Hi all, I already have an Iwata HP-CS, but I need another airbrush so I can switch around colours more easily, and for finer shading/highlighting. I've pretty much narrowed it down to these 2. Anyone here have experience with these airbrushes? I've sort of compared it down below based on number of pluses and minuses. Iwata HP-CPlus ++ $100 cheaper, gives me extra budget for my 3rd airbrush, which is what I want so I can use the full range of highlights I typically use (3) ++ Reputation of being much more robust and take lots of abuse + Much easier to get parts for --- 0.3mm needle. I certainly don't need another 0.3mm. Score: 5 plus, 3 minus, Total of 2. H&S Infinity CR Plus ++ 0.15mm needle ++ Easier to clean as nozzle is self-centering + Able to switch to 0.4mm when I do scale modelling + Lots of extra pre-set functions -- Apparently finicky and hard to maintain, seen a few videos and threads floating around online complaining about it. - Hard to find parts for. I checked ebay, and there's barely anything Score: 6 plus, 3 minus, total of 3 Still on the fence about this. Anyone have any thoughts?
I love the Infinity CR plus if you need detail work done on a figure then that's the airbrush for you, Yes! it cost more but it is worth it.
Dollars, part avaliability... sounds like same side of the pond than Badger. Have to considered models like Sotar or Krome? Edit: multiple Renegades, I meant Krome.
What about Iwata HP-BPlus? Great Airbrush, 0.2mm needle. Hard as nails (got mine for almost 5 years now, didnt replace any parts yet). Got small tank, but if you not going to paint a lot (i mean A LOT) of terrain - its perfect. Here it is https://www.iwata-airbrush.com/hp-b-plus-airbrush.html AS per H&S... I got a good painter as a friend and he sold his H&S for Iwata, as he broke a lot of stuff wile using this... I personally agree, thats all personal, but when you change 3-4 nozzles per 6 month.....
I'm located in Australia. I know several people with very bad experiences with badger, lots of performance, clogging, repair and internal issues with it, seems like an extremely high maintenance airbrush, so I'm pretty spooked. The downside of the HP-BPlus is that I'm also looking for a 2nd airbrush for colour correction on scale models. 0.19mm is way too small for the scales I build in (1/35 tanks, 1/48 planes). If it were to be a 3rd airbrush, I'd probably get it. Also, all Iwatas but for the HP-CS have screw-on nozzles, which makes drawing the needle out a massive pain, as it'll smear paint all over the internals by pulling the needle back. Its more of an artist brush than a scale modelling brush, hence the nozzle is screwed on most of the time. I don't believe that its meant to be taken out often, if at all. Can't avoid it in scale modelling, where the paint is much thicker, and you always get remnants in the nozzle. Most paints I'd be ok, but everyone has those few colours which clump up in the nozzle and require a full clean just to change colours. As for the H&S, you're right. I heard many such stories, and German over-engineering is not uncommon, which makes me worried. The nozzle is held by compression, which is great, but pointless if it cracks every month or so, which is what I've heard. Repairs are time wasting, expensive, and I cannot be stuffed. If they produced a 0.2mm Iwata HP-CS, I'd buy it in a heartbeat, the Iwata HP-CS can take near unlimited amounts of punishment, and still run perfectly, plus is extremely easy to clean.
I run into those issues only if i am very lazy to clear the airbrush for week or two. For scale models - i've painted some big WH40k models with it , no problems. (Baneblade and Imperial knights). The only thing, i had problems is terrain and use of cheap acrylic paint to paint it. But i am lucky bastard and got my Iwata from HLJ for 140$......... :) so i dont complaign
Does anyone know if there are aftermarket parts for the Iwata HP-CS that can bring the nozzle size down? That 0.3 just isn't cutting it for me for anything but basecoating.
I'm painting a Joan now and can produce extremely fine lines, but you can check out my earlier Tikbalang thread (admittedly, it didn't require much precision at all due to its size), but they were all done with the HP-CS stock. Just put down your pressure on your regulator (I go 5-10), thin 1:4 and take off the distance cap. Then go REAL close, and you can literally get a fine line. I want a more precise airbrush because I actually cannot go up close in certain areas, between the arms and body, between the legs, any gaps. Plus, its a massive pain to get that close. With a finer airbrush, I can hit those areas at a further distance. Keep in mind that if you use a finer needle, you'll need to thin it much more, and use much lower pressure either way. All that changes is the distance at which you can produce fine lines.
@Dingobattler thank you for the extremely useful (and highly understandable) advice! I will give all of that a try with the .3 before I go trying to bodge a 0.2 nozzle and needle into the kit (or just buying a 0.2).
Good to know. If you don't want another 0.3mm... HP-BPlus then? Or its needle+tip in other HP (if I understood the manual, where it says "also fits HP/HI"). Same thing for @Savnock.
I hope it's ok I bring this thread up again. I'm a click away if buying an Iwata HP-BH with 0.2 mm nozzle. But I'm still torn between this airbrush, Infinity CR plus 2 in 1, and even the Iwata HP-CS. The Iwata seems superior by everything I've heard and read. And thet small cup looks like an advantage given that I use few drops of paint everytime. But I don't know if 0.2 mm is going to be very limited if I decide to paint some terrain or decide to mass paint primer layer on several models (not that I do that a lot but still). H&S infinity CR plus 2 in 1 looks like a great options just because it brings 0.15 and 0.4 mm nozzles. So the versatility there is obvious, and they all say it's really easy to use. As a different option the Iwata HP-CS Plus is cheaper and the 0.3 mm option looks quite versatile.
You can buy H3 system for the HP-BH, default is H2. With HP-CS you get E3, and can buy E5. My guess is the number is the 0.x one.
It may not help you in your choice as it will add a new one but here is my 2 cts. Having two nozzles bring versatility and that was definitely part of my choice when I bought my 2 in 1 but recently I had the opportunity to try a cheap airbrush (10-20 € online) and when it comes to large surfaces like terrain or just priming, it's more than enough IMO. So you could stick with a 1 nozzle high end airbrush for your fine details and have a cheap one for batch work. Plus, sometime, it could be useful to have two airbrushes at hand as you can switch from one colour to another.
Just my two cents I have never used an Iwata airbrush but I have used the H&S infinity crplus for years and I can’t recommend it enough I have never had any major problems with it from use as omg as you take good care of it. It did break eventually but not due to regular use. I had it about 2 years before I got in a fight with a crazy now ex girlfriend who decided to throw it at the floor pretty hard and after that it never sprayed straight again poor airbrush. I just got a new one a month ago. I have also used a badger Renagade Krome but I defiantly would recommend the infinity crplus over that but for the price it’s hard to beat the Krome. And as far as needle size don’t get the .15 unless u have a lot of experience airbrushing get the .2 and .4 needles the .15 is a lot of hassle until u learn what your doing and really know how to thin paints correctly and even then it’s still a pain. And the crplus also comes with a smaller cup if u buy the 2 in 1 or u can get it separately.
In the end I ordered the Iwata HP-BH 0.2 mm. I got for 220€ which I think is not bad price. Waiting for my order to arrive! The Iwata spare nozzles seem to be pretty expensive. But I might do that. I've been using one of those 10-20€ airbrush for more than a year now and it was pretty decent to learn. I wouldn't mind at all to keep using it for primer layers, scenery and all that, but lately it gets stuck 80% of the time that I spend painting and it's just too annoying. Also it is difficult to clean and wastes a lot of paint with the side cup. I probably have to learn some more about cleaning and maintenance anyways, but this airbrush is already making me waste my time. I'll do some research and try to use some stronger cleaning products and hopefully be able to use it as a secondary airbrush.
Well, it doesn't get much more aggressive than Methyl Ethyl Ketone, though I'd run either rubbing alcohol or ammonia-based glass cleaner through there long before trying MEK. Problem with MEK is that you need Nitrile gloves and a VOC-rated respirator. You MUST NOT USE anything latex-based around MEK, it will instantly dissolve the latex. MEK is also skin-absorbed, so you really do need gloves (and safety glasses, you do NOT want that stuff in your eyes). But MEK is what the aircraft paintshop used to clean industrial 2-part epoxy paints from their big spray guns. Wimpy little acrylic paint will go away very quickly indeed!
Nitrile gloves aren't rated to have a breakthrough time against MEK, industry best practice is thick gauntlets (Just what you want when when pippetting 10ml...). As for RPE, with the quantities involved, doing it outside is sufficient. All that said, @Section9 is absolutely right. MEK is great for degreasing, and stripping off all sorts of stuff from metal, including, rubbers, plastics...
I only use Vallejo airbrush cleaner so far. Alcohol or amoniac cleaner (like house cleaners I guess) should be easy to get by. But to be honest I have no idea what the MEK is. At least not as a commercial brand. I'd appreciate if you point me in the right direction here :)
