Badger Patriot Review
7/2011
When I first set up this website, I e-mailed Ken Schlotfeldt, the President of Badger, because I had used a couple of Badger's copyrighted images and I wanted to see if he had a problem with that. He wrote back and said he liked the site and would include a link to it from the Badger website. The other day, this site passed its first anniversary, and I wrote Ken and thanked him again for the link. I also mentioned the new Patriot and said I was tempted to get one. He asked for my address, and a few days later it was on my front porch. What a guy.
Up until now, there have been three variations of the 155 Anthem; the basic 155, the 3155 for fine work, and the 360 which has a rotating section that allows it to be used in either a siphon or gravity fed mode. The one complaint I've seen of the 360 is that, in the gravity fed position, the cup is too small. Badger has now addressed that complaint with the Patriot, which has a generous 1/3oz. cup. The cup is tapered, which makes it very easy to clean.
The Patriot came in a nice plastic case with a fitted foam liner.
Included were a cap for the cup and a spare tip. The cap is plastic, but perfectly functional.
Here is a parts breakdown. For more information on these parts,see the Basic Stuff page
The Badger brochure, which you can see here, says that the Patriot is just like the Anthem only gravity feed. Actually, it's more like a 3155 with gravity feed, as it has the 3155's fine needle, 0.5mm tip, regulator and trigger. This makes sense as most people buy a gravity fed brush expecting to be able to do fine lines. Actually, the needle has a different part number than the 3155 needle, but I compared the two side by side and if there is any difference, I can't see it. So you won't get the wide range of spray pattern of a standard 155, but still sufficient for general use. It will accept the regular 155 parts if that is what you prefer. I do miss the 155 trigger. The Patriot trigger is larger and won't fit the rubber trigger cap that I like.
Trying it out
Please keep in mind: I have never used a gravity fed airbrush before. In fact I have never used any airbrush except for the Anthem.
First off, it does seem strange having that cup sitting on top. It kind of blocks the view, but I can get used to it, and any gravity fed brush is going to have that.
Secondly, the new trigger just didn't feel right to me. It's the same trigger used on the Omni and Vega brushes, but the Anthem trigger with the rubber cap has spoiled me. I put the Anthem trigger in the Patriot and it felt much better. If you have never used the Anthem, you would probably think it is fine as is.
Note: I have heard that as of 2009, all Badger and Thayer & Chandler internal mix airbrushes now use a larger trigger, and the smaller trigger is no longer available.
One problem I ran into right away was: How do I set it down? You might have noticed in earlier pages that I have a block of wood carved out to fit the 1/4oz. cup. It works pretty well for holding the 155 with cup attached. That wouldn't work for the Patriot. So here is what I came up with. It's pretty solid and I think it will do the job.
I was still thinking about that trigger and I remembered some small vinyl stick-on bumpers that I have. So I put the original Patriot trigger back and stuck one of the bumpers on it. Bingo!! Now it has a non-slip feel similar to the 155 and I think it looks kind of cool.
As you might expect, since they are basically the same brush, the Patriot performs pretty much like a 155 with the fine needle and tip. (See the 3155 page) The gravity feed should give some advantage for fine lines, but with my skill level it's minimal. But, that being said, it is a very nice performing airbrush. Here are some doodles I did on paper towels with black ink.
Hey, I said I wasn't an artist.
Note: If you need even finer lines, have a look at my Super Fine Conversion page.
I have to admit that clean up is a little easier than the 155, but this is because there is no separate cup to mess with. You clean the brush and you're done. And, the tapered cup gives good access for cleaning. As with the 155, removing the needle for a wipe down is super quick and easy. No wrench is needed for the head assembly; finger tight does the job.
If I have only one airbrush, I'll still take the 155 for its versatility. But, either the 155 or the Patriot will do anything you are likely to need for painting models and do it well. Thank you again, Ken.
Postscript
I eventually replaced the plastic bumper on the trigger with a piece of suede leather that I attached with hot melt glue. It just felt better to me.