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Airbrush Glossary

55 terms

Every airbrush term explained — from first-time questions to advanced technique vocabulary.

ABCDEFGHIMNOPQRSTUVZ

A

Air Cap
Nozzle cap, crown cap, air director
Equipment
Atomization
Atomization — airbrush terminology explained.
Measurement

B

Back-Bubbling
Blowback, color back-flow
Problems & Fixes
Backflush
Bubbling through the cup, back-bubbling technique
Maintenance
Binder
Holds pigment particles together and bonds paint to the surface
Paint & Materials

C

Cfm
Cubic Feet per Minute
Measurement
Color Cup
Paint cup, paint reservoir, gravity cup
Equipment
Color Modulation
Scale modulation, modulation painting
Technique
Compressor
Generates compressed air to power the airbrush
Equipment

D

Dagger Stroke
Tapered lines that come to a fine point, like a dagger blade
Technique
Deep Clean
Full disassembly clean, teardown clean
Maintenance
Dual-Action
Double-action
Equipment

E

External Mix
Air and paint mix outside the airbrush body
Equipment

F

Flow Improver
Airbrush medium, flow aid, retarding medium (when it also slows drying)
Paint & Materials
Flow Limiter
Needle stop, trigger stop, paint flow limiter
Equipment
Freehand
Airbrushing without stencils, masks, or guides
Technique
Frisket
Frisket film, liquid frisket, masking film
Technique

G

Gradient
Fade, blend, gradation
Technique
Gravity Feed
Paint cup sits on top; gravity pulls paint down to the nozzle
Equipment

H

Hvlp
High Volume, Low Pressure
Equipment

I

Internal Mix
Air and paint mix inside the airbrush body before exiting
Equipment

M

Mac Valve
Moisture and Air Control Valve
Equipment
Masking
Protects areas from paint while you spray freely elsewhere
Technique
Moisture Trap
Water trap, air filter, moisture separator
Equipment

N

Needle
Controls paint flow by moving in and out of the nozzle
Equipment
Needle Cap
Protects the needle tip from damage
Equipment
Nozzle
Tip, fluid tip
Equipment
Nozzle Wrench
Removes and installs the nozzle safely
Equipment

O

O-Ring
Seals connections to prevent air or paint leaks
Equipment
Opacity
How much a paint layer covers what's beneath it
Paint & Materials
Orange Peel
Orange Peel — airbrush terminology explained.
Problems & Fixes
Overspray
Paint that lands outside the intended area
Problems & Fixes

P

Pigment
The coloring matter in paint
Paint & Materials
Pre-Shading
Pre-shading technique, underpainting shadows
Technique
Psi
Pounds per Square Inch
Measurement
Ptfe Seal
Polytetrafluoroethylene seal
Equipment

Q

Quick Disconnect
Quick release, QD fitting
Equipment

R

Reducer
Thinner, airbrush medium, paint reducer
Paint & Materials
Regulator
Controls and stabilizes air pressure output
Equipment
Retarder
Drying retarder, slow-dry medium
Paint & Materials
Runs
Drips, sags, tears
Problems & Fixes

S

Side Feed
Paint cup mounts on the side of the airbrush
Equipment
Single-Action
One trigger controls only air; paint flow is set separately
Equipment
Siphon Feed
Bottom feed, suction feed
Equipment
Spattering
Random droplets of paint on the surface; a defect or a technique
Problems & Fixes
Spider Webbing
Spider Webbing — airbrush terminology explained.
Problems & Fixes
Stenciling
Using a pre-cut template to spray consistent, repeatable shapes
Technique

T

Tank
Air receiver, reservoir
Equipment
Tip Dry
Paint drying on the needle tip during use, disrupting spray
Problems & Fixes
Transparency
Transparency — airbrush terminology explained.
Paint & Materials
Trigger Control
Mastering the dual-action trigger to control air and paint independently
Technique

U

Ultrasonic Cleaner
Deep-cleans airbrush parts using ultrasonic vibration in a cleaning solution
Maintenance

V

Venturi Effect
How siphon-feed airbrushes draw paint upward without a pump
Measurement
Viscosity
How thick or thin a liquid is; how easily it flows
Paint & Materials

Z

Zenithal Priming
Zenithal highlighting, two-tone priming, OSL priming
Technique
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