How important is it to use an airbrush?

[Chrask]

Hey guys,

sorry if that has been asked already but i couldn't find anything about the question above, just threads about which airbrush to choose.

I wonder how important it is to use an airbrush for your paintjobs, especially compared to paintjobs done without airbrushes.

I never used one for my army, and it worked out well for me.

But i am going to paint my favourite model Archaon soon, and i want him to be amazing.

This is why i am willing to learn and practice working with an airbrush, if the results are going to be significantly better (of course with the same skilllevel) then working without one.

Looking forward to your replies!

[cb_rex]

I'd say learning how to airbrush really well while is a really useful skill and tool to have access to, doing so just for one model even one as large as Archeon doesn't make sense time investment wise.  I'd put that time into building up blends, picking out all the detail and things with thin layers with a brush and you'll get amazing results.  

Having said that if you're thinking of getting into airbrushing in general picking one up to get the base layers down on Archeon (his mount in particular) and start learning how to use it is a great idea as it will quickly give even a beginner really nice coverage on a model of Archeon's size.

Hope that helps.

[portablezombie]

It's not important, but it can be a very useful tool in your kit. For one thing, you can knock out a basecoat that can be much smoother than anything a rattlecan or brush can give you, Personally, that alone is a great selling point in my estimation (as long as you're buying a reasonably priced airbrush and compressor...)

In addition, the airbrush allows you to do things that, with a brush, would take much longer and require much more skill - gradients, blending, OSL, etc. I'm not going to say it's a "cheat", but, with practice, you can do some pretty amazing things with a shorter learning curve.

If you're just starting out, I would recommend going with a basic brush, like the Badger Patriot 105 and an inexpensive compressor with a tank (one of the Master brand from either Ebay or Amazon should be fine.) Some compressors come bundles with an airbrush - I use a Master airbrush for a lot of things, and I think it's great for the price. I wouldn't recommend it for pencil-fine scripting or anything, but you're not at that level yet anyway.

When you begin, make sure you have some cheap models to practice with - you don't want to ****** up something as expensive as the Archaon kit right out of the gate.

[Redking]

As has been said, it's not important to have an airbrush.  It's just another tool.  What I find most useful is not having to worry about the weather when I prime.  Also applying a smooth basecoat and some highlights can be helpful when working on large models or a lot of models.

I'm not a master with it, but it was worth the investment.  I use a basic Iwata Neo that I picked up at Hobby Lobby with the weekly coupons.  However, I spend more time with my brushes.

[angelust]

I used an airbrush on Dorghars wings and underbelly, otherwise I just used it for a base zenithal of black/grey/white. 

An Airbrush is the single greatest addition to my painting toolkit, but it's not quite as useful with Archaon as it might be with other models. 

[Chrask]

Alright, thank you very much for your replies!

Nice to hear that an airbrush is a great tool to use, but not necessary to make good paintjobs.

Definetely going to learn how to use an airbrush, but nothing that has to be done immediately.

[RuneBrush]

The key thing about an airbrush is that it's simply another tool, in the same way as a No 1 Kolinsky Sable is.  As with a bristled brush though, it does need a lot of practise - I'd say more than a regular brush, because being blunt a model that's been painted badly with an airbrush looks awful.  Yes you can quickly achieve some blending - but it will look like you've just used an airbrush and detract from the model itself.  Where I believe an airbrush shines is when used in combination with brushes and normal techniques.

It's also not cheap, a compressor with tank will set you back £70 and a mid-range airbrush will be around the same.  If you're looking at it seriously, you'll also likely want to invest in airbrush paints, thinners, cleaning tools, masking tapes, fluid and other such necessities.  Quite a bit more investment than a set of W&N Series 7

Personally I say you'd be better off just sticking with a brush for Archaeon (but a big brush for some bits).  If you were looking at painting a lot of large models (Ogors, minotaurs, etc) I'd say you'd recoup the practice time investment.  That said, I picked up my airbrush on a whim well over a decade ago and haven't looked back (flick through my Twitter and you'll see quite a bit I've used it on).  Since I bought my own place 7 years ago, I've had a permanent setup which makes doing this a lot easier.