Airbrush Advice for the OCD impaired

musicmacd

The Createx Bandit
Hi guys, I'm very new to AB'ing but have fallen deeply in love with it, I always wanted to try this art when I was a wee boy but we had no money so it was a no go :(
Any how I bought a HP B+ and I'm really happy with it but I can't stop thinking that a custom micron would be better, would a more high end brush enable you to achieve more??? What could I expect from the CM C?
There is no way I can try one so I'm hoping for some real world experiences :)
Many thanks
Paul
 
I don't have years of practice with either but I do own both the HP-B+ and a CM-B.
Does one get better detail than the other ? Not in my inexperienced hands, NO. But given the HP-B+ is a .2mm needle and the CM-B is .18 I wasn't expecting a huge difference.
One thing I have noticed in the short time I've used the CM-B is that it seems more predictable at the trigger (where it released paint) and just generally smoother to use. If you're using it for a living I would think fatigue would be minimal

Practice lower pressure and greater reduction with the HP-B+ and you'll be amazed at the detail you can achieve
 
Thanks for the reply, thats was what I was wondering! I can get amazing detail with my brush but i wondered if smoother and more predicatble would be possible. As with most tools you get what you pay for, i just thought as im starting out am i better learning on HQ piece or maybe learning on my brush as its easy to clean ....oh the choices :)
 
Hello, I just recently got my micron cm-c and Its like others say, it will give you magical powers and you will be able to paint anything to perfection in minutes! Jk, I heard something similar somewhere on here and it made me chuckle cause thats kinda what I thought it would do for me.
I just got my micron so im not as experienced as others here, but I switched from an eclipse hp-cs and yeah its pretty good for illustration paintings.
Since your new to airbrushing, I recommend starting small then work your way up in terms of airbrushes.
I would recommend getting an eclipse so you can practice trigger control, or continue with your hp B.
Once you feel comfortable with airbrushing and know you can safely handle a $400 AB without dropping it etc, then get one.
When I first started airbrushing I would drop my airbrush alot and bend my needles. Or even leaving a airbrush on the stand is a mistake because someone else can bump it off the stand.

Going back to the micron cm-c, with comart paint its good for illustrations, Im still new at using it, so I don't even fully understand how to use it properly. I would rate my micron cm-c at a 8-10, I still make errors, and its not the perfect airbrush I thought it would be.
 
I would say stick with what you have for now. The desire to upgrade is a serious disease.

I dont own a micron, id love to try one sometime. But i can say a detail brush was the last thing i needed when starting out. I can pull better detail with my hpcs, than i could with half the nozzle size early on. Its not all about fine line capability either
 
Yes, learn well with what you have, you can then put those skills into a different beast a little later.
 
Sweet, i will fight the urge then. I am really happy with with my set up and have produced some amazing work in a very short time. I think im just one of them people that can start collecting :) i also appreciate quality too :)
 
My 2 cents worth is: learn the basics of this craft with the excellent brush you have.
Practice, learn, create and enjoy.
Don't buy into the war over what gun is best; just learn to do what you want with the tools you have.
A more expensive airbrush will not instantly turn you into the Pablo Picasso of the airbrush world, regardless of what the Micron owners profess.:thumbsup::thumbsup::)
 
I started off in the 1980's with an Aztek 3000 ( strange AB but it was ok at the time ) Then I didnt paint for a few years. When I brought my own house I started up again and I thought I would invest in a new AB. I managed to get a HP-B+ at a really good price. I can't fault it apart from when it blocks or whatever but that is usually the paint and not the AB. The HP-B+ will do you for a long time.
I didn't get my Micron until only 2 years ago. Only after using the CM-SB at one of Marissa Oosterlee's classes I thought "yep I am good enough to use one" so I got one. I can say its a wicked piece of kit but it was years until I took the plunge. If you want one bad enough, go get it. It is quality but not cheap. I don't think you would look back.

Lee
 
I watched a guy on the beach in Chicago blow paint through a straw with a T fitting onto a piece of plywood and that's when i realized that it isn't as much your equipment as your desire to master your tool. This was about 15 years ago. I never forgot that. His work was completely phenomenal. WITH A STRAW! I say master what you have.
 
Thanks for the genuine responses I would like to add also that I am under no illusion about making me a better artist or magical properties :)
I was more thinking of a smoother experience and since I have no XP I am open to suggestion, thats all.
Im balls deep into music production and if applied the same principle in that hobby a few hi end pieces does make a difference in the final result - even though you have to know how to achieve it. but even with that fact the better gear would give you more opportunity to create something 20% deeper that the standard gear.

I will stick with my set up and get deep with it, so much to learn anyway!! arghh that was another reason I posted this thread - Seems like muscle memory plays a big part of the art, and I did not want to retrain again with a new brush a year down the line. would that be the correct thinking or assuming???

THanks again
 
Muscle memory is muscle memory, the technique is basically the same, regardless of brand.
Think of the music production... You can do the exact same thing with lower end equipment. The technique is the same but the end result is different
The HP+ brush you have is not an entry level brush. do you NEED a CM ? Probably not at this stage. Do you want one - can you comfortable afford one if the answer is yes then go for it!
 
Most people will tell you the smaller the needle the less smooth your learning will be. Heck it took me longer to learn the nuances of making my paint flow well than it did to learn how to pull small lines straight.
 
Ohh and if learning on a different brush mattered some of our AAD patients wouldnt ever be able to paint. (Airbrush acquisition disorder).
I have it too. But i switched from buying brushes as much as bought a nice compressor, bought a vinyl cutter recenly etc. I keep eying new airbrushes and lusting as well. A few have been buying up olympos microns straight from japan and that has been really tempting!
 
I think my gearslutyness has just shifted :)
Doing an Ultron piece at the moment and im having no dramas at all!!! So i no idea why i want a more expensive brush other than sluty behavour, reading the replies makes me feel a little biy normal as im sure nearly everyone here has gone through this process.
I mean i wasn't sure about what paint to get so I bought some Game Air,etac,comart,creatix illustrator creatix air colours and trident oh and schminkie just so i could play around - OCD lol
 
Damn it my OCD got the better of me and I mow have Custom CM-C on its way from Melbourne :) :)
Brain wouldn't stop until the the itch was scratched......kind of new when I posted this thread that I was in a bad way :( !!!
 
Well back when I bought my first IWATA eclipse CS and after a lot of practice I too wondered just how much better the CM-C+ would be. Being I had read so much on the CM-C being different on the cup style and a little harder to clean .
So I ponied up and bought one. The CM-C+ is a great airbrush , Parts are costly so I do not recommend it to those who may not have the means to replace the entire head assembly in case you ever have threads break when putting it back together after a cleaning.Heavy handed friendly it is not LOL
But H&S Infinity is also a great detail brush. Krome is another and parts of either is a lot less then parts for the Micron.
Now I am not wanting to talk anyone out of buying a Iwata Micron, I am just given them food for thought prior to doing so.
If you have the budget to support anything and everything that might go wrong with one then buy it.
But it will not turn you into a fine detail artist over night. It will make doing fine lines a lot easier .
 
I'm really just hoping for a smoother feel, I can really small lines out of my current brush, I actually fact the needle will be bigger on custom!! The expense is defiantly something I shuddered at when I looked at the parts pricing. The problem I have is that when I get a bit transfix I can not get on with general life. I don't know if it a mental illness or just my personality, but when I got into photography (which I've been doing 15 years) it was balls and all, ZIess lenses and Canon L glass all the way - work hard save hard, Same for my music studio, Ended up with hand wired valve equipment and top of the line processors and yes they make a huge difference in the smile on my face :)
I hoping this brush will just do that - A big grinning head, Also hoping for a smaller amount of control or a more predictable amount, looking forward to having a bigger so i can mix paint as I go, I starting painting about 2 months ago and found that I love mixing colours, the B cup is a tad small for that really. If making finer lines is now easier then that is a bonus too, I will find out by the weekend and report on what a neebie perceives.
The other brushes you mentioned will more than likely end up in my bag as time goes on :) Seem that Iwata is the most popular in Oz from what I found on the on line stores, only 1 had badger and it was pricey.
Sorry for the lengthy post, but I just wanted to get my action across, and mostly that I'm not expecting the brush to make me a better artist, only time and practice can do that, If you look at my art I have posted all A4 you can see that I'm trying hard and have some ability considering I only bought a brush 2nhalf weeks ago, I think the excitement of actually pulling off pics that look good (to the untrained eye) has fuelled my thinking.
 
Back
Top