Iwata HP-CH Airbrush
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- Published on Saturday, 31 October 2009 17:26 James Hatch
Iwata HP-CH Airbrush
Time for an airbrush review methinks 
, and the one I've been putting through its paces is the Iwata HP-CH.
, and the one I've been putting through its paces is the Iwata HP-CH.This airbrush has subtle differences to my standard HP-C Plus that is my toolbox workhorse. The most visible difference is the addition of a MAC (micro air control) valve on the underside of the airbrush, and directly below the colour cup. As on my HP-C Plus, this airbrush also has a preset handle which makes it far easier to spray a line of contant width, providing of course that you keep your hand on the move! I find the preset handle great for helping with spraying shadows on panel lines for post shading. The MAC valve is great for adjusting pressure slightly when mottling or other uneven finishes. It can also be used for fine tuning the output of the brush to create very fine lines.
The HP-CH is a 0.3mm nozzle airbrush, and comes in the usual sturdy Iwata case, with all component slots cut out from tough foam, and a spanner is included for removing the fluid nozzle, should you need to.
Again, the customary spray test sheet is included. This is the testers proof that this brush has been quality checked before it leaves the factory. The spec of this brush says that the brush will spray up to 1" diameter with no problems. I actually managed to pique that a little. A 0.3mm brush, in my opinion, is a good all round tool for general modelling up to 1/32 scale, with no quibbles. Also, my wife has managed to use this same brush to spray intricate nail art, so the possibilities are vast.
I tested this brush with both Lifecolor and Gunze paints, and performance was very similar to my HP-C Plus, which is certainly no bad thing. Both paints were sprayed at 50:50 thinner to paint, using proprietory thinners only, so the best was being acheived with the paints. I did find that Lifecolor tended to need a little less thinning that Gunze in order to spray evenly and consistantly, especially when attempting to spray finer lines. This tends to be the same as the HP-C Plus and TR2.
Paint was sprayed at 15PSI for general spraying, and at around 20PSI for finer spraying. The HP-CH is a fine performer with a little extra thinner at higher pressure, as shown by Lifecolor. As stated previously, Gunze sprayed fine at 50:50, but a little extra thinner would have done no harm. The addition of the MAC valve made for
Paint was sprayed at 15PSI for general spraying, and at around 20PSI for finer spraying. The HP-CH is a fine performer with a little extra thinner at higher pressure, as shown by Lifecolor. As stated previously, Gunze sprayed fine at 50:50, but a little extra thinner would have done no harm. The addition of the MAC valve made for
As another test, I sprayed some Tamiya acrylic, again with proprietory thinner X20A at 15PSI, and the results were very much as they were with both Lifecolor and Gunze.
So what do we think?
Both the feel of this airbrush, together with its weight gives it a positive feel. The addition of the MAC valve and it's handy location are an absolute bonus to this model. Everything about this model is 'right', and having used the HP-C Plus for 2 years, moving to this brush isn't a hard task. The button mechanism is positive, and cleaning is easy as the needle is removed very, very simply. I intend to use this brush as the primary brush for my forthcoming Junkers Ju 88A-1 build, as I feel extremely confident in using it, with no problems. You will see the results within the Ju 88 Blog which is featured here.
Both the feel of this airbrush, together with its weight gives it a positive feel. The addition of the MAC valve and it's handy location are an absolute bonus to this model. Everything about this model is 'right', and having used the HP-C Plus for 2 years, moving to this brush isn't a hard task. The button mechanism is positive, and cleaning is easy as the needle is removed very, very simply. I intend to use this brush as the primary brush for my forthcoming Junkers Ju 88A-1 build, as I feel extremely confident in using it, with no problems. You will see the results within the Ju 88 Blog which is featured here.
Overall 9/10
Many thanks to The Airbrush Company for the sample HP-CH used within this review.
The HP-CH currently retails at £189.99 incl. VAT
To contact The Airbrush Company, please go to www.airbrushes.com
The Airbrush Company Ltd
Unit 7 Marlborough Road (East)
Lancing Business Park
Lancing
West Sussex
BN15 8UF
+44 (0)1903 767800
