Airbrushing enclosures?

iamjackslackof

Well-known member
Hi all,

Has anyone tried/know anything about using those little airbrush gun things, like you'd use for models? Given my living arrangements and the weather, rattle cans are out of the picture. But I was wondering if an little airbrushing setup might be workable in my garage, in terms of temperature and ventilation. I've never seen it mentioned in a pedal context, and I imagine it would be common it if worked well, but maybe not.

I've not looked into it much yet, but I think they tend to use enamel paints? Not sure if acrylic would be an option/preferable.

The main use I'm thinking is just doing clear coats, but I could expand into stencils or other stuff I guess.

Thanks!
 
Yes, it would work better than rattle cans but probably be a little more work with cleanup. Plus you wouldn't waste as much paint. You could even buy small kits of 2K clear for a very hard and durable clear coat. Ventilation is key though.. lacquers, 2ks and enamels are nasty.
 
Hi all,

Has anyone tried/know anything about using those little airbrush gun things, like you'd use for models? Given my living arrangements and the weather, rattle cans are out of the picture. But I was wondering if an little airbrushing setup might be workable in my garage, in terms of temperature and ventilation. I've never seen it mentioned in a pedal context, and I imagine it would be common it if worked well, but maybe not.

I've not looked into it much yet, but I think they tend to use enamel paints? Not sure if acrylic would be an option/preferable.

The main use I'm thinking is just doing clear coats, but I could expand into stencils or other stuff I guess.

Thanks!
It's very hard to do any painting when there is cold weather. The amount of ventilation required to prevent intoxication will negate any heating equipment other than a very close VERY hot very expensive heater - and don't forget - this stuff can EXPLODE if it gets too concentrated and that warm heater is next to it. And it has to be warm or it won't dry.

I'm in very mild Southern California where rain is usually only a day or two problem, but I don't do any painting in a garage ever - always outside on a windless day.

Air brush is just a delivery system using compressed air instead of volatile substances, there's still going to be a tremendous amount of toxic solvents released from the paint, even a low VOC.

Nay say I! Wait for the warm dry day, rattle that can but don't paint in the sunshine, or your paint will bubble. So: Hot, Dry, No direct sunshine, Plenty of ventillation, Windless day AND wear a proper respirator. Paint fumes FRY BRAIN CELLS, you don't want ANY of that stuff in your lungs/brain.



This is what I use:
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Airbrushes can spray up to about 1 inch wide, if you have a very thin (almost water thin) paint. By the time you get to whole milk, it’s down to about half an inch. You’d want a small detail gun, which could handle an enclosure really well.

But, and I mainly have experience with lacquers (solvent based, not water borne), @RetiredUnit1 is correct in his caution. You need some sort of active filtration (basically a small booth with an exterior vent) if you want to spray paint indoors. Even with waterborne, low VOC, and a good organic vapor mask, it’s dangerous.

And, as expensive as rattle cans are, buying quarts of lacquer or enamel will really cost a lot. Most of the color coats we paint are over $100 a quart, (many pearls are over $200j, and you have thinners, reducers, etc., on top of that. Primers and clear coats are less, but still, I’d think you’d spend at least $500 getting a very basic set of paints. If you know you’re not going to ever stomp on your pedals, you could use a thinned down acrylic art paint, but it’s is very soft, and fragile.
 
Thanks @Alan W . That puts the nail in the coffin for it, I'd say. I'm glad I didn't rush out and spend a bunch on a gun and paint. I really just need to bite the bullet and get Tayda UV printing going.
 
Thanks for this! I might have to give this a try.
Watch this guy paint.. He get's good, quick coverage with a tiny bottle of Testors. Inside his home office
 
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Does a spray booth like in these videos need to vent to the outdoors, or is the filtering sufficient? I'm guessing it needs to be outside.
 
Does a spray booth like in these videos need to vent to the outdoors, or is the filtering sufficient? I'm guessing it needs to be outside.
Yeah, it needs to vent outside, though, there is some vids where guys vent it to a 5 gallon bucket with some filtering inside it. Mine is in my home office right next to a window so I can vent right out the window. Some guys have a hole in the wall like where a dryer vent goes and hook up to that.
 
This is something I know a few things about. I can put together a video for Monday the 12th if you all would like of my set up but here is the skinny quickly.

I live in the frozen hellscape that is central Wisconsin, so that leaves me with little options for using rattle can between October and May. I haven't found an exact brand of primers that work great out of an airbrush so lately I prime about 25 enclosures before winter happens that way I can use the airbrush for the top coats.

I use a standard air compressor that I picked up from harbor frieght that also powers my impact and air nailers for the wood working i do and use a set down valve to get the air flow dialed in. Using a Iwata Eclipse HP-CS and spraying around 25 psi, with a respirator (like the one @RetiredUnit1 showed) I will blast varies acrylics and enamels onto the primed enclosures aiming towards a small fan that is on high that blows into furnace filters. This collects about 75% of the excess and minimizes the smell of enamels. I allow the painted enclosures a day or so to dry and then will use a clear coat depending on the paint used and effect i am looking for. This varies between a rattle can for gloss enamel and flat acrylic to airbrushing an acrylic gloss type finish.

I went into the whole airbrushing thing the exact way you did, knowing little and just experimenting the whole way. With using an airbrush it is a practice of patience and paint thinning to get a good look and lots of trial and error. I can't count how many enclosures get fully done only to have me not like something and wash it all off with acetone and start over.
 
This is something I know a few things about. I can put together a video for Monday the 12th if you all would like of my set up but here is the skinny quickly.

I live in the frozen hellscape that is central Wisconsin, so that leaves me with little options for using rattle can between October and May. I haven't found an exact brand of primers that work great out of an airbrush so lately I prime about 25 enclosures before winter happens that way I can use the airbrush for the top coats.

I use a standard air compressor that I picked up from harbor frieght that also powers my impact and air nailers for the wood working i do and use a set down valve to get the air flow dialed in. Using a Iwata Eclipse HP-CS and spraying around 25 psi, with a respirator (like the one @RetiredUnit1 showed) I will blast varies acrylics and enamels onto the primed enclosures aiming towards a small fan that is on high that blows into furnace filters. This collects about 75% of the excess and minimizes the smell of enamels. I allow the painted enclosures a day or so to dry and then will use a clear coat depending on the paint used and effect i am looking for. This varies between a rattle can for gloss enamel and flat acrylic to airbrushing an acrylic gloss type finish.

I went into the whole airbrushing thing the exact way you did, knowing little and just experimenting the whole way. With using an airbrush it is a practice of patience and paint thinning to get a good look and lots of trial and error. I can't count how many enclosures get fully done only to have me not like something and wash it all off with acetone and start over.
Important to note, some air compressors are lubricated with an oil sump. These are *bad* for painting (or for blowing the dusty crap out of a PC or keyboard). Permanently lubricated ball bearing air compressors are what is preferable, otherwise you need line filters and hoses that have never been used without a line filter.

I have a GMC compressor I bought because it is very quiet, only about 60 db. They didn't make these very long, or should I say "import" them for very long.... the newer model is larger and louder.


I have a lot of allergies, one of them is to the smell of paint. Impossible for me to even consider painting inside, I have a really hard problem with even house paint. Which I have to do next summer when I can leave the windows open!!
 
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