Iwata Air Brush Issue

[CatchemCaro]

Today I painted my first complete bait. I started with a all white bait and just played with several colors to see what they looked like. I also wanted to see what these guns I have can do. It was fun and when the gun would spray good I had total control of the paint. WOW. I have three Iwata gun's and I have completely let them all soak over night in a cleaning solution and then reassembled them. Two of the guns work great, but one of them is having an issue. It acts like it's plugged, but I know it's just as clean as the others. At least I think it is. When I try to spray just my cleaner through the gun, I get bubbles in the bowl, (Gravity Feed Gun) and around the cones. I remove the cones and she sprays real good with no bubbles coming back up through the bowl. I didn't spray any paint, but as soon as I put the cones back on, it acts like my finger is covering the cone. I know the cone is clean as I can see through the little hole. Help. I have pulled the neddle way back and it still does the same thing. Has anyone else had this problem?

Also, I noticed that when I clear Coated the bait using E-tex,after a few minutes on my drying wheel it got a few dry spots quickly. So I just brushed a little extra e-tex onto the areas. It happened mainly on the back of the bait were the radius is. I have had this problem in the past with Chartruse Enamel rattle can paint too, but it didn't do it as bad as it did with this bait, my first air brushed bait with Createx. I'm sure my second coat of e-tex should solve the problem, but I'm wondering why it does this? I cured the paint after every color with my plow dryed.

I love some of these colors I got with the Createx Auto Air paints. They are briliant and totally POP under the clear coat. All your helpfull tips and awnsers to my redundent questions have been great. I'll post a picture of this, my first air brush bait. It's very ruff as I played with lots of colors. My base coat was gloss white Laquer. I found I could wipe the bait clean with a wet paper towel and start over again. This was good for testing and playing with my air brushs. I sure can't wait to get over this learning curve and start doing some real paint work.

Rich

Edited November 18, 2010 by CatchemCaro

[RayburnGuy]

Try using a little beeswax on the threads to get a good seal. If you don't have any beeswax you can wrap a thin strip of teflon tape on the threads. Or even a small bit of candle wax will seal them. This should stop the air bubbling in your cup.

Ben

[gunnie3035]

If your getting air bubbles in the bowl, I still think it would be a clog or at least a restriction or sorts. Run some paint through it and see what happens. Sometimes cleaner like windex will bubble even when it sprays paint just fine.

On the Etex issue; no matter how careful you are sometimes a contaminate gets on the bait and the Etex won't cover it. Other times I think we don't quite get the Etex mixed up enough and the spot is created by the non-mixed part. It even happens with Devcon, but not to the same extent as Etex. If the airbrushes are brand new it may have been some oil or maybe something from the compressor if your not using a filter. No worries it happens from time to time....

[BobP]

I have three Iwata gun's and I have completely let them all soak over night in a cleaning solution and then reassembled them. Two of the guns work great, but one of them is having an issue. It acts like it's plugged, but I know it's just as clean as the others. At least I think it is. When I try to spray just my cleaner through the gun, I get bubbles in the bowl, (Gravity Feed Gun) and around the cones. I remove the cones and she sprays real good with no bubbles coming back up through the bowl. I didn't spray any paint, but as soon as I put the cones back on, it acts like my finger is covering the cone. I know the cone is clean as I can see through the little hole. Help. I have pulled the neddle way back and it still does the same thing. Has anyone else had this problem?

Whenever I get bubbles in the cup, I think it's clogged no matter what cleaning I've already done. Regular ab cleaner may not remove an old clog, especially if it's lacquer or some other solvent based paint. Remove the nozzle and soak it in acetone for awhile, then use the needle to gently push any softened old paint out the tip of the nozzle. Fill the cup with acetone and use the blunt end of the needle to see if you can push any dried paint back into the cup from the front passage. Reassemble the ab and shoot some acetone through it to make use it's now working OK.

[Rowhunter]

This is clearly not an airbrush issue, rather a cleaning, or re-assembly issue. In the five years I've owned Iwata's I've never ,not once, had any problems with the brushes performance and I use H.O.K. materials. It is all proper cleaning procedures. If you are soaking a brush overnight, you are not getting it clean in the first place. The other "issue" may be in your re-assembly. The needle to nozzle fit is critical, too loose will leak material and too tight will ruin the needle, also a bent needle due to improper handling will ruin anyones day. Have fun,

Douglas

[mark poulson]

The nozzle has tiny air holes that can get plugged if you don't clean everytime you finish painting, and even between colors and coats. 99% of the time, that's where I run into problems.

Backflushing, by placing my finger over the nozzle and forcing the cleaning solution to bubble up in the cup, with a water/dishwashing liquid solution (two drops in a quart spray bottle of tap water) during the cleaning process helps. Be sure and wipe down the needle each time you do a backflush, and run some clean water through the brush after each cleaning.

If I am having problems while I'm painting, I backflush gently with the actual paint, to see if it's just a small clog.

Otherwise, I put the paint back into the paint bottle, and use Windex first, and then the water/soap solution, and backflush the heck out of the brush, until it sprays well. Usually it takes once with the Windex, and then several times with the solution.

I know Iwata says don't use Windex, or ammonia, to clean your brushes because it damages the chrome, but I've found that I can use it and it helps, if I'm careful to use the water/soap solution and clean water afterward, and wipe any excess off the brush with a rag.

Lastly, if I can't get the brush to spray after that, I go to Defcon 5.

I disassemble the brush completely, soak everything except the trigger mechanism overnight in acetone, reassemble and backflush with clean acetone, again and again, until I'm tired of doing it.

Then I run a couple of bowls full of the water/soap solution through the brush, back flushing with it, too.

The Iwata brushes are thoroughbreds. All they need is good cleaning and they perform.

Once you develop a cleaning routine, you'll be able to do it in less than a minute, so it will become an automatic part of your painting routine.

Having a tupperware full of water next to your painting area, so you can backflush with water after each cleaning, makes the whole process even easier.

Good luck

Edited November 18, 2010 by mark poulson

[MikePaintsBaits]

Can Someone Clean My Brushes ? All Kidding Aside ,

After a good soak , I use a small brush set to get into the the needle shaft

areas , you can really get some junk out of there. Just my 2-cents.

Mike

[CatchemCaro]

Once again all great information. I will spend a little time with the problem gun today and see if I can't get it to run as designed. Thanks for the help.

Rich

[wcgood]

Clogged nozzle. Doesn't take much pigment or residue to cause this. Consider an ultrasonic cleaner assuming you are not using one. It will do the best job hands down. I rarely have had to use a brush to clean any parts. Iwatta's are the best.