jagardn
Airbrush Acquisition Disorder Patient
I got my Olympos in the mail Saturday, after giving it a breakdown and initial prep, I figured I would give my thoughts on it.
I opted for the cheaper option with the simple packaging. It came well packed in multiple layers of bubble wrap to avoid damage during shipment. Each paint cup came in an individual zip top bag as well. Note that the quick disconnect did not come with the brush. I have a bunch of them because I just can't seem to stop myself from buying airbrushes.
My standard prep when I get any new brush is to strip it pretty much completely down and go over it with Denatured Alcohol to strip off any residue left over from the manufacturing process.
Since this airbrush is pretty much a dead ringer for an Iwata, I'll be comparing it to my HP-CH, not the Micron because it is in a different category.
Trigger Press(for Air) - Factory spring is a bit stiff for me, all of my other daily drivers have a soft press for air. My Micron has a Blair Soft Spring, HP-CH has the old Micron spring, and my H&S's have been adjusted to be similar to the Micron. To be fair, the HP-CH spring was too stiff for me from the factory as well. I ended up putting in the air valve spring from my Veda chinese knockoff, its now at an acceptable level for me.
Trigger Pull(for Paint) - Stiff as well, even all the way out on the adjustment, yet again, similar to my HP-CH which I took a spring out of a pen, per a suggestion from @AndreZA. The trigger itself is the round type similar to the V1 Micron, which I do like better than the stock Iwata. The assembly of this trigger rocker assembly is similar to the Micron also with a separate piece. I prefer the one piece assembly of the HP-CH just for an ease of maintenance thing, though I rarely take the trigger apart, so its not a big deal.
Needle - I did notice a bit of extra tip dry when using it out of the box, but as with all my brushes, some wet sanding and polishing fixed that problem. The needle was somewhat smoother than the HP-CH needle came from the factory.
Performance - I did find that this thing does require a bit more paint reduction than the HP-CH, but that's no surprise with a .2mm Nozzle. The brush is responsive and easy to control once the paint is dialed in, definitely a good detail brush.
Conclusion - with a price of $133.00 shipped then brush is an awesome bargain. I would have no issues with purchasing another Olympos brush. It will make it into my standard brush rotation for sure.
I would suggest an Olympos to someone looking or an Iwata in the HP Series, similar quality and performance but a lot cheaper. Being that the parts need to be ordered from Japan, I would suggest ordering a spare needle and nozzle at a minimum to avoid the extra freight charges later on.
I opted for the cheaper option with the simple packaging. It came well packed in multiple layers of bubble wrap to avoid damage during shipment. Each paint cup came in an individual zip top bag as well. Note that the quick disconnect did not come with the brush. I have a bunch of them because I just can't seem to stop myself from buying airbrushes.
My standard prep when I get any new brush is to strip it pretty much completely down and go over it with Denatured Alcohol to strip off any residue left over from the manufacturing process.
Since this airbrush is pretty much a dead ringer for an Iwata, I'll be comparing it to my HP-CH, not the Micron because it is in a different category.
Trigger Press(for Air) - Factory spring is a bit stiff for me, all of my other daily drivers have a soft press for air. My Micron has a Blair Soft Spring, HP-CH has the old Micron spring, and my H&S's have been adjusted to be similar to the Micron. To be fair, the HP-CH spring was too stiff for me from the factory as well. I ended up putting in the air valve spring from my Veda chinese knockoff, its now at an acceptable level for me.
Trigger Pull(for Paint) - Stiff as well, even all the way out on the adjustment, yet again, similar to my HP-CH which I took a spring out of a pen, per a suggestion from @AndreZA. The trigger itself is the round type similar to the V1 Micron, which I do like better than the stock Iwata. The assembly of this trigger rocker assembly is similar to the Micron also with a separate piece. I prefer the one piece assembly of the HP-CH just for an ease of maintenance thing, though I rarely take the trigger apart, so its not a big deal.
Needle - I did notice a bit of extra tip dry when using it out of the box, but as with all my brushes, some wet sanding and polishing fixed that problem. The needle was somewhat smoother than the HP-CH needle came from the factory.
Performance - I did find that this thing does require a bit more paint reduction than the HP-CH, but that's no surprise with a .2mm Nozzle. The brush is responsive and easy to control once the paint is dialed in, definitely a good detail brush.
Conclusion - with a price of $133.00 shipped then brush is an awesome bargain. I would have no issues with purchasing another Olympos brush. It will make it into my standard brush rotation for sure.
I would suggest an Olympos to someone looking or an Iwata in the HP Series, similar quality and performance but a lot cheaper. Being that the parts need to be ordered from Japan, I would suggest ordering a spare needle and nozzle at a minimum to avoid the extra freight charges later on.
