Airbrushing

[rokmon]

yes, water based, dude told me to thin with water which would probably screw the paint! but, i am going out to get the windex which is exactly what they told me to cut 50;50 with water and use as a cleaner for the brush! excellent tutorial though! now ask your bro to put one on about the compressor! and hook-ups and settings! lol! no serious!

[MPWR]

When you get the right hoses, setting up the compressor should be easy and straightforward. Connect the compressor to the regulator to the airhose to the airbrush.

Don't try to thin the Auto Air stuff with anything other than the recommended reducer.

And again, I would definately recommend you learn to use the airbrush on a different paint before messing with the chamelion.

[bvia]

Here's the deal. You're using AutoAir colors brand paint (a water based automotive basecoat paint system). The seller is correct in that it is generally NOT thinned and is used directly out of the bottle. Most replies to this thread had assumed that you were using a "normal" type of paint, i.e. acrylic, lacquer or enamel...you're not. The reason the air pressure is higher is to atomize the thicker paint. "We" thin hobby (or reduce "normal" automotive type paints) to help atomize the paint, the AutoAir Colors use air pressure to do it. AutoAir recommends their reducer to thin it with and I'd use that. Paint isn't rocket science, but it is chemical engineering...also Windex has a blue dye that may change the color of the paint.

I'd recommend you follow the manufactuer's directions on how to apply the AutoAir Colors product.

hth,
Bill

[rokmon]

Thank you Bill and yes, I know quite a bit about paint, I used to be a coatings chemist for Pratt&Lambert however, with the airbrsuh, I couldn't immagine it being that much more difficult to apply than a typical sprayer, like my Devilbiss other than pressure and quantity of paint coming from one trigger or button. It all came down to a connection, they sent a compressor with the wrong connector to my airbrush. I'll be painting today as soon as it arrive and give a heads up. Thank you everyone, great responses!

[klutz_100]

I for one am very interested to hear your point of view on the paint itself and your experiences in working with it.

Professional feedback in a modeling context is always vwry valuable IMO.

I'm waiting...

[bvia]

Originally Posted by rokmon

Thank you Bill and yes, I know quite a bit about paint, I used to be a coatings chemist for Pratt&Lambert however, with the airbrsuh, I couldn't immagine it being that much more difficult to apply than a typical sprayer, like my Devilbiss other than pressure and quantity of paint coming from one trigger or button. It all came down to a connection, they sent a compressor with the wrong connector to my airbrush. I'll be painting today as soon as it arrive and give a heads up. Thank you everyone, great responses!

More than welcome. I've used AutoColor before on a model (white and the undercolor "primer")and had no problems. But you do have to make multiple thin coats (15+) to slowly, slowly build up the color coat and you have to clear coat it before applying any decals.
As to your airbrush, you are correct in that it is nothing more complicated a miniature scale Devilbiss in operation.
Glad to hear you were able to get it all figured out...

Bill

[rokmon]

in short, okay long! when the equipment works the rest is technique. received the proper coupling, bolted it up (another story!) the hoses fit this time and i was stoked to try this airbrush out. the black sealer didn't spray well and kept drying on the needle tip, so, without too much thought, i thinned it with water, 3:1 paint to water. sprayed again, absolutely gorgeous! smooth, flawless! when i finished that 1/2 ounce of paint, i decided to try it again, just paint, increasing the pressure to 45 PSI, worked much better but still kept clogging the needle. had to remove the needle cover and pull this small black wad of dried paint off. so, dropped the pressure, added 1/4 water and went at it. applied 26 coats but honestly and having never used an airbrush before, it went on beautifully, smooth, no orange peal AND dried in a snap! next was the shift color, red to bronze to green. was a little concerned based on a comment here not to mess with it until i gained more experience... well, already spent the money so, tossed that idea and thinned it with water, AGAIN, 1:5 paint. went on like butter! took me 15 coats to cover perfectly but i plopped 13 more coats on for good measure! my gawd! it is wickedly sick! the color was hopping all over the place even though it was flat as a primer. did the same thing on the bottom of the car and it is truly amazing! the airbrsuh, although requiring multiple coats was superb! smooth! and just plain art! since it was water based, i placed the car into a 120 degree F oven to try to drive off any residual water before clearing it. although clearing was not necessary, as the shift color was on like glue, if you really want super affects with this type of paint, DO clearcoat! the colors were dancing and a true testiment to eye candy! there was another member here who recommended, no actually stated you need a clear coat and i had intended to do that anyway but there is a huge visual difference to the better! i cannot attest as to how this will do on plastic models however, with the auto air color primer, it may work well, infact, someone already attested to that. thanks to everyone, true it may have been beginners luck but this was a snap! no problems other than needing to be thinned. and i used water but it seemed to work well. i'll see at the races, the paint may come off in a sheet! naaa! i clear coated it with a solvent! ciao and all the best!