Reviews Tools Anthem 155 Airbrush, Badger
We have another Badger airbrush review. This time the dual action Anthem 155. Follow along as Fred Jr. reviews this product.
The Anthem, Model 155 is a dual action, internal mix air brush with a siphon (bottom) feed. It has a single needle/tip design, so it can spray almost any type of paint without the need to buy different needle/tip combinations.
This is the first dual action air-brush I’ve used, and I was a little intimidated at first. I expected it to be far more difficult to use then the single action brushes I’m used to. What’s the difference? Well, with a single action brush, the trigger controls the amount of air going through the brush. The needle position, spray pattern, is controlled separately by turning the rear of the brush to pull the needle in or out. A dual action brush allows you to control both air and needle with the trigger at the same time. Push down on the trigger for more air and pull back for a larger spray pattern. Another item about dual action brushes worth mentioning is that the default position of the needle can be adjusted. So if you have to spray a large area, you can adjust the needle back, just like on a single action brush, so you don’t have to hold the trigger back the whole time. This saves major finger cramping!
I found the Anthem 155 very easy to use and adjust to. The trigger action is smooth and responsive and the needle/tip combination is excellent. I’ve sprayed several different kinds of paints with equal success including Modelmaster, Model-Flex and acrylic craft paints. A combination of the needle/tip setup and the ability to pull the needle back easily helped reduce tip clogging to almost zero.
The Anthem 155 has a good range of spray patterns. From what Badge calls “pencil thin” to about 3”. While I’m not sure what “pencil thin” means, it was able to make consistent lines of about 2mm thickness. While not suited to ultra fine work, and Badger makes other brushes for that job, it is more than sufficient for model trains.
The Anthem 155 is well made using all metal construction for durability. The brush can be disassembled and put back together without any tools, everything is “finger tight”, so there is no little wrench to go searching for when it comes time to clean the brush. There is also a minimum of parts in the airbrush, so there is less to go wrong and fewer parts to stock for repairs. The brush has a lifetime warranty on labour and PTFE seals as well.
Another concern I had with a dual action brush was cleaning and maintenance. The Anthem 155 is simple to clean and easy to maintain. There are few parts to worry about, so taking it apart and putting it back together again are easy. If something does go wrong, there aren’t that many parts to check to find the issue either!
The Anthem 155 is my new favourite air-brush. I haven’t used either of my single action air-brushes since playing with this one. The versatile needle/tip combo is the biggest reason for the switch. The dual action capability comes in really handy for weathering, as changing the spray pattern “on-the-fly” really speeds things up. If you haven’t tried one, give a dual action air-brush a try. They really aren’t that hard to use and the Badge Anthem Model 155 is a great choice to start with.
