Airbrush Paint Tip for Beginners

(isn't hindsight amazing)

Here's the scenario.... you have been practicing like crazy and you have gotten to the point where you can control your airbrush easily - crisp lines, no spats, etc ...

You are ready to tackle a full fledge project and WHAM!!!! It's like your a beginner all over again - you have spidering and splats all over the place!

What is up with that !?!?!

Simple ... it is one of two things:

1. You are chicken in which case you need to take a DEEP breath and trust yourself and your abilities; or

2. You have set yourself up for failure...

WHY? Why did you set yourself up for failure?

Because you likely completed all your practice on a different surface than you intended to paint on !!!

For example, you have done all your practice on paper and then, when you try to paint on, say, a helmet the results are completely different. The root of the problem is that the surfaces being painted on have different smoothness and they absorb paint differently.

For instance, a helmet is not going to absorb any paint (like paper would) and therefore it is much easier to spider the paint on that surface.

The best airbrush paint tip I can give for this problem is to simply practice on a similar surface to what you are planning to paint.

Now... that doesn't mean that you have to amass a whole whack of helmets to practice on if that is what you are planning to paint (although it wouldn't hurt - it would be very expensive) ... but you do need to find a similar surface - something slippery and non-absorbent. Something like sign blanks (primed sheet metal) would be great for this application.

Another example is when you try to apply paint on walls - it's likely that you are not used to working on a surface that is as textured as your average house painted wall - so, you may want to paint a few pieces of smooth board with house paint using a roller to mimic the texture.

But I don't want to freak you out and make you think that you HAVE TO practice on similar surfaces - simply just being aware that you airbrush paint is going to behave differently on different surfaces is often enough. Simply knowing will help you make adjustments to your paint application techniques (naturally) rather than send you into a downward spiral of self- doubt (which is always best avoided).

:)