# Painting with an air brush questions



## New Berlin RR (Feb 11, 2012)

ok im going to proceed with my other little project of removing the lettering off a loco, but I have some airbrush questions for those of you who use them, I got a basic air brush that will fit my needs, small and compact, and to just get practice with anyways, however I have mostly enamle based paints so what i want to know is do i need any type of thinner and if so what type/brand should I look for? is there any that would be best for enamle, acrylic, ect, or is it one of those items thats specificially designed for each type of paint? IE if I use enamle and acrylic will I need two types of thinner??)


any ways thanks for the help and all your info so far guys, hope to start contributing to the info pool my self some day!


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## NIMT (Jan 6, 2011)

Being that your new to air brushing I would avoid any enamel paints! They require a greater amount of skill in mixing and applying then acrylic paints.
I pick thinner according to tempature and they type of work. Common thinners are Water, Alcohol, Paint thinner / mineral spirits, Acetone, and lacquer thinner. 
As a safe starter I would stay with Water, Alcohol, Paint thinner / Mineral spirits.
The Acetone and lacquer thinner mixed or applied to heavy can melt some details right off a model.

Thin the paint down to a almost water like flow.


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## New Berlin RR (Feb 11, 2012)

ok cool, I have the enamle paints for now so should I switch to water based paints? as I think the store I went to only has enamle based...


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## aircooled (Jan 28, 2013)

New Berlin RR said:


> ok cool, I have the enamle paints for now so should I switch to water based paints? as I think the store I went to only has enamle based...


YES! I just started airbrushing recently, and found that using water colors (Yes, children's water colors) is:

1: Cheap. I got something like 24 colors for under $5 at Wal-Mart. The same kit @ a craft store was almost $8.
2: Easy to clean-up. 
3: VERY forgiving. If you mess up, rinse it off, start over.
4: Being so cheap, you can practice color mixing to your hearts content.

And example: The first thing I ever attempted to airbrush was a piece of rolling stock. Didn't come out well. 2 minutes, a toothbrush, & some warm water later, I was starting fresh, again.

You can always "graduate" back to _real _paint when you're comfortable.


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## Sawdust (Oct 26, 2010)

Whatever you decide first practice on some cardboard. This will get you use to the spray pattern, air mix, distance, colors & most of all handling the air brush. I agree acrylics work best for starting out...I still use them for a number of reasons.


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## New Berlin RR (Feb 11, 2012)

ok cool, once I get some $$$ im going to grab some water based paints to try with and find some cheap rolling stock to try with...thanks for the tips guys


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## aircooled (Jan 28, 2013)

New Berlin RR said:


> ok cool, once I get some $$$ im going to grab some water based paints to try with and find some cheap rolling stock to try with...thanks for the tips guys


That's why I suggested starting with children's water color.
You can get 16-24 colors for under $5. 2 bottles of acrylic paint will cost that.

You can practice on ANYTHING. Rinse it off, and it's like new. No need to buy "practice" stock. Use what you got & wash it off in plain water.

I'm learning how to "weather", since I'm light years away from affording a layout. I've done a real grungy look, slight grunge, faded lettering, rust spots & streaks, all on the same reefer car, using water colors. If I don't like how it looks, even days later, rinse w/ warm water, and it's new again.

Total investment, including Airbrush, watercolors & brushes, almost $20.
This book is well worth the money. 
Basic Painting & Weathering for Model Railroads by Kalmbach Publishing Co.


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## New Berlin RR (Feb 11, 2012)

cool, thats my plan also, I already have a simple airbrush anyways, its a small thing thats intended for small projects like finger nails and things like that, small arts and crafts projects, so I figure that for now since space is still limited this will do fine for me...


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## Sawdust (Oct 26, 2010)

What brand air brush do you have? I think...I may be wrong & maybe someone else can jump in here but I think all you would have to do is change the jets & the orifice not the whole gun for modeling.


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## New Berlin RR (Feb 11, 2012)

oh, its just a basic cheap one, I forget the brand name of it (I think its a generic one anyways) but I want to say it is "Viair" or something like that...its a compressor and tank built in one, its not a big thing with a 5 gallon tank, its just a small portable thing I got as I figured I won't (and don't) plan to do tone of repaints, just want a small fleet of a few engines....


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## Sawdust (Oct 26, 2010)

That's all you need & by the way if it is a Viair those are not the cheap ones. New they start out around $200.


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## New Berlin RR (Feb 11, 2012)

well this one was for $65 and its a compressor driven one and it is a small package, when I get home I will look on it and see if there is a name of sorts and if needed take a picture of it and post the picture here, I just know it sold for $65 when I got it...it even came with some sort of filter looking thing that some how reduces/captures any water/condensation in the hose before it hits the paint I think....


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