[Phaeton]

Hi Lori,

I'm having problems with my airbrush paints clogging after just a few strokes, I'm constantly having to run water through the gun and back-flush to clear the clog.

From your book "Carving Songbirds" I know you have the Paasche AB Turbo, I have a Paasche VL and this is why I thought of asking you the question. I'm using water base airbrush paints from wasco and sugar pine and they should be ready to use right out of the bottle but the only way I can get them to work is to add water or increase the pressure above the 28 psi that you use.

What am I doing wrong?

Warm Regards
Bill
^v^

[LCorbett]

Bill...my AB is a lot differnt than a VL. The AB is an external reservoir - the paint doesn't pass through the inside of the airbrush (GREAT feature for clean-up...grin). When I get a "clog" it's because my paint is either too thick, or it's starting to dry (due to being exposed).

I'm not well versed in the internal feed airbrushes, but I'll offer a suggestion.

You might want to try adding some flow medium to your paints to better disperse the pigment. Adding water is OK up to a point, but you are also diluting the adhesion (another subject), as well as unevenly dispersing the paint particles...flow medium breaks the tension of the water in the acrylic emulsion, allowing more even distribution of the patricles. I dilute the paint for my AB with mostly flow medium and a little water. (To alleviate the drying problem, I also add a little retarder to my mix, maybe you could try this, too).

Sorry I can't be more specific on this, Bill.

[AlArchie]

Bill, my name ain't Lori, but I do use an airbrush on occasion, and have found a few tricks (the hard way) that make the whole thing go a lot smoother.

Lori's tip about the flow enhancer is a good one. It is best to use that by itself for thinning. Or if you insist on using some water, use only distilled water.

Next I filter all my paints through either a commercial paint filter, like the auto body shops use, or a piece of nylon stocking. The commercial ones are too large for air brush quantities, so I cut out the filter portion and clean off the paper supports with xylol or lacquer thinner. Then wash it with a detergent and rinse to get all the residue off. Even the best airbrush paints need to be filtered before use.

Make sure you have the paint thinned to the consistancy of milk. I know that's a bit amorphous for a guidline, but you will find which grade works best for you; whole milk, skim, 1% or 2%.

Next is your initial cleaning, final cleaning befor putting it away, and intermitent cleaning while you are using the airbrush.

Before use, run a paint cup of distilled water through the brush, remove the tip and make sure the needle is clean., being VERY careful not to bend the needle tip.

You can judge the proper airbrush flow by spraying some water through it and holding the tip up to the light. You should see a smooth jet of water through all the control pressures, both air and water. If you don't, or if it is intermittent, you need to remove the needle and thoroughly clean the needle AND the orifices. You may need to soak the tip in xylol or lacquer thinner.

Occasionally when using the brush, remove the tip and check for paint build-up on the needele tip. This can be removed with a soft cloth, by pinching the needle tip between your thumb and forefinger and pulling gently AWAY from the tip. Don't bend the tip.

Each time I'm done painting, I run a paint cup full of Simple Green through the airbrush, remove the tip, clean the needle tip, and then run some distilled water to chase out the Simple Green.

There is also a lubricant that should be applied to the needle and I run a few drops of that through the brush before putting it away, to prevent corrosion.

Then before using it again, another paintcup of Simple Green followed by a good flushing with distilled water. Now it's time to paint.

It sounds a bit complicated and time consuming, but it really only takes a few minutes and having a clean, properly functioning airbrush makes up for those few minutes.

DO NOT believe that "ready to use right out of the bottle" BS! FILTER YOUR PAINT!

Al

[LCorbett]

Thanks, Al! I was hoping somebody who uses the internal feed brushes would chime in! I have always used the AB, and since it does exactly what I needed it to do from the git-go, I saw no need to go looking for another brush. But if I ever do, I know who I'M gonna be asking, now....grin.

And to be honest, one of the main reasons I haven't changed is CLEAN-UP. The AB is so easy...swish some water in the reservoir, clean the needle, and go...clean, color change and spray in 20 seconds...

But I also don't spray large areas, either. The AB really isn't suited to spraying large areas...it can be done, but not as easily as with other brushes that allow you to change needle/nozzle sizes.

I'm a total illiterate when it comes to "not-AB"...

I don't use the pre-thinned airbrush paints because I prefer to control my own dilutions for specific effects.

[Phaeton]

WOW! Thanks Guys! this is exactly the help I needed. Sorry I could not get back to you sooner Lori but the storm yesterday took me off-line all day.

I'm going to mix up a small squeeze bottle with a thinning mixture of flow medium with a little retarder and if that doesn't do the trick I'll add "distilled" water sparingly.

Great tips All, I was just using tap water and not filtering the paints at all so I'll pick up some distilled water and filters before I start painting next weekend. I'm an old single guy and I only have one nylon stocking but I don't want to mess it up because I wear it on my head when I go shopping...NOT..hehe

Lori, I see that you do a little shading on your birds with very little paint and this is along the lines of my current project, I'm doing a shorebird and I'm going to try Del's technique of using an acetate template to establish the feather outline. I've done several antique folk-art decoys like those done by sprigtail and TGUN but this is my first shorebird.

I don't have a lot of airbrush paint, just a sample kit with a few extra colors but I'm going to start mixing tube paints for the gun and maybe save a few bucks too.

I'm still carving the bird but it should be ready for primer tonight and then I can start working on a base, the legs are not attached to the bird or the temporary holding block.

Thanks again Lori and Al, you have been a great help.

HappY Trails
Bill
^v^