Piggybacking off this to give you my top tip for preventing 90% of (my) stoppages: an old toothbrush head mounted within easy reach when airbrushing. I've glued mine to the holder I use for my brush. I have the bristles pointing straight up, and then I dribble a little water or alcohol on. Whenever I feel a clog/dried tip starting, i just rub the airbrush through the toothbrush. Sometimes I do it preventatively as well, sort of like rinsing a regular brush. Having the toothbrush head glued in place makes it incredibly easy to do, and I don't even have to empty out the airbrush cup first. It obviously won't do anything for issues inside the airbrush, but it has solved almost all my issues during regular use. I hope my explanation makes sense, it felt awkward without showing pictures.
A normal video for a normal level painter. Good stuff, thanks for keeping the mistakes in. More of this painters journey stuff please. Will help ease everyone’s journey down that hobby trumpet and hopefully prevent anyone from getting stuck in it never to return. I to the warp of the hobby trumpet. Do you want to live forever?
It's good to know you're not the only one with such problems. I definitely can relate, been there done that and more (like setting too high PSI to basically tear off previous layers of paint).
Its very refreshing watching a video of someone showing their trial and error with airbrushing. I have had an airbrush that my wife got me for Christmas for over a year and have never used it because I am (like you) intimidated by the tool. Thanks for giving me some confidence to just go for it and see what happens no matter the results!
Try not to start with your paint in the pot first. It's good practice to go thinners/flow improvers first. Run them through for one or two small bursts and then add paints. This essentially lubes your needle a bit prior to spraying your paint. Makes cleaning easier too.
FWIW for stoppages, I saw a great tip on Airbrush Asylum, which is (for a dual action airbrush) to keep the airbrush air on at all times rather than doing short bursts. Short bursts makes it more likely to clog because when you cut off the air suddenly whatever paint is going through the mechanism dries half way out, so you're looking to reduce the number of times you cut off the airflow in a painting session
There are different ways to avoid this, Vince says to avoid blowing air through the airbrush unless there is also coming paint out because the airflow will dry any paint left on the needle. It has served me well, and I don´t have a lot of clogs, and a quetip on hand with airbrush cleaner on it to wipe the needle makes them even less frustrating.
The main thing is to keep it on until after the paint has stopped. So if you continue painting it goes on full blast. If you stop just make sure that the paint is out before stopping the airflow. It takes some getting used to.
Most painting tutorial channels are showing only their quality work/skills. Its wonderful to see someone fail. Failure is the only way to improve and its so so much more valuable to novices just learning how to paint. Kudos to you sir.
Varnishes are normally like an acrylic base resin and they take a long time to harden properly, it's not the microsol melting your paint but probably the varnish when it was still soft. Hope that helps in future :)
@@thepaintingphase inks tend to be fairly fragile, and i absolutely always regret rushing the ink>varnish>decal process. microsol is also acidic, and it will do a number on acrylic paint if it's not properly cured and you disturb it
I've had this issue as well, LOVE my AK paints but occasionally they turn into like a sticky/stringy goo when I do anything on top of them.@@lukeeaton2364
@matthewmacdougall3198 Absolutely agree. Microsol is totally unnecessary anyway. Just float decals in warm water with a TINY drop of Fairy Liquid. I do this in a shot glass. Themightybrush taught me this method, it's never gone wrong for me.
Thanks for sharing your experiences with airbrushing. I've recently got into mini painting and also jumped on with an airbrush and this is more in line with my own experiences than a lot of the other tutorials online. Sharing your frustrations is an affirmation that mistakes happen but to keep pressing on and trying new things.
Well done Pat. It's very brave to film yourself doing the most important bit of the hobby that no one talks about - by which I mean failing better. It's something that not even the "big boys" have the stones to do and it's really refreshing. Plus the end result was absolutely banging. I hope you were pleased enough to keep on going because a squad just like that would look fantastic.
Airbrushing is significantly more difficult than a lot of hobby youtubers seem to suggest so thanks for making this. The end result was great and I'd love to see future attempts.
The algorithm recommended this video to me. The fact that you showed where you stumbled and had issues made me subscribe. It shows you are a normal human, unlike the "pro painters" who only show their best work in videos.
There's no true failure in mini painting. You either nail it 100% (which is never the case even if you're Richard Gray) or you learn and grow. Every mini painted is progress which can sometimes feel infinitesimal but progress nonetheless!
Thank you for this video. There are so many videos talking about how easy airbrushing is and it is just nice to see someone go though the problems they went through as a newbie to airbrushing. I learnt a lot and cheers.
As someone who bought himself a handheld air brush over Christmas and still hasn't worked up the courage to use it, I really appreciate an honest trial-and-error look at airbrushing. You've motivated me to bite the bullet and give it a go!
I was wincing abit when you started this video but was super stoked to see you finally achieve a super sweet looking miniature instead of giving up. I would encourage you to turn to resources like Vince Venturella for best practices regarding airbrushing. A few tweaks to the way you load your cup, maximum duration of paint in cup dwell time, and quick rinse practices will basically resolve 99% of the issues you had in this video. Glad to see you guys branching out!!
@@thepaintingphaseVince has a couple excellent videos on airbrushing. I use his formula for thinner/flow improver and use similar ratios and very rarely get any clogging. I'm using a H&S Evolution.
@@thepaintingphase Strongly recommend Vince's video on quickly cleaning an airbrush, it made my workflow so much better and I really enjoy airbrushing now:) Marco frisoni also has some brilliant videos about airbrushing, especially for inks/thin paints (air on the entire time, short bursts of paint) - I think they would help you a lot!
Good on you for sticking with it! It really is worth the time investment to learn. The model turned out excellent! I'm quite experienced with the airbrush, and I can point out exactly where some of your problems were: 1) You need to thin almost everything you put through your airbrush, including inks, even though they feel thinner. Especially white. White pigment has a tendency to gum up. Thin your airbrush paints in a little container outside of the bowl so you can test the consistency before putting them through the airbrush. I go for milk consistency most of the time. There are these wonderful little metal, reusable mixing saucers that are perfect for this I got on Amazon. Also, thinner whites also go on smoother. If you mix in a little gloss medium and airbrush flow improver (which is basically retarder, not the same as airbrush thinner), then your white will be less chalky and more durable. 2) Keeping the airflow going while being gentle on the trigger is the way to go. I still keep the PSI around 30-40. You can do that without causing spider webbing as long as you build up the layers slowly and are gentle on the trigger. 3) Paints take longer to fully cure than you think, especially white ink, which should be dried over night. Applying a transfer straight away will wreck them. The issue is more visible with an airbrush because the layers are thinner. When using white ink and over airbrush layers, before I do any techniques that will stress the surface of the model, like decals or drybrushing, I wait an hour, gloss varnish (which you should also thin), then wait overnight and work on other stuff in the meantime. In short, the adage "thin your paints" applies double with the airbrush.
Still a noob myself, I've found that if you aren't consistent with it, you tend to forget a lot of the little things you've learned along the way. Things like thinning the paint, air pressure, etc. I end up having to relearn between sessions. But then I'm old and forget easily. Great vid on the topic!
I’d like to thank you for posting a video that shares this hobby in a light of realty for a refreshing change. As much as I love to see the pros knocking out a beautiful paint job and making everything look so simple if you just follow their advice - witnessing your struggles (while I’m sure was difficult for you to experience and took courage to share - because you really didn’t have to 🙃) really made me feel like I wasn’t the only one who get apprehensive when trying a new technique. A long way to get to - thanks! Great video.
As far as stoppages, I would say thinning is even more important for the airbrush than in hand painting. Especially with how thin and quick drying the airbrushed layers are, I've found I can build up smooth layers without having to stop to unclog the nozzle and still batch paint faster than I would going by hand. Keep at it, you'll get there!
When mixing your paints, add the thinner first. It helps stop blockages because there isn’t thick paint at the front. It also helps mix the paint with the thinner better.
Thanks for the video and leaving all that went wrong in it, it's refreshing to see its not plain sailing explaining what went wrong and how you went about fixing it. I think it's time to try out my airbrush again. Love the way the armour turned out in the end
I bought everything for airbrushing and got so sad after trying the first time. And the second, third and fourth time. But when it clicked, it felt so good and you always learn. I’m quite comfortable with the airbrush now but i still make mistakes and i learn new things. Trying new paints with different viscosities and how to get white not to clog is an ongoing thing. Keep up the good work and you will ”master” it in no time at all.
This mirrored my experience pretty closely. I guess I take it for granted now that I don't get clogs and stoppages. Mostly just due to familiarity. Like all tools, proficiency grows with use. These steps forward on your airbrush journey will be priceless the next time you pick it up
Just compare that final version of the Imperial Fist to the iron Warriors you did a year or so ago, and you will see how different the quality of the finished product is. You can be truly proud of the amount of growth you (and your beard) have gone through in the last year!
I love this video! I’ve been struggling with very much the same (and a bunch of other) issues with my airbrushing and fixing my own slippages afterwards and it’s so educational and encouraging to see how you are overcoming them. Thank you for sharing your experiences!
Dude. That came out really nice. Must be encouraging. You pushed through the hard bit. Just mix everything to the consistency of Liquitex ink and you're good.
It was really refreshing to see someone learning a new process and having struggles while you ironed out how to get it working, or figuring out what works for you. That much more resembles my modelling and painting journey then so many of the other tutorials I see online. And the mini turned out great so your struggles definitely paid off. Kudos!
Thank you for this video. An honest view of the first airbrushing attempts helps a lot! Now I can say 'I' am not scared of airbrushing - I am part of a community, and 'we' are all scared together :)
As it looks like the blockages are forming due to paint drying at the tip of the needle, it could of course be a thinning issue, but one thing which is often overlooked is the need to lube the needle. One drop of lube, rubbed all over the shaft should be enough to prevent this and let the liquid spray out much more smoothly! (In all seriousness though, get a tube of airbrush lubricant for a few £, apply a very thin coat of it over the needle and it should help to avoid this type of blockage).
Appreciate the honesty of this video. Its encouraging to see other people struggle and recognise that practice is what builds skill. The final paint job looked great, despite the initial set backs
That is a airbrush quality question, the better the brush the better the atomization of the paint is, in my opinion nothing beats harder&steenbeck brushes on that, but just keep going with the airbrush and you will get the feel for what youre doing wrong when things go wrong. The paint must be totaly cured before you use the decal solutions on it or it will reactivate the paints. And its fun that you guys credit Darren latham for the sponge in the tube thing, that is actully a tool thats been sold for years and years in the scale model communety, even greenstuffworld has its own once
@@thepaintingphase yeh he does have a lot of pepole following him and he uses the DIY once in a few clips, so i do understand why you think it was something he invented🙂. Was a fun video, i like that its more airbrush work in videos these days, its a great tool to use, Just keep going with it and in a couple of years youll have great control and understanding of it
I recently treated myself to an airbrush and have found the learning experience to be very fulfilling, difficult but fulfilling. I am far from great(or even good) at using it, but I am not over thinning or clogging the airbrush every time anymore! One thing that I hear a lot about airbrushing(was even brought it up in this video) is that people find it to be annoying to set up, prep and clean. I personally haven't found it to be any better or worse than brush painting in that regard because I don't have a permanent set up for painting at all so I have to get out my paints and set up to paint every time as it is.
Lovely vibrant colours. If youre a noob it really isnt obvious. Im only a few months into using my airbrush and certainly agree, practice maked perfect! Well done and thanks!
Got an airbrush for Christmas 2 years ago. Have been intimidated to try it because of all the potential problems. This give me the confidence to just GO FOR IT, MAN!
I think I’ve been painting long enough that I’d like to try airbrushing. Just seems like so much work to set up and use and clean and put away. That finished result looks AWESOME
One of the most realistic vids of what airbrushing is really like , I had some of the same problems . It is a case of practice , practice and more practice, all of a sudden it will click and you will think what was all the fuss about ( hint it was the practice) . Keep up the great work TPP :)
I was gifted an airbrush for Christmas three years ago, and I've barely used it because it is scary and new. I definitely relate with the anxiety in this video.
Respect that you put out a video that's mostly about failing. Very relatable. I haven't tried airbrushing but I've definitely been there with other aspects of the hobby
This was a wonderful video. I feel like i got the complete hobby jounrey there and the miniature still came out looking great in the end! The sponge in the brush sleeve was new to me as well.
Great video. I really need to try Streaking Grime. I need to watch more of your videos, but I do listen to you guys every day on Spotify when driving to work. Keep it up!
I think you’ve made an awesome airbrushing video that shows an honest journey on where we all begin. Too many airbrushing tutorials are usually just ”do this and get good”. You have to invest a lot of time to learn anything new and it will be messy, but I find so many tutorials gloss over the very early challenges when starting out airbrushing. This vid I found very reassuring and has inspired me to pick up my airbrush again. Like you say, just got to keep trying! Cheers dude 💪
Two really good good quotes that apply here: “Sucking at something is the first step towards being kinda good at something.” and “The greatest teacher, failure is.” Look how much progress you made in 48 hours! Keep banging away at it. I’m just starting my airbrush journey myself and I’m working hard to embrace failures and setbacks as integral parts of the process. You got this, man.
Good video, lots of learning experiences. I have an orange marine army, so I've gone through everything you have. I like flat paint jobs, so the airbrush helped me through doing an orange army, which is nigh on impossible with a brush.
At last, someone on TH-cam going through the same pain I did!!! It’s refreshing to see not everyone is an instant airbrush god. I feel much better about myself now 👍
Best airbrush video I’ve ever seen!!! YOWIE WOWIE! Finally seeing someone have an experience similar to mine. I feel like any time you see an airbrush video for beginners they are airbrushing their version of the Mona Lisa in 20 minutes. Thank you for this! Great stuff great advice!
As someone who has been in the hobby for 30+ years, iv'e also had the fear of using an airbrush. This video was a great honest introduction, without giving a hard sell. So well done. Still on the fence over it but no longer have the fear, just not sure it's for me. Kudos Pat, loving this content.
Holy Terra that Terminator came out looking fantastic in the end, great work! Virtual *hugs* on your trials with the airbrush. We've all been there. It just takes practice and learning what works. The results speak for themselves once you figure it all out though. It just take trial and error.
This is such a refreshing video to see and so valuable for people not to feel like airbrushing is instant cheating. Your approach to testing up different combos and not giving up is great. I don't see failures. I see a progression of practice and trial and error. I do think that having a 0.2 mm needle may have been making it more difficult for you as that might struggle with larger pigment particles.
Proper candid video with errors and issues for future novice airbrush users to look out for when working on their own projects- and I think the end result of that terminator looks awesome! Nice one Pat!
Total recognition! , i kind of came over the scary hurdle after painting alot of necromunda terrain and got the feel of the airbrush and tested around alot, but since im a teflon brain and can´t remember diddely squat i took the effort to write down succesfull paint recipes in a noteblock so maybe information will stick someday
I've found the best thing to do with that liquitex ink is a varnish coat on top before going over it with anything after leaving the ink overnight to 'cure'. I've absolutely had similar-ish reactivation dramas, but since adding in a varnish step and leaving lots of time between steps that's gone away
One of the best tips I've gotten for airbrushing, esp as someone who is pretty new to it and not very experienced with thinning paints, is to buy a shower tile and prime it. Try your mix, make it thicker or thinner as needed, try again, etc etc until its right. Then, because its tile, when it gets overloaded with paint you can just rag + acetone and its like new! It was also super helpful to do this so I could practice and get used to trigger control, the size of the spray, how far I should be from the mini, etc.
Great video, and I really love the result you got. I find airbrushing a little intimidating as well, but I am glad you showed us what you learned. Each time I pick up my airbrush, it is a learning experience for me and I glean just a little more experience I can use later.
Should be very proud of your final mini sir, very well done, and like you say practice makes perfect, and you can tell from the progress you made you learned a lot. Chin up lad!
Hi Pat, great video! I would imagine there’s a lot of folks who are intimidated by airbrushes: very good of you to share your experiences. And, of course, the video quality is exceptional 👍
You seem stressed. Thank you for showing your failure. I fail often too, it's validating to see. I've never used an airbrush and this is making me think of learning
The problem you faced in 10:40 that the paint melt while you using decal I also met it too, i think that because i add too much Flow Improver in my airbrush. Hope it can help anybody who have same problems.
I use a no name airbrush it's my first airbrush and I've only had to replace nozzle once , I think the key to learning how to use an airbrush is cleaning, different paints react differently so how well we prepare them for airbrushing can change, playing with the cheaper paints can be hit and miss , I find the more costly paints more predictable. Good video Patrick I think it's good to highlight some of the issues we all face at one point or another
This has been great, some of the same issues I've found... It's nice to know that airbrushing isn't the silver bullet without putting the effort in. Keep up the good work!
It was great to meet you and the crew at LVO! I hope to see you guys again in Las Vegas. I enjoyed the conversations and learned a lot in the drybrushing/OSL class. I think there's some parallels between using airbrushes and using my Artis Opus drybrushes. The fear of ruining the tools or the model is more of an obstacle than lack of skill in using them. I found that my fear of the tools was unfounded and you just need to get in there and use them. I'm still not great with my airbrush but I've learned a few things, mostly through mistakes and learning to fix them. I've found when using inks that it can help to mix in some airbrush medium or other type of acrylic medium, even varnish. Otherwise they can reactivate when they get wet. The added medium helps to lock in the layer.
I have been working on my airbrushing over the past year and i have learnt the importance of not rushing things, letting layers dry properly before going further (have stuffed many models up by just not waiting). As frustrating as I can find it when I just straight up make a mistake, I have gotten better at reminding myself, if the layers are thin enough, I can just paint over and if it is too bad, a quick bath in some stripper can start over again.
Great Video. You're doing very well in your journey. One suggestion would be to make your paint to thinner mixes outside the airbrush where you can learn what a good mix looks like before putting it in.
Great video! Airbrushing is definitely a nuanced skill to learn and takes some persistence. Vince Venturella did a beginner airbrush video covering the basics which completely fixed airbrushing for me. I have a fraction of the clogging issues now using his methods for cleaning, thinning and trigger control. (And buy one of those tattoo water bottles with the bendy nozzle, it works wonders.)
I just got the harder and steenbeck ultra. Priming, Vallejo metal I love using, but I try to use thunder hawk blue. Either I make it like water and flood the model or I don't use enough and nothing comes out. Feel like hopping it off the wall
Great video. Been working with my airbrush for two years and she can be a cruel mistress. Multiple failures and stripped miniatures has kept our love/hate relationship alive. Keep making more relatable content like this for us average hobby masses.
That turned out really well. And I'm not just being kind here. It's nerve wracking to make mistakes over a nicely airbrushed armor, especially the black over spilling to the yellow. So did the pink followed by Imperial Fist contrast fix those mistakes completely or is it still noticeable close up?
Head to squarespace.com/thepaintingphase to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code THEPAINTINGPHASE
Piggybacking off this to give you my top tip for preventing 90% of (my) stoppages: an old toothbrush head mounted within easy reach when airbrushing. I've glued mine to the holder I use for my brush. I have the bristles pointing straight up, and then I dribble a little water or alcohol on. Whenever I feel a clog/dried tip starting, i just rub the airbrush through the toothbrush. Sometimes I do it preventatively as well, sort of like rinsing a regular brush. Having the toothbrush head glued in place makes it incredibly easy to do, and I don't even have to empty out the airbrush cup first.
It obviously won't do anything for issues inside the airbrush, but it has solved almost all my issues during regular use. I hope my explanation makes sense, it felt awkward without showing pictures.
A normal video for a normal level painter. Good stuff, thanks for keeping the mistakes in. More of this painters journey stuff please. Will help ease everyone’s journey down that hobby trumpet and hopefully prevent anyone from getting stuck in it never to return. I to the warp of the hobby trumpet. Do you want to live forever?
It's good to know you're not the only one with such problems. I definitely can relate, been there done that and more (like setting too high PSI to basically tear off previous layers of paint).
100% I used to love when old white dwarfs showed armies that weren't eavy metal and you could see normal armies
Its very refreshing watching a video of someone showing their trial and error with airbrushing. I have had an airbrush that my wife got me for Christmas for over a year and have never used it because I am (like you) intimidated by the tool. Thanks for giving me some confidence to just go for it and see what happens no matter the results!
Try not to start with your paint in the pot first. It's good practice to go thinners/flow improvers first. Run them through for one or two small bursts and then add paints. This essentially lubes your needle a bit prior to spraying your paint. Makes cleaning easier too.
FWIW for stoppages, I saw a great tip on Airbrush Asylum, which is (for a dual action airbrush) to keep the airbrush air on at all times rather than doing short bursts. Short bursts makes it more likely to clog because when you cut off the air suddenly whatever paint is going through the mechanism dries half way out, so you're looking to reduce the number of times you cut off the airflow in a painting session
Well short bursts causing stoppages is dependent on the pressure your using and how thin the paint is.
Facts.
There are different ways to avoid this, Vince says to avoid blowing air through the airbrush unless there is also coming paint out because the airflow will dry any paint left on the needle. It has served me well, and I don´t have a lot of clogs, and a quetip on hand with airbrush cleaner on it to wipe the needle makes them even less frustrating.
Leaving the air on all the time made me enjoy air brushing
The main thing is to keep it on until after the paint has stopped. So if you continue painting it goes on full blast. If you stop just make sure that the paint is out before stopping the airflow. It takes some getting used to.
Love this. Not enough creators show the stress you go through learning all of this stuff. End result was cracking too. Lovely job.
Also, what are you using at 15:12...? Leaves a really nice after effect!
Dust effects by AK
2:35 Sadly this can be a problem with a lot of things in life. Not just airbrushes. I think the terminator came out really nice. Well done!
It does just get in the way right??
Cult of Painting Phase collab? Get Henry up here for a well spoken gentlemen painter stream.
We have him in our sights. If he doesn’t duck and weave, he’ll be ours!
Most painting tutorial channels are showing only their quality work/skills. Its wonderful to see someone fail. Failure is the only way to improve and its so so much more valuable to novices just learning how to paint. Kudos to you sir.
BIG THANKS for a very real video - constantly toying with the idea of getting an air brush - still scared. Brilliant.
Varnishes are normally like an acrylic base resin and they take a long time to harden properly, it's not the microsol melting your paint but probably the varnish when it was still soft. Hope that helps in future :)
I've had issues with liquitex inks and varnishes reactivate AK paints specifically. I think his primer is AK.
Primer is ak, yes. I'd like to try again and leave the varnish to harden overnight and see if that helps.
@@thepaintingphase inks tend to be fairly fragile, and i absolutely always regret rushing the ink>varnish>decal process. microsol is also acidic, and it will do a number on acrylic paint if it's not properly cured and you disturb it
I've had this issue as well, LOVE my AK paints but occasionally they turn into like a sticky/stringy goo when I do anything on top of them.@@lukeeaton2364
@matthewmacdougall3198 Absolutely agree. Microsol is totally unnecessary anyway. Just float decals in warm water with a TINY drop of Fairy Liquid. I do this in a shot glass. Themightybrush taught me this method, it's never gone wrong for me.
Thanks for sharing your experiences with airbrushing. I've recently got into mini painting and also jumped on with an airbrush and this is more in line with my own experiences than a lot of the other tutorials online. Sharing your frustrations is an affirmation that mistakes happen but to keep pressing on and trying new things.
I have to say, with all the frustration you are talking about, the finished mini looks absolutely stellar.
Thanks!
Well done Pat. It's very brave to film yourself doing the most important bit of the hobby that no one talks about - by which I mean failing better. It's something that not even the "big boys" have the stones to do and it's really refreshing.
Plus the end result was absolutely banging. I hope you were pleased enough to keep on going because a squad just like that would look fantastic.
Airbrushing is significantly more difficult than a lot of hobby youtubers seem to suggest so thanks for making this. The end result was great and I'd love to see future attempts.
The algorithm recommended this video to me. The fact that you showed where you stumbled and had issues made me subscribe.
It shows you are a normal human, unlike the "pro painters" who only show their best work in videos.
There's no true failure in mini painting. You either nail it 100% (which is never the case even if you're Richard Gray) or you learn and grow. Every mini painted is progress which can sometimes feel infinitesimal but progress nonetheless!
Thank you for this video. There are so many videos talking about how easy airbrushing is and it is just nice to see someone go though the problems they went through as a newbie to airbrushing. I learnt a lot and cheers.
As someone who bought himself a handheld air brush over Christmas and still hasn't worked up the courage to use it, I really appreciate an honest trial-and-error look at airbrushing. You've motivated me to bite the bullet and give it a go!
Go for it. You’re not going to break it and any mistakes can be fixed with a little bath in rubbing alcohol.
I was wincing abit when you started this video but was super stoked to see you finally achieve a super sweet looking miniature instead of giving up. I would encourage you to turn to resources like Vince Venturella for best practices regarding airbrushing. A few tweaks to the way you load your cup, maximum duration of paint in cup dwell time, and quick rinse practices will basically resolve 99% of the issues you had in this video. Glad to see you guys branching out!!
I'll take a look! Thanks for the tips!
@@thepaintingphaseVince has a couple excellent videos on airbrushing. I use his formula for thinner/flow improver and use similar ratios and very rarely get any clogging. I'm using a H&S Evolution.
@@thepaintingphase Strongly recommend Vince's video on quickly cleaning an airbrush, it made my workflow so much better and I really enjoy airbrushing now:)
Marco frisoni also has some brilliant videos about airbrushing, especially for inks/thin paints (air on the entire time, short bursts of paint) - I think they would help you a lot!
Vince‘s Videos made me not stressing out, when trying to airbrush. It is a lot more enjoyable and also faster process 👍
The airbrush is a fickle mistress and becomes more fickle the smaller the needle you use. Still you got a great result in the end!
Good on you for sticking with it! It really is worth the time investment to learn. The model turned out excellent!
I'm quite experienced with the airbrush, and I can point out exactly where some of your problems were:
1) You need to thin almost everything you put through your airbrush, including inks, even though they feel thinner. Especially white. White pigment has a tendency to gum up. Thin your airbrush paints in a little container outside of the bowl so you can test the consistency before putting them through the airbrush. I go for milk consistency most of the time. There are these wonderful little metal, reusable mixing saucers that are perfect for this I got on Amazon. Also, thinner whites also go on smoother. If you mix in a little gloss medium and airbrush flow improver (which is basically retarder, not the same as airbrush thinner), then your white will be less chalky and more durable.
2) Keeping the airflow going while being gentle on the trigger is the way to go. I still keep the PSI around 30-40. You can do that without causing spider webbing as long as you build up the layers slowly and are gentle on the trigger.
3) Paints take longer to fully cure than you think, especially white ink, which should be dried over night. Applying a transfer straight away will wreck them. The issue is more visible with an airbrush because the layers are thinner. When using white ink and over airbrush layers, before I do any techniques that will stress the surface of the model, like decals or drybrushing, I wait an hour, gloss varnish (which you should also thin), then wait overnight and work on other stuff in the meantime.
In short, the adage "thin your paints" applies double with the airbrush.
Still a noob myself, I've found that if you aren't consistent with it, you tend to forget a lot of the little things you've learned along the way. Things like thinning the paint, air pressure, etc. I end up having to relearn between sessions. But then I'm old and forget easily. Great vid on the topic!
Really interesting video, nice to see a learning process and things going wrong rather than just flawless pros that I couldn't emulate anyway!
I’d like to thank you for posting a video that shares this hobby in a light of realty for a refreshing change. As much as I love to see the pros knocking out a beautiful paint job and making everything look so simple if you just follow their advice - witnessing your struggles (while I’m sure was difficult for you to experience and took courage to share - because you really didn’t have to 🙃) really made me feel like I wasn’t the only one who get apprehensive when trying a new technique. A long way to get to - thanks! Great video.
A very kind comment, thanks so much.
Having just got an airbrush I'm so thankful you put out this video!
As far as stoppages, I would say thinning is even more important for the airbrush than in hand painting. Especially with how thin and quick drying the airbrushed layers are, I've found I can build up smooth layers without having to stop to unclog the nozzle and still batch paint faster than I would going by hand. Keep at it, you'll get there!
When mixing your paints, add the thinner first. It helps stop blockages because there isn’t thick paint at the front. It also helps mix the paint with the thinner better.
Thanks for the video and leaving all that went wrong in it, it's refreshing to see its not plain sailing explaining what went wrong and how you went about fixing it. I think it's time to try out my airbrush again. Love the way the armour turned out in the end
I bought everything for airbrushing and got so sad after trying the first time. And the second, third and fourth time. But when it clicked, it felt so good and you always learn. I’m quite comfortable with the airbrush now but i still make mistakes and i learn new things. Trying new paints with different viscosities and how to get white not to clog is an ongoing thing.
Keep up the good work and you will ”master” it in no time at all.
This mirrored my experience pretty closely. I guess I take it for granted now that I don't get clogs and stoppages. Mostly just due to familiarity.
Like all tools, proficiency grows with use. These steps forward on your airbrush journey will be priceless the next time you pick it up
Just compare that final version of the Imperial Fist to the iron Warriors you did a year or so ago, and you will see how different the quality of the finished product is. You can be truly proud of the amount of growth you (and your beard) have gone through in the last year!
I love this video! I’ve been struggling with very much the same (and a bunch of other) issues with my airbrushing and fixing my own slippages afterwards and it’s so educational and encouraging to see how you are overcoming them. Thank you for sharing your experiences!
Dude. That came out really nice. Must be encouraging. You pushed through the hard bit. Just mix everything to the consistency of Liquitex ink and you're good.
This video has restored my hope in my ability to learn. I have all these some frustrations so it is nice to know I'm not alone.
You can do it!
It was really refreshing to see someone learning a new process and having struggles while you ironed out how to get it working, or figuring out what works for you. That much more resembles my modelling and painting journey then so many of the other tutorials I see online.
And the mini turned out great so your struggles definitely paid off. Kudos!
Thank you for this video. An honest view of the first airbrushing attempts helps a lot!
Now I can say 'I' am not scared of airbrushing - I am part of a community, and 'we' are all scared together :)
Great video. Really enjoy seeing someone experiment and troubleshoot issues like this and seeing the finished mini was so satisfying
As it looks like the blockages are forming due to paint drying at the tip of the needle, it could of course be a thinning issue, but one thing which is often overlooked is the need to lube the needle. One drop of lube, rubbed all over the shaft should be enough to prevent this and let the liquid spray out much more smoothly!
(In all seriousness though, get a tube of airbrush lubricant for a few £, apply a very thin coat of it over the needle and it should help to avoid this type of blockage).
I enjoyed reading all of this comment, thank you for the advice!
This is the most relatable video I've seen on this! One day I'll get it right, but glad to know it's not just me!
This was really good to see a real warts and all. It has let me learn that I am not the only one. It really is practice makes perfect thank you
Appreciate the honesty of this video. Its encouraging to see other people struggle and recognise that practice is what builds skill. The final paint job looked great, despite the initial set backs
That is a airbrush quality question, the better the brush the better the atomization of the paint is, in my opinion nothing beats harder&steenbeck brushes on that, but just keep going with the airbrush and you will get the feel for what youre doing wrong when things go wrong.
The paint must be totaly cured before you use the decal solutions on it or it will reactivate the paints. And its fun that you guys credit Darren latham for the sponge in the tube thing, that is actully a tool thats been sold for years and years in the scale model communety, even greenstuffworld has its own once
We credit Darren as that’s where we seen it for the first time.
@@thepaintingphase yeh he does have a lot of pepole following him and he uses the DIY once in a few clips, so i do understand why you think it was something he invented🙂. Was a fun video, i like that its more airbrush work in videos these days, its a great tool to use, Just keep going with it and in a couple of years youll have great control and understanding of it
Thank you for letting us see your struggles. It's very heartening for us new painters. :)
This was a great video by the way. Few show the mistakes and the struggles. It’s a process. Everyone has these issues. Great job
I recently treated myself to an airbrush and have found the learning experience to be very fulfilling, difficult but fulfilling. I am far from great(or even good) at using it, but I am not over thinning or clogging the airbrush every time anymore!
One thing that I hear a lot about airbrushing(was even brought it up in this video) is that people find it to be annoying to set up, prep and clean. I personally haven't found it to be any better or worse than brush painting in that regard because I don't have a permanent set up for painting at all so I have to get out my paints and set up to paint every time as it is.
Where can I find more info on the brush sleeve method at 14:35
Lovely vibrant colours. If youre a noob it really isnt obvious. Im only a few months into using my airbrush and certainly agree, practice maked perfect! Well done and thanks!
Thank you, just bought my first airbrush and assumed I was doing everything wrong. Looks like I need to spend time experimenting.
Got an airbrush for Christmas 2 years ago. Have been intimidated to try it because of all the potential problems. This give me the confidence to just GO FOR IT, MAN!
I think I’ve been painting long enough that I’d like to try airbrushing. Just seems like so much work to set up and use and clean and put away.
That finished result looks AWESOME
Some of these brushes still need cleaning 😂
One of the most realistic vids of what airbrushing is really like , I had some of the same problems . It is a case of practice , practice and more practice, all of a sudden it will click and you will think what was all the fuss about ( hint it was the practice) .
Keep up the great work TPP :)
Thanks for sharing your real experience. Give far more of an idea of what to expect
I was gifted an airbrush for Christmas three years ago, and I've barely used it because it is scary and new. I definitely relate with the anxiety in this video.
Mini looks awesome! Good work and such a good message. You can't just expect to bust out an airbrush and immediately be awesome at it.
I was sitting here at about 75% through and thinking, man this is rough. Then I watched you finish it and the result was amazing! You did great man!
Thanks! Certainly comes together at the end... With the aid of grime and weathering.
Waiting for my first airbrush, Ultra 2024 right now. I’m extremely excited to add it to my toolkit. Can’t wait to make mistakes and learn.
Respect that you put out a video that's mostly about failing. Very relatable. I haven't tried airbrushing but I've definitely been there with other aspects of the hobby
This was a great video, it was very refreshing to see someone being honest and not just making the whole process look effortless. Thank you
Appreciate how honest this was. I found the airbrush a very difficult tool to learn. When it works its amazing, when it doesn't it's disastrous
This was a wonderful video. I feel like i got the complete hobby jounrey there and the miniature still came out looking great in the end! The sponge in the brush sleeve was new to me as well.
Great video. I really need to try Streaking Grime. I need to watch more of your videos, but I do listen to you guys every day on Spotify when driving to work. Keep it up!
Thank you for making this video. It is helpful seeing the mistakes and learning process as well
I think you’ve made an awesome airbrushing video that shows an honest journey on where we all begin. Too many airbrushing tutorials are usually just ”do this and get good”. You have to invest a lot of time to learn anything new and it will be messy, but I find so many tutorials gloss over the very early challenges when starting out airbrushing. This vid I found very reassuring and has inspired me to pick up my airbrush again. Like you say, just got to keep trying! Cheers dude 💪
Two really good good quotes that apply here:
“Sucking at something is the first step towards being kinda good at something.”
and
“The greatest teacher, failure is.”
Look how much progress you made in 48 hours! Keep banging away at it. I’m just starting my airbrush journey myself and I’m working hard to embrace failures and setbacks as integral parts of the process. You got this, man.
Good video, lots of learning experiences.
I have an orange marine army, so I've gone through everything you have. I like flat paint jobs, so the airbrush helped me through doing an orange army, which is nigh on impossible with a brush.
Your finished result looks amazing, what a learning experience for us all. Thank you.
The mini looked great and I learned something from your experience so I’d say it’s a win all away around
At last, someone on TH-cam going through the same pain I did!!! It’s refreshing to see not everyone is an instant airbrush god. I feel much better about myself now 👍
Best airbrush video I’ve ever seen!!! YOWIE WOWIE! Finally seeing someone have an experience similar to mine. I feel like any time you see an airbrush video for beginners they are airbrushing their version of the Mona Lisa in 20 minutes. Thank you for this! Great stuff great advice!
The model looks great Pat - its all just a case of practice! As you said huge improvements from the first attempt and you've learned a ton!
As someone who has been in the hobby for 30+ years, iv'e also had the fear of using an airbrush. This video was a great honest introduction, without giving a hard sell. So well done. Still on the fence over it but no longer have the fear, just not sure it's for me. Kudos Pat, loving this content.
Holy Terra that Terminator came out looking fantastic in the end, great work! Virtual *hugs* on your trials with the airbrush. We've all been there. It just takes practice and learning what works. The results speak for themselves once you figure it all out though. It just take trial and error.
This is such a refreshing video to see and so valuable for people not to feel like airbrushing is instant cheating. Your approach to testing up different combos and not giving up is great. I don't see failures. I see a progression of practice and trial and error.
I do think that having a 0.2 mm needle may have been making it more difficult for you as that might struggle with larger pigment particles.
Thank you for the very wholesome video of your experience.
You are very welcome
THANK YOU. I've been going through this exact process with fists this week. With the basecoating you can definitely crank up that PSI though.
Proper candid video with errors and issues for future novice airbrush users to look out for when working on their own projects- and I think the end result of that terminator looks awesome! Nice one Pat!
Total recognition! , i kind of came over the scary hurdle after painting alot of necromunda terrain and got the feel of the airbrush and tested around alot, but since im a teflon brain and can´t remember diddely squat i took the effort to write down succesfull paint recipes in a noteblock so maybe information will stick someday
For Dorn! Love this video and the demonstration of learning from mistakes. I'm now motivated to paint some Imperial Fists again.
I've found the best thing to do with that liquitex ink is a varnish coat on top before going over it with anything after leaving the ink overnight to 'cure'. I've absolutely had similar-ish reactivation dramas, but since adding in a varnish step and leaving lots of time between steps that's gone away
Great to know! A friend also suggested the same thing too.
One of the best tips I've gotten for airbrushing, esp as someone who is pretty new to it and not very experienced with thinning paints, is to buy a shower tile and prime it. Try your mix, make it thicker or thinner as needed, try again, etc etc until its right. Then, because its tile, when it gets overloaded with paint you can just rag + acetone and its like new!
It was also super helpful to do this so I could practice and get used to trigger control, the size of the spray, how far I should be from the mini, etc.
Great video, and I really love the result you got. I find airbrushing a little intimidating as well, but I am glad you showed us what you learned. Each time I pick up my airbrush, it is a learning experience for me and I glean just a little more experience I can use later.
Should be very proud of your final mini sir, very well done, and like you say practice makes perfect, and you can tell from the progress you made you learned a lot. Chin up lad!
It looks amazing mate ! You improved quite a lot and made a super interesting video out of it ! I think that's quite the achievement well done :)
Hi Pat, great video! I would imagine there’s a lot of folks who are intimidated by airbrushes: very good of you to share your experiences. And, of course, the video quality is exceptional 👍
You seem stressed. Thank you for showing your failure. I fail often too, it's validating to see. I've never used an airbrush and this is making me think of learning
The problem you faced in 10:40 that the paint melt while you using decal I also met it too, i think that because i add too much Flow Improver in my airbrush. Hope it can help anybody who have same problems.
Awesome video. Appreciated meeting you and Geoff in Vegas. Fun trading old cross the pond Army stories with him.
I use a no name airbrush it's my first airbrush and I've only had to replace nozzle once , I think the key to learning how to use an airbrush is cleaning, different paints react differently so how well we prepare them for airbrushing can change, playing with the cheaper paints can be hit and miss , I find the more costly paints more predictable. Good video Patrick I think it's good to highlight some of the issues we all face at one point or another
This has been great, some of the same issues I've found... It's nice to know that airbrushing isn't the silver bullet without putting the effort in. Keep up the good work!
It was great to meet you and the crew at LVO! I hope to see you guys again in Las Vegas. I enjoyed the conversations and learned a lot in the drybrushing/OSL class.
I think there's some parallels between using airbrushes and using my Artis Opus drybrushes. The fear of ruining the tools or the model is more of an obstacle than lack of skill in using them. I found that my fear of the tools was unfounded and you just need to get in there and use them.
I'm still not great with my airbrush but I've learned a few things, mostly through mistakes and learning to fix them. I've found when using inks that it can help to mix in some airbrush medium or other type of acrylic medium, even varnish. Otherwise they can reactivate when they get wet. The added medium helps to lock in the layer.
I have been working on my airbrushing over the past year and i have learnt the importance of not rushing things, letting layers dry properly before going further (have stuffed many models up by just not waiting).
As frustrating as I can find it when I just straight up make a mistake, I have gotten better at reminding myself, if the layers are thin enough, I can just paint over and if it is too bad, a quick bath in some stripper can start over again.
Great Video. You're doing very well in your journey. One suggestion would be to make your paint to thinner mixes outside the airbrush where you can learn what a good mix looks like before putting it in.
Pat you are an unsung hero of the hobby and i love you like a son. Thanks for being a top top bloke.
Mate, that looks FANTASTIC! Well done!
Great video! Airbrushing is definitely a nuanced skill to learn and takes some persistence.
Vince Venturella did a beginner airbrush video covering the basics which completely fixed airbrushing for me. I have a fraction of the clogging issues now using his methods for cleaning, thinning and trigger control. (And buy one of those tattoo water bottles with the bendy nozzle, it works wonders.)
I love the beauty shots. Very stylish. Also Harder & Steenbeck Infinity has a trigger tensioner
I just got the harder and steenbeck ultra. Priming, Vallejo metal I love using, but I try to use thunder hawk blue. Either I make it like water and flood the model or I don't use enough and nothing comes out. Feel like hopping it off the wall
Great video. Been working with my airbrush for two years and she can be a cruel mistress. Multiple failures and stripped miniatures has kept our love/hate relationship alive. Keep making more relatable content like this for us average hobby masses.
That turned out really well. And I'm not just being kind here. It's nerve wracking to make mistakes over a nicely airbrushed armor, especially the black over spilling to the yellow. So did the pink followed by Imperial Fist contrast fix those mistakes completely or is it still noticeable close up?