DaveG
Airbush Analyst
To avoid hijacking that other post further, I felt it best to start another thread...
I have just started to fool around with testing this stuff, so there is still much to learn. I purchased a bottle of Grex Base Modifier GXPS-AG (which is E'tac Autograph 2050). It is supposed to work with any kind of acrylic paint, with it's main bonus being that it makes them water reducible.
My first test was to add a few drops of the 2050 to a cup, and add a drop of Createx Illustration (Black) straight from the bottle just to observe what would happen. The illustration color immediately started to spread throughout the 2050. After a few moments, gentle stirring with a paint brush completely combined the mix, which looked uniform and smooth.
I then added 1 drop 2050 to 2 drops CI Black to a cup. I then added 2 drops of a 2% solution of E'tac condition-air, and about 5 drops of water to get the consistency I was looking for. I loaded it into an Iwata Eclipse HP-BS that I am starting to work with, and had at it with some squiggles and line tests. To get a comparison, I then cleaned the brush, and added 2 drops of CI Black, 2 drops 2% condition-air, and about 7 drops of water to the brush. I repeated my attempt to draw squiggles and lines, but found tip dry would cut off the exercise after just a few seconds.
I photographed my first little test sheets below - during the CI+2050 mix test, I used a q-tip to clean the needle 1 time. On the CI+Water test, I cleaned the needle 3 times. My conclusion is that the stuff does work at allowing the paint to continue to flow. But, I will speculate right up front that it also negates a lot of the after spray properties of CI that make it so attractive to use. I think when it dries, it dries hard, so erasing may be out...
I am going to test a bunch more looking for a minimum 2050 ratio I can get away using to increase spray time between needle cleanings, without adversely effecting the after spray characteristics of the CI by itself.
I have just started to fool around with testing this stuff, so there is still much to learn. I purchased a bottle of Grex Base Modifier GXPS-AG (which is E'tac Autograph 2050). It is supposed to work with any kind of acrylic paint, with it's main bonus being that it makes them water reducible.
My first test was to add a few drops of the 2050 to a cup, and add a drop of Createx Illustration (Black) straight from the bottle just to observe what would happen. The illustration color immediately started to spread throughout the 2050. After a few moments, gentle stirring with a paint brush completely combined the mix, which looked uniform and smooth.
I then added 1 drop 2050 to 2 drops CI Black to a cup. I then added 2 drops of a 2% solution of E'tac condition-air, and about 5 drops of water to get the consistency I was looking for. I loaded it into an Iwata Eclipse HP-BS that I am starting to work with, and had at it with some squiggles and line tests. To get a comparison, I then cleaned the brush, and added 2 drops of CI Black, 2 drops 2% condition-air, and about 7 drops of water to the brush. I repeated my attempt to draw squiggles and lines, but found tip dry would cut off the exercise after just a few seconds.
I photographed my first little test sheets below - during the CI+2050 mix test, I used a q-tip to clean the needle 1 time. On the CI+Water test, I cleaned the needle 3 times. My conclusion is that the stuff does work at allowing the paint to continue to flow. But, I will speculate right up front that it also negates a lot of the after spray properties of CI that make it so attractive to use. I think when it dries, it dries hard, so erasing may be out...
I am going to test a bunch more looking for a minimum 2050 ratio I can get away using to increase spray time between needle cleanings, without adversely effecting the after spray characteristics of the CI by itself.