Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

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Stuart
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Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by Stuart »

Hi Gents,

One of the reasons why I don’t use an airbrush is the time it takes to set up and clean the brush after painting, normally my modelling time at home is limited to 10 or 20 minutes here and there, whilst usually doing 2 or 3 other job (and I don’t think Airbrushing in my car at lunch is a great idea).

However I'm going to take a stab at building my Monogram 1/48 F-106A soon and I've been wondering about how to paint it, because although I’m a reasonably good brush painter, I think it might be a bit of a struggle trying to achieve a decent single colour finish on a model this big.
So I’ve been toying with the idea of getting a cheap single action airbrush (I already have a compressor) and using that – most probably with Enamel depending on who produces a good Air Defence Grey.

I figure if I get a simple single action airbrush with a siphon fed bottle, which would allow me to pre-thin the paint so I can jump right into the painting – but in reality how long does it take to clean this type of airbrush?

Any suggestions?

I was thinking of getting one of the cleaning stations where you can spray the cleaning fluids into it to cut down on mess (I’ll be painting in the garden most likely), and maybe an ultrasonic cleaner like AndrewR uses – but I’ll take any advice.

Cheers

Stuart
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jssel
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by jssel »

Hi Stuart. I use the Badger 200 single action. Got it in 1978. Overhauled once four years ago. Cleaning time is minimal. Complete take down cleaning not much longer.

Brush painting the glossy ADC grey would be tricky and even longer process IMHO. Especially in that scale.

When I did mine I used Model Master gloss enamel. Thinned properly it shot on real well. Expect a solid day drying time.

In the States, Badger overhauls your airbrush for free.

So many options to choose from you will find something.
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by fredk »

I use, sometimes, a gravity fed s/a airbrush
Complete knock down and full cleaning, less than 5 minutes
I prefer the gravity fed as it takes less oomph of a compressor.

I have a suction-feed s/a too, a simple Badger one [or it might be the Humbrol version] - exterior mix type one. About 1 minute to clean; swop jar over to one with cleaning fliud, blast some thru and wipe the business end with a clean cloth, job done

Cleaning immediately after spraying is much faster and easier than leaving it till later, when the paint has started to dry and harden
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by Dazzled »

Hi Stu

Good for you for trying airbrushing. I found it makes a huge difference to how my models turn out. I use a Harder and Steenbeck Evolution and a metal bodied Aztek coupled to a cheap but well equipped air compressor. I have, in the past, used other airbrushes and have learned a great deal from them. Mostly not to waste my money on them.

So, some advice.

Buy the best airbrush you can afford. The cheap Chinese ones might seem good at first but the seals go in them pretty quickly and they stop working.

A gravity cup is IMHO far superior to the siphon type as you're not relying on suction and a good seal to get the paint to flow.

A compressor with a tank and regulator. Even if you already have a compressor it must be a suitable one. Ones meant for workshop use or inflating car tyres just aren't right. A moisture trap is a good idea too.

Cleaning gets quicker the more you do it. If you're using enamels cleaning will be much messier and smellier. Blowing the airbrush through with thinners works in the short term but it's no substitute for stripping and cleaning properly as you get small paint deposits that blowing through doesn't remove and these can lead to all sorts of problems.

Many brands of acrylic (eg Vallejo, Gunze, Revell) are water based and much easier/nicer to clean. I almost exclusively spray acrylics.

Practice. Learn to strip the airbrush down to clean it. Have a go with food colouring on white paper/card before committing to expensive model paint.

Location. Find yourself a sheltered spot to spray in. You're right that your car won't be suitable. Apart from other things the fumes won't do you any good at all. A shed or outbuilding can be a good place but remember that it will get pretty cold in winter.

I have an ultrasonic cleaner but don't really use it. It's not that much use.

You can make a cleaning station from a suitable plastic tub with a hole to insert the airbrush and loosely filled with paper towels. I use a round ice cream tub (which I had to empty first ;-) )

Wear rubber gloves and a filter mask. Especially important this.

Hope this helps
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Stuart
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by Stuart »

jssel wrote:Hi Stuart. I use the Badger 200 single action. Got it in 1978. Overhauled once four years ago. Cleaning time is minimal. Complete take down cleaning not much longer.

Brush painting the glossy ADC grey would be tricky and even longer process IMHO. Especially in that scale.

When I did mine I used Model Master gloss enamel. Thinned properly it shot on real well. Expect a solid day drying time.

In the States, Badger overhauls your airbrush for free.

So many options to choose from you will find something.
Hi Jeff,

MM paint was what I was thinking. What would you use to clean it? I have some lacquer thinners going spare.

I do here good things about Badger.
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by Stuart »

fredk wrote:I use, sometimes, a gravity fed s/a airbrush
Complete knock down and full cleaning, less than 5 minutes
I prefer the gravity fed as it takes less oomph of a compressor.

I have a suction-feed s/a too, a simple Badger one [or it might be the Humbrol version] - exterior mix type one. About 1 minute to clean; swop jar over to one with cleaning fliud, blast some thru and wipe the business end with a clean cloth, job done

Cleaning immediately after spraying is much faster and easier than leaving it till later, when the paint has started to dry and harden
Thanks Fred,

I was thinking about getting on of those Humbrol ones to begin with. A single action external brush is the type I fancy using.
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by Stuart »

Dazzled wrote:Hi Stu

Good for you for trying airbrushing. I found it makes a huge difference to how my models turn out. I use a Harder and Steenbeck Evolution and a metal bodied Aztek coupled to a cheap but well equipped air compressor. I have, in the past, used other airbrushes and have learned a great deal from them. Mostly not to waste my money on them.

So, some advice.

Buy the best airbrush you can afford. The cheap Chinese ones might seem good at first but the seals go in them pretty quickly and they stop working.

A gravity cup is IMHO far superior to the siphon type as you're not relying on suction and a good seal to get the paint to flow.

A compressor with a tank and regulator. Even if you already have a compressor it must be a suitable one. Ones meant for workshop use or inflating car tyres just aren't right. A moisture trap is a good idea too.

Cleaning gets quicker the more you do it. If you're using enamels cleaning will be much messier and smellier. Blowing the airbrush through with thinners works in the short term but it's no substitute for stripping and cleaning properly as you get small paint deposits that blowing through doesn't remove and these can lead to all sorts of problems.

Many brands of acrylic (eg Vallejo, Gunze, Revell) are water based and much easier/nicer to clean. I almost exclusively spray acrylics.

Practice. Learn to strip the airbrush down to clean it. Have a go with food colouring on white paper/card before committing to expensive model paint.

Location. Find yourself a sheltered spot to spray in. You're right that your car won't be suitable. Apart from other things the fumes won't do you any good at all. A shed or outbuilding can be a good place but remember that it will get pretty cold in winter.

I have an ultrasonic cleaner but don't really use it. It's not that much use.

You can make a cleaning station from a suitable plastic tub with a hole to insert the airbrush and loosely filled with paper towels. I use a round ice cream tub (which I had to empty first ;-) )

Wear rubber gloves and a filter mask. Especially important this.

Hope this helps
Hi Darryl - all great advice thanks! I fully understand about getting something decent, as my wife has a cheap double action for her cakes - it's crap but at least it does have a proper compressor. However I probably will get some cheap just to see how I get on, and if it clicks I'll upgrade to something better - annoyingly I had a passche H s/a external mix a/b for years that sat collecting dust - I gave it away last year!!!! (Blooming annoying as that's the type I fancy)

With you on the PPE and practice.

I shall probably still do detail work with a hairy stick, I just fancy having something to do large areas.

Cheers

Stuart
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jssel
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by jssel »

Thinning Model Master enamels I have used lacquer thinner (quicker drying time), Testors brand enamel thinner and generic thinners with success. Once you develop a system cleaning time reduced to 5-10 minutes. I taught a model building class at a middle school which furnished Badger 350 airbrushes. Available at most craft stores it works surprising well for a low end airbrush.

And no..........I have no affiliation with Badger :ha:
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Stuart
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by Stuart »

jssel wrote:Thinning Model Master enamels I have used lacquer thinner (quicker drying time), Testors brand enamel thinner and generic thinners with success. Once you develop a system cleaning time reduced to 5-10 minutes. I taught a model building class at a middle school which furnished Badger 350 airbrushes. Available at most craft stores it works surprising well for a low end airbrush.

And no..........I have no affiliation with Badger :ha:
Lol :-D

That's the sort of thing I had mind Jeff, or the 250.

So with these external mix brushes, what do you actually need to do to clean them? As Fred as said, you need to blow them through, and clean the jar/cup - I assume you still need to remove/clean the needle? (Do Ext. have a needle?).
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by IronMan129 »

I've just started to dip my tie into the art of airbrushing and most of the work involved so far is cleaning and finding the right things to use it.
For example I had to go our and buy a whole new range of airbrush paints as I was finding it really hard to use my usual acrylics.

One thing I am wondering is how the heck do you manage to build and paint in the car on your lunch break!?
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by Stuart »

Maverick231 wrote:One thing I am wondering is how the heck do you manage to build and paint in the car on your lunch break!?
:-D Practice dear boy, Practice. :-D

Seriously, you just have to be organised - I've been doing for about 7 years and being mobile is now 2nd nature. I have a humbrol workstation to put on my lap, a small tool box in the footwell for my paints, and a large toolbox that sits across from me with all my other gear in. Most of the stuff I need to build the model is on the tray anyway, inc a small tin I keep my most used tools in - I have things like a bottle of tamiya extra-thin and a jar for my brushes blu-tacked to the tray to stop them moving.

I also keep a bottle of water, paper towels and a bottle of thinners so I can paint acrylics or enamel.

It's easy to do, the only real limiting factor is the size of the model I can build in an i10. (Currently a 1/48 jet).

Cheers

Stuart
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by jssel »

A quick cleansing should always remove the needle.

1. I clean the jar and run a thinner soaked pipe cleaner through the tube.

2. Taking a bud with thinner on it, I wipe out the neck of the airbrush. This is where the jar fits in.

3. Put thinner in jar and insert jar into airbrush.

4. Press the trigger button allow the thinner to blow though the airbrush into a rag. Finish by
Pushing the rag against the nozzle and allow blowback of thinner into the chamber. One more shot to flush it all out.

5. Unscrew needle, remove and wipe down. Re-insert. Done.

After several operations you will remove nozzle and do a more detailed cleaning.

Hope this helps
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by Stuart »

jssel wrote:A quick cleansing should always remove the needle.

1. I clean the jar and run a thinner soaked pipe cleaner through the tube.

2. Taking a bud with thinner on it, I wipe out the neck of the airbrush. This is where the jar fits in.

3. Put thinner in jar and insert jar into airbrush.

4. Press the trigger button allow the thinner to blow though the airbrush into a rag. Finish by
Pushing the rag against the nozzle and allow blowback of thinner into the chamber. One more shot to flush it all out.

5. Unscrew needle, remove and wipe down. Re-insert. Done.

After several operations you will remove nozzle and do a more detailed cleaning.

Hope this helps
That does indeed help - Thanks Jeff.
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by fredk »

The basic Humbrol/Badger airbrush I mentioned doesn't have any needle; just a venturi.
As air is blown across it it basically sucks up the paint and mixes it into the airflow.
Thats why it takes less time than typing this to clean it
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Its not just how good your painting is, its how good the touch-ups are too.
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Re: Cleaning Single Action Airbrushes

Post by fearless frankie »

I can only echo Dazzleds methods, if you don't mind taking a chance there are some great bargains out there on the dreaded fLeaBay, a lat I work with has just got a cracking Badger 175 for £22, its a Maid of all work as I've had one for a couple of years, seriously avoid the cheapo Chinese ones, been there seen it done it. There is always the rattle can method of painting the 106 and certaian auto shops will mix paint to your requirements too.
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