First airbrushed body and thoughts for noobs

[Mortimer Snerd]

Finally got out the new airbrush. This is only the third or fourth body I've painted in 20ish years of R/C and the first with an airbrush. It isn't perfect, as I had some problems with bleeding and cobwebbing, but I'm really happy with it overall. The body is all paint, and I don't plan on adding any decals despite some small smears and errors. You can't really see it in this pic, but I was able to get a really good wood plank effect in the bed. I'd love feedback, suggestions, etc. I learned some things I've listed below for anyone else starting out:

1. I love my respirator. This was painted with a combination of Createx and Pactra lacquers. I was surprised at how much the respirator kept out, and how strongly the Pactra smelled when I took it off. I'm glad I kept all that out of my lungs.

2. Thinning is your friend. The lacquers cobwebbed badly, but sprayed beautifully after being thinned 1:1. The Createx went on thick, and I had problems getting the masking off cleanly because of it. I'll thin it quite a bit on the next body I paint.

3. Shot glasses make great reuseable mixing cups.

4. Mix more paint than you think you need. I custom mixed the olive drab paint, and had to make more than one batch. The result was a subtle mottling in the color. It works really well on this body, but wouldn't look right on a more modern body.

5. A secondary regulator is a great tool. I installed one on my workbench with a water trap partway through this project. It made a big difference in the accuracy of my pressure settings and how convenient it was to change pressures.

6. Low pressure is your friend. This allows more fine detail and better control. I was surprised at the difference. More thinner, less pressure is the painting version of JRH's gear down, volt up mantra. Practice with 2 liter soda bottles to see what works for your style.

7. Clean often. All those little tiny holes in the brush clog quickly and can dramatically impact spraying performance.

I'm sure there is stuff I've forgotten and most of you probably already know all that. Thanks for looking!

[Jkelley]

Hey I think your body looks pretty good. I personally don't paint but it doesn't take much to pick out when someone is going to have the touch for paintin. Keep up the good work.....you'll be painting bodys for everyone before long.lol

[tk5028]

Looks good. Get a window fan that has exhaust option. It pulls the extra fumes out the window. I don't like Createx myself, I can never get it to atomize properly for a nice spray.

[Mortimer Snerd]

Thanks! I don't love the Createx, either, but got it to practice with because it is cheap. I've heard its the same paint as Faskolor, but who knows? Good idea on the fan. I've been wanting to put one up in my garage to help control temps anyway. Maybe I'll have to make that trip to Home Depot.

[Stormin2u]

The body came out very nice for your a first time with the air brush MS. Good observations as well not enough of that happening IMO.

[slegh]

this tread should be sticky'd