As the title suggests, I’m having issues with my Passche airbrush. The airbrush will not spray, not even plain water. I replaced the needle and the brass cone as many have said the cones have a tendancy of cracking which will keep it from spraying. I am at a loss as to what’s up with this thing and I’m also at a standstill as I airbrush all my aircraft and armor kits exclusively by airbrush. I love this airbrush but am fed up with the constant issues in getting it to work on a dependable basis.
Is it a siphon airbrush? If so,does it spray when it’s held upside down? If it does, it’s possible that your needle seal is worn and leaking. Paasche calls it a packing washer. Do you feel a little drag when you install the needle? If not, you may be able to tighten it. If it’s too worn, you may be able to get a replacement for less than $2.
Don
There is resistance when I install the needle Don. The airbrush doesn’t spray upside down either. [*-)]
Are you getting air thru the “gun”? If not, check for a stuck air valve or debris in the air supply line.
mike
I am getting air through the gun and I get bubbles when I cover the end of the gun. I have the option of siphon or gravity feed and neither cup works…
Howdy!
Sorry to say that, but I suspect you don’t maintain your airbrush correctly. I don’t say I’m ultra-clean myself, but I find my airbrushes pretty dependable. One of them is a Paashe VJR, my favourite. Could you please write, what model exactly are you using?
OK, let’s try to tackle your problem. First - do you have the air flowing OK? If so, I suspect a clogged paint line. The paint line in my VJR is pretty short - it starts as a tiny hole in the paint cup (about 1mm in diameter) and goes about 3-4 mm diagonally down to the needle. Normally when you’re done painting, you start cleaning your airbrush, you empty the paint cup, wipe it dry, then you can close the nozzle with your finger and open up. The air then backs up the paint line and spews the remaining paint up the cup (it’s rather violent). You could try this on yours, maybe it helps. If nothing happens, you have to chech the paint line with a soft object - plastic fibre. When you take the nozzle off and insert the fibre into the paint line from the paint cup, the fibre should exit parallel to the needle. If you can’t push it through, then the paint line is clogged and needs to be cleared - but please be careful.
Hope it helps, good luck
Paweł
If you are getting cracks in the nozzle tip that means you are forcing the needle too far into it or using the wrong needle and tip combination.
If it isn’t spraying something is clogged between the paint supply and the nozzle. Tear it down completely, clean and inspect. It might require using some dental brushes to dislodge any debris.
I appreciate the suggestions guys. I am anal about keeping the unti clean though. The gun gets thoroughly disassembled and every single part cleaned to like new condition. This is what’s so frustrating for me. I’ve had the airbrush since 1993 and to be honest, it takes me longer to clean the unit after i use it than it does to mix and shoot the paint. I actually dread using the airbrush because of how much time I spend cleaning it after I use it.
The airbrush in question is the Paasche Type “E” “VL” Dual Action Airbrush.
I used to feel the same way about cleaning the airbrush as you do and avoid using it when I had a Paasche H. I could not clean it sufficiently without taking it apart. (I know that some H user did not feel the same and said that the H is very easy to clean.)
It changed when I got an Iwata Eclipse HP-CS. The cleaning is more methodical and straight forward after I got familiar with it. I back flush it when changing colors and take out the needle to wipe it chean at the end of the day. You can do pretty much the same with most gravity feed, self-centered nozzle airbrushes.
If all else is ok (properly assembled, paint paths clean etc), it almost sounds like you’re not getting sufficient air pressure to make it work.