why? WHY??

its jammed. try spraying water or rubbing alcohol. does it work? if not than the nozzles busted. trash the airbrush and buy yourself a real airbrush

It's a piece O that's why!! Mine did the same crap, I chucked it and bought an Omni 5000, haven't looked back!!

thankyou for your replies. water does spray through it and now sporadically, paint, but there is no uniformity. I've had it with aztek!!

good job there, buy an iwata or an omni and trash the aztek

ok, I'm getting kind of tired of people trashing aztec all the time. For a starter airbrush it's not bad. Plus, it's a freaking A320, one of their lowest models available. Go to a 470 series, and they're fine.
For the price, there is NOTHING out there better than aztec. Give me an airbrush that works as well as mine, and is as cheap to buy, and as easy to maintain, and THEN tell me an aztec is a piece of shit. Until then, STFU!
You're comparing an Iwata to a freaking low end aztec. It's like comparing the brain of a dog to a brain of a human.

Your airbrush is clogged. Depending on what kind of paint you used, use a cleaner for it and thin it out. The airbrush you have is a fairly low end model, so not much good except for wide area coverage. Aztec makes fine airbrushes, but their low end models do tend to clog easily. The key is to keep it very clean, all the time.

Oh man, thats the same thing that happened to my aztek! You can see my Aztek life story in this thread: http://www.finescale.com/fsm/community/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=15957 but all I can say is I'm gettin' a new airbrush! They spring mechanism is messed up pretty good probably. I got suckered into it too and bought a brand new nozzle thinking that was the problem and then I relized that the needle for the new nozzle didn't move in and out when I pulled back for paint. It's terrible, I know how this can be! You might have hope and that might not be the problem, but it sure sound's like my problem!

This sounds like a very common problem with this airbrush. But keep in mind that this is a VERY basic airbrush (the 320) that you're talking about. It might be the spring mechanism, as that is what ultimately broke mine, but after that, I got an aztec 470 series, and it's been working just fine, plus it's a total breese to clean.

QUOTE: This sounds like a very common problem with this airbrush. But keep in mind that this is a VERY basic airbrush (the 320) that you're talking about. It might be the spring mechanism, as that is what ultimately broke mine, but after that, I got an aztec 470 series

Mine was the A4308, which is very similar to the 470. That problem I had(have) is with that airbrush.

I don't know....I don't think they're all that bad. Plus, doesn't every one come with a fairly hefty warranty on the body of the airbrush? I'm sure that if these airbrushes are THAT bad, Testors would have taken notice by now? They offered to replace mine.

I again have to say that till recently, my Aztec 470 has not given me any bother, and I've been using the damn thing for over 2 1/2 years!!!!!!!

Fine line, wide coverage, shading, streaks, the whole lot.

Even when it did spit the dummy and the spring mech gave up the ghost, I fixed it and it worked just fine.

18co, you didnt say what type of medium you were spraying with. Is the paint consistency right for spraying???
Do you have enough air pressure???

My advise would be to leave a cup of thinners attached to the brush overnight, then come back to it and give it a really good clean, if the same happens again, strip your nozzle and let it soak for a couple of hours in the required thinner.

I am now an Omni convert, and my Aztek has gone to my brother so he can learn to airbrush.
It is a good affordable starters tool I beleive.

Think about it, would you give a Learner driver a Ferrari, or would you stick em in a Civic first????


Sean

I allready had mine replaced once and it broke again and I have two clients and one contest coming up in a week and I am currently in the process of recieving my second replaced airbrush from them! I do have to admit it was a good airbrush, it just didn't last long.

tweety1 THANK YOU!!!!! God, at least someone understands. They are great airbrushes, and as learning tools they are THE BEST! I like your analogy. The Aztec is the civic of cars, slow, far from best, but reliable and good to learn on. It's really bizzare how you can even think of comparing an aztec to an iwata or otherwise

QUOTE: far from best

Yeah, your tellin' me!

QUOTE: but reliable

Umm, not realy. http://www.finescale.com/fsm/community/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=15957

I agree!!! I am sure you can find more people who hate aztek than people who hate badger or iwata.

Cheaper to buy: not really, a badger 155 with wooden case costs 150 frickien canadian dollars, while the aztek 470 costs around 160. oh they both have wood cases, and a hellovalot of accesseries

Azteks dont work nearly as well as the 155

maintenance: for aztek, you clean the cups and then dunk the nozzle. for the badger, you clean the cups then remove and clean the needles. its actually easeir

Oh and the badger is the worlds fastest dissassembling airbrush, and the aztek is not. The needles for badgers cost LESS than nozzles for the ******* azteks, so therefore, an aztek is a piece of crap

Oh the "egronomic design" makes my hand tired after minutes, and its too light. feels like the piece of crap it is

I don't understand what it is that you're trying to prove? what? that aztec sucks? that's your opinion. just like my opinion is that it doesn't. I got my aztec for 60.
"The needles for badgers cost LESS than nozzles for the ******* azteks, so therefore, an aztek is a piece of crap"
Wow, that's a very convincing argument you have there. How long did it take your brain to come up with that one?
The fact of the matter is, they are what they are. The top of the line aztec YOU refered to won't give you those problems. It's the shittier lower models that will. And even that may be wrong, because I have the shittier lower models, and they work fine.

"Azteks dont work nearly as well as the 155"
Says who? Maybe it's just your lack of skill with it. When I fist started with it, I sucked. I still suck compared to a lot of people on this forum.
BOttom line is the brushed DO WORK! A tool is only as good as the hand that wields it. Has that ever occured to you.
I am not saying that Aztec is the best out there, I'm simply saying that their lower end models (and by the way, there are numerous 470 derivatives, going for FAR less than 160) are VERY good learning tools.
And as for how many people there are that hate Aztec, Iwata, or Badger? WHo cares? Who's counting anyways? You make a really stupid argument, insofar as assuming that if the majority of people say it, it must be true.
The majority of people believed that the Earth was flat at one point, but guess what? They were all wrong.
I just get tired of people allways grunting about how much it sucks. Well, if it sucks, DON"T BUY IT! You're the consumer, and as such hold an enormous amount of power over what manufacturers do, because they need you to survive. To further on that point, if it really was such a bad product, don't you think that Testors would have done SOMETHING about it?
Think about it a little before you deem something to be "crap"

QUOTE: Originally posted by zokissima I don't understand what it is that you're trying to prove? what? that aztec sucks? that's your opinion. just like my opinion is that it doesn't. I got my aztec for 60. "The needles for badgers cost LESS than nozzles for the ******* azteks, so therefore, an aztek is a piece of crap" Wow, that's a very convincing argument you have there. How long did it take your brain to come up with that one?

This kind of talk is not the proper way to go about convincing someone of your argument my friend. And using an Ad hominem attack is totally uncalled for. Let's keep this civil and not turn a possible learning experince into a flaming match.

Mike

i just threw away my aztek 470. It has givin me problems on my last few models, and i stress i always properly cleaned this airbrush. a couple passes on the model it would be fine and the next using the same pressure, and draw on the trigger it would completely overspray and ruin my camo. job. whether using enamels or acrylics it didnt matter. i thought at first it was the nozzles so i replaced a few but had same problems. so i finally got enough guts to take it apart. all the parts inside are made of plastic, and i cleaned them all and found out theres an arm that pivots in two places that swings when air pressure is applied to push the needle foward. this was broken and worn out . it i s thin and frail piece for an airbrush. there is now way to replace it ive looked every where. so i wasted $110.00 on the kit. NEVER WILL I MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE IN BUYING A PLASTIC AIRBRUSH! Im with you in a new search for an airbrush as well. Sotar and iwata looking like good candidate, and Im sure wll worth the extra money! good luck

Hey Zokissima, ya gotta clean up your language on your last post bro, or they're gonna start editing all of our posts.....just hit edit, and place stars for your flashier words, we'll all get the point. (BTW, I would've just e-mailed ya, and let you know privately, but there's no e-mail for you listed, so sorry about that.)

zok, Mike and kik are right mate, you just gotta chill a little.

There is no way known to mankind that anyone can convince someone else that A is better than B, and raising your own blood pressure wont help the fact either.

Ok, so 1337 states;
I agree!!! I am sure you can find more people who hate aztek than people who hate badger or iwata

In response, how many of those people have actually USED an Aztek, ponder that for a while.

Secondly 1337 states;
Cheaper to buy: not really, a badger 155 with wooden case costs 150 frickien canadian dollars, while the aztek 470 costs around 160. oh they both have wood cases, and a hellovalot of accesseries

This one is a little misleading, firstly because you can ALWAYS purchase an item cheaper somewhere, depends on where you look. But in this case, for an extra $10 the Aztek 470 comes with far more accesories than the Badger 155, which makes it a cheaper option when it comes down to brass tacks.

Thirdly;
maintenance: for aztek, you clean the cups and then dunk the nozzle. for the badger, you clean the cups then remove and clean the needles. its actually easeir

This depends on each individual. Me for instance, I blasted thinners through the brush, wiped the nozzle tip with cotton bud dipped in thinners, and that was it. Worked for 2 1/2 years. Only twice did I make it a mission to open and clean the nozzle thouroughly.

Finally, and this one is my favourite;
Oh and the badger is the worlds fastest dissassembling airbrush, and the aztek is not. The needles for badgers cost LESS than nozzles for the ******* azteks, so therefore, an aztek is a piece of crap

An Aztek nozzle unscrews and is a self-contained unit, made up of 4 parts.
The 155 is a single piece of steel machined to suit.
Of course the Aztek nozzle costs more, it's like apples and oranges really.
But it doesn't mean the Aztek is a 'piece of crap', just different.

Basically the truth can only be explained by those that have been bitten by an Aztek.
When mine was working, I liked it, she gave me minimal hassles, was cheap as chips, and I managed to complete 20+ models with it, some of which won awards at local shows.
It was a great learning tool, and soon I shall have my Omni 4000, thankfully I cut my teeth with the 470, so anything new will be a blessing probably.

Please note, I am not a steadfast supporter of Azteks, yes Badger and Iwata gear is better than Aztek, and you can be guarenteed that there are some Badger and Iwata dislikers out there also, but if you like what it does for you, does it really matter what others say.

It's all luck of the draw, me and zok drew good Azteks, and some others didnt.

Zokissima, if the Aztek works well for you and gives great results, then keep going hard with it. I liked mine till it died in the a**e.
And now that it is dead, it's time for an upgrade.

(end rant here)

Sean

to kik36 and MikeV, I must apologise, and to all others here. I should not use language like that, and won't in the future.

To finally add my two cents, I don't see the point of arguing this, as really, tweety1 is right: "There is no way known to mankind that anyone can convince someone else that A is better than B, and raising your own blood pressure wont help the fact either."

I like my aztec just fine. It's the second one I've had, and I have a badger as well, and I don't like as much. Not to say that one is better than the other, simply both do what they're supposed to do, and I wouldn't like to lose either one of them.

Zokissima, believe me I don't mind, as I'm sure my everyday language is a lot worse than most here (I was in the Marines) We just try to keep it clean for the younger modelers and such........moving on

I had an Aztek and it bit me, but I learned a lot from it. My Omni was only $10.00 more than what my Aztek was (comparitive shopping and all). I'm not sure if I would have rather had a Ferrari first or the Civic......but to me it seemed to work out pretty well, because the two are like night and day, and I really appreciate the Omni. I think that it's great that there are people who enjoy the Aztek, and I'm glad you are able to get great use from it!! I heard from someone once that most manufacturers have a percentage of "dead products" that come off the line. In otherwords, they try to measure the failure rate, and assume that a certain amount WILL fail. Just kinda part of the business I suppose. And I would assume that a lot of people ranting about Aztek may fit in that percentage. Just a guess though, and it could be why they are quick to replace them also. I'm just glad that you and others are happy with yours, and they're not failing on you, 'cause it kinda hurts your feelings when it does!!!

To sum up quickly, No harm no fowl, I'm glad you're passionate about your Airbrush, and I hope that you continue to defend it's position. But if you ever want to cross over to the "Badger Family", we'll be waiting with open arms!!!

QUOTE: Originally posted by zokissima I like my aztec just fine. It's the second one I've had, and I have a badger as well, and I don't like as much. Not to say that one is better than the other, simply both do what they're supposed to do, and I wouldn't like to lose either one of them.

That is what choices are all about my friend. What works for you is the best airbrush and the others don't matter. It is a personal choice as are many things in life.
How many times have you heard guys arguing between Ford and Chevy?
I know how passionate we can all become sometimes when someone badmouths a product that works for us and that we spent good money on, but if it is not true then don't let it bother you.
Apology accepted and all else forgotten. Now back to sharing our experiences.


Mike

Heres my 4 cents (2 2cents)

Sure, anyone can like as many airbrushes as they want.

Sure, everyone here makes a valid point

However, about the ergonomic design: I have used a (somewhat)lowly paasche H, and I find that its more comfortable than an "ergonomic" desin of an aztek 430/4709/470 . I currently own an aztek 370, and after about 10 minutes, i get hand cramps.

For ease of cleaning, I must say, aztek is almost as easy to clean. its just more time consuming.

Comparing Plastic and MEtal is like comparing Ferrari's and Lambo's. THey are not the same. I

I am so dissatisfied with my aztek, I will join the dark side and buy an omni some time soon... Thanks to Mike {:)]

Anyone can like Anything they like, this is called "free speech". However, When More than one person disagrees with something, its usually not a good thing. Sure, buying an aztek is cheaper than buying an omni, but the omni will pay off inthe long run.

Once again, Anyone can have any opinion. Thats my 2-8 cents

Thanks

1337