airbrush headaches

[Battleworthy Arts]

I spend the vast majority of my painting time fighting airbrush clogs.

I have a paasche talon, and generally use the 0.25 nozzle. I use a mix of citadel, reaper, vallejo... whatever color i need. I thin to the consistency of milk with testors airbrush thinner. I run at about 20-30 psi.

It drives me absolutely mad how often this thing clogs. like every other fill, at least.

Anyone have any solid advice?

 

[QuietiManes]

The nozzle is on the smaller side, so clogging will be more of an issue with those paints. Since their pigments aren't the finest and you're using a finer nozzle set up. The bigger problem is probably clumps in the paint. Try filtering your paints, if you don't already. You can buy paint filters and/or strainers at most places that sell paint for home/car/airbrush/etc or you can use pantyhose, which may be kind of awkward to buy if you're a guy, but a pair will last you a very long time since you only need tiny piece on your dropper bottle tops or over your airbrush pot/cup, depending on how you want to use it.

 

[airhead]

QM covered it. You're getting bits of dried paint in from somewhere: around the bottle top is often the culprit.

Put your paint in an empty bottle, reduce (thin), then strain before you put it in the gun. Mini paint filter/cones are available, but I take about an inch square of panty hose, remove the cap of the bottle or the dropper bit, streatch the hose back over the opening, replace bottle top. Now as you put paint into your airbrush cup, you are straining it as well.

Throw away the hose square after use. It will dry and you won't be able to get paint through it.

If that is not the case, how long are you leaving paint in the cup? How well are you cleaning your gun? Brand (there are some differences)?

Nozzle off, needle out, flush the cup, clean out the needle/paint channel (air-brushes are great for this - a bunch of small brushes for most airbrush cleaning). Clean out the nozzle - flush with water/solvent then I use a ortho brush to clean the nozzle if possible (see picture)

 

[Einion]

Yeah filtering is something to try if you don't already do this but I honestly doubt that clumps or aggregations in your paint are the major problem. It's very likely to be primarily the binder drying on the needle and inside the nozzle surface, narrowing the gap and then leading to it closing up.

This tendency is inherent to acrylics and the clogging it causes will happen naturally every few minutes during spraying with any nozzle, but obviously more so with finer ones. To combat it I figured out that I had to clean the nozzle periodically as I went, so I brush it with a stiff-bristled brush dampened with solvent and then shoot clean water.

While I'm sure this will help with any airbrush I would suggest trying thinning with more water, or just water, as a first test to see if you get any improvement in time between clogs.

There is another aid that could mean all the difference, and that's Needle Juice. See this previous thread for more, post #2.

Einion

 

[airhead]

Doh... tip clog.

Grow your pinky nail a bit long. Learn to pick the clog off the needle. Much like picking your nose.

If that doesn't work for you, get some off brand Q-tips (cotton buds). Get the ones with the hollow plastic tubes between buds.
Wet it, the twirl it on the needle (needle through the bud into the hollow tube). Save it for a second use, then pitch it.