Enamel Flat Black”
I am VERY sensitive to chemicals, and HATE oil based paints, and most paints give me headaches. This does NOT give me headaches! LOVE IT! Spray your body outside, bring it inside for drying in warm air with no problems. -
Vallejo - Basic Colors USA Acrylic Paint Set | Model Color | Figure Color Series Historical Miniature Kit to Achieve Historical Accuracy with Artist-Grade Pigments | 16 Bottles x 18 ml (0.60 fl.oz.)
This stuff is awesome, brushes on and dries without any brush marks! The kit has everything you need to mix any colour! I did a “simplified Empire Builder” scheme and was able to match two E7 bodies to my old Con-Cor Great Northern Empire Builder cars. I always thought they looked a wee faded when they were new almost 40 years ago, but my recent Kato F7 ABA set purchase really confirmed that. Anyway, the E7 AA set I painted matches them well!
YEAH! Finally a match, after figuring out that GN never had any Alco PAs, which of course Con-Cor sold for the EB. GGRRRR!!! -
Alcohol for thinning in addition to water. Using alcohol (either propanol or ethanol) accelerates drying, as it evaporates faster than water! The mix also gets smoother easy with less stirring. Thinning the paint allows for thinner coats. These little bottles really go a long way.
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Mod Podge matte clear acrylic sealer - for the top coat, to seal and protect your scheme that took so long to create! Available in many craft stores, big box retailers, and online at many places. It is specified as matte, but comes out shiny enough for a freshly washed, clean locomotive or car, without being too shiny as to be unrealistic! Stuff is cheap and non-toxic, no headaches for me, being chemical sensitive! I do all my spraying outside of course!
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If you really are on a tight budget and have no money to waste, skip this! As with all things, the wonderful Vallejo, raved about and well loved, Spanish made original formula brush-paint has an imitator, that others have used and write positive about. The “knock-off” paint is by recipe thief mafioso in the USA: Micro-Mark Basic Color Model Paint Set
It was a bit over half the price of the Vallejo paint, so being old and without funds, I bought a set as a silly bet with a bit extra from an unexpected low electric bill, but I have not tried it yet.
If you look around on line you’ll find several compressors that are practically exact versions of the Vevor, just labeled with a different name.
Poke around and you’ll probably find one with all the attachments being discussed here included.
Regards, Chris
I have used a Paasche airbrush and I have to use common house paint thinned with rubbing alcohol and I have pretty good results with it (since I have no hobby paint)
It is surprising to me that not all air compressors include an air pressure regulator.
Rich
Me, too!
When I bought it, it looked like it had a filter and regulator and gauge on it, but were just mounted in a weird position on the back of the tank.
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