Hi Everyone, I'm thinking about starting to paint my own rolling stock etc. Could someone please give me any information and/or insight into purchasing and using a spray booth, along with any tricks that a novice painter would find useful. Would also like some info on purchasing that first air brush. Thanks, Ron
My first air brush was a Badger 200. Internal mix, and at the time $20 US. I currently use some Taiwanese made external mix brushes that cost $10 US each, so I have several. They atomize just fine. I found at a swap meet an air pump (Not a compressor) that only cost me $15. and then spent another $15 for a pressure switch to turn it off. It delivers about 35 pounds of pressure. I also added a pressure regulator, that I think cost $8. I don't have a spray booth, but I live in San Diego and mostly (not today) have good weather and can paint outdoors on a sheet of newspaper.
I started out with a Testors Aztek A 320 single action internal mix brush and was very happy with it for a number of years. I more recently moved up to a Badger model 150 dual action brush and I love it even more (well, did until it got stolen ). As for a compressor, I initially had a little Badger whirlwind 2 desktop compressor which worked ok, but could never produce much more than about 20-25 pounds sustained, and I had a lot of problems with moisture in the air. Since all that stuff got stolen, I've replaced the compressor with a pancake compressor with a 4 gallon tank from the hardware store. the new unit cost me less, has a built in regulator, and the 4 gallon air tank serves to remove a lot of the moisture before it goes to the water trap. It's a good deal louder than the old unit, but I can run it for 5 minutes and then work off the air stored in the tank for over an hour. As for a brush, I can't imagine getting anything but another Badger 150. The double action is a piece of cake to learn and it makes getting a good paint job SO much easier! My spray booth is an old photocopier stand I bought at a used furniture warehouse and mounted a $5 blower from the used building materials store on top of. It works like a dream and I didn't spend a fortune on it. I really don't see how they can get $400 for an open metal box and a fan!?! I mostly use the Badger Modelflex paints and because they are water based, you can actually paint with them indoors in a cardboard box. If you're using solvent based paints, working outside or with a ventilated booth is a good idea. I've done it inside wearing a respirator, but it's a sub-optimal solution. Anyway, just my $.02 worth.
you should wear a resprerato, or, at least a dust mack like those ones at a paint store or something, for airbrushing, even if it's with water-based paints.
I use a Badger 150 driven by an air pump, regulated at 20 pounds. I added a home-built accumulator of a 2" long section of 3" PVC pipe with the endcaps drilled and tapped for 1/4" NPT pipe, which sits on top of the pump. I added a regulator/water separator to the output side of the accumulator. The whole she-bang forms a small, tight-fitting package that sits on my workbench for painting. There is an outside door next to the workbench, which I open and stand facing out to paint. I hold the body shells with a spring clamp that fits up inside the body. Works well for me. P.S. it helps if you wear latex gloves, available in boxes of 50 or 100 from building supply stores. [ 10. November 2002, 01:37: Message edited by: Hank Coolidge ]
