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Airbrush Help

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Hello all,

I could not ever get signed on under my other name so here I am again. I have been painting for over four years and have became ok at it. The past few weeks I have been having a problem with my brush splatering on me and after doing everything I could think of I gave in and bought a new brush that does the same thing. Tonight it started sounding like a mechine gun or rapid fire? any ideals? it is blowing air back in the bowl when it does this? I though it might be a bad gun but why is it doing it with a new gun? Thanks for any and all help!

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Will your brushes spray water?

If so, try thinning your paint so it's like skim milk.  I use 4011 reducer from Auto Aire to thin my paints.

If they won't spray water, tear them down, soak them in acetone overnight, reassemble them, backflush first with acetone and then with clean water, lots of water, and see if they work better.

If that doesn't help, I'm lost.

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So I have been workin on them again, my old brush will spary water but is arradic air? If that makes sence? My new gun will not spray water at first then will? tryed running paint thru it and it sprays but looks like crap, its like splater painting? almost like it is blowing puddles off the neddle? tried turning down air and still did it? tried thiker paint same thing? thinner paint same.

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OK, not an expert, but I think I have made most of the mistakes you can make with an airbrush. :teef:

 

Two things come to mind. 

 

1) How old is your paint?  Was it opened and then set for quite some time?  If so, it may need to be screened or filtered.  I went to Harbor Freight and got some fine paint filter cones.  I removed the screen in them and took the top off the bottles of paint.  I put the filter over it and then screwed the top back on over it.  It screens the paint every time I pour it.  Once opened, especially if there is some air space in the bottle, you get films and skins that form on the paint that can send partial plugs into your tip.

 

2) Do you have a water filter on your air supply?  If you get water in the air line it will move through with the air pressure and can cause the spattering/splattering you mention.

 

I'll bet there are otheres that can help more, but until someone chimes in, check these two items out.

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I do have one seperator coming out of my tank with gauge on it, purchaced another to go right under gun. I am hoping this helps? I have never had a problem with the paint I use in the past four years but it is possable I guess? I don't think its the paint is to thick, because it is almost like it sprays fine until it builds up on the end of my needle then spits with light spray with dark paint shootin thru as splater

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How do you clean your brush? Are you soaking your tip in acetone and cleaning the barrel ? Screen paints with panty hose!The machine gun spray I would say is caused by dried paint in your tip left from your last paint session,hence the same thing happening again after you bought a new tip! These are some of the things I do and have experienced ! I hope it helps!

P. S if you are using Q tips to clean with stop! That is part of the problem ! Good luck

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 To me it sounds like more of a problem with the air supply more than the brushes if you purhcased a new one and had the same problem immidetly with it. I would check the air pressure to make sure it is fairly steady and consistant as well as making sure its a dry air.

 

Have you put a guage on the hoses close to the airbrush hose connection or do you only have the default one on the compressor?

 

If the line is a longer hose and the compressor gets warm it may not condense the water in the line until it is past the dryer at the compressor and has had a chance to cool more. I would possibly try the new in line seperator you just purcased at the end of a standrard air hose in between the connection to the airbrush hose. Tthis way the air has had a chance to cool from the natural heating that occours from compressing it and can catch the condensation further down the lines. If also possible try a guage there as well after the dryer. then you can see exactly what the pressure is at the airbrush when it is spraying as well as when it is idle. There will be a few pounds drop in air pressure from the idle pressue to when you are actually consuming it.

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Ok guys and gals thanks for al the help, figured out I think the pulse was cming from the piston hitting in my compresor, bought a new compresor with a 3 lt tank got it put together and now my tank will not build up pressure! I just can not win! Got baits to paint any more ideals?

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It ended up being a bad regulator on the new compressor. Just a few more questions? I have let both guns in a acitone bath and cleaned good alot of things came out but something is still a miss the old gun still sounds like it is squrting and the new one is getting air back into the bowl? I have put them back in thee bath how long should they soak? how do you whip them out if not using qtips?

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i use a small brush (like for model cars) to wipe mine after a use a wire brush made to clean airbrushes with, as well as a thin rag or a paper shop towel.

 

How long has it been since you replaced the needle and/or nozzle on the old one? They are considered "wear" items, and may just be worn out possibly if you feel they got cleaned well.

 

The new one sounds like it still has some paint chunks in the tip causing blowback or the needle isnt fully set in the nozzle and/or isnt seating properly in it due to possibly wear or paint residue in them.

 

It could also be the acetone itself causing the problem. If the seals in your airbrush are not rated for solvents, the acetone may can eat them away and cause problems with the airflow. I use a light amount of acetone on mine sometimes when cleaning and after breaking them down, but if they need to soak i use airbrush restorer from auto air instead. 

Edited by crzyjunyer
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Learn to backflush with the acetone.  

After you've soaked the air brush in acetone, fill the cup with acetone, put your finger over the nozzle to block the acetone/air mix from coming out.  Pull the trigger all the way back, and down, to force the mixture back up through the paint cup.  Do that for ten seconds.

Then loosen the nozzle assembly one turn+- and back flush again the same way.  This will force the mix back through the tiny hose that the paint passes through.

Then loosen the needle, remove it and wipe it clean WITHOUT bending it or dulling the tip.  Br gentle and take your time to get it  out and back in straight.

Put the needle back in, and repeat the backflush with clean water.

If that doesn't clean out any remaining dried paint, I don't know what else to do.  It always works for me.

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I replaced the tip and needle when I purchaced the new one, I emailed TCP about the newone now has a bad air leak around the air adjustment screw. Hopeing to hear something back from them soon I got a few orders to get out this week and it sucks not figuring this out. what pressure do you guys run? my old compressor only went to 30 lbs just wondering what you all think? new one cuts on at 45lb and cuts off at 55 lbs.

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for the most part i paint at 18-22 for most everything but some thicker ones i run up to 30 psi just for extra oomph to push them though. i have a diffrent setup too though. i use a 6 gal pancake compressor and run it at 60 psi at that regulator and though my air hose for it. At the end of it i have a 2nd regulator, dryer and an air guage there before it goes into my airbrush hose, and make my air adjustements there.   

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