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9/2013
I've never tried a gravity fed single action airbrush. I mentioned this to Ken Schlotfeldt, and he was kind enough to send me a Badger 200G to review.
First Impression
It's nice to hold, and balances right about at the trigger. It's very light, weighing just 73g. You could say it's a gravity fed version of the old style 200 single action. All the parts are interchangeable. You could also call it a single action version of the 100G double action. The 1/16oz. cup and head are the same.
The trigger has the new Glydecoat treatment, which doesn't really matter much in a single action airbrush. But, I guess it is the new Badger standard for all their brushes. I find the angle of the trigger to be comfortable.
Components
The head assembly is the standard 100 series type. Mine came with a 0.25mm fine tip. A 0.5mm medium version is also available.
The 0.25mm spray regulator is marked with an F. The head and tip are unmarked. The Teflon gasket on the head needs to be replaced occasionally when it gets compressed too much. It can cause bubbles in the paint cup. I would leave the head a little loose during storage.
The needle appears the same as a 100G needle, except it is much longer to extend out the rear of the handle. Here is the 200G needle with the 100G below it.
The adjuster for the needle is the same as the old style 200 and the 200NH airbrushes.
The needle chuck was very tight in the adjuster. I had to use pliers. As with the 200 and 200NH, the head assembly and adjuster should be tightened all the way before installing the needle and tightening the needle chuck. This will prevent tip damage caused by over tightening the adjuster during use. Notice the fine thread pitch on the adjuster. It gives very fine control of needle position.
The single groove on the rear of the needle marks it as a fine component.
Trying it out
I sprayed some food color on a paper towel, and was able to do some very fine lines. The 0.25mm tip produces a very narrow pattern, and the manual needle positioning definitely helps.Being a single action with a gravity cup, I really expected it to drip when I set it down in my holder. But, to my surprise, it didn't. So, I backed the needle up more, waaay more, and it still didn't drip.
Then it dawned on me. The tip opening is so small, and the pressure from gravity so low, that surface tension of the water based coloring prevented a leak.
So, I borrowed the 0.5mm head from my old style 200 and installed it. I filled the cup with water and pulled back the needle and it still didn't drip.
I wondered how a liquid with lower surface tension would act, so I repeated the test with lacquer thinner. With the 0.5mm head, it ran right through. But with the 0.25mm head it held unless I tapped it.
I suspect with normal thinning, this will not be a problem with most paints.
Conclusion
The 200G is a really nice airbrush for detail work, but like the 100G, the small cup limits its usefulness for general coverage. The leakage problem that I anticipated, didn't show up.
If you want the ability to do fine lines, but lack the skill to produce them with a double action airbrush, this is a solution. One drawback of a single action airbrush is the inability to give a quick blast of paint to clear a clog or tip dry. But, you can work around this by keeping a swab or brush with some thinner handy to clear the nozzle instead.
Once again, my sincere thanks to Ken Schlotfeldt for the the sample.
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