Airbrushing directly from my Polly Scale bottle.

[DT&Ifan]

My first Pashe Air Brush VL1 (about 20 years old or so) came with the Polly scale lid as well as the other size. Still have them and use them all the time. But using an old lid is an excellent idea as well.

[whitman500]

I hate thinning the paint since I always struggled to get it right.  The alternative I've come up with is to use the Badger Modelflex paints.  They are already the right consistency for airbrushing and you can spray straight from the bottle.

In terms of screening the paint, Micromark sells a stainless steel filter that fits over the plastic tube from your airbrush.  It's fairly cheap and is easy to clean with water-based paints.

For mixing paints, Micromark also sells a battery-powered handheld stirrer.  Think of it as a tiny egg beater.  It's maybe $15 and works very well; much easier than stirring by hand.

[Southwest Chief]

Micromark sells the top you need, and it's for Paasche airburshes too:

Polly/Floquil airbrush cap 

[modelmaker51]

As this has been brought to the fore again, Here are my

It is NEVER a good idea to paint straight from the bottle the paint comes in.

Paint dries in the cap and falls into the bottle everytime you open it. Unlike with solvent paints like Floquil, dried acrylic paint particles won't redisolve. This is one reason why it is so important to strain the paint before using, another is lumps in the paint, both can and will clog an airbrush very quickly.

You shouldn't use straight isopropl alcohol to thin acrylic paints as it speeds up the drying time. An 80/20 mix of water/isopropl works good.

I use 1/2oz (15ml) cups that McDonalds uses for ketsup etc. (I grab a handful every visit) or the 1oz (30ml) medicine/mixing cups you can usually find in the glue section of R/C hobbyshops. Another source for small plastic cups are restaurant supply stores, Softco here in the NE sells bags of 250 for $3. These are great for straining paint into, thinning and mixing and no cleaning, just toss.

Unfortunately PolyScale paint is too thick to readily strain, so it needs to be thinned first. For all acrylic paints the consistency for airbrushing should be that of milk, ratios or % don't really matter because the consistency of acrylic paints varies too much, just add thinner until it looks like milk.

For good quality paint jobs, there really aren't any short cuts. I do hate cleaning paint bottle and siphon tubes etc., so all I ever use are the paint cups. Keep a tub of water near your paint station so you can dunk the paint cup and submerge the airbrush and run the water/air through it and the cup and you're done. One more little tip: when dried paint builds up at the tip, use a brass bristle brush to scrub it clean, then continue painting.

[Tom Curtin]

This is just a post to bring this thread to the front of the queue because there has been some new interest in this subject lately

[delray1967]

Instead of using a faucet screen, try old panty hose.  Either pour paint through it as you add it to the bottle, or cut a small piece and secure it to the bottom of the pickup tube.  As for mixing, just shake it up real good if it's relatively fresh or stir it if you want to keep the threads clean without having to wipe off the cap and bottle every time.

[rolleiman]

I have airbrushed a lot today and have some questions for you all.

I want to connect my airbrush (Paasche H) directly to my 1 oz Polly Scale bottles. I don't want to add paint to another bottle just to be able to airbrush and then back to the Polly Scale bottle when I'm done. It would be convenient to just use the Polly Scale bottles directly. I also want to know a good way to mix the paint? I attached a picture to show you all what I mean.

I have one of these for each brand of paint I spray. This particular one works on my H brush with Floquil and Polly S bottles. You have to sacrifice a cap for each application but it sure beats cleaning a bottle after a couple simple passes with an airbrush. For other things, I use a color cup..

The simple plastic tubing can be just about anything. I've even used RC (radio contol) airplane fuel line. All it has to do is reach into the paint. You may remember the clinic this came from,

http://www.rolleiman.com/trains/clinic1.html 

[Great Western Rwy fan]

I  screen the paint before I run it thru My airbrush,That way I don't get the clogs at all.well that and I thin with 10% water or 20% thinner depending on type of paint.Too screen it I put a water faucett screen {like the kind used in the kitchen faucett} in a small funnel and screen the paint thru it into the airbrush bottle. Screening really keeps a lot of larger particles out of the paint and I rarely have clogging issues.

[electrolove]

Thanks for the tip, I will try that. I will use destilled water next time to thin the paint with.

I have airbrushed a lot today and have some questions for you all.

I want to connect my airbrush (Paasche H) directly to my 1 oz Polly Scale bottles. I don't want to add paint to another bottle just to be able to airbrush and then back to the Polly Scale bottle when I'm done. It would be convenient to just use the Polly Scale bottles directly. I also want to know a good way to mix the paint? I attached a picture to show you all what I mean.

Can you unscrew the silver pickup tube from the white cap? I have some that are held in place by a nut instead of being press fit. If so, just drill the correct size hole in a Polly Scale lid and add the silver pickup tube to it. Make sure to drill a small vent hole too. I did this to a couple lids.
You probably have to extend the pickup tube also because the bottles are taller.

You really should thin Polly Scale about 25% or so. 

[loathar]

I have airbrushed a lot today and have some questions for you all.

I want to connect my airbrush (Paasche H) directly to my 1 oz Polly Scale bottles. I don't want to add paint to another bottle just to be able to airbrush and then back to the Polly Scale bottle when I'm done. It would be convenient to just use the Polly Scale bottles directly. I also want to know a good way to mix the paint? I attached a picture to show you all what I mean.

Can you unscrew the silver pickup tube from the white cap? I have some that are held in place by a nut instead of being press fit. If so, just drill the correct size hole in a Polly Scale lid and add the silver pickup tube to it. Make sure to drill a small vent hole too. I did this to a couple lids.
You probably have to extend the pickup tube also because the bottles are taller.

You really should thin Polly Scale about 25% or so. 

[electrolove]

Maybe you are right about my paint is hiding details, thanks for telling me. I have found that if I thin the paint with rubbing alcohol it works as long I use a little. Bit too much and I get lumps in my paint (congealed) and it clogs my airbrush in 1 second. I will try water next time. I think it's hard to thin the paint exactly 20%, or 25%, or 10%. Is there a method that is easy to use?

You have to thin the paint as it is NOT thin enough for proper coverage out of the bottle....it is the proper consistancy for dry brushing.  I gaurantee that your paint is hiding details right now.  I thin PS paints with 20-30% water depending on the color.

David B

[electrolove]

I have airbrushed 5 cars without thinning the Polly Scale paint and it works very nice.

Don't you have to thin the paint before you can spray it?  Why doesn't it fit your bottles?  Different size?  Different threads?  What about using the 1/4oz. color cup?  Your set didn't come with one, huh?  OK, I did a quick search.  Try this site (copy and paste into your address bar if you can't click on the link): http://www.dixieart.com/HSet.html  One of the pages has different bottles and stuff.  Or, you can make your own custom cap by disassembling yours, or buy some extra parts and fit them onto a Polly Scale cap.  Or, buy paint in a bottle that will fit your airbrush.

[electrolove]

Exactly, the Polly Scale bottles have a smaller top then the airbrush one. As for mixing paint, I did not mean mix 2 different colors. I mean mix one color before using it, or is it called stir?

the polly scale bottles have a smaller top than the airbrush one, as for mixing paint i've always just taken the bottles i wanted to mix and put them in that big triangle type bottle that came with my brush

[ford86]

the polly scale bottles have a smaller top than the airbrush one, as for mixing paint i've always just taken the bottles i wanted to mix and put them in that big triangle type bottle that came with my brush

[delray1967]

Don't you have to thin the paint before you can spray it?  Why doesn't it fit your bottles?  Different size?  Different threads?  What about using the 1/4oz. color cup?  Your set didn't come with one, huh?  OK, I did a quick search.  Try this site (copy and paste into your address bar if you can't click on the link): http://www.dixieart.com/HSet.html  One of the pages has different bottles and stuff.  Or, you can make your own custom cap by disassembling yours, or buy some extra parts and fit them onto a Polly Scale cap.  Or, buy paint in a bottle that will fit your airbrush.

[electrolove]

I have airbrushed a lot today and have some questions for you all.

I want to connect my airbrush (Paasche H) directly to my 1 oz Polly Scale bottles. I don't want to add paint to another bottle just to be able to airbrush and then back to the Polly Scale bottle when I'm done. It would be convenient to just use the Polly Scale bottles directly. I also want to know a good way to mix the paint? I attached a picture to show you all what I mean.