paulcbuk

Just thought I'd chip in here with my first post. I'm going to against the grain and say that I'm quite happy airbrushing Humbrol acrylics, after a lot of trial and error, mainly error. The main reason for perseverance was that I can pop into my local toy shop and buy the paints. I mainly use a Badger 150 with a medium needle. So, maybe a few hints may help! The paint is first stirred with a bit of bent wire in a minidrill, and when you think it's stirred enough, stir it a bit more. The paint mix needs to be much thicker than you would normally expect. Humbrol's guide isn't too far off, and I thin somewhere between 1.5 - 2 parts paint to 1 part UMP thinner, depending on the exact pot of paint. This is somewhat thicker than the proverbial skimmed milk - maybe nearer single cream? It still drips off the stirrer though. If it's too thin the finish is awful - other brands seem much more tolerant. Next, the pressure needs to be higher than usual. I'm very used to spraying at around 10-15psi, but for this mix something between 22-25psi is more appropriate which seems really high! I nearly always apply the paint over Alclad primer - if not that then some other primer. The first coat barely covers, but keep gradually building up the coats with a few minutes between each one until you get a lovely finish. I've just airbrushed Humbrol 129 on the undersides of a couple of Mustangs, and the finish is as good as any other paint. I have to say that although I'm now happy with Humbrol acrylics, Tamiya, Gunze Sangyo and AKAN aren't as much hassle to use and because they work at lower pressures those are more suited if you need fine, delicate control. Just to show some proof, the seventh photo in this link shows the two Mustangs airbrushed this evening. There's nothing wrong with that finish, is there? I hope this helps someone. Cheers Paul