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Post by adamantinedragon on Dec 29, 2013 18:13:15 GMT
There have been a couple of threads going on about Christmas gifts, or airbrush advice that I have commented on about getting an airbrush for my birthday/Christmas. Since I'm not sure which of those threads would be most appropriate for this, I finally just wimped out and decided to create a new thread. My wife purchased this airbrush setup for me for $99 from Amazon.com. It's a nice deal I think, three airbrushes and an auto-cutoff air compressor, along with hoses and a booklet on airbrushing. I know that this is a 2.5D site and some people might object to the Hirst blocks I use, but here is the first project I completed with the new airbrush: I learned a lot in doing this painting. First of all I learned that so far my only real value from the airbrush is to do base coats. I simply can't manage the level of detail needed for this scale of painting with an airbrush, so all of these (except the minis) were base coated with the airbrush and the drybrushing and detail work was done with brushes. One of the things I did learn is that using an airbrush can be a mess. As is all too common with me, I didn't bother to learn that lesson early enough before making such a mess that I spent an hour or so cleaning it up, and now my craft room smells like paint cleaner. But last night I decided that I would not accept that sort of mess potential in the future, so I made this airbrush hood: It's basically made out of cheap dollar store foam-core posterboard with the edges taped down with packing tape and sitting on a cardboard base. The round thing inside is a lazy susan I purchased at a thrift store for $3.99. I also sprayed the hood with outdoor sealant intended to make tents or shoes waterproof. It should last a while, I think. Any other advice is appreciated. I feel like I am ready now for some real airbrush madness.
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Post by sgtslag on Dec 30, 2013 14:43:40 GMT
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Post by adamantinedragon on Dec 30, 2013 16:36:43 GMT
sgtslag, thanks, I think you had posted that elsewhere and I had seen it. I priced out some clear plastic tubs and they were all in the $20 plus range, so I decided to just use the foam core approach. I will probably add a filter and fan at the rear of the hood when I get the time and can find a suitable fan to install. I'm not sure I paint enough to need the filter bucket, but if I do it could be added later. For now I'm just wearing a nose and mouth filter.
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Post by skunkape on Jan 1, 2014 23:20:39 GMT
I like your Hirst Arts blocks! Nice job on the paint booth! @ sgtslag Thanks for posting the link for the plans!
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Post by adamantinedragon on Jan 2, 2014 0:16:07 GMT
Well, I can never stop once I get started... yesterday I purchased a fan and some LED lights that I am going to wire up and install for lighting and ventilation in the hood. I'll post pics when I get it done.
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Post by sgtslag on Jan 3, 2014 22:45:45 GMT
You know, an easy way to vent the hood outside, would be to measure a window opening, and cut a piece of pink/blue extruded insulation foam to fit the window opening, then cut a hole in the foam for the exhaust tube from the fan. This would blow the fumes outside, through the window, while still insulating the window rather well. When finished painting, just remove the foam insulation sheet from the window, and close the window. This could be used year-round (would seal the window opening when the A/C is on during the Summer). Cheers!
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Post by adamantinedragon on Jan 4, 2014 7:57:24 GMT
You know, an easy way to vent the hood outside, would be to measure a window opening, and cut a piece of pink/blue extruded insulation foam to fit the window opening, then cut a hole in the foam for the exhaust tube from the fan. This would blow the fumes outside, through the window, while still insulating the window rather well. When finished painting, just remove the foam insulation sheet from the window, and close the window. This could be used year-round (would seal the window opening when the A/C is on during the Summer). Cheers! That's a great idea actually.
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Post by adamantinedragon on Jan 4, 2014 8:03:07 GMT
OK, I was hoping to get the lights and the fan installed today, but I ended up only getting the lights finished. Here is the modified airbrush hood with the lights off: And here it is with the internal lights on: The dragon is one of the Bones miniatures that I used the newly lit up box to paint both with the airbrush as a hood and with normal brushes just as a soft light source. Both photos were taken with a flash and I think now I should have turned the flash off. The fan there is the next addition to the box. I will probably get that installed tomorrow night. Oh, and the electrical tape holding the wires will be replaced with white duct tape. I was just too lazy to dig it out of my garage tonight.
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Post by adamantinedragon on Jan 4, 2014 8:36:45 GMT
Oh, here's a closeup of the dragon. Not the best, I handheld the camera and it's a bit blurry, but better than the above photos. And the other side:
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Post by miltonmurphy on Jan 4, 2014 15:48:46 GMT
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Post by sgtslag on Jan 4, 2014 16:39:20 GMT
Nice work, on both the hood, and the dragon! Thanks for sharing. Cheers!
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Post by adamantinedragon on Jan 5, 2014 7:23:31 GMT
One final update, but not worth the effort of taking a photo, loading it to my computer, editing it in Gimp and posting it...
I attached the fan to the back of the hood, so now all I need is to stick a filter in the back and I should be able to spray paint indoors. I might do some more reinforcing of the foam core posterboard just to make it stronger. I have some white duct tape somewhere in the garage, that should help. If I can find it...
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