Air for airbrush

[Bill Browne]

Buddy of mine wants to get into airbrushing. How much air pressure and
volume should a good quality airbrush have available to it?

--
Bill Browne
Excalibur http://excalibur-dbf.com
Medical Claims, Taft-Hartley Fund,
& Pension Administration Software

[James P. Riser]

Bill;
It depends upon what type of paint/ink you want to push through it and what
type of airbrush you are using. I use anywhere from 15-60 pounds for a
variety of airbrushes and media. Probably more important is using DRY air.
If the air is not dry, the airbrush will spit out droplets of water onto
your perfect paint job. Inks, dyes, etc. need very little air pressure.
Auto paints will need much higher pressure.
Jim

--
http://www.jamesriser.com
"Bill Browne" <bi...@excalibur-dbf.com> wrote in message
news:YJVU9.110672$hK4.8...@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...

[Don Stauffer]

Volume is very low, under 1 cfm. Some brushes considerably under.

--
Don Stauffer in Minnesota
stau...@usfamily.net
webpage- http://www.usfamily.net/web/stauffer

[James P. Riser]

As Don indicated, volume is very low. But I suggest a large air tank as a
reservoir to eliminate "pulsing" in your paint work. Airbrushes are
sensitive and every stroke of a compressor can be reflected in the fine
paint pattern as it is laid down. BTW - I like to mix colors on the object
being painted and let the viewer's eye blend them into a new color. You can
get some very cool effects by doing this.
Jim

--
http://www.jamesriser.com
"Don Stauffer" <stau...@usfamily.net> wrote in message
news:LoYU9.290$au4....@news.uswest.net...

[Boris Mohar]

On Tue, 14 Jan 2003 12:14:10 -0600, Don Stauffer <stau...@usfamily.net>
wrote:

>Volume is very low, under 1 cfm. Some brushes considerably under.

Could one use a refrigerator compressor and a tank? It would be quiet.

--

Boris Mohar

[Roy Hauer]

No reason that you couldn't.I saw a few compressors made from old
refridgerator compressors as well as A/C compressors

On Tue, 14 Jan 2003 16:36:51 -0500, Boris Mohar <bor...@sympatico.ca>
wrote:

>x<>-On Tue, 14 Jan 2003 12:14:10 -0600, Don Stauffer <stau...@usfamily.net>
>x<>-wrote:
>x<>-
>x<>->Volume is very low, under 1 cfm. Some brushes considerably under.
>x<>-
>x<>- Could one use a refrigerator compressor and a tank? It would be quiet.

--
Visit my website:
http://www.frugalmachinist.com
Contents: foundry and general metal working and lots of related projects.
Regards
Roy aka Chipmaker // Foxeye
Opinions are strictly those of my wife....I have had no input whatsoever.
Remove capital A from chipmAkr for correct email address

[James P. Riser]

Boris;
I have an old refrigerator compressor hooked up to an air force surplus
oxygen tank as a buffer. It works well if you hook up a pressure switch so
it doesn't just build up pressure and blow itself apart. I hooked up
several of these back in the days when I was teaching airbrush use. Some of
these types of compressors did contaminate the air with oil - you'll need to
filter for any oil, as well, as, water. They provide a smoother air
pressure than piston compressors (less pulsations).
Jim

--
http://www.jamesriser.com
"Boris Mohar" <bor...@sympatico.ca> wrote in message
news:1m092v8d7v8s3tbte...@4ax.com...

[Vince Iorio]

It is my understanding that the professionals use nitrogen cylinders. Very
dry, very clean. I'm thinking I was told a large bottle( approx. 200 cu.
ft.) would last a professional a year, but at 1 cfm, I'm not sure how.

Vince

[Trevor Jones]

At a guess I'd say about 60psi tops and a low enough cfm to be
inconsequential.

Most that get serious about the stuff seem willing to pay a lot for a
quiet compressor though.

Most art supply stores carry at least some airbrush stuff. Some of the
really well stocked ones will carry lots, as well as books and magazines
on the subject.

Cheers
Trevor Jones

[Ed Huntress]

"Bill Browne" <bi...@excalibur-dbf.com> wrote in message
news:YJVU9.110672$hK4.8...@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...

> Buddy of mine wants to get into airbrushing. How much air pressure and
> volume should a good quality airbrush have available to it?

If your buddy wants to try it for a while before investing, there are cans
of compressed air available from Badger, and something else I've used for
years: a converter (about $5) that uses a spare tire for an air supply. I
use one to run Badger single- and double-action airbrushes with good
success. I blow the tire I have up to around 45 lb., and it lasts for quite
a long time unless you're using the airbrush like a can of spray paint, for
a broad spray. So you use a cheap household painting compressor, run it for
one noisy minute, and you can typically work for an hour or two (not all
airbrushing time, of course) before you need it again.

You can get away without a water filter on the outlet of the compressor you
use to pump up the tire. Putting water-laden air into a tire doesn't seem to
cause the problems that water droplets in the compressor output, used
directly, can cause. I've also taken the tire down to a local gas station
for a fill.

The Badger converter doesn't have a regulator, but it does have a valve with
an adjustment screw, and I have no trouble getting a stable pressure and
flow rate from it.

BTW, most books and instructors tell you to start with water-based dyes and
paints, usually artist's tube water paint that you thin with water to use in
the airbrush.

BTW, the nicest setup for an airbrush compressor I've ever seen is one a
buddy of mine has. He put the compressor in the basement and ran the air
through a 1/2" copper water pipe up through the floor to his studio. He has
a remote switch in the studio that turns the compressor on and off.

It's dead quiet in the studio, and the copper tube condenses water vapor and
runs it back down to the bottom of the tube. He has a trap down there, which
is just a T-fitting, a 3-in. piece of copper tube, a cap, and a screw in the
cap to drain the water. Cost was maybe $10 for the whole deal, plus the
compressor.

--
Ed Huntress
(remove "3" from email address for email reply)

[Tom Stovall]

Bill Browne wrote:

>Buddy of mine wants to get into airbrushing. How much air pressure and
>volume should a good quality airbrush have available to it?

Regulate the air to whatever the brush manufacturer recommends - the
main thing he'll need is DRY air.
--
Tom Stovall, CJF
Farrier & Blacksmith
sto...@wt.net
http://www.katyforge.com

[Daniel A. Mitchell]

Many of the small hobby 'airbrush' compressors are quite inadequate for
serious work.

Lacquers and oil-based enamels usually spray well at 18-25 psi. The
newer water based acrylics need anywhere from 25 - 45 psi. Some of the
small compressors can't deliver over 20 psi continuous into a medium
sized airbrush tip. Thus they are not acceptable for the acrylic paints,
and barely adequate for well thinned lacquers and enamels. They often
top out around 30-35 psi, but only at near zero flow. They're cheap, but
suitable only for minimal non critical work.

If you have a storage tank, sometimes you can spray briefly in 'burst'
mode until the tank pressure drops too low.

A larger commercial airbrush compressor solves the problem, but at high
cost. Less expensively, most common smaller 'garage' type compressors
with a storage tank are perfectly satisfactory for this use, just add a
good filter and moisture trap. The tank is essential to prevent
'surging' as the compressor pumps. Even a small tank will usually
suffice ... perhaps 10 time compressor displacement volume. A one gallon
tank is big enough for most small compressors ... even a quart will be a
big help. Larger is better, as the compressor doesn't have to run all
the time (most are noisy).

Oil-less (diaphragm) compressors are nice, but a piston compressor in
good repair rarely causes problems if it's properly filtered.

Dan Mitchell
==========