Airbursh Care and Cleaning
Carving tip: Having trouble with your airbrush? Most of the time, dried paint in the brush or on the needle is the culprit. Acrylics are especially troublesome since they dry so fast.
The first step is remove the tip to expose the tip of the needle. Use a wet brush to clean the dried paint from the tip. This should get you going again...temporarily.
If that doesn’t do the trick, totally disassemble the brush and clean out all the old paint, including the needle. All the manufacturers provide a schematic of the brush to help with disassembly and re-assembly. A mixture of auto window washer fluid with a few drops of household ammonia is a very good and inexpensive cleaner.
Check the needle for barbs at the tip. If you see a bent tip, you can fix it by placing the needle on a hard, smooth surface and pressing it straight with a tool such as an old screwdriver that has been ground round and polished. Roll the needle on the surface while applying SLIGHT pressure. Keep the needle bevel flat on the surface. Check the needle tip often to be sure the barb is removed.
Next check the viscosity of the paint. If the brush is clean and continues to “spit” the paint is probably too thick. Add airbrush medium or a little flow aid to the paint. Water will thin the paint, but it also dilutes the pigment making it more difficult to cover the surface.
You can test the viscosity by loading a small brush and holding it vertical so the paint collects at the tip. If a drop of paint forms and drops off the brush in a few seconds...the viscosity is just right. If the paint is too thin, the paint will “spider” on the sprayed surface. Add more paint to increase the viscosity.
Here are a few more tips on airbrush cleaning and care...
Before you disassemble your airbrush, clean all the paint from the cup before pulling the needle. This will prevent pulling paint into the mechanism.
Always check the needle for dried paint on the needle shaft. Some users have found that polishing the needle tip helps prevent the collection of dried paint on the needle tip. Do this with the little felt polishing wheel which came with your Dremel. And you thought you would never find a use for that little buffing wheel...
You can buy a small ultrasound jewelry cleaner for around 30 bucks. A few cleaning cycles and an overnight soak will loosen dried paint in the brush so it can be flushed out. This really pays off if you are a frequent airbrush “flyer”. Don’t buy the ultrasound cleaning fluid. Tap water and a few drops of dish soap work just as well.
Be sure to check the nozzle of the needle seat. If the nozzle is damaged (bent or flared), get a new one.
Sometimes a “malfunctioning” airbrush is caused by, shall we say, “operator error.” If you have cleaned the brush and replaced / repaired damaged parts and it still gives you more gray hair…call an experienced user for help.
Happy painting…Norm Wise
The first step is remove the tip to expose the tip of the needle. Use a wet brush to clean the dried paint from the tip. This should get you going again...temporarily.
If that doesn’t do the trick, totally disassemble the brush and clean out all the old paint, including the needle. All the manufacturers provide a schematic of the brush to help with disassembly and re-assembly. A mixture of auto window washer fluid with a few drops of household ammonia is a very good and inexpensive cleaner.
Check the needle for barbs at the tip. If you see a bent tip, you can fix it by placing the needle on a hard, smooth surface and pressing it straight with a tool such as an old screwdriver that has been ground round and polished. Roll the needle on the surface while applying SLIGHT pressure. Keep the needle bevel flat on the surface. Check the needle tip often to be sure the barb is removed.
Next check the viscosity of the paint. If the brush is clean and continues to “spit” the paint is probably too thick. Add airbrush medium or a little flow aid to the paint. Water will thin the paint, but it also dilutes the pigment making it more difficult to cover the surface.
You can test the viscosity by loading a small brush and holding it vertical so the paint collects at the tip. If a drop of paint forms and drops off the brush in a few seconds...the viscosity is just right. If the paint is too thin, the paint will “spider” on the sprayed surface. Add more paint to increase the viscosity.
Here are a few more tips on airbrush cleaning and care...
Before you disassemble your airbrush, clean all the paint from the cup before pulling the needle. This will prevent pulling paint into the mechanism.
Always check the needle for dried paint on the needle shaft. Some users have found that polishing the needle tip helps prevent the collection of dried paint on the needle tip. Do this with the little felt polishing wheel which came with your Dremel. And you thought you would never find a use for that little buffing wheel...
You can buy a small ultrasound jewelry cleaner for around 30 bucks. A few cleaning cycles and an overnight soak will loosen dried paint in the brush so it can be flushed out. This really pays off if you are a frequent airbrush “flyer”. Don’t buy the ultrasound cleaning fluid. Tap water and a few drops of dish soap work just as well.
Be sure to check the nozzle of the needle seat. If the nozzle is damaged (bent or flared), get a new one.
Sometimes a “malfunctioning” airbrush is caused by, shall we say, “operator error.” If you have cleaned the brush and replaced / repaired damaged parts and it still gives you more gray hair…call an experienced user for help.
Happy painting…Norm Wise