Hello Everyone, I just recently got back into modeling (15 years later )after a friend gave me a Testor Mini Blue Air Compressor. I went and bought a Paasche H airbrush however I am having alot of difficulty getting it to work properly. If anyone has any suggestions on what airbrush will work properly with this compressor I would really apprecaite it. I am also in a little of a money crunch so a airbrush that is not too expensive would be better . Thanks everyone.
MNH72
Specifically what problems are you having with it? Is the air not getting to the airbrush or what? A compressor doesn’t really care what kind of airbrush is hooked to it, it only blow air. You may have to get an adapter of some sort to adapt the airbrush connections to the compressor, but that should be the only problem.
As to what specifically works with that compressor, I suspect it’s the Aztek line since that’s what Testors sells. Personally I’d rather have any Paasche airbrush than any Aztek airbrush.
Well it seems that the airbrush will only put out air and not paint, have even tried water to see if it would spray but to no luck. Hope this helps.
MNH
I am goig to hobbytown after work and will look for the adapter thanks for the advice.
your drainhole is probubly clogged, or that little hole in the top of the bottle is jammed. try cleaning those
Actually, if the airbrush isn’t able to spray water, it’s clogged up, not the compressor. Take it apart and clean it thoroughly. Also what PSI are you spraying at? (does the mini-blue have a regulator?)
Dan
Thanks , however this was a brand new airbrush when I bought it at HobbyTown USA and I figured that if I could not get water through it then what’s the point of trying to use paint . However I will go home and try and clean it. I just read about a Aztek A320 and was wondering if that might work? or should I stay with Paasche or maybe even switch to Badger? Thanks alot everyone for your help.
mnh
I just had my last fight with an Aztec so i would suggest staying with the Paasche. My Aztec wound up doing the same thing yours is, spraying only air. I have cleaned and cleaned it as good as I can since it does not come apart and still no luck.
Is it possible that the compressor is old and is not putting out enough cfm to operate that airbrush?
Tell us exactly what you did and maybe we can help. [;)]
Mike
[2c]mnh, I had a Paasche H many years ago. If I remember right, it operates by having air blow across the tip to create a pressure drop thus allowing atmospheric pressure to force paint up to the tip. Either MikeV is right or there is no hole in your jar adapter to let atmospheric air in or somewhere between the bottom of your siphon tube and the spray tip, there is a blockage. Check to see if there actually is a hole in your spray tip to let paint out. Hope this helps.
Lizard: Try dis-assembling the nozzles and only using the outters not the inard needle and spring. it will give horrable finishes but if you need to it may work for a small part
Or possibly there is a leak somewhere. Put some soapy water in a spray bottle and go from the outlet of your compressor all the way to the airbrush and spray everything. If you see bubbles there is a leak. If there is a leak at a screwed connection, put a layer of Teflon tape over the threads and screw it back together.
Thanks Kitbashed and scratchbuilt, I went home and took the airbrush apart, well as good as I could, and cleaned it out and then ran some soapy water through it. I didn’t see any leaks and the airbrush itself is very clean. So i guess I will have to try something else then. or maybe I will just go and invest some money in a really good one. Thanks everyone.
MNH
Mnh72: Kitbashed and Scratchbuilt are ranks. Look just above them. [:D]
Oh My bad :[:D]. Well I went to hobbytown this weekend and met a really nice guy working there “larry” and we discovered that the Paasche H airbrush is NOT compatablie with the Testor compressor. You will need to replace the air tube with a larger one ino order for it to fit correctly. The guy from hobbytown was cool and gave me a free one to try out and it worked great. So now I am onto trying to build either a Tiger I mid-production or a British Churchill Crocodile. So if any one has any suggestions about different ways to build or paint either one I would apprecaite it. There is a local contest in Colorado for modelers and I was thinking about entering it. Thanks everyone.
MNH
I am glad it worked out for you.
Most of the people I have talked to at the local HobbyTown USA probably couldn’t dress themselves without some help. [V]
Mike