New Grex Tritium.TG Airbrush! Any tips?

[CANicoll]

On the recommendation of several club members and a desire to have greater control over my painting, I bit the bullet and picked up a Grex Tritium.TG with the .2 needle (and the .3f needle kit too), gravity feed, similar to my Iwata HP-CS.

 

I've read the manual and watched a few vids, but anyone have any tips or tricks for using this airbrush?  Cleaning tips?

 

I'm spraying Vallejo Model Air most of the time, and some MRP.  Looking at maybe MIG AMMO or some other acrylics or acrylic lacquers in the future.

Thanks!

Chris

[Greif8]

Hi Chris, one of my airbrushes is a Grex Tritium TG so I have a couple of insights that may be useful for you.

 

1)  MRP paints spray very well with any of the needle/nozzle combos from .2 - .7mm.  The Vallejo Model Air may present some tip drying challenges using the .2 and .3mm needles, but adding some retarding medium should help with that.  

 

2)  I spray between 5-15 PSI depending on what effects I want and what paint I am using.  I airbrush mostly with MRP and Tamiya, with occasional use of Lifecolor paints.  Again, the MRP - and for me Tamiya as well - sprays excellently regardless of what needles are used at any of the aforementioned psi.

 

3)  The trigger actuated air/paint volume takes a bit of practice to get down; but once you have a feel for it you can get some very good control while spraying.  FYI, with MRP less is more!  You don't have to pull the trigger back far at all to get a good volume of MRP paint spraying.

 

4)  I do not mix paint types when airbrushing with the Grex, or my H&S airbrushes either for that matter.  Keeping the type of paint constant really helps when it comes time to clean the Grex.

 

5)  I generally only do a full breakdown cleaning of the Grex once every 9-10 cleaning sessions.  I find that spraying 3-4 half cups of cleaner - standard cheap hardware store lacquer thinner for both MRP and Tamiya, and Lifecolor's Airbrush Cleaner for Lifecolor paints - through the Grex, back flushing the final two spray throughs.  I finish by spraying a 1/4 cup of Tamiya's Airbrush Cleaner (potent stuff!) through the Grex.  This has done the job and I have rarely had any issues in the four years I have owned the Grex using this cleaning process.  The Grex nozzle is small and a bit finicky to remove and put back on; certainly doable without issues; but it is a bit more fragile than you Iwata HP-CS nozzle.  I try not to mess with it any more that absolutely necessary for cleaning; hence the total breakdown cleaning once every 9-10 times.

 

HTH,

Ernest      

[CANicoll]

Ernest,

EXTREMELY Helpful, thank you!  I'm in the process of looking at a shift towards MRP paints and the the greater control offered by (I hope!) the GREX has me looking forward to the mottled German Luftwaffe schemes.

I had not heard of the Tamiya Airbrush cleaner so I'll have to see about picking some up.

 

Like you, I tend not to use multiple paint types in one session, unless I do a full clean in between the types.

How long does it take you to go through your cleaning process with the GREX?  There are times I will spray, literally, one color and 2-3 drops of paint and I can clean the Iwata in about 3 min after that kind of spray.  I'm find the backflushing, etc a bit daunting, but I think I just need to get in there and do it.

 

Thanks again, grateful for your comments!

Chris

[Greif8]

Hi Chris, I would say it takes about 5-6 minutes to clean the Grex after an airbrushing session.  A full breakdown cleaning takes about 20-25 minutes.

 

I think you will like the Grex for mottling.  You can adjust the throw of the trigger to spray a minimum amount of highly thinned paint at around 5 psi to get some nice effects.

 

Ernest