I’m a big fan of MAC valves. But I do think the good airbrushes with whem built in, are a bit overpriced and you only have one for that specific gun. And that is where the inline MAC valve comes in.
I’ve already done comparison between a cheap Chinese one, a better quality Sparmax one and my favourite Harder & Steenbeck one. You can read it here .
My latest one is from Tamiya. It’s the Tamiya Air Control Valve II. Honoustly, I did not even know there were a version I. With a bit of research, I managed to come across it and it does not look too bad. https://www.tamiya.com/english/products/74552/index.htm
Packaging is simple and does what it is suppose to do. Once open, you can see it is quite small. Around the 12mm x 30mm mark with a super shiny chrome plating. A bit of knurling on the part the turns and a bit of etching indicating directions of operation. I think the knurling could have been about half the height of the barrel for better grip.
Installed on the airbrush is looks right at home. The Chrome finish matches that of my Micron perfectly. I’ve also got my Harder & Steenbeck male quick coupling screwed onto it. With this type of design where it is just a valve, it can get a bit pricey as you still need to buy the male and female quick disconnect parts. You can get them cheap these days but you also get what you pay for. This one, at time of this review, cost me almost $20.
All these connections can really add quite a bit length to the grip of the gun. Imagine the size if you still have to add a water trap.
You can also connect it to the hose and keep the amount of connectors on the gun to a minimum. This is my preferred way as this means I only need one valve to cover all my airbrushes.
Compared to my other models, this specific valve operates better when attached to the gun compared to the hose. When attached to the hose and you try and turn the barrel, the whole connection turn due to the nature of a quick connect system. You have to pinch the female quick coupling with your pinkie to stop it from rotating when turning the valve.
Another note is the actual air control hence the name. Fully closed it shuts the air off completely. From close to fully open only takes a bit over 45° (1/8th) of a turn. This gives is a very narrow window of control. Past this 45°it can rotate to about 270° (7/8th) around before it locks. So it has a lot of dead space. Luckily it is at the end where is does not really affect performance.
LIKES and DISLIKES
Likes: Chrome finish, size, way it operates when attached to airbrush.
Dislikes: Price, does not have quick coupling built in, way it operates when attached to hose, doubt it’s serviceable.
Conclusion
As much as I enjoy using it, I doubt it will replace my Harder and Steenbeck one. I’m just too dialed in (get it) to those.
AVW AirbrushWorks 