I did a bad thing to my airbrush.. Can it be saved?

Don Wheeler

Take a deep breath and relax.  I'm sure your airbrush can be saved.  It's pretty hard to destroy a VL unless you hit it with a hammer.

When you say you took it completely apart, do you mean the needle seal and the air valve too?  The needle seal should be adjusted so that there is just a slight drag on the needle.  It is solvent proof.  The internal parts of the air valve aren't.  The little O-ring will swell and jam.

Take it apart again and examine it closely with magnifier.  Does the nozzle have any tiny cracks?  Shine a light in the body and look for any crud you might have missed. Flush out the body with an eyedropper.  Use a pumping action to force thinner in and out.  Run the needle over some fine fabric and see if it has any burrs on the end. When you put it together, rub a little bees wax or Chapstick on the nozzle where it seats against the body.  Check it out with plain water before trying paint.

You might want to review this page.  Let us know how it goes.

Don

 

I didnt take it completely apart.. Just all the normal stuff, everything but the needle seal or the air valve. Im not even sure how to do that but Ill do the other stuff that you said and I will let you know. Thanks a bunch! 

Great advice Don, I forgot about that link

Take a deep breath and relax.  I'm sure your airbrush can be saved.  It's pretty hard to destroy a VL unless you hit it with a hammer.

When you say you took it completely apart, do you mean the needle seal and the air valve too?  The needle seal should be adjusted so that there is just a slight drag on the needle.  It is solvent proof.  The internal parts of the air valve aren't.  The little O-ring will swell and jam.

Take it apart again and examine it closely with magnifier.  Does the nozzle have any tiny cracks?  Shine a light in the body and look for any crud you might have missed. Flush out the body with an eyedropper.  Use a pumping action to force thinner in and out.  Run the needle over some fine fabric and see if it has any burrs on the end. When you put it together, rub a little bees wax or Chapstick on the nozzle where it seats against the body.  Check it out with plain water before trying paint.

You might want to review this page.  Let us know how it goes.

Don

mrmike

Sounds as if your tip is still clogged.

Mike

 

modelcrazy

 

PS As you surmized, you may want to check for a missing o ring as well

 

Thanks for your response. How can I check the O ring?

Sounds as if your tip is still clogged. I've owned my VL for decades and it's a very simple mechanism. The next thing I would try is to swab out the nozzle with a couple of Proxy brushes (the ones your dentist gives you to clean between your teeth) and lacquer thinner. Usually a good soak and swab is all that's required.

If that doesn't work, you can get replacement parts from Chicago Airbrush and other dealers. It's very hard to kill a VL!

Mike