Overview
To achieve the best paint finishes, an airbrush is almost essential. The manner that airbrushes work, though, has a side effect in that the aerosol paint creates a cloud of paint and fumes. The best way to manage these fumes is with a spray booth, and there are many choices out there, from homemade designs to off the shelf types. This variety is good, as there is no one size fits all for modeler's spaces.
The Spray Booth
With an eye to size and portability, this spray booth from Model Expo is compact, yet still has enough space to fit even large models (that's a 1/32 P-51 Mustang in the photo). Upon opening up the box, inside is, well, another box. The spray booth is marketed as a portable spray booth, which means that much attention has been given to storage. For example, the standard power plug is housed inside its own cavity, which has a simple door. Open this up and you can pull the cord out. To retract the cord, just press the button on the top of main box and the cord retracts on its own.
Folding out the spray booth is very simple. There is a small flap on the underside that lifts up to open the front. These two pieces make up the top and are clear to allow light to filter in. For those who want more light, it would be a simple matter to position a lamp over these parts. The translucency of the clear plastic should diffuse the light nicely. Folding out the bottom reveals the side pieces, which fold up and lock in place to the top section. Finally, there is a small turntable that can be placed on the base, for those who want to paint all sides without touching the model.
Plugging it in and turning it on, this spray booth is pretty quiet, which is a nice feature for those who share their homes with others. The fan seems to put a fair amount of air through the booth, which should help a lot in controlling fumes. However, unlike stationary spray booth, this fan does not have an exhaust pipe fitting that would allow you to duct it outside. Given its portability, this is understandable, but it does raise the question of whether ducting outdoors is necessary or not. My simple sniff tests were inconclusive, as I was not sure if I was smelling residual fumes from spraying, or from the exhaust. If your paint is low-fume to begin with, this booth will work nicely. For stronger paints, it might help to use this next to an open window.
Conclusion
This is really a nice spray booth for those modelers who have to pack up their workspace afterwards, or who might need to take their modeling on the road. Its compact size folded up allows it to be stored in a small spot, which could free up some valuable counter top space. On top of that, its low price of just over $100 makes it surprisingly affordable as well. This spray booth is available from Model Expo. They also carry replacement filters, and if this booth is not large enough, buy two and fit them together.