A question about “Airbrush Management”


D&J RailRoad said:
I've watched quite a few air brush clinics as well as followed instructions on how to clean them.
The second use would look worse than if I used a broom to paint with. Spitting, splattering, sometimes no paint at all then suddenly solid stream of paint. It was more of a joke of spray guns. Tried various cleaning procedures and solutions. Same results. Always cleaned immediately after use. Same results.
I've tried a couple of Badger air brushes and some others that I don't recall the name. A couple from online stores. A few more from Hobby Lobby. Was told I bought the cheap version. Seems to be the go-to answer. Just how much do ya need to spend for an air brush that can be used a second time? $1,000, $2,000. Obviously, anything less than $500 is considered a cheap air brush.
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Ken

Wow, no need to keep buying airbrushes or spend “a lot”. Spending a lot of course in very subjective only for the buyer.

My 2 main airbrushes are Badgers.

A Renegade Krome purchased in 2016?.? For less then $60 then about $110 now on SprayGunner.com

My favorite is a extreme Patriot 105 purchased long ago for less the $50.00 but going for $108 on SprayGunner.com

I just purchased a Paasche VL-3A for a deeply discounted $99 it was $150 from the LHS looking to be rid of inventory

I do have other Badger but single action air brushes that still work fine purchased in 1975

So prices are all over the map

There are many guesses as to what could be the issue but the main thing is set up and practice. Play with the paint mixes, air pressure and even your spraying distances. I have helped a few modelers with their airbrushing but I would not consider myself a teacher. Heck today I asked about cleaning a AB after spraying clear coats. But find a good video series on airbrushing and start over. It’s a learning process…

What paints are you spraying?
 
I've used a variety of paints over the years, Floquil is one that comes to mind. Other paints that I pick up at the hobby shop or Hobby Lobby. On the first use of a new air brush, it works well and provides a nice paint job. It's the cleaning process and subsequent uses that it's just doesn't work anymore.
They aren't that complex to take apart to clean and reassemble. It's just that they don't provide anywhere near the paint job they did when they were new.
I've bought several compressors, all with the water thing to keep it from going down the hose.
I've tried both the paint jar and the paint cup, both will just spit and splatter. Adjusting the nozzle really doesn't do anything. It's all in the single action or double action levers.
I've had a couple friends try to figure it out over the years but they only got the same results despite a lot of fiddling around with it. Both of them told me the brushes were cheap ones and I need to consider a quality air brush. I think one was the Pasquel version. The other I don't recall. I've always asked the hobby shop folks about the quality of the brush and they assure me that what they sell are quality air brushes.
I bought an air brush a couple years ago to paint the Diablo Canyon bridge. The brush kit was close to $200. I painted the bridge then tried to clean the air brush with the cleaner that goes with the paint. Loaded it up the next day to touch up the bridge and at first it wouldn't put out any paint. Took it apart to clean again. Didn't really see anything. Put it back together. Mixed some more paint, still nothing but air, then suddenly just splatter of large droplets and spray. Really messed up the bridge with the globes of paint running all over it. Cleaned up the bridge as best as I could then just used a flat black spray can paint to fix it. I threw that air brush away as well.
 
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C&OMtnMan said:
Uhhh,not quite.

You appear to be operating under the assumption that I was smart enough to notice when I lost the nozzle, and make no further attempt to paint without it.

Fatal mistake.
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Not quite. Nozzle leakage is probably what caused the o-ring failure to begin with. From looking at your parts breakdown I’d guess that there was some leakage between the nozzle and the airbrush body where the white gasket is. I’d try replacing that white gasket and a little more torque when replacing the nozzle cap. Not too much, but make sure it’s tight. I once lost a nozzle when demonstrating the procedure in my booth at a train show. No good deed goes unpunished. An Iwata part. $42.00 list price for being nice.
 
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I shoot a lot of Tru Color thru an IWATA airbrush. No gaskets in this one! I usually run some lacquer thinner thru it than some IWATA airbrush cleaner. Cleans up nicely. I find these spray much better than the water based acrylics which have a tendency to clog nozzles.
 
747flier said:
I shoot a lot of Tru Color thru an IWATA airbrush. No gaskets in this one! I usually run some lacquer thinner thru it than some IWATA airbrush cleaner. Cleans up nicely. I find these spray much better than the water based acrylics which have a tendency to clog nozzles.
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We call it “tip dry”. Acrylics dry quickly, the reaction starting as soon as they hit air. Paint will accumulate on the needle until there’s enough of it, then you shoot a big booger right onto your work. When shooting acrylics I remove the needle cap and keep an eye in the needle, wiping it off periodically. I also suggest not shaking acrylics to mix them. The air bubbles in the bottle can actually start the reaction and you can get little bits of hardening paint in the bottle. Stir it.
 
Yes, one needs to clean the tips with the acrylics, I have also used retarders and flow aids. For my ship models I mostly mixed my own paints with the GOLDEN artist paints. OK results but just the usual Acrylics PITA spraying.
 
Espeefan said:
Not quite. Nozzle leakage is probably what caused the o-ring failure to begin with. From looking at your parts breakdown I’d guess that there was some leakage between the nozzle and the airbrush body where the white gasket is. I’d try replacing that white gasket and a little more torque when replacing the nozzle cap. Not too much, but make sure it’s tight. I once lost a nozzle when demonstrating the procedure in my booth at a train show. No good deed goes unpunished. An Iwata part. $42.00 list price for being nice.
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The gasket that came out with the nozzle that fell out, into the grass, at dusk, which nozzle wasn’t bright & shiny because I was spraying black paint & isn’t metallic nozzle? Yeah, re-using it hasn’t really been a possibility, let alone a consideration.

Don’t overestimate my intelligence in how all this unfolded.
 
C&OMtnMan said:
Nope.

Rumor has it thag we’ve got some of those interlocking rubberized squares. I might set those up in a strategic indoor location.
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Honestly, I’ve got no idea why I said “nope” here.

747flier said:
I guess grass is even worse than the dreaded carpet under the modeling area!
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Obviously yes, you’re right. Losing stuff in grass is worse than any indoor environment.

(Unless you have floor vents nearby.)
 
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