Paints to apply with an airbrush

StardustColors has been presenting since 2011 all of its new paints specially designed for airbrush artists.

A new brand called Graphic, available in a full range of colours, in small 125ml pack size, along with two thinners, a transparent one and a cleaning one.

These products arrive in time to meet unsatisfied demand until now, as it was difficult to get anything other than water-based paints or inks and of foreign brands.

Packed by StardustColors, the airbrush paint were developed in collaboration with Regis Hanriot , a French artist and trainer, who put his big experience in airbrushing and car paint at the service of this exciting project.

The airbrush paints

After more than 20 years he’s working as a trainer and project / process / product developer in major paint companies ( Dupont, Akzo Nobel, Standox XL).

A self-taught and a passionate person, he practices airbrushing since the Kustom Kulture movement, and makes himself available for professional training in decoration and airbrushing.

The airbrush paint GRAPHIC paints are solvent-based paints 1K basecoat. They are already pre-diluted to allow a good flow, even with the smallest nozzles. They are compatible with the most good quality airbrushes.

They come in more than twenty colours, from opaque to semi- transparent shades (semi-transparent paints let a lot of light pass through them), and can be thinned up to 200 %. They are guaranteed lead-free products. They offer brighter colors, for free hand paintings or stencil works.

What are the benefits of solvent-based paints ?

They have many advantages comparing to water-based paints:

• Fast drying

• Thinner paint coat once dry

• Perfect UV resistance

• Greater fluidity, unlimited possibility of dilution, less clogged nozzles

• Better adhesion of the paint on many types of supports

Find more details on the data sheet and the application instructions for special airbrush paint.

2K paints and 1K basecoats

This post concerns only sprayable paints used in automotive and design.
Below is a clarification for outsiders who wish to distinguish between the various names of paints used !

Lacquers or 2K paints (solvent based). *don’t exist in water based version

They are paints with a hard, resistant, ‘glossy finish’ and as such don’t need to be topcoated.

These products are polyurethane based, thick paints and are bi-component because they always go with a hardener.
The hardener will allow to trigger the hardening and the drying of the paint.
They can be thinned reasonably up to 15%

Advantages:
– Time saving (they are both paint and protective clear coat)
– High resistance to thinners, oils, alcohols…

Disadvantages:
– Very thick
– Long drying time
– Risks of sagging
– Once the hardener has been added, they must be used within 30mn, if not they will become unusable

They are mostly used for the painting of trucks/buses and in industry.

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1K Paints are available in solvent based or waterborne (water-based) versions:

Solvent based :
They have many names, which often leads to confusion:

« 1K basecoat»
« Mono-component paint»
« 1K paint»

They have a matt aspect and must be topcoated.
These paints are used mainly in automotive paint and are called 2-coats since they are part of a two-stage system : Basecoat + Clear coat.
They are mono component, meaning that no hardener is required since they dry in the air.

When they dry they display a dull and matt aspect. It’s only after having been topcoated that they show their final aspect.

Advantages:
– Almost immediate drying, and therefore little risk of drip
– Excellent fluidity, and thinning down possible up to 100%!
– Very fine: With only a thickness between 20 and 40µm, they don’t create thick layers or variations in paint thickness called “steps”
– Unlimited shelf life and possibility of reuse as no hardener nor catalyzer is used.

Disadvantages:
When they are not topcoated, 1K paint are not very resistant. Thus, it’s important to be careful with liquids such as oil, thinner and alcohol.
Clear coat is imperative

They are ideal for the application of airbrush paint which requires high precision and very fine nozzles.