David Klasfeld wrote:
Absolutely go with the BR if your focus is going to be beauty makeup. A .5mm is great for body art and FX, but doesn't allow for the type of precision control you'll want for smaller areas of the face. While the difference between a .35 and a .3 might seem minute, it really does give you more control.

It's also really important to consider the cup size when purchasing any top feed airbrush - a large cup holds no benefit for a makeup artist because you use so little product to do a face makeup application. All a large cup does is collect a lot of product on the sides of it, making you use and waste more product. Body Art is another story entirely. The BR has a smaller cup than all the ones mentioned as well.  It's the one I've used personally for as long as they've had it, I adore it, and so it was easy choice to carry it at OCC.

Same goes for the Silver Jet. It's just the perfect entry level compressor, allowing you to do a little bit of everything. If you move on to either full-on body painting or special FX as a career focus, you'll eventually want something with a little more power behind it, but the Silver Jet is more than ample power for however many beauty makeup applications you need to do.

Every Silver Jet should come with a moisture filter/pistol grip- it's included in the price. The MSRP is $199.00, though several merchants sell it for less. The MSRP of the moisture filter is $47.00 by itself, so if it's not included, the price should reflect that. But you're not doing yourself a favor if it's not included - it's an essential part of the assembly. Beware any brand that tells you the moisture filter is internal - that moisture needs to be released somehow, and if you don't have a way of doing that, there's probably not actually a filter in it.

Hope this helps!
DK

David,

thanks so much, thats pretty much what i thought on the guns!

about the compresor, i think that a lot of the sites i am looking at use a standard description that Iwata puts out about their compresors, because it's all the same exact verbiage on the features for many sites.  It does list the pistol grip filter, just doesn't use the phrase "moisture filter".  Is it the same thing?  here is what they list it coming with:


Silver Jet

Powerful, compact, reliable and quiet, the Silver Jet us a single-person, light-duty, entry-level compressor. It features working pressure adjustable from 10-18 psi, perfect for cosmetics, tanning, hobbies/models, fingernail painting, bakery and general airbrushing. The Silver Jet includes a coiled airhose, Iwata Pistol-Grip Filter, pressure adjustable knob, handle, airbrush holder, pressure gauge and convenient airhose connector.

Price: $119.00
136.60 AUD 117.50 CAD 82.65 EUR

Thanks so much!