I have noticed one area where there is controversy of tools and that is the airbrush. I will probably be told off for this but I thought I would show what I have acquired as a FIRST airbrush set-up. That is a set-up I can try out and see if a) I can airbrush b) if I like airbrushing over brush painting and the important one c) I don't annoy my wife spending our food budget on expensive equipment.
My set-up was acquired entirely on ebay and I used research and online advice from various places such as here,, armorama and various youtube users.
The compressor is a 1/6hp with a 3 litre tank, this was chosen as nearly all advice said get a tank if possible. This is the compressor I got.
In addition I have bought a separate air regulator and water trap. Pictured below. This is done for two reasons. Firstly, the compressor I got has no water trap, which is odd as the model below it does. Secondly, a reviewer (the only person to write about this model), said that he attached a similar set up as the regulator on the model ,is a bit finicky. I believe this is because it records the pressure to the tank and not to the air brush itself. Once this was fitted the reviewer said the compressor was complete and very effective. this will be attached virtually inline from the tank outlet to the air hose and will control psi straight to the airbush.
Together this complete compressor build was AU$90 delivered to my door. I did win the compressor in a great auction as the buy it now price is around $120 delivered usually but a quick check of the completed listings shows that the price is around what I paid so DO NOT BUY IT NOW and you will save money.
I now needed an airbrush and air hose to complete my new toy and be able to start learning. Again, I stress that this is to save money and if I enjoy it and find I do ok with it then I will invest in a brand model....if I need to. I got lazy and actually searched for a brush that came with a hose so I wouldn't need to buy one separate and lucked out, I think, on the model shown below. This is a duel action, as recommended by EVERYONE, and has a side loading fitting for both a suction jar and gravity cup. It is also fitted with a 0.3mm needle/tip and comes with a 0.2mm and 0.5mm needle/cap and a 1.8m hose which is compatible with the compressor fittings. This one was less than $50 delivered and is fully capable of disassembly for cleaning.
A final note prior to the criticism I assume will follow as it does seem a controversial topic. These are all cheaper Chinese non-brands however I previously was part of the hobby of saltwater aquariums and I found that cheap Chinese electronics and engineered products do not lack the brands by much and in some cases are rivals in that hobby. I expect that this will be no different but time will tell and I will update as a review once I have used it for a while.
Last time I will say this, as a beginner the prospect of spending hundreds on a set-up that I may not like or even be good at using meant that I may have never attempted to airbrush. These cheaper alternatives and a little ingenuity mean that this becomes accessible for a lot of people on a smaller budget. Looking at the builds page I see people coming up with genius ways to keep costs down when building and I think a topic like this helps open the hobby up. I was disappointed that no one had written up something like this anywhere on the net that I could find so I thought I would. I also noted at the beginning that there is controversy over which brush to use and how much to spend and I even came across one guy who uses what he refers to as "throw away" ebay airbrushes that cost US$10 (I never found a ten dollar brush) and he was using them for a t-shirt business so I think rather than saying no, I would offer a positive note for at least trying your hands at a cheaper option. If you hate it then you haven't spent hundreds of dollars. If you love it and wish to upgrade then you spent very little to learn this and maybe you can pass on the cheap set-up to a younger sibling, nephew, niece, etc. I plan on letting my eleven year old daughter play with this and hopefully getting her into a new hobby as well. I'm not sure I would feel as comfortable letting her play with a $500+ set up.
My set-up was acquired entirely on ebay and I used research and online advice from various places such as here,, armorama and various youtube users.
The compressor is a 1/6hp with a 3 litre tank, this was chosen as nearly all advice said get a tank if possible. This is the compressor I got.
In addition I have bought a separate air regulator and water trap. Pictured below. This is done for two reasons. Firstly, the compressor I got has no water trap, which is odd as the model below it does. Secondly, a reviewer (the only person to write about this model), said that he attached a similar set up as the regulator on the model ,is a bit finicky. I believe this is because it records the pressure to the tank and not to the air brush itself. Once this was fitted the reviewer said the compressor was complete and very effective. this will be attached virtually inline from the tank outlet to the air hose and will control psi straight to the airbush.
Together this complete compressor build was AU$90 delivered to my door. I did win the compressor in a great auction as the buy it now price is around $120 delivered usually but a quick check of the completed listings shows that the price is around what I paid so DO NOT BUY IT NOW and you will save money.
I now needed an airbrush and air hose to complete my new toy and be able to start learning. Again, I stress that this is to save money and if I enjoy it and find I do ok with it then I will invest in a brand model....if I need to. I got lazy and actually searched for a brush that came with a hose so I wouldn't need to buy one separate and lucked out, I think, on the model shown below. This is a duel action, as recommended by EVERYONE, and has a side loading fitting for both a suction jar and gravity cup. It is also fitted with a 0.3mm needle/tip and comes with a 0.2mm and 0.5mm needle/cap and a 1.8m hose which is compatible with the compressor fittings. This one was less than $50 delivered and is fully capable of disassembly for cleaning.
A final note prior to the criticism I assume will follow as it does seem a controversial topic. These are all cheaper Chinese non-brands however I previously was part of the hobby of saltwater aquariums and I found that cheap Chinese electronics and engineered products do not lack the brands by much and in some cases are rivals in that hobby. I expect that this will be no different but time will tell and I will update as a review once I have used it for a while.
Last time I will say this, as a beginner the prospect of spending hundreds on a set-up that I may not like or even be good at using meant that I may have never attempted to airbrush. These cheaper alternatives and a little ingenuity mean that this becomes accessible for a lot of people on a smaller budget. Looking at the builds page I see people coming up with genius ways to keep costs down when building and I think a topic like this helps open the hobby up. I was disappointed that no one had written up something like this anywhere on the net that I could find so I thought I would. I also noted at the beginning that there is controversy over which brush to use and how much to spend and I even came across one guy who uses what he refers to as "throw away" ebay airbrushes that cost US$10 (I never found a ten dollar brush) and he was using them for a t-shirt business so I think rather than saying no, I would offer a positive note for at least trying your hands at a cheaper option. If you hate it then you haven't spent hundreds of dollars. If you love it and wish to upgrade then you spent very little to learn this and maybe you can pass on the cheap set-up to a younger sibling, nephew, niece, etc. I plan on letting my eleven year old daughter play with this and hopefully getting her into a new hobby as well. I'm not sure I would feel as comfortable letting her play with a $500+ set up.
