Is it just me...

[Guest]

I've ground to a halt. |

I feel for you Steve. Matter of interest have you a leak some where. About every year they say, or some one did, replace the seals.


With a .4 needle/nozzle there should not been any problems with this airbrush which is very reliable as I know from experience.


Laurie

[Guest]

I sent my latest post to Everything Airbrush at past midnight last night and got the following reply at 08:50 this morning. Good service or what! Problem analysis and options given. I will either buy the Nozzle Cleaning Kit and Brushes(£15.54 including VAT) or a new nozzle (£13.76). Will need to think about that. What do people think?


I will report the result. If such blockages are likely in the future, the kit might be best. I will use the Drying Retarder in future.


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If your airbrush sprays cleaner or water without blocking but blocks when spraying paint then it will be residue dry paint inside the fluid chamber of the nozzle.


Cleaner or Water flows because it contains no pigments and is just fluid and can travel through the smallest areas. Model Air and any other acrylic paints have plastic paint pigments and the water based part of the paint is just a delivery system to transfer the pigments to the surface. Dried paint inside the nozzle restricts the room where paint would flow around the needle and out through the nozzle. As the pigment struggles to squeeze through the nozzle they start to block.


The Very Soft Worm that came out of the nozzle is semi cured paint. Acrylic paints are fairly quick curing and this is more so when they are sprayed through an airbrush. The air pressure semi-cures the paint while spraying resulting in paint pigments drying on the tip of the needle and inside the nozzle (known as tip dry). Unfortunately if the paint is completely cured inside the nozzle then ultrasonic cleaning won't remove the paint unless the cleaning agent is solvent based.


When airbrushing for 10 minutes at a time you should flush the airbrush through with cleaner to prevent the build-up of tip dry. Vallejo produce an additive that slows down the drying time of the paint thus reducing tip dry called Drying Retarder

https://www.everythingairbrush.com/paints/vallejo-paints/vallejo-model-air/vallejo-drying-retarder-17-ml.html




There are only two solutions to your current problem


1. Purchase the Harder & Steenbeck Nozzle Cleaning Kit and Brushes: This contains two brushes and a nozzle reamer to remove dried paint from the nozzle. There is no guarantee that this would cure the problem depending on how blocked the nozzle is



https://www.everythingairbrush.com/nozzle-cleaning-set.html




2. Purchase a new 0.4mm nozzle -

https://www.everythingairbrush.com/airbrushes/airbrush-spares/harder-steenbeck-spares/0-4mm-nozzle-for-evolution-grafo-colani-infinity-airbrush.html




Kind Regards, Tim Murrell, Manager

For the record, I never spray for more than 10 minutes before thorough cleaning and putting the AB away. I think I will copy this message to the Tutorials and How-Tos thread.

[Dave W]

I've not had any problems with Vallejo air.In fact the only Vallejo product that causes me problems is the matt Varnish.I used to have one of the large bottles of their polyurethane primer and it's good stuff.Then I tried Alclad primer/microfiller and was so impressed that it's now my primer of choice.Only down side is I have to use cellulose thinners to clean the airbrush after using them.

[Guest]

This contains two brushes and a nozzle reamer to remove dried paint from the nozzle.

Actually if you have a magnifier light Steve place under the magnifier large end upwards and look through. You will soon locate any residue of paint. With a .4 it is easy not so with a .2. You will see, if clean a lovely round hole.


If you use a reamer take care as you will if pressing hard wreck the nozzle. Just place in the nozzle and gently turn without any pressure and with water running over the whole nozzle.


There is not much that Tim does not know except about keeping his premises tidy.


Laurie

[Guest]

Actually if you have a magnifier light Steve place under the magnifier large end upwards and look through. You will soon locate any residue of paint. With a .4 it is easy not so with a .2. You will see, if clean a lovely round hole.
If you use a reamer take care as you will if pressing hard wreck the nozzle. Just place in the nozzle and gently turn without any pressure and with water running over the whole nozzle.


There is not much that Tim does not know except about keeping his premises tidy.


Laurie

The looking at a bright light is a good idea. I do that every time after cleaning (which is why I first thought that it was the paint, in view of the odd bits I found in the bottles. If the nozzle is held at slightly different angles to the light, sky seems best, most of the length of the inside of the nozzle can be seen. During the many inspections I did recently, the inside was always shiny bright with no tiny bits. It looks like the laying up of the AB contributed to my problem—lots of time for crud to harden. Perhaps using the reamer gently every 5th time of using the AB might be a good idea, especially when laying it up for a time. How often do you use it?

[Guest]

I admire your persitance Steve! And feel your pain, there's nothing more frustrating than equipment that inexplicably starts to not work. If it were me, at that price I'd go for a new nozzle, so I'd be confident that that was all dandy. Then try again, but my money's on the primer, I still think we expect a lot when buying liquid acrylics and expect them to stay 100% uncured for a long period of time, I have tubes of artists acrylics in my box, that are just rock solid, the cap is firmly on them, and there is no air gap in the nozzle, they just eventually set. When I started buying Vallejo air colour, I wished that they were in larger bottles, I'm not so sure now! I have one large bottle of grey (just slightly not white, more like, grrr!) and one olive primer. The grey is a pain, and I think needs thinning, the olive is beautiful and sprays perfectly every time through the 2.5 nozzle - go figure! Excellent service from everything airbrush though, good to know top service still exists.

[Ian M]

An often over looked cause of 'goop' is an incorrect additive.


If you are for example normally using Vallejo paints, and for some reason use a spirit or cellulose base paint or primer, you naturally use the appropriate cleaners for that. Then go back to the Vallejo...The tiniest drop of cellulose thinners, hiding in the airbrush will make the Vallejo coagulate. This also works the other way.


Mr Kir. A few things to invest in:


A set of air brush cleaning brushes. John sells them. they are basically mini bottle brushes.


A fine brush with bristles long enough to go through the nozzel. Does not need to be a luxury item. as long as the hairs are long enough and will not melt in cellulose (even if you do not use the stuff!)


A squirty bottle. The empty thinners bottles never get thrown away by me. Make a hole that you can screw the nozzle of your airbrush into. Make sure it is a tight fit. After a good clean scew the nozzle into the tip of the squirt bottle and blast cleaner through it. (make sure the nozzle does not fly out.


A last good idea. Try to have a spare nozzle 'in stock' That way if you get a bad blockage, you can swap over and carry on and bath the blocked nozzle in thinners while you work on...


Due to boredom I just gave my airbrush a "damned go clean". It was clean enough to work, in fact I had just used it to prime with some Alclad primer. It was working totally OK.


Using the brushes and squirt bottles, and cellulose thinners I gave it a strip down and scrub. You would not believe the amount of "nasties" that came out of it.


So even though you think it is clean, it might not be as clean as you think.


Oh one more tip: Never add paint directly in the airbrush and thin then stir. Always mix up in a separate container.. The small clear plastic "disposable" shot glasses are perfect for this.


Ian M

[Guest]

Too true, Ian. And it only takes a particle the size of a midge's knacker to upset the status quo!

[Guest]

I admire your persitance Steve! And feel your pain, there's nothing more frustrating than equipment that inexplicably starts to not work. If it were me, at that price I'd go for a new nozzle, so I'd be confident that that was all dandy. Then try again, but my money's on the primer, I still think we expect a lot when buying liquid acrylics and expect them to stay 100% uncured for a long period of time, I have tubes of artists acrylics in my box, that are just rock solid, the cap is firmly on them, and there is no air gap in the nozzle, they just eventually set. When I started buying Vallejo air colour, I wished that they were in larger bottles, I'm not so sure now! I have one large bottle of grey (just slightly not white, more like, grrr!) and one olive primer. The grey is a pain, and I think needs thinning, the olive is beautiful and sprays perfectly every time through the 2.5 nozzle - go figure! Excellent service from everything airbrush though, good to know top service still exists.

I am about to start a new model and following your remark I will buy a fresh supply of primer. I usually use Vallejo but I wonder whether others are more stable in the can. What about the much-praised Halfords spray can primer? If it became lumpy in the can it would just block and a quick wipe of the model would repair any blobbyness, and the can could be replaced.


What do other users of Halford primer think? Is it suitable for acrylic paint over it?


On the difference between the performance of your grey and olive primers, each probably has a different pigment whose particle size might be different after they are ground, or they might be more likely to clump together. I am no physical chemist, but clumping (flocculation) is a phenomenon in chemistry that can be a help or a hindrance, depending on the application. Inter-molecular forces and all that.

[Guest]

Oh one more tip: Never add paint directly in the airbrush and thin then stir.

I do Ian and have never had a problem. First I add thinners (always having a pre squirt at anything handy before on the job in hannd) then paint then a small paintbrush to give the thinners and paint a good stir. Also do the same for paint mixes. Vallejo Air 4 of this and 6 of another etc. Saves throwing away paint as you can top up as necessary.


After cleaning with airbrush cleaner I wait until it begins to make a slushing noise as it begins to empty out of the brush then stop leaving a smidgen in the nozzle. Before starting to load paint I always put in thinner to give a bit of an "oil".


Laurie

[Ian M]

I see where you are going Laurie, but as has been much the issue in this post is foreign objects in the paint. By mixing in a pot, rather than in the airbrush, you are eliminating one of the possible points by not adding the paint directly in the airbrush. I do it as well, direct into the AB that is. So far I have been reasonably lucky. I would say if you are having issues with paint/debris/clumping why take the chance. We are after all trying to eliminate a problem


As for waste of paint, a smudge on the side of a mixing pot contra a whole airbrush full that has to be ditched do to "detritus" is a bit of a no brainer if you ask me. lol


Ian M

[Guest]

If you are for example normally using Vallejo paints, and for some reason use a spirit or cellulose base paint or primer, you naturally use the appropriate cleaners for that. Then go back to the Vallejo...The tiniest drop of cellulose thinners, hiding in the airbrush will make the Vallejo coagulate. This also works the other way.

Well! That rings a bell. After I had finished using Vallejo primer on my Rolls Royce I changed to Tamiya Synthetic Lacquer which, after trials, gave me the high shine that every RR demands. Then I cleaned the AB thoroughly with Cellulose cleaners and put it away. Some could have lingered. It looks like the Cellulose + Acrylic crud remaining caused the blockage. Thanks for that. I will be buying both the nozzle kit and a new nozzle and will use the old one (if I can get it to work) for lacquer spraying only.

A fine brush with bristles long enough to go through the nozzle. Does not need to be a luxury item. as long as the hairs are long enough and will not melt in cellulose (even if you do not use the stuff!)
A squirty bottle. The empty thinners bottles never get thrown away by me. Make a hole that you can screw the nozzle of your airbrush into. Make sure it is a tight fit. After a good clean screw the nozzle into the tip of the squirt bottle and blast cleaner through it. (make sure the nozzle does not fly out.

I used a single strand of some brass picture-hanging wire to put through the nozzle. (Brass is softer than steel.) It evidently did not remove hardened crud.


The squirty bottle seems good. I will do that. Actually, in desperation to clear my nozzle I took the brush part off a photographic puffer brush. The tip of the AB nozzle fitted well into the orifice and I could give a good blow. A squirty bottle with cleaner seems better.

A last good idea. Try to have a spare nozzle 'in stock' That way if you get a bad blockage, you can swap over and carry on and bath the blocked nozzle in thinners while you work on.

Will do.

[Guest]

I see where you are going Laurie, but as has been much the issue in this post is foreign objects in the paint. By mixing in a pot, rather than in the airbrush, you are eliminating one of the possible points by not adding the paint directly in the airbrush. I do it as well, direct into the AB that is. So far I have been reasonably lucky. I would say if you are having issues with paint/debris/clumping why take the chance. We are after all trying to eliminate a problem
As for waste of paint, a smudge on the side of a mixing pot contra a whole airbrush full that has to be ditched do to "detritus" is a bit of a no brainer if you ask me. lol


Ian M

I agree. Its a mixing pot for me from now on, examining the paint as it goes into the pot for any lumps. A good idea. All this is called experience. It take ages to get! When my 16-year-old grandson moans about insufferable know-it-all older people, a (metaphorical, sadly, now-a-days) clip round the ear soon sorts that out.

[Guest]

I find it strange that you should get problems with the paint. Some of mine is now five years old including the primer.


All works perfectly. If you are using a .4 nozzle which I have on an H and S then there should not be any problem even a little lump will go through that.


So Steve I do not think it is your paint. I think there is a problem with your airbrush. Your paint worked before you have had this recent problem and presumably you have tried other colours to ensure you are not using a rogue. As the worms do not issue form the paint pot then they are forming in the airbrush and the question is why.


Assuming all of that as being so then it is an airbrush problem. Not mentioned anything about seals. I would change your seals while changing the nozzle. Also while at it change the needle if it has a slight bent top of a small curl on the top it will ruin the nozzle and could be a likely contender for the "worms".


I always keep a spare needle/nozzle set. When things do go wrong it is easy then to eliminate a problem with needle/nozzle by swapping.


When you clean Steve do you brush back up from the front end of the brush up through into the cup. Also from the spring end down through to the front nozzle end. That needle housing tunnel does get paint backed up into it. If it is not cleaned properly old paint will come back down, as bits into the nozzle area, as it is loosened by the thinners in the new paint being used.


Laurie

[grumpa]

Sorry Gents had to scroll through 90% of posts on subject maybe NOT my best day, but my advice.... buy the cheapest crap paint you possibly can and hit it like Picasso with a vengeance. Seems to work for me, let the true 3D artist in you come out and don't entangle yourself in technicalities. If I'm out of line then just ignore me {as most do} hate to see the FUN lost! Have a good tipper and ENJOY yourself that's what it's all about I feel. Never did like those little spitting devils but maybe that's just me. CHEERS! JIM