How big do you prefer the cup on your airbrush?

[ManvsMini]

Well, the time has finally come to purchase an airbrush. It's been on my want list for several years, and this year I finally saved up sufficient funds to get a full setup. I'm looking at purchasing a Badger Patriot 105 dual-action gravity feed. It seems like a good starter airbrush that I can have an easier time getting replacement parts for being that I'm located in the USA... because let's face it, I will probably damage something along this journey of learning.

 

My question for you lovely people is how big of a cup do you like on your airbrush? The Patriot I am looking at can come with either 1/3 oz cup to 1/8 oz. The pictures make the 1/3 cup look huge on the airbrush, which seems unwieldy but I won't have to worry about running out of paint (or sloshing it out if I need just a bit), whereas the 1/8 looks very comfortable but now has less of a paint reservoir, which could be irritating for basecoating large projects. So, how do you all feel about the cup size on your airbrushes?

 

A bit of background if needed: I'm mostly planning to use it prime/basecoat/seal, but hopefully branch out to other uses as my skill gets better. I'd really like something that's easy on the hand due to some hand and wrist problems that I have. And if curious, I'm looking at getting a Paasche D3000R with a tank as it seems to be the quietest for my budget (I also have ear problems, loud noises aren't the friendliest for me). Moisture traps and hoses and holders are all being priced, as is a ventilated spray booth. I have a large supply of N95 masks as well, so no need to worry there.

 

I've been going through the airbrushing compendium post but haven't found info on this question yet. Your input is much appreciated.

 

-MvM

[haldir]

Nothing wrong with the Patriot. It is one of Badger's workhorse airbrushes.

 

You'll want a respirator mask vs a dust mask when airbrushing thou. Dust mask just traps the particles into the mask & you can still breath them in, where a respirator filters. 

 

If your worried you'll destroy your first airbrush,  there are cheap decent quality abs on the 'Bay & such for around 10 to 15. I use one for strictly clearcoats.

 

Bit of advice: when you first get your airbrush, break it down & get familiar with the inner parts & such. It'll help when cleaning & knowing the parts.

 

You know after I got home this morning & looked at this post on the PC, I spaced off answering about the Cup size. Most of my airbrushing, has been siphon-feed. As my primary ab for years has been a Paasche Millienium airbrush I bought back in '99. Since I wanted to try gravity feed I have used a side cup for that & it only comes in one size. Since I do own a Vex now (tbh, I can't even recall what Cup I bought thou I think it was small size) I do want to start using gravity feed for minis. I think I'll still stick with the Paasche for my scale models due to the amount I can spray when needed. I think with a ab for miniatures, I'd rather have the smaller cup on the account of having a better line of sight to the mini, being smaller then say a 1:24 scale car body.

 

I also see your going to get a compressor & spray booth as well, good call. You can use a cardboard box, but the overspray-cloud has to go somewhere, better to get it out of there with a fan. I finally used the spray booth I bought a couple years ago this summer. It's one of those Master brand fold down, take it with you style. It's a pretty nice tbh, I did pick up a 2nd one so can combine them to give me double the working space. Handy for when I start working on bigger models.

 

Canned air for airbrushes is convenient but in the long run it more expensive & you won't get consistent results. The spray starts out great but as the can get used, it's gets cold + this also start to introduce water into your airline, thus giving you surprise while spraying. Tanked it the way to go, it'll run for a while, but after a bit it'll shut off when the tank fills up. Just remember to empty your tank after a session, if not the air inside will rust out the tank.

 

Most of all have fun, airbrushing is just like any other hobby tool, learn how to use it to get the best out of it.

Edited November 21, 2022 by haldir
Added more to my post after getting home from work this morning.

[WhiteWulfe]

Mine have 9mL cups, which apparently is just shy of 1/3 of a fluid ounce according to Google.  The only time I've had to worry about it not being enough was when doing base coats of MDF terrain, or priming a lot of figures at once. 

[cmorse]

I have the 1/3 and it's a good size if you plan to do either lots of minis at once with a single paint (like priming) or every want to use it on bigger things (like model kits). Otherwise the smaller cup would be fine. The big cup is definitely unnecessary for the amount of paint you'd use on a single mini. Amazon seems to have the smaller one for $54 at the moment which seems pretty good.

[Heisler]

The bigger the better especially for your intended use.

There are a several excellent airbrush topics in the forum. Just do a quick search.

 

This link would be a good place to start: Airbrush Musings

Edited November 22, 2022 by Heisler

[ManvsMini]

22 hours ago, haldir said:

You'll want a respirator mask vs a dust mask when airbrushing thou. Dust mask just traps the particles into the mask & you can still breath them in, where a respirator filters. 

 

On 11/20/2022 at 11:44 PM, ManvsMini said:

I have a large supply of N95 masks as well, so no need to worry there.

 

Already got it covered, thanks though (they are considered respirators, not masks... due to science in the material they are made from).

 

 

7 hours ago, Heisler said:

There are a several excellent airbrush topics in the forum. Just do a quick search.

 

This link would be a good place to start: Airbrush Musings

 

On 11/20/2022 at 11:44 PM, ManvsMini said:

I've been going through the airbrushing compendium post

 

One step ahead of you. Thanks for that link though.

 

Thanks to everyone for your input! I'll have to weigh my options vs how much I really will get to paint in a single session.

[ManvsMini]

On 11/21/2022 at 4:53 PM, cmorse said:

Amazon seems to have the smaller one for $54 at the moment which seems pretty good.

 

Ended up getting this (the Badger Patriot 105-2XR Arrow, small cup), as well as finding the Paasche air compressor/tank I wanted on sale as well. Order just got placed, so the airbrush journey is officially underway! I'll buy another one with a bigger cup later down the road if I determine that I need it.

 

My own research shows I'll need to buy some adapters to make the fittings work between the Badger airbrush and the Paasche compressor, I'll have to contact Badger to make sure which adapters will be needed. Still need to order some hoses, the brush holder, thinner and find a good deal on a spray booth; wish they'd list the decibel rating on the fans for those.

[Heisler]

The fans for booths are typically pretty quiet. You won’t notice it over the compressor.

[cmorse]

5 hours ago, ManvsMini said:

 

Ended up getting this (the Badger Patriot 105-2XR Arrow, small cup), as well as finding the Paasche air compressor/tank I wanted on sale as well. Order just got placed, so the airbrush journey is officially underway! I'll buy another one with a bigger cup later down the road if I determine that I need it.

 

My own research shows I'll need to buy some adapters to make the fittings work between the Badger airbrush and the Paasche compressor, I'll have to contact Badger to make sure which adapters will be needed. Still need to order some hoses, the brush holder, thinner and find a good deal on a spray booth; wish they'd list the decibel rating on the fans for those.

 

I'd suggest getting a hose that matches the compressor and get quick releases to go between the hose and the brush. You'll end up with some extra quick connect bits, but you shouldn't need any extra adapters.

[WhiteWulfe]

22 hours ago, Heisler said:

The fans for booths are typically pretty quiet. You won’t notice it over the compressor.

Depends on the booth.  If it's the common "cheap" one on Amazon (the 16" wide folding one) those things are louder than the compressor half the time... 

[ManvsMini]

Both airbrush and compressor have arrived. Looking at the airbrush, I made the right choice on getting the smaller cup, it'll be a good learning brush. If it goes well, I'll likely buy another Patriot with a larger cup for giant models and terrain, but that is several months down the road.

 

 

On 11/24/2022 at 9:12 PM, cmorse said:

 

I'd suggest getting a hose that matches the compressor and get quick releases to go between the hose and the brush. You'll end up with some extra quick connect bits, but you shouldn't need any extra adapters.

 

This is a helpful starting point, thank you. So I'll need to buy a Paasche hose, a Badger quick connect male fitting, a Badger quick release/disconnect female fitting, and then a Badger airbrush to Paasche hose adapter fitting? Sound right? And some PTFE tape to go around all the fittings to make sure no leaks.

 

 

On 11/25/2022 at 2:47 PM, WhiteWulfe said:

On 11/24/2022 at 4:29 PM, Heisler said:

The fans for booths are typically pretty quiet. You won’t notice it over the compressor.

Depends on the booth.  If it's the common "cheap" one on Amazon (the 16" wide folding one) those things are louder than the compressor half the time... 

 

The booth I got is probably one of those. Looking at the comments and FAQs about it, the manufacturer claims it is about 48 dB, while a user commented they measured it at ~85 dB (but that was with a cell phone app measurement, not sure how well those things measure). So it's either right around the loudness of my compressor or way louder. I'll still be wearing earplugs/earmuffs for protection, just don't want anything so loud that it annoys my canine companions.

[cmorse]

A hose that matches the compressor's fitting (looks like 1/4″NPT, but check what the listing you order from says), a female quick connect that attaches to that hose , and a Badger male quick connect. The airbrush end of the hose doesn't need be Paasche, you might even find one that has a badger end, it doesn't really matter since the quick connection is standard and takes care of the adapting. 

[ManvsMini]

@cmorse really appreciate your help (and patience!) with this. I want to make sure I get this right before I start buying the hose and adapters. So if you don't mind double-checking me?

• My compressor has a 1/4" NPT male fitting, and comes with an to make it a 1/8" BSP male fitting (I checked, and the fitting is inside the box)
• The Badger Patriot 105-2XR is a 1/8" BSP fitting (near as I can tell)
• The Badger 51-042 QD coupler can hook up to either 1/4" hose or a 1/8" hose

So, with that in mind, my logic is the following:

• Use the 1/8" BSP adapter male fitting on the compressor
• Buy the Badger QD  coupler for the airbrush
• Use the adapter ending on that quick-release to make it 1/8" BSP male fitting
• Buy a hose with two 1/8" BSP female ends

Sound about right?

[haldir]

What I've done for my set up with 4 airbrushes, I got a Badger coiled hose, as my compressor is a no name tank compressor. It has the same fit as the Badger hose. I got 4 female quick fits from Badger for the hose & then I just used whatever brand the airbrushes are for the male Badger end. The airbrush I got off ebay uses a Badger fitting.

[cmorse]

1 hour ago, ManvsMini said:

@cmorse really appreciate your help (and patience!) with this. I want to make sure I get this right before I start buying the hose and adapters. So if you don't mind double-checking me?

• My compressor has a 1/4" NPT male fitting, and comes with an to make it a 1/8" BSP male fitting (I checked, and the fitting is inside the box)
• The Badger Patriot 105-2XR is a 1/8" BSP fitting (near as I can tell)
• The Badger 51-042 QD coupler can hook up to either 1/4" hose or a 1/8" hose

So, with that in mind, my logic is the following:

• Use the 1/8" BSP adapter male fitting on the compressor
• Buy the Badger QD  coupler for the airbrush
• Use the adapter ending on that quick-release to make it 1/8" BSP male fitting
• Buy a hose with two 1/8" BSP female ends

Sound about right?

 

Badger airbrushes use M5 .5mm connections. Some come with an adapter to 1/8 BSP, but for most that's a separate purchase. 

 

I took a look at my setup and I have the Badger 51-042 QD, it actually solves everything. The male side is an M5 and attaches to the airbrush directly and the female side is an 1/8 BSP with an M5 adapter over it. So that adapter plus a 1/8 BSP f/f hose should do the trick.

 

 

A note about the sizes of connectors and why it's such a pain- The listed size and the actual size won't match. The 1/8" in BSP is talking about what the inside diameter would be if those threads were on a steel pipe. That's why if you look at an 1/8 BSP connector it looks around 1/4" and a 1/4" BSP connector look 1/2". NTP is the same, but the US version. On the other hand the M5 that Badger uses is actually 5mm on the outside, so it looks like what you'd imagine 1/8" connector to be.