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Airbrushing=Painful & tired fingers


AdriaN (MLT)

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Does anyone struggle with tired aching fingers when airbrushing for a long period?
Or do you get pain in the points which were pressing against the airbrush? like the front of your finger or thumb. Recently after spraying sessions, i get a tingling sensation in my thumb, because the bone joint is always pressing against the airbrush. and it lasts a few hours. I am left handed and i use a bottom feed airbrush.

Edited by AdriaN (MLT)
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Hi,  It sounds like you need to look for a different airbrush.

 

The sparmax Gp-35 is a  gravity fed trigger airbrush and is very comfortable to hold ( I am also left handed).  Will do area coverage down for about 2mm lines.

 

Sparmax GP-35  

 

Price is £90

 

Paul

Edited by little-cars
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13 hours ago, little-cars said:

Hi,  It sounds like you need to look for a different airbrush.

 

The sparmax Gp-35 is a  gravity fed trigger airbrush and is very comfortable to hold ( I am also left handed).  Will do area coverage down for about 2mm lines.

 

Sparmax GP-35  

 

Price is £90

 

Paul

Looks very comfy!
I always thought that these are for large area spraying, not 'scale' modeling.
The thing that puts me off on the Sparmax is... the cup is on the SIDE and has to screw in and out. I once had an airbrush like that. Paint would leak out of the thread area and if I screwed it on tightly.. it would settle in a lying down position. If I loosened it then paint would trickle out of the thread.

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Perhaps your just gripping the airbrush too hard, when I first started this was happening to me, you grip the thing so firm and press down on the air/paint trigger so hard after a while your hand locks.

I now  try to just let the brush sit in my hand and gently press down on the trigger.

Mines a gravity feed, I notice you said bottom feed, whats the size of the cup and how heavy is the airbrush, I never got on with the bottom feed airbrushes (Badger type)as the weight with the paint jar fixed underneath always felt bulky to me

I have trigger and push control double action airbrushes, I find the push ones better for fine detail painting camo etc and the trigger ones for general coverage myself

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6 hours ago, colin said:

Perhaps your just gripping the airbrush too hard, when I first started this was happening to me, you grip the thing so firm and press down on the air/paint trigger so hard after a while your hand locks.

I now  try to just let the brush sit in my hand and gently press down on the trigger.

Mines a gravity feed, I notice you said bottom feed, whats the size of the cup and how heavy is the airbrush, I never got on with the bottom feed airbrushes (Badger type)as the weight with the paint jar fixed underneath always felt bulky to me

I have trigger and push control double action airbrushes, I find the push ones better for fine detail painting camo etc and the trigger ones for general coverage myself

I have the Badger 'imitation airbrush'... the Fengda BD-128. I use the metal cup. I think its 5cc.
Ive never had problems with bottom feed. But it think the fact that the cup comes under the airbrush, right where you hold it from.. is a big problem!
In fact i'm waiting for my gravity feed airbrush from china (hope it arrives, one day!!)
Yes i think i do hold it a bit too tight, especially when i press the trigger and move it back and forward! Its a bit like when you write too long essays.. the part of the pen that touches your fingers really begin to hurt.

Edited by AdriaN (MLT)
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On 10/2/2018 at 12:21 PM, AdriaN (MLT) said:

Looks very comfy!
I always thought that these are for large area spraying, not 'scale' modeling.
The thing that puts me off on the Sparmax is... the cup is on the SIDE and has to screw in and out. I once had an airbrush like that. Paint would leak out of the thread area and if I screwed it on tightly.. it would settle in a lying down position. If I loosened it then paint would trickle out of the thread.

Not had that problem with the connection, the O ring seals the cup to the brush body with the GP-35 brush. 

 

What make was the brush  you had the problem with ?  If it was a cheap chinese one, then  I wouldn't be surprised if it leaked.

 

Paul

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On 10/2/2018 at 12:21 PM, AdriaN (MLT) said:

Looks very comfy!
I always thought that these are for large area spraying, not 'scale' modeling.
The thing that puts me off on the Sparmax is... the cup is on the SIDE and has to screw in and out. I once had an airbrush like that. Paint would leak out of the thread area and if I screwed it on tightly.. it would settle in a lying down position. If I loosened it then paint would trickle out of the thread.

Not had that problem with the GP-35.  There is an O ring that stops any paint leaking out.

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On ‎10‎/‎3‎/‎2018 at 1:41 PM, little-cars said:

Not had that problem with the connection, the O ring seals the cup to the brush body with the GP-35 brush. 

 

What make was the brush  you had the problem with ?  If it was a cheap chinese one, then  I wouldn't be surprised if it leaked.

 

Paul

I had a cheap-o... BD132-something! Stopped working because I dropped it & bent needle. 😁

 

On ‎10‎/‎6‎/‎2018 at 11:09 PM, little-cars said:

Not had that problem with the GP-35.  There is an O ring that stops any paint leaking out.

I guess you are right about it being a cheap one. Even so, when you unscrew the side cup, paint does leak out of both airbrush and cup.
Currently using a gravity feed, where the cup is part of the airbrush, non removable... and im loving it. so easy to clean!!

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On 10/2/2018 at 6:21 AM, AdriaN (MLT) said:

Paint would leak out of the thread area and if I screwed it on tightly.. it would settle in a lying down position. If I loosened it then paint would trickle out of the thread.

You could always use teflon thread tape ? Its about $1 for several yards on a spool here in the states. Available at any hardware/home improvement center.

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 10/2/2018 at 3:54 PM, AdriaN (MLT) said:

I have the Badger 'imitation airbrush'... the Fengda BD-128. I use the metal cup. I think its 5cc.
Ive never had problems with bottom feed. But it think the fact that the cup comes under the airbrush, right where you hold it from.. is a big problem!
In fact i'm waiting for my gravity feed airbrush from china (hope it arrives, one day!!)
Yes i think i do hold it a bit too tight, especially when i press the trigger and move it back and forward! Its a bit like when you write too long essays.. the part of the pen that touches your fingers really begin to hurt.

That brush is especially bad for finger fatigue. I think its the dainty, sloppy trigger and the I'll fitting cup that forces an odd position.

Also on your new one get a pen with a rubber grip to scavenge and force it onto the handle.

It will be softer and help you relax your grip.

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Whatever the make/model/style of airbrush, the problem of aching fingers/wrist/joints is not often the fault of the airbrush, but the user. It's like with any operation which requires prolonged 'finger and wrist-control', such as touch-typing and playing drums. The secret is to completely relax, and that means relaxing your entire arm from shoulder to fingertips.

 

First, make sure you are sitting correctly, with your back supported, and your table at a comfortable height and closeness - that being where you can rest your elbow on the table without having to lean forward. Leaning forward puts strain on your back and causes the shoulders and thus your arm to tighten. Seated correctly then, you can allow your lower arm and wrist to 'sway' freely from side to side while your elbow remains planted. But don't forget, it is not necessary to move your airbrush through great arcs, dipping it down, raising it up, twisting it, or angling it. You should be keeping all of your movements to a minimum, and rather hold your model in your other hand and turn IT to whichever position is required for spraying. By keeping your 'spraying arm' movements to a minimum helps with the relaxed hold on the airbrush, reduces 'fatigue' and the temptation to press increasingly harder on the 'trigger'. Of course, sometimes one may wish to do some extremely accurate, detailed, airbrushing, or an all over quick spray, and a turntable can replace the model-holding hand. But again, the spraying arm should remain supported by the elbow.

 

Hope that helps,

Badder

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My hands get easily fatigued, but for the most part I don't feel too much pain due to the pain killers I'm taking all the time, although I often get cramp in my "holding" hand as I'm going along.  The best thing you can do is break up one session into multiple shorter sessions, breaking your model down into areas such as wings, fuselage, empennage etc. That's what I do, and take little breaks at a convenient point to recover your composure and readjust your posture.  I tend to hunch up when I'm airbrushing, and if I forget myself it can be painful "unlocking" your body from that position, so get plenty of rest in-between times.

 

Also, you might want to consider a trigger airbrush, and my favourite brand this last few years has been Gunze/Mr Hobby.  They do two types, one with a 0.5mm needle, which is probably what you expected them to be like, and there's also a 0.3mm needle version, the PS-290, which you can find here.  They're awesome brushes, and I've not yet had to replace anything on mine (a PS-270 non-trigger variant), even though I've had it a couple of years now.  Can't recommend them highly enough from personal experience, and I was pleasantly surprised how easily a trigger brush fell to hand :yes:

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13 hours ago, Mike said:

My hands get easily fatigued, but for the most part I don't feel too much pain due to the pain killers I'm taking all the time, although I often get cramp in my "holding" hand as I'm going along.  The best thing you can do is break up one session into multiple shorter sessions, breaking your model down into areas such as wings, fuselage, empennage etc. That's what I do, and take little breaks at a convenient point to recover your composure and readjust your posture.  I tend to hunch up when I'm airbrushing, and if I forget myself it can be painful "unlocking" your body from that position, so get plenty of rest in-between times.

 

Also, you might want to consider a trigger airbrush, and my favourite brand this last few years has been Gunze/Mr Hobby.  They do two types, one with a 0.5mm needle, which is probably what you expected them to be like, and there's also a 0.3mm needle version, the PS-290, which you can find here.  They're awesome brushes, and I've not yet had to replace anything on mine (a PS-270 non-trigger variant), even though I've had it a couple of years now.  Can't recommend them highly enough from personal experience, and I was pleasantly surprised how easily a trigger brush fell to hand :yes:

Not a better value on the planet than these, bar none. Essentially the entire lineup you can pick a brush, double it's price and it will easily compete with brushes in that price range.

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A vote for the Sparmax GP-35 from me. I bought one from Paul a while ago and have been using it for the past 18 months. I find it exceptionally comfortable to hold and use. Adjusts down to spray a nice fine line too. In the past I've always owned airbrushes with the trigger on the top and the old fingers did get a bit achey at times but I'm converted to the trigger type now. Not had any problems at all with the side mounted cup slipping, it screws up nicely against a rubber seal. Another advantage of the trigger and side mounted cup is that you actually have a better view of what you are spraying. For the price too, I think it is great value.

 

Gary 

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On ‎10‎/‎20‎/‎2018 at 1:34 AM, Robbyrockett said:

That brush is especially bad for finger fatigue. I think its the dainty, sloppy trigger and the I'll fitting cup that forces an odd position.

Also on your new one get a pen with a rubber grip to scavenge and force it onto the handle.

It will be softer and help you relax your grip.

The colour cup WAS the problem. It was placed right under the airbrush, right where your last 2 fingers wrap around to hold the airbrush steadily. The trigger on this airbrush was a rather long one, which is why my left index finger used to hurt.
I am now using a gravity feed and it is MUCH more comfortable!
What really hurt were the bony parts on my fingers which were in constant contact with the airbrush. Same with writing though! the pressure of the pen on your fingers. You get these red, slightly flattened marks.
Great tip re-rubber grip! 😉

Edited by AdriaN (MLT)
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