Harder & Steenbeck Colani - Review

What happens when the best German airbrush manufacturer teams up with a world-renowned industrial designer? A groundbreaking airbrush design is born,  that's what! The enigmatic Colani is the product of close collaboration between Harder & Steenbeck and Luigi Colani - an award-winning designer who has conceptualized cars for BMW, Lancia, Volkswagen and Alfa Romeo among others. With the bold curves and vibrant purple grip, the tool resembles a retro-futuristic pistol straight out of a Flash Gordon comic book. But make no mistake - this tool exhibits the same quality, versatility, and precision expected of a Harder & Steenbeck airbrush!

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The Colani comes securely packaged in a smoke black plastic case. Included are the standard paperwork with parts breakdown and troubleshooting tips, a wrench, a large 15ml paint cup, and a pair of metal rings. The ergonomic handle and palm rest are hard plastic in an eye-catching purple color. The front end consists of a similar head design as the Evolution, and is equipped with a 0.4mm nozzle and needle.

Perhaps the most unique feature of this airbrush is the way the trigger is positioned. Unlike conventional pistol-grip brushes, the Colani's trigger is mounted on top, with the button extending out over the right side of the body. This results in a very relaxed position for the hand, similar to a hand-shake with the fingers slightly spread out - as opposed to other pistol grips where your fingers are all compressed together forming a tight fist. The trigger can be converted to left-handed with the use of the included wrench.

It feels surprisingly light and natural to hold even with the cup attached, possibly due to the absence of a cylindrical main body which usually conceals the trigger mechanism in most airbrush designs. The plastic parts do not feel cheap, and have a textured finish that improves grip. I did however notice the mold line running down the length of the handle parts, which I easily shaved off with a hobby knife (modelers will be modelers!). The mass of the airbrush appears to be concentrated at the midsection, and the lower center of gravity does wonders for stability.

Taking off the palm rest section reveals a thick spring that is responsible for pushing the trigger shaft and needle forwards. This is a unique to the Colani as well, since most airbrushes have this spring coiling around the needle. With the palm rest off, you can slip one of two (or both) metal rings onto the cylinder, extending the gap between the handle and the palm rest, to better match your hand size. The secondary cylinder beneath the paint chamber can make it incompatible with conventional airbrush holders, so some modification of your holder may be required. Hanger type holders should work okay.

The trigger functions similar to the Grafo - a slight pull releases only air, until the trigger shaft reaches a pin that is attached to the needle chuck assemebly. Pulling back further from this point, the airbrush begins to release paint. This feature ensures air is always flowing before paint is introduced into the flow, reducing the risk of tip-dry and paint pooling at the nozzle opening. The pull-back tension is stiffer than other H&S airbrushes, but is adjustable. At the base of the grip you will find a convenient quick-disconnect nipple, for adaptability with your air supply.

In testing, the unique trigger position took some getting acquainted to. After a few minutes of use however, I was able to produce finer and finer lines even with the 0.4mm tip installed. The needle cap can be removed so you can get closer to the subject, but with the larger paint cup and tip size, it is obvious this brush was designed for high flow rather than doing detail work. The gradual taper on the needle, combined with the long pull-back action on the trigger translates to good control of the spray pattern. Atomization was exceptional, with the highly polished needle point demonstrating good resilience to tip-dry.

It atomizes paint beautifully even at lower (15-18 psi) pressure, and is capable of spraying thicker mixes at higher velocity,  making it ideal for spraying primer and thick paints such as metallics. The nozzle is similar to the rest of H&S airbrushes, but the needle itself is thicker in girth and shorter in length, so you won't be able to use it in other models. I'll need to confirm with the H&S experts, but I've read that the Evolution's needle packing seal can be fitted onto the Colani, so it can use all other needle sizes down to the 0.15mm.

Cleaning is just as simple as other H&S airbrushes. The detachable cup gives easy access to the paint chamber, so you can scrub all the way inside with a paintbrush soaked in cleaner. Breaking down the airbrush into individual parts is not as straightforward, and you will need the included wrench to detach the trigger and some other small parts. A full tear-down is hardly ever necessary though, since the internals are already in plain view should you ever need to clean them.

Here's the video showing the airbrush in action:

The Colani's creator is an established industrial designer with notable work in the automotive industry, so I'm not at all surprised that the airbrush he envisioned is suitable for painting larger subjects. It's a great addition to Harder & Steenbeck's extensive line of detailing airbrushes, providing much needed broad work capability. I'm relatively new to this kind of progressive trigger action, so I'm very excited to use this in my upcoming projects. When a tool performs just as great as it looks, it gives the user confidence not just in the tool, but in his or her ability as well. I'm sure that with practice I can unlock it's true potential.

If you're  interested in the Colani, check out Pub Hub Hobbies and Collectibles on facebook for Philippine orders, or the Amazon link below for everywhere else. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Thanks!

Thanks for staying till the end, until next time, keep building plamo!