Cleaning issue?

PeterSimon

Double Actioner
The attached picture shows the spray pattern at the end of a line.
When I clean my brush very thoroughly it’s gone, but when I start painting again it’s there within a half hour or so.

is this a cleaning issue? Cracked nozzle? Any other ideas?
 

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Since it starts after you've been painting for a while, I'm guessing paint is building up in the nozzle due to tip dry not being cleaned off as you paint. If you had a damaged nozzle, it wouldn't take a half hour to notice it.

Just a guess, though.
 
Hi Karl,

Thank you for your reply.

Normally I’d remove the tip dry with a moist cotton swap in between. It’s only happening with one airbrush.
 
Well which brush?
It is too dry cracked nozzles spray like a single action airbrush. What paint are you using?What reduction and what PSI?
Even wiping the tip does not blow the paint drying inside the nozzle .
 
Hi Mr. Micron,

it didn’t sprayed like a single action.
Using Createx Illustration paint, 50/50 paint / transparent base with about 10%-15% reducer, slightly lower than 20 PSI with a CM-C+.
 
Because you aren't totally new to an airbrush I'll assume that you are right and your brush is a clean as it should be. (if in doubt soak the head unit in restorer - minus the seal, use a long bristle hairy brush to get into the nozzle) Has the brush been sitting idle for a while ? if so the a good soak/scrub/rinse repeat should have been done. its amazing what we leave behind unintentionally
try upping the pressure a little, if your paint might be to thick to start a good flow, my cm-c is happier at 25-30 at the reduction you stated. If you aren't getting the fine control that you want/need then add some more reducer bit by bit. sometimes just a drop of water in your paint cup and mix will give better flow. my paint are now a few years old and even though I give them a really good stir (to get to all the thick stuff at the bottom) they are starting to thicken, I find water is easiest to loosen the mix, Createx claim there is a pot life if you add reducer to the paint so water seems safer as long as you don't go to extreme.
 
Cleaning the needle with a cotton swab is a good feature.
Also, a short burst of paint a separate piece of paper.
And a back flush now and then. Helps to keep it clean.
It can also be your technique.
I mean that you get cramps in your finger or just get tired after 30 minutes.
It starts that you become less accurate.
Try to relax regularly.
 
What Jackie said about the air pressure makes sense. It reminded me that I had a similar issue running my PSI too low/paint too thick. I suspect not all of the paint was atomizing correctly, so when I would let the needle drop the paint that had built up in the nozzle burped out.
 
It might help to get in the habit of never turning the air off. Keep the trigger down at all times and only rock to start and stop paint. I used to have the same exact problem all the time until I trained myself to do that. Paint builds up a bit on the tip, and when the air is suddenly started or stopped again it can blast a bit of the paint off the tip and give you a splatter at the end of your line. Another thing I found that helped at lot was properly polshing my needles. The combination of never stopping the air, and having polished needles prevented me from building up that tiny bit of paint that would appear at my line ends. I noticed that it seems to happen more with some paint than others, and only after using the airbrush for a while.
 
Hi guys,

Thanks for your replies! :thumbsup:

Currently soaked the head unit, retouched the needle with lapping paste. Rinsed, cleaned and re-sealed the whole brush (again).
This brush has been idle indeed, before I started using it again just had some water run through and back flushed. Did not soak or cleaned it thoroughly.

Also the tips about getting the pressure up and reducing the paint further are welcome. I’m trying to switch from Etac EFX to Createx Illustration.
It’s a pain in the ass so far and feels like starting all over again. :sus:

I doubt it’s a air on / off issue. (Have a very strict policy to keep the air on while pointing the substrate :D)

Haven’t tried the brush after cleaning it, will try this weekend.
 
Don't worry, its just a tool, u have to work it. First it looks like the tip is messed up, even the smallest nuisance will make that. What size tip is it? Looks like a busted tip 1st.
 
Using Createx after E’tac is indeed a learning curve. I started with illustration and my frustration was though the roof. Newbie doesn’t need those kinds of pains lol. I tried Etac and couldn’t believe the difference. I stuck with Etac long enough to learn technique and muscle memory then started introducing Createx back in, it’s still painful but now less so :)
 
I have to reduce Illustration a fair bit more then 10% to get a good flow. That’s not to say everyone will have to of course. But about 1:1 seems to work good for me through my Micron.
When I’ve had the airbrush start giving me blobs at the end of a line it’s because it has some dry paint in the nozzle. Note night to stop it working or go single action. Just enough that it doesn’t snap the paint off as it should. Usually some cleaner and a quick clean with a long hair soft brush does the trick.


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