To add my personal two farthings to the pot. I have most of my brushes as side feed including my Micron V1. Mind you my Micron SB was had for $300 and upgraded with the V2 fluid nozzle and needle via the Procon 770 parts(DaveG has confirmed they are identical) and performs quite nicely. I also own and use an Eclipse SBS from the older 2 hole handle series and while the Eclipse will lay down some color, I would not use it for enamel or laquer gloss paints. For a car body (in miniature) I would use my Paasche VL as quite a few painters in the T shirt painting industry swear by them. Not to brag but, I was able to spray the old Polly S dirt style paint through my VL back in the 1980's and the vast consensus is that Polly S is not sprayable at all.I swear this brush could probably spray concrete!
What most of the posters are trying to say in their own ways is this, no 2 airbrushes are equal for the user at all. They each have the pluses and minuses but the trick is learning what they are and capitalizing on them in your day to day painting. Of the 17 airbrushes I own, I have intentional overlap in capability, that way I can always switch guns in a pinch without any downtime. I can always come back and deal with the problem when I am done.
To Illustrate, my collection is;
Iwata Micron V1 (with V@ parts)
DETAIL ONLY
Iwata Eclipse SBS
DETAIL AND BROADER APPLICATIONS
OLYMPUS SP-B (modded with PS770 parts making it a Micron)
DETAIL ONLY
OLYMPUS 100SB (modded with Iwata HP-SB parts to be a full on SB)
DETAILS AND SOME BROAD WORK
WOLD A-1/37 (modded with the regulator head from an A-2)
DETAIL ONLY BUT CAN DO SOME MID RANGE WORK
DEVILBIS AEROGRAPH 63E (modded with a DaveG needle tension spring to reduce the kick)
BEAUTIFUL ALL AROUND BRUSH LIKE AN ECLIPSE BUT FOR FINER WORK STILL AND WILL MATCH ANY HP-B OR HP-SB
DEVILBIS AEROGRAPH SUPER 93 (stock)
SAME AS THE SUPER 63E IN PERFORMANCE
PAASCHE VJR (set with a Fine needle and softer needle tension spring)
GREAT OLD SCHOOL DETAIL BRUSH ASK ALBERTO PONO!
PAASCHE V (set with medium needle and softer needle tension spring)
GREAT MID RANGE BRUSH THAT WILL DO FINE WORK WITHOUT FUSS
PAASCHE RAPTOR (modded with MOJO 3 trigger and airvalve and softer needle tension spring)
NICE ALL AROUND WITH DETAIL WORK POSSIBLE AND CLOSE TO THE ECLIPSE IN PERFORMANCE FOR $50US!
PAASCHE VL (kept at the ready with the #3 medium needle set up)
MY GO TO ON SPRAYING ENAMEL OR ACRYLIC GLOSS PAINTS
BINKS RAVEN 2 (fine needle but also have the medium)
NICE BRUSH AND CLOSE TO THE THAYER A IN PERFORMANCE WITH A RE-IMAGINED REGULATOR HEAD
THAYER & CHANDLER ELITE A (so nice it is left stock)
TERRIFIC GRAVITY BRUSH FOR DETAIL AND WEATHERING EFFECTS
SATAGRAPH 2 (really a Gabbert Triplex)
NICE WORKMAN'S STYLE BRUSH FOR MID RANGE WORK AND SOME DETAILS
HOLBIEN NEOHOHOMI SIDE FEED (stock)
EQUIVALENT TO AN ECLIPSE BUT BEARS NO COMMON PARTS TO ANY FUSO SEKI BRUSHES
BADGER RENEGADE SPIRIT SIDE FEED (SOTAR in a different body style)
ONCE MODDED WITH A BINKS SIDE FEED CUP AND A DELRIN ADAPTOR TO TAKE SAID CUP, A USEFUL DETAIL BRUSH
LASTLY A SPARE PAASCHE V FOR JURIEN72 if he can get off his keister and contact me as it is
FREE!
Not one of the above is a match for the other but do complement each other nicely. You will find airbrushes are a lot like cars or rifles. They are all machines made by imperfect humans and all exhibit their own personality and performance. You will need to find what works for you but the question must be asked, what exactly do you want/need? Be realistic in what you want from the brush. Do not be a brand whore as you will miss an awful lot if you go down that road. You will not find a brush that will do everything as that is a lie perpetrated by marketing arses who have one goal in mind, to sell you something whether you need it or not. Explore and keep an open mind and whatever you do, don't follow the pack!
Regards,
Chris the cabbie