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wacom airbrush...modification

polycounter lvl 13
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airbrush polycounter lvl 13
I got a wacom airbrush for my bday... i've been airbrushing since i was a teenager and have always been curious if these actually emulated the feel of a real one.
It takes a little getting used to at first, there are a couple of things I would have liked to see done different, the shape being one of them, but can't really modify that...was hoping to trim down the big extension on the bottom.
My biggest issue with it was the wheel and the fact that it didn't return to an off position when you let go like it would for a real spraygun or airbrush, since the needle/trigger is spring loaded.
So I decided to remedy the situation and see if i could throw a spring in it and began dissecting it. It actually wasn't too tough to do... a small spring and a couple holes later and now it functions more like an actual airbrush would.

wacom_airbrush.jpg

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  • Justin Meisse
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    Justin Meisse polycounter lvl 18
    that is totally awesome
  • Wheel
    Nice mod , I'll do this to the one at work without telling anyone.
  • pior
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    pior grand marshal polycounter
    So simple, so cool!!
  • Mark Dygert
    Holy crap, you're brave. That is indeed quite awesome! Hopefully Wacom will take notice, slap their foreheads and put it in.
  • MoP
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    MoP polycounter lvl 18
    nice move, thanks for sharing! :)
  • Dante1217
    if you really wanna get it to feel like your REAL airbrush, you could take the chip that is in there, and flip it upside down, slice a slit in the top of the casing, and cut off the huge lump on the bottom, then rebuild the casing with apoxy or something ^^
  • airbrush
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    airbrush polycounter lvl 13
    Vig wrote: »
    Holy crap, you're brave. That is indeed quite awesome! Hopefully Wacom will take notice, slap their foreheads and put it in.

    Well i just cut open part of it as I wasnt sure how the case was secured, the front cone pops off, but the back side of the cover was wedged in there good...probably glued too, not sure. I just cut around the seam line. I wasn't too worried about wrecking anything since I wasn't using it much because I really didn't like the way it functioned, it would have been collecting dust otherwise...now its much better, more of what i'm used to with a real airbrush. Just didn't feel natural to me to have to push the wheel forward to reduce the flow.
  • Dante1217
    well... im not really an expert on airbrushes, in any means, but i would say, go to radioshack, and get a pressure sensitive button, then remove the wheel mechenism, and build your own mech using the button, and just drill a hole in the case.. im not sure how good you are with electronics and fabricating, but if you arent then dont even bother, but if it doesnt matter either way... I dunno. just leave it if you arent confident in your fabrication skills.
  • airbrush
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    airbrush polycounter lvl 13
    Dante1217 wrote: »
    well... im not really an expert on airbrushes, in any means, but i would say, go to radioshack, and get a pressure sensitive button, then remove the wheel mechenism, and build your own mech using the button, and just drill a hole in the case.. im not sure how good you are with electronics and fabricating, but if you arent then dont even bother, but if it doesnt matter either way... I dunno. just leave it if you arent confident in your fabrication skills.

    a pressure sensitive button would be nothing like a real airbrush. The wheel design on it is fine, mechanically the feel and function is different because it lacked the return spring.
  • sprunghunt
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    sprunghunt polycounter
    Hmm

    It might be possible to get a real airbrush and put the internals into that...
  • airbrush
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    airbrush polycounter lvl 13
    sprunghunt wrote: »
    Hmm

    It might be possible to get a real airbrush and put the internals into that...

    No need to do that really...was hoping to cut off the big buldge on the bottom but circuit board is shaped to it. Regardless, it just feels more like it should now...at least to me.
  • Dante1217
    i posted yesterday, but i dont see it now... anyways, i thought maybe get a real airbrush and make a hollow apoxy model of it, then run all the wires from the wacom board up into it, as well as the tip and the wheel/buttons, then you will have what feels like a real brush... but if you arent confident in your fabrication skills, then dont bother trying
  • Ruz
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    Ruz polycount lvl 666
    sounds great. I too used to be a real airbrush artist, but don't miss the blocked nozzle:)
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