I have been mulling over and over about which airbrush to buy, and I'm sick at looking at e-bay! From what I've gathered, iwata seems to be one of the best, but i have no idea which model. Please give me your thoughts.. thanks!
Return to Beginners Category Menu
...No such thing. There are detail brushes and there are broad coverage brushes. Unless you are only doing detail work you will need both. Iwata is as good as it gets for a detail brush. I recommend an HP-B, anything with a larger paint cup is just a waste of paint. You can't shoot enough paint through the fine detail point of the brush to make use of it that way. You second, broad coverage brush, can be just about anything. I used a Paasche VL for many years before I got the Vega 2000 that I now use for that purpose.
is the Aztek. Love those needle/nozzle plastic units that don't bend when you drop them. I have a pretty well developed kick reflex that has saved many eyes and airbrushes from complete destruction, but sooner or later one is going to get through.
Second would be the Iwata HP-BC, though I've never tried the HP-B.
Totally agree about the paint cup size. I bet at least half of every bottle of paint is wasted when changing colors.
This has been discussed many times. As Dave said, there is no such thing as THE BEST airbrush. There are many good ones. That said, cost may be a factor with you being a beginner. More than a few terrific fish guys use a Paasche H or VL. You can buy the #3 or #5 tip for broad coverage AND the #1 tip for detail work. That's a less expensive way to go than buying two airbrushes, and Paashe sells for MUCH less that Iwata...eh? I have Paasche VL's and an Iwata HP-SB, and they are both excellent tools.
But a lot of opinions...
Many guys have said this before Chris, but it's true: whatever you practice with and develop a comfort level with is a great place to start. And who knows why one brush works for one guy and not another? Steve above likes the Aztec whereas I didn't care for it one bit. But I'm sure he is probably terrific with it. At this point in my young career I am still partial to a Paasche H. I guess I've never read a negative about the Iwata, other than possibly price. But something to consider there too is that you do usually get what you pay for and I do hope to own an Iwata someday. Also, I know that different folks have had different experience with eBay but I think it's terrific. Good luck in your searches.
...I wouldn't consider a Paasche with a #1 tip a detail brush. I used to! The size of the needle or the tip opening is in DIRECT proportion to how fine you can paint. A Paasche #1 is .55mm the Iwata HP has a .20mm. That pretty much says it all. At the same time trying to spray anything over 1/2" wide with the Iwata is a lost cause. If you are going to seriously do fish, the Iwata is a must.
scale tipping trout fry? LMAO
Chris I would get your feet wet with a Paashe with a #1 and #3 tip and spend the big bucks for the Iwata later. Don't forget to add retarder as it won't matter how small your tip is if it won't comes out of the airbrush.
You have all been so helpful on this subject! As you can tell, I am just trying to get started. I will be a regular on here, so if your interested, I want to tell you a little about myself. I am a full time deputy sheriff in arkansas, have a part time job, and now am trying taxidermy as a hobby or maybe more... (if I can get good enough). I am being helped along by a friend that has been in taxidermy for three or four years.. Again, i want to thank all of you for your help and respectfully request your continued input as I post questions in the future. AND.. Joe kieser and Shawn Bible, I can't thank you enough! chris