Iwata airbrush question

[Monty Python]

After a good few years of using a Harder and Steenbeck Infinity CR Plus I'm toying with the idea of trying an Iwata but which one? Looking at either the High Performance C Plus or the High Line HP CH airbrush. Any  advice would be most welcome.

 

TIA

[MODeller]

I have been using a HP-C plus for over 12 years now and can thoroughly recommend one it is a superb piece of kit which replaced my H&S Evolution. I like the idea of only having one seal (needle) to worry about and the steel nozzles are far more robust. Downside you need to buy the overpriced Maintenance kit to get the soft nose pliers and needle seal adjustment tool.

Recently I convinced myself I needed a HP-B plus for the really fine detail work but that has proved a luxury rarely seeing the light of day!

[Tbolt]

12 hours ago, Monty Python said:

After a good few years of using a Harder and Steenbeck Infinity CR Plus I'm toying with the idea of trying an Iwata but which one? Looking at either the High Performance C Plus or the High Line HP CH airbrush. Any  advice would be most welcome.

 

TIA

 

I've got a HP-B and it's a lovely brush. It depends on how much you need a MAC valve on the brush and whether you think it's worth the extra for it. 

 

I would look at the Mr Hobby brushes though as I believe they are made in the same factory ( I bought their crown cap for one of my Iwata's because they are identical parts ) but they are cheaper. The PS270 I believe is the equivalent of the HP-CH though it doesn't have the cutaway handle, which you could add separately if required.

 

Personally though my favourite brush is probably the HP-CS as I use one with the 0.5 nozzle and one with a 0.35 nozzle in. The CS does most of what I need and due to the design is quicker to strip and clean. I only switch to the HP-B for the finest work. But if you do need finer than 0.35 ( which will do incredibly fine work despite a lot of people seeming to think they need a finer nozzle ) then you need to at least step up to the HP-C.

 

[Tbolt]

21 minutes ago, MODeller said:

I have been using a HP-C plus for over 12 years now and can thoroughly recommend one it is a superb piece of kit which replaced my H&S Evolution. I like the idea of only having one seal (needle) to worry about and the steel nozzles are far more robust. Downside you need to buy the overpriced Maintenance kit to get the soft nose pliers and needle seal adjustment tool.

Recently I convinced myself I needed a HP-B plus for the really fine detail work but that has proved a luxury rarely seeing the light of day!

 

I just bought the nozzle wrench separately, I felt no need to have the other overpriced tools.

[Duncan B]

I have 3 Iwatas: Micron +, HP-CH and Eclipse. They are all great airbrushes and the HP gets used 90% of the time however I recently bought a Mr Hobby PS-270 0.2mm and have to say that it is very similar quality to the HP and half the price, definitely with a look.

 

Duncan B

[Tbolt]

17 minutes ago, Duncan B said:

I have 3 Iwatas: Micron +, HP-CH and Eclipse. They are all great airbrushes and the HP gets used 90% of the time however I recently bought a Mr Hobby PS-270 0.2mm and have to say that it is very similar quality to the HP and half the price, definitely with a look.

 

Duncan B

 

Just edited my post before you posted this to mention the 270. I believe they are made in the same factory as the Iwata's and have a many interchangeable parts.

 

I was looking at getting a Mr Hobby brush, but ended up getting a couple of Gaahaleri brushes because they spray really great and my latest one cost me £28, so I can't really justify buying anymore brushes at the moment. But just incase can you confirm the cutaway handle of the Iwata's fits fine on the 270? 😂

[Chuck1945]

I went the other way, got a HP-C in the late 90s and replaced it with a H&S Evolution and later added the Infinity to my collection. I really dislike the Iwata design with the itty bitty nozzle that requires a special tool to remove.

[Corsairfoxfouruncle]

Depends on your exact needs. I have 3 Iwata’s in various needle sizes for different needs. My go to is the HP-B+ at .20 which allows me to do some fine detail work but isn't good with acrylics like Vallejo and Ammo. My favorite is my Neo with a .35 which eats all paints and just laughs but isn't the best for fine detail. The list is my HP-BCS at .50 needle and 50ml jar. This is good for really large areas or say custom graphics work on a real car, motorcycle, or say helmet ? 

[PattheCat]

Hi @Monty Python. Never had an Iwata in my hands. But when I replaced my Badger, my thoughts were "no more hassle, so must be very easy to clean, interchangeable needles/nozzles and cups, no tiny nozzle and no wrench". The logical answer for me was H&S, also because a Silverline Two in one was relatively cheap for the content (bought a second one some years ago). Heard so many good things about Iwatas, same interest as you. For a higher end (airbrush I'd probably hesitate between an Infinity and an Iwata Hi-Line HP-CH if I had the money ... and the necessary skill. So I'd say it depends on each one's needs and priorities. So, for me, this year it was H&S again with an Ultra 2024. Would you believe I like it so much that I don't use the Silverline anymore?

[Steve McArthur]

I have over a dozen airbrushes mostly bought for cheap off e-bay. I've got a set of the older non-Plus HPs (A, B, C & SB) along with an HP-AH with the built in MAC valve. I don't really find myself using the HP-AH MAC valve that much. You can just buy an inline MAC valve for use with any airbrush if you want to try it out with brushes you already have.

 

For those recommending the PS-270 it's a 0.2mm brush where the HP-C & CH are 0.3mm. The PS-289 is the HP-CH equivalent at 0.3mm with a MAC valve and I think the PS-274 is the 0.3mm HP-C+ equivalent without a MAC valve. The 0.3mm brushes are considered a more general purpose brush. I end up using my 0.2mm brushes more often. I can't even remember the last time I used my HP-C.

 

If you really want to fall down a rabbit hole check out DaveG on Facebook. He knows more about airbrushes than just about anyone I know. @Tbolt if you message him on Facebook he can probably tell you which if any Iwata handle fits a GSI Creos brush. Iwata has handles for at least 2 different body diameters and a couple different thread pitches. He's probably got all the brushes needed in his shop to figure out if any fit. I've used info from his Facebook page to modify my go to 40 year old HP-B with a Micron like handle from a Chinese knock off, Micron trigger, softer springs and chemically resistant needle packing O-rings.

 

My modified HP-B & C

[Duncan B]

23 hours ago, Tbolt said:

 

Just edited my post before you posted this to mention the 270. I believe they are made in the same factory as the Iwata's and have a many interchangeable parts.

 

I was looking at getting a Mr Hobby brush, but ended up getting a couple of Gaahaleri brushes because they spray really great and my latest one cost me £28, so I can't really justify buying anymore brushes at the moment. But just incase can you confirm the cutaway handle of the Iwata's fits fine on the 270? 😂

Yes, the cutaway handle screws onto the PS-270. I do it every time I use it so should really just buy another Iwata handle to fit permanently to the PS. The internals of the PS do look like they would swap straight onto the HP-CH, I'll give it a try next time I have them both striped for cleaning.

 

@Steve McArthur I was aware that the HP-CH is 0.3mm and the PS-270 0.2mm as I have both however in real terms I find that I can used the PS to do everything that the HP-CH does so it is a viable replacement option for a HP-CH (and that is exactly what I did).

 

Duncan B

[Tbolt]

14 minutes ago, Duncan B said:

Yes, the cutaway handle screws onto the PS-270. I do it every time I use it so should really just buy another Iwata handle to fit permanently to the PS. The internals of the PS do look like they would swap straight onto the HP-CH, I'll give it a try next time I have them both striped for cleaning.

 

@Steve McArthur I was aware that the HP-CH is 0.3mm and the PS-270 0.2mm as I have both however in real terms I find that I can used the PS to do everything that the HP-CH does so it is a viable replacement option for a HP-CH (and that is exactly what I did).

 

Duncan B

 

Thanks. When I looked at all the PS spares available they do seem identical to the Iwata ones, but of course they are half the price.

[JamesP]

Don't get obsessed with needle sizes, for over 10 years I've had an Iwata Revolution B  0.5mm and sprays like others 0.3mm. I also have an HP-C, it's nice but I use it less than 5% of the time.

 

The only downside to Iwata's is the tiny nozzles you must be very careful with. I've been lucky and never needed to replace it.

[Steve McArthur]

7 hours ago, Duncan B said:

I was aware that the HP-CH is 0.3mm and the PS-270 0.2mm as I have both however in real terms I find that I can used the PS to do everything that the HP-CH does so it is a viable replacement option for a HP-CH (and that is exactly what I did).

Duncan,

I was only pointing out the 0.2 vs 0.3 difference since the OP specifically asked about a 0.3mm brush and pointed out the GSI Creos models that matched up to his request. Personally I use 0.2mm brushes more than anything else, but it's not necessarily for everyone. Hang out on Reddit's airbrush group r/airbrush and you can see how much grief people have with small nozzles and coarser pigment paint (mainly water thinned acrylics). I don't really recommend going smaller than 0.3mm unless you know how to make your choice of paint work with it.

[Duncan B]

23 hours ago, Tbolt said:

 

Thanks. When I looked at all the PS spares available they do seem identical to the Iwata ones, but of course they are half the price.

 

When I bought my Iwata HP-CH it was roughly the price that the PS-270 is now. When I recently went looking to buy a new Iwata HP I was stunned at the price increase (right across the range) so it was a no brainer to go for the PS and the 0.2mm option suited me as I only use alcohol/solvent based paints.

 

 

14 hours ago, Steve McArthur said:

Duncan,

I was only pointing out the 0.2 vs 0.3 difference since the OP specifically asked about a 0.3mm brush and pointed out the GSI Creos models that matched up to his request. Personally I use 0.2mm brushes more than anything else, but it's not necessarily for everyone. Hang out on Reddit's airbrush group r/airbrush and you can see how much grief people have with small nozzles and coarser pigment paint (mainly water thinned acrylics). I don't really recommend going smaller than 0.3mm unless you know how to make your choice of paint work with it.

 

I 100% agree with you on that Steve. I should really have clarified my original choice of the 0.2mm PS-270 was based on me never using water based acrylics like Vallejo etc, which are better suited to 0.3mm and larger, in which case your recommendation for the 0.3mm PS-289 would be more sensible.

 

Duncan B

[tank152]

If you're still pondering whether to go for the Hi Line  HP-CH and you certainly won't be disappointed if you do. Scale Model Shed have one at a good price in their closing down sale.

https://scalemodelshed.co.uk/product/iwata-hi-line-hp-ch-airbrush/

[PatG]

I've had the Eclipse HP-CS with the .35mm nozzle and it works superbly so can whole heartedly recommend it.

 

Handles fine lines and wider jobs with ease and so easy to maintain as well, but if you want a broader spray pattern it also has the .5mm nozzle as an optional extra as well.

 

Not sure how it compares with other Iwata brushes or with those from other brands but I've had no reason to look elsewhere so far after 3 years of satisfied use.

 

HTH.

 

Pat.