I have never had the need to lube the needle of my airbrushes, but recently saw that Badger makes a lubricant marketed under Regdab. It is supposed to help tip dry with acrylics. Anyone have any history or comments on using this stuff?
Thanks.
John
I use the stuff. I find that it helps with the smoothness of the needle movement on my double-action Omni 4000. I can’t really comment on it’s tip dry fighting abilities. Maybe that’s something I will have to attempt. A good thinner with some drying retarded will go a long way, too.
Hi, John
Regdab is only an airbrush components lube, not at all beneficial for paint application, such as tip dry preventative. I use it faithfully at re-assembly after each cleanup. One benefit is to make the parts work smoothly, another is to prevent corrosion of threaded areas, lastly it does provide some degree of sealant to prevent minor air leaks. If leaks warrant more sealing, then Chapstick or other like product can provide even better sealing, such as at a nozzle or “O” ring, either rubber or Teflon.
Regdab on the needle, makes it slide back and forth through the Teflon bearing tube inside the body more freely, and helps to prevent paint leaking back through the bearing, then into the body central chamber.
Don Wheelers site can give about all of the information you might ever want to see, just Google don’sairbrushtips, if you haven’t already visited it.
Patrick
I’ve never used Regdab, but assume that it’s similar to Iwata Superlube. While Superlube is indeed designed / marketed a mechanical lubricant, it can be used on the needle tip to help assist with tip dry - possibly sounds like a bizarre concept, but some users swear by it…
Thanks everyone. I did see a Youtube bit where the gentleman said he uses it for tip dry. He put a little on the front of the needle and slid it into the brush. I don’t like retarder as it slows the drying of the paint on the model also.
I have a Patriot that I will try it out on and see what happens. I also have a Krome and SOTAR and the ultraglide that Badger uses is great for the action of those two airbrushes.
John
I’ll be danged, never considered using it as anti tip dry agent. Had heard of being careful to avoid getting it into paint from residue on needle tip, but if others are doing it with good results I’ll give it a go. Live n’ learn.
Patrick
A small tube of blue lubricant came with my Iwata airbrush. I have found it to be useless. Keep your airbrush clean, and you won’t need this stuff.
I don’t think the area is cleanliness, but rather tip dry. The “theory” is that the paint won’t adhere to the lube and thus dry on the tip. I have ordered a bottle and will try it out on some old scrap just to see what happens.
John
It also allows for easier cleaning as the paint doesn’t stick to the needle, nozzle, tip.
I got my bottle of Regdab which I just realized is Badger spelled backwards… Oh well, I decided to do a test. The instructions clearly say to not mix it with paint. However, the instructions also talk about 2 to 3 drops which is a lot of this stuff. I was thinking of no where near that amount. Here is what I did:
I put a small drop on my index finger and rubbed it together with my thumb. You can see the stuff is very “slippery”. I then took out the needle and slid the point end through my finger and thumb. About the last 3 inches or so. I then put the needle in and mixed in some Model Color black as this stuff is really thick. I did my normal routine of Flo-Aid, distilled water, and paint. I sprayed it and found no difference.
Maybe I didn’t use enough of the lube, but the tip dried just as before. So for me, my initial non-scientific test says using it for tip dry purposes was a no-go.
John