Need help! Airbrush blows air but not paint!

S

SkylordAndy

Guest
I bought a new compressor recently (not that i wanted to, i broke my old one due to a mistake) because i thought that my old air compressor was causing this problem. I have an Iwata Hp-CS (or at least i think thats what its called) that uses a .35mm needle and nozzle. While the nozzle is getting kinda old at this point so i was thinking that was maybe the problem, i still need to figure out why my airbrush is doing this.

When i turn on the airbrush and have paint or primer in the cup, i can feel air on my hand coming from the airbrush, yet no paint is coming out. Weirder still, the paint seems to be bubbling the same as when you would cover up the airbrush tip so that the air would be forced backwards. So why is it doing this, and how do i fix it? Replace the old nozzle?
 

Well i tossed the nozzle in a little cup of Purple Power, im gonna leave it for a couple hours and then give it a good cleaning with a... needle? Incidentally if i wasnt supposed to use purple power then i should have asked first and am also stupid.
 
Hey Andy, once you've had a look at those links, can you please give us an intro...? here is the link..

http://www.airbrushforum.org/introductions/

Thank you, not sure if i wanna do the intro thread though. I mean i doubt ill ever be here gain unless i have a (probably stupid) question that everyone already knows the answer to but me.
 
Please don't be offended by what I'm about to say, but if you are having trouble at this stage then I'd suggest you stick around for awhile and gain a bit more knowledge, it might help you avoid issues rather than have them happen then you need to seek answers.

what paint you are using? that will determine what cleaner you should be using.
re the purple power, if its ammonia free then it should be ok (depending on what paint you are using)

Interdental brushes (from the dental section of the shops) are better than the normal 'airbrush cleaning brushes, too.
Unless you have a very gentle touch I wouldn't recommend reaming with the needle, you can easily damage the needle /nozzle.
 
Thank you, not sure if i wanna do the intro thread though. I mean i doubt ill ever be here gain unless i have a (probably stupid) question that everyone already knows the answer to but me.
Entirely over to you but this being the second post you've got with questions that suggest you are a beginner in this process. I agree with @JackEb. The intro is useful. I mean where are you in the world for a start? You could be in Namibian desert and don't have access to interdental brushes... :) We like helping people but it's a whole lot easier when we get to know them a bit better.
 
Im not offended, in fact im kinda happy your being so nice about it. Your also right, i guess ill stick around in the shadows like a really lazy and nerdy batman. Would a paint brush work, i dont have any dental brushes and i need to get some.
 
nice is what we do here (most of the time :) )
an artists hairy brush can be used, just becareful if its a small brush that the metal collar doesn't come in contact with anything, the nozzles are normally brass and will scratch easily,
you may need a couple of soak/scrub cycles.
check the air chambers on the body too. (eyeball into the body of the airbrush you will see a airhole/s that should be clear.
 
I use a paint brush and don't use the dental brushes... a cheap artist brush works well.
 
Interdontal brushes IMO are more for the channels in the body. As noted by others, the inside of the nozzle tip is sensitive to scratches, and interdontal brushes often have a wire core (a soft plastic coated wire core, but still) which can still scratch the metal, or be too large to get all the way into the nozzle tip.

An artists "hairy" brush with a small diameter and long fibers (like a pinstriping brush) is IMO safest for ordinary nozzle cleaning. For particularly tenacious gunk, I use a wood toothpick whittled/shaved to a needle point and soaked in cleaner.

I don't recommend soaking in "Purple Power". I'm not personally familiar with the brand, but from my google searches, it appears to be similar to another purple cleaning stuff I am familiar with called "Super Clean", which is DEFINITELY not something you'd want to soak brush parts in.

When it comes to soaking, stick to stuff that's explicitly recommended for airbrush or paint gun cleaning. Some common cleaning products do contain stuff which will harm the plating or the underlying metal of your brush if left to soak.
 
Sigh. Of course this all has to happen when im working on a model for a tournament. And it also seems that i broke my old air compressor for a problem that it most likely did not have.

The nozzle's metal cap had a little gouge in it, small enough to be overlooked and make you think something else is the problem.

Anybody know a place with cheap 1 or 2 day shipping that also carries an iwata .35mm nozzle?
 
I got my 0.5 needle/nozzle from amazon, can't remember if they do the 0.35
 
Looks like there are plenty of Hobby Lobby stores in Nebraska. If there is one near you, this would probably be your quickest and cheapest option. They almost always have a 40% off a single item coupon on their website, which you can either print off or pull up on a smart phone at the store and show to the cashier. With this coupon you can get a new nozzle for less than 18 dollars, or you could get a new needle for less than 7 dollars. I stocked up on needles by buying a new one every couple weeks for less than 7 dollars each. They usually have needles and nozzles for the eclipse in stock.
 
Back
Top