Hello All

I have recently returned to the hobby after a long absents and boy has things changed. My latest purchase has been a Testors Model A320 Airbrush with their Model 9169 Compressor. I like the idea of interchangeability with the other models in the Aztek line. I have used the airbrush with mixed results. When I use it with acrylics thinned with water I get poor coverage and sometimes the paint beads up on the surface. I don’ know if this is a paint problem or an air pressure problem. Any comments are welcome.

Did you: A. Clean your project thoroughly in soapy water,etc prior to painting? This is massively important.
B.Use a primer first? Some people say this isnt important,but I disagree.
C. Mix the paint completely? What brand of paint is it?
D.Use warm,distilled water to thin the paint?
E. With the Aztec line,you need to use the correct nozzle tip. Some tips are designed for specific kinds of paint. I dont know if this would cause beading though.
I am not an expert,but the paint "beading"on your model is probably caused by some comtamination on your model (oily fingerprints or mold release agents),especially if you are using water-based paints.
I would fiddle with the paint/thinner ratio and air pressure on a cheap model to "break in" your new airbrush. I had an Aztec and I didnt like it at all. Lots of problems. I have a Paasche H, an Iwata HP-BC and an Iwata HP-C+. All of them are excellent tools. I use all of them,for different tasks. Like I said,Im no expert but Im sure there is someone here who can point you in the right direction.

if it beads up on the surface of the model then it means the paint has high surface tension. i heard you could add a drop of dish washer soap or just thin your paints with 91% and up rubbing alchohal

Hey thanks for all the info. The only thing that I didn’t do was clean the model. The moral of the story is don’t forget the basics.