What kkind of airbrush do you have? I have been shopping for one. But how do I know whats a good one? Some big $ difference.
If you love yours or would change for another, please tell me about it.
Thank You

I got an airmaster by Kopykake as an early Christmas present from my DH. I Love it and am glad I put the extra $ in and got that one. It is made specifically for cakes, has adjustable air pressure so it won't blow holes in your frosting, and in general just easy to work with. I was told by many to get the bigger one from Kopykake and am glad I listened. You'll love having an airbrush.

Wilma

Cake77 is aboslutely right... the Airmaster is the BEST! I have it and I have never regretted spending more $$! Other people have bought cheaper hobby ones, and just ended up buying the Airmaster anyhow, once they saw the difference!

You need several features to work on cakes, and the KopyKakes has them all.... lower air pressure, a gravity-fed cup (and a small cup) double action for better control...

Hi everyone and Merry Christmas were do you get thoes airbrushes at is there a web site? Any info please and Thanks

You can get the airmaster from the link below. This copy is a distributor and sells them for $209, that has been the best price I have seen.


http://www.cake-decorating-supply.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=22

Thank You for your help!!!

I bought mine directly from Kopykake. www.kopykake.com
For me the shipping was cheaper from kopykake so I ended up spending alittle less, even though the airmaster was alittle more. Shipping is the big thing for me, I always figure that in before I decide which is the better deal. It all depends on where you live, as to the shipping.

Wilma

I got an airmaster for Christmas and have already used it! LOVE IT!

I got mine from sugarcraft for $215 plus shipping. It was the best deal for me as I am in Alaska and their shipping was best to here.

I have a Badger with regulator control compressor and love mine to death.

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR THE INPUT. ONE MORE THING, KOPYKAKE MAKES TWO MODELS I ASSUME THE MORE EXPENSIVE OF THE TWO IS YOUR CHOICE?

Stylishbite,

Yes that was my choice the Airmaster. If I am correct the other one doesn't have air pressure control. Many people who got the smaller one ended up wanting the larger more expensive one for the air flow control. This is the link to the one I have, and I love it.
http://www.kopykake.com/cd_compressor_airmaster.html

Wilma

I'll be getting one soon as well. My concern is this: I am NOT an artist!
How much talent do I need to have to pull off those spectacular airbrushed decorations and designs? Are there stencils you buy? Do you need the cake projector for tracing and outlining and then the airbrush for filling in?

I want the airbrush, but don't want to leave it sitting on the shelf because I don't know what to do with it.

??

Artist? I hope not sunlover00! I certainly NOT! Thanks for info all. okieinalaska I order from your link. It was the cheapest I found with shipping only $15. Should be here soon Q for airbrush users. Is is better to use on fondant when still moist or let it dry? Does it matter? How about BC let it crust first? I found some airbrush books on Amazon I may order, but want to wait to absorb some cost first. So any info will help.
Thanks

The best way to learn to use your airbrush is just to PRACTICE! Try it on paper with your airbrush color and practice going smoothly from a tiny line to a fat line. Also filling in a large shape evenly. I really love airbrushing. I've only used it on Buttercream, though. It doesn't matter if the cake is freshly iced or crusted but never use it on a cake that is still cold. If condensation gathers on the icing, your art will be damaged. Always allow a cake to thaw completely before icing it, or it will sweat. Repeat after me..."I will never use anything but approved airbrush colors in my airbrush."

I make my own stencils using a stencil cutting pen and plastic sheets from www.stencilcraft.com. This is the best discovery I ever made! It was way too hard to cut complicated stencils with a knife.

You don't really need a book..just practice and creativity. (Oh yeah, and inspiration from this site!)

BTW, if you have a projector, you can draw and fill in instead of stencil. Just be sure you stick your lines down to the icing well. If your drawing is just lying lightly on top of the cake, you will blow them all over the place when you try to fill in.

Could you do the outline with the airbrush using black? Would you do the fill in part first and then do the outline? (if you had a projector). How fine is the line....does it feather out at all at the finest setting?

Sorry for so many questions....I just need to take the plunge and buy one, huh!

I think that free-hand with no stencil you would have a really hard time making the line fine enough. Definitely not as a beginner or intermediate.

Thanks for all of the great tips Jenn123! An airbrush will be my next investment, so I'm studying now.

Here's another airbrush question: Can you use an airbrush for food and non-food inks? (Cleaning between uses of course) I was thinking that it would be fun to do temporary tattoos at parties/festivals with an airbrush and was hoping I can get double duty from one piece of equipment. Any thoughts?? TIA!

NO!!! You'll never get every bit of the non-food inks out of the airbrush, no matter how well you clean.

HOWEVER, if you buy a second gun, you could use the same compressor...

Thanks for the clarification MelC. That's what I figured, but was secretly hoping someone would say yes.

On the up side, I think you could get away with one of the cheaper airbrushes from a craft store (like Micheal's) for doing temp tatts!

Okay so the KromaJet would not be a good choice? The Airmaster is definately worth $75 more? I don't know how often I will use it although I do want to....also how large is the airmaster? I am running out of cake storage haha...

So airbrushes...for instance, I usually draw a picture on a cake and fill in with icing. If I had an airbrush, I could draw the picture on the cake and fill in using the airbrush??? I can even draw the outline????

you betcha kitagirl, and one more thing that i didn't see anyone say, don't be afraid to use alot of color, it you spray too lightly it has a tendency to fade, (not so bad on bc though). but the best way to find out how it works it to practice, practice, and then practice some more. You will be amazed at what you can do. Another thing to remember though is to airbrush your cake before you put on any embellishments (dont' want overspray getting on yer perty roses) O (i know, i know) one more very very important thing, if you have a prob with the overspray (health wise) wear one of those dust masks you can get in the hardware section of the store. I have a sensitivity to it and wear one at work all the time because of the high volume of painted cakes we do.

So do you all think if you didn't use one much like once a week would a cheaper one do until things picked up (orders)

The Airmaster isn't any larger than the Kroma jet storage wise.

Yeah I am trying to figure out too if I NEED to spend the extra. I don't get that many cake orders yet, but the ones I DO get I am a perfectionist about. I do want an airbrush that is easy to use and very functional but I don't want heavy duty, necessarily, for the light work I will use.

Is the air pressure control really super important?

It doesn't need to be expensive. Just make sure it's a double action! You'll have better control.

I like that you can turn the pressure up higher or lower.If I'm not mistaken the kromo jet only has one speed but I may be wrong. I use mine all the time and I never thought I would!!

The KromaJet said that it had a single air pressure and you adjust the color so yeah I guess you only have one air speed and different amounts of color. So with the airmaster, you adjust the airspeed, and then the finger button adjusts color, right?