We all see this question in the forums and Facebook groups... "What kind of airbrush should I buy?" Well let's just answer that question quickly. You should buy a gravity feed, internal mix, dual action airbrush. If you are keeping your colors separated, one bottle one color then choose a siphon feed instead of gravity feed. That's pretty much it. Now if you would like to find out more then click the read more link.
Types of Feeds
First we will talk about how the paint is fed into the airbrush... there are three ways gravity feed, siphon feed, and side feed.
Gravity feed uses gravity to pull the paint down to the spray tip. The paint is readily available to be sprayed. These type of airbrushes can function on just a few drops of paint. Because of this type of feed, you can use less air pressure to atomize the paint. Less pressure also means you have the ability to spray finer details.
First we will talk about how the paint is fed into the airbrush... there are three ways gravity feed, siphon feed, and side feed.
Gravity feed uses gravity to pull the paint down to the spray tip. The paint is readily available to be sprayed. These type of airbrushes can function on just a few drops of paint. Because of this type of feed, you can use less air pressure to atomize the paint. Less pressure also means you have the ability to spray finer details.
Siphon feed generates low pressure at the spray tip causing the paint to be pulled up through a stem to get atomized. This type of airbrush does require a little more air pressure to operate but has the ability to hold considerable more paint depending on the size bottle that is attached.
The side feed airbrush is a cross between the gravity and siphon feed airbrushes. If the paint level is above the spray tip it is a gravity feed if the paint level is below the spray tip it is a siphon feed airbrush.
Internal External Mix
Second let's talk about the difference between internal and external mix. This refers to the way the paint mixes with the air to become atomized.
With an internal mix brush, the paint gets mixed into the center of the air stream. This provides a finer more symmetrical spray pattern which is excellent for details.
With an external mix, the paint gets mixed into the air stream from the side thus producing a squished "0" or "D" shaped spray pattern which is a little less consistent and more grainy. If your wanting to just cover a small area and not concerned with details this might be your choice. Given the scale we are working with, this is not really a good option.
Second let's talk about the difference between internal and external mix. This refers to the way the paint mixes with the air to become atomized.
With an internal mix brush, the paint gets mixed into the center of the air stream. This provides a finer more symmetrical spray pattern which is excellent for details.
With an external mix, the paint gets mixed into the air stream from the side thus producing a squished "0" or "D" shaped spray pattern which is a little less consistent and more grainy. If your wanting to just cover a small area and not concerned with details this might be your choice. Given the scale we are working with, this is not really a good option.
Action
Next let's talk about "Action". Airbrushes come in two types double and single action. This refers to how you actually use and manipulate the spray button on the airbrush.
With a double action you have to press down on the button for air and pull back on the same button for paint. The further you pull back the more volume of paint is going through the airbrush. This allows you to quickly adjust of the fly. It's sort of like rubbing your stomach and patting your head at the same time. It's challenging at first but with a little practice it becomes second nature.
Next let's talk about "Action". Airbrushes come in two types double and single action. This refers to how you actually use and manipulate the spray button on the airbrush.
With a double action you have to press down on the button for air and pull back on the same button for paint. The further you pull back the more volume of paint is going through the airbrush. This allows you to quickly adjust of the fly. It's sort of like rubbing your stomach and patting your head at the same time. It's challenging at first but with a little practice it becomes second nature.
With a single action you have to press down for air which starts the paint flow automatically. Usually there is a knob to adjust the paint volume or flow.
This is by no means an all inclusive article. This is just the beginning there is so much information on the webbernet so go take a look... make your decision and then practice, practice, practice!!!
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