comments:
For cleaning I use hardware store lacquer thinner in a wash bottle. For a color change I will rinse and dump the paint cup 2-3x with a very small amount of thinner (I would say 0.5 ml, probably less), wipe the cup with a paper towel, then add a small squirt and spray it out into a spray pot. So probably around 2 ml used for each paint swap. The final cleanup is a little deeper but not by much. Your thinning ratio sound way too thin. With Tamiya I typical do between 2:1 and 3:1 thinner to paint. When you first start painting be sure to get the paint flowing before you start on the model. Just paint a few lines on scrap paper or something. For freehand camo, thin paint (more thin than general painting), the lowest air pressure you can manage, very fine trigger control to to get fine lines, and a steady hand. But of course even the best freehand camo is going to have soft edges that are slightly imperfect, that's the intent. If you really hard and sharp edges you want to mask. I keep a spare needle and nozzle on hand because if they get damaged you're shut down until you get replacements. I'd also find out what size o-rings your airbrush uses and order a pack of spares. Skip the ones sold by the airbrush maker, they're marked up about 100x. You can find packs on Amazon or buy directly from something like McMaster Carr. Just be sure they're nitrile o-rings. Swapping needle & nozzle sizes is possible for some airbrushes.