So I recently pulled out the ab and had to “un stick” it. Apparently I didn’t clean it well enough last time. When I asked the LHS clerk re cleaning after using enamel paints , I asked is LT ok and he said to use enamel thinner.
What’s the difference? Will it hurt the ab to use lacquer thinner.
I wrote up a middling novelette on LT vs “paint” thinner and realized the question being asked, so I’ve pared all that down to this:
First, unless you’ve got a bad airbrush, LT will not hurt it. In general, LT is considered the “hottest” of the thinners and thus the strongest for cleaning a sticky airbrush.
Second, and to be most direct to the asked question, you can use whatever you want for airbrush cleaning - LT after shooting enamels isn’t going to do anything to hurt the airbrush. Using LT to thin enamels may not be good, but you’re likely not reusing the paint that you clean out!
Third, there are some common sense exceptions to #2. For example, don’t use oil-based thinners with water-based paints, they can curdle and cause plugging. If you’ve flushed the airbrush multiple times with water or alcohol-based thinners, you can then use whatever solvent for a ‘final’ clean. At the end of the day, I often will use LT.
If it’s of any interest, Tamiya airbrush cleaner is 49% butyl acetate and 51% acetone. If that sounds familiar, Tamiya extra thin cement is 50% butyl acetate and 50% acetone. So, you can actually clean your airbrush with Tamiya extra thin cement, too. 
Thanks for the reply. After posting I thought that I may not have been specific enough - I was just referring to cleaning the ab. You answered perfectly! Ive been out of it for a little while now and ive never been good at keeping all the do’s & donts straight with paints & thinners , etc! There’s a lot to try and keep up with especially with all the different brands out there.
I especially worried about back blowing & getting some of the LT maybe into where the trigger pushes into the body & gumming it up.
Tks again for the help. Wm.
I have found isopropyl alcohol to work also.
after enamelsssssssssssss?
I would not use IPA after enamels, but possibly after rinsing with odorless thinner or LT, I guess. Even the ‘best’ IPA is 99%, so there’s still water in there and that would not play well with oils or insoluble alkanes. Maybe acetone instead of IPA or LT, but that’s gonna be some fun fumes to make sure you don’t breathe!
This comment has been sitting in my head for the last hour or so, so let me add this but also invite others to opine:
(Internal mix) airbrushes have bushings that prevent liquids (and air) from going backward along the needle from the paint path. Purposely back-blowing or back flushing (i.e. covering the tip and pressing the trigger) is a common method of cleaning, and I do it myself at times to force air up into the cup to help loosen/dislodge any potential dried bits or chunks that I don’t want to try to push through a 0.2 nozzle. However, doing so does cause air to push solvent/paint into these bushings and can eventually cause a problem. In the years I’ve been using my Badger airbrushes, I’ve never had this problem, and I disassemble mine probably once every 2-3 paint sessions to give a thorough cleaning. IF a solvent (e.g. acetone) reacts with the bushings (e.g. makes the elastomer swell or causes it to break down), (a) it’ll likely be obvious from air leaking past or the needle sticking from a swollen bushing, and (b) the airbrush manufacturer likely either sells replacements or will replace the bushings themselves.
I’d recommend checking out this thread, Tony and Don both have a lot of very good info to share!
The last two, one gallon cans of “Klean Strip”, that I’ve purchased at Home Depot don’t seem to be as strong as it use to be. I now use Xylene to clean up after shooting my Model Master enamels. I’ll use my enamel reducer or Mr. Color Leveling thinner for thinning them. The Klean Strip will work on my primer however, Mr. Finishing surfacer 1500.
Steve
I can Confirm. The strong stuff. 91% or stronger. There are some caveats for vinyl/latex acrylics like Vallejo. They tend to gum in the presence of 91% ISO so I use Windex after those kind of acrylics. The key solvent for them is the ammonia.
I use lacquer (AKA cellulose) thinner, and have done for, golly, decades. The only issue is that eventually it can strip the chrome from the airbrush. My lovely Iwata, er CP or something (1990s) lost the chrome from the bowl, and looked bronze instead. Mates at the local IPMS said I cleaned too much.