Auxiliary paints to be applied with an airbrush

For those who are beginners in the world of airbrushing and even for insiders, here are some explanations and advice regarding the various auxiliary products used with Stardust pro airbrush paints for model making : we will see what is the usefulness and how to use each of these airbrush paint auxiliaries.

The ranges of paint in the field of airbrushing are often structured in the same way:
there are above all the colors that are called opaque and which are used for drawing, coloring, graphics . Although it is called opaque, there can be different levels of transparency of opacity, without ever going all the way to total transparency because this is a completely separate range of paint.

Then come the different ranges of effect paints, such as metallics, pearlescent, iridescent, multicolored, Candy, and others...

The common point of these paints is that it is used to create color and visual aspect. There is therefore another range of paint, common to all brands, which are what are called auxiliary products and which reinforce all these color and effect ranges.

Auxiliary airbrush paints

Auxiliary products can add or modify qualities or properties specific to paints and colours. For example, they can modify, in the manner of additives, the levels of viscosity or flexibility.
There are several types of thinners which each make it possible to modify the behavior of the paint, to facilitate its application, or to slow down its drying, or even make its spraying more fluid. These auxiliary products can be used with airbrush paints, choosing the different types according to the temperature of the season or the room.
When working for example in a cold room or in a workshop in winter, and that we must thin the paint, because it begins to thicken with the cold, we can encounter a problem of running, because the addition of thinner and the cold temperatures will considerably slow down the evaporation, which is almost nil when approaching very cold temperatures: in such a case, a rapid thinner, generally made up of alcohol, is used.
On the contrary, in summer temperatures, the paint, which s escapes from the airbrush, can evaporate in full flight and arrive in the form of a powder by touching the support, especially if the airbrush is kept as close as possible to the surface to be painted. A slow thinner is then used.
There are other auxiliary products which are not added to the paint but which constitute preparatory or final stages when painting with an airbrush.

Varnish and binder type auxiliaries

These products reinforce paints and provide a transparent, glossy or matte definition. Aside from gloss level, these products have no relationship to appearance. These painting auxiliaries have a protective role.
Sometimes, they can be used as an intercoat, for example to seal and protect a drawing made during a work session and which must be resumed the next day. This transparent coat, which is often a binder, protects the paint and allows it to be sanded the next day, without damaging the colors of the drawing.
Binders and varnishes have multiple uses, because you can add additives or even mother-of-pearl. They can also be used to lengthen paints, that is, to make them less strong and less common.

Substrate preparation aids

Just as essential as the other airbrush painting auxiliaries, there are products which are used in the preparatory phase and which are commonly called primers or primers.
In this field, one should not simplify things and it is very important to fully understand the importance and specificity of each primer.
Few airbrush paint brands honestly provide effective primers suitable for various supports : indeed, it is false to say that there are primers for all supports and if you want a real guaranteed grip, it is better to have and use adhesion primers dedicated specifically to the material you want to paint. The materials that we encounter can be glass and ceramics, plastics, leather, wood, different metals...

Acrylic varnish for airbrush paint
Primer for airbrush paint