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I just recently got into 40k. I've had this old airbrush that used to belong to me old man laying around. The airbrush was probably used once or twice 20 years ago. It's an old badger.

I bought some Vallejo air brush paints to just see how the thing works. I wanted to test it out and and get a feel for the AB. The compressor seemed to work fine, at least it sounded fine. The brush on the other hand was shooting out very inconsistent. I would adjust the needle back and forth and was getting very spurty results at full open all the way to a pin size strip. I sprayed an AB cleaner thru it prior but the cleaner and the paint kept shooting out in spurts.

It's probably because it's and old PoS but can't help but wonder if it was me. Wanna make sure before I drop some $$$ on a new AB.

If anyone has any idea it would be awesome.

Thanks

Sputtering can come from three sources, a pulsing compressor-- are you using a tank with your compressor?, or most likely a clog in the airbrush itself. And the paint could be the culprit, but new paints formulated for airbrushing should not give you any problems.

You need to break down the airbrush-- the parts that contact the paint, not the air intake from the compressor-- and clean everything thoroughly. Have a wooden toothpick handy, and some q-tips. Use slightly soapy water. Be careful not to bend the needle when you re-assemble the airbrush.

Most airbrush problems are caused by folks failing to clean them properly. You may want to poke around for a few how-tos for your specific airbrush.

As long as the seals on the airbrush are good, and the needle is not bent, it should work just fine.

 Red Harvest wrote:
Sputtering can come from three sources, a pulsing compressor-- are you using a tank with your compressor?, or most likely a clog in the airbrush itself. And the paint could be the culprit, but new paints formulated for airbrushing should not give you any problems.

You need to break down the airbrush-- the parts that contact the paint, not the air intake from the compressor-- and clean everything thoroughly. Have a wooden toothpick handy, and some q-tips. Use slightly soapy water. Be careful not to bend the needle when you re-assemble the airbrush.

Most airbrush problems are caused by folks failing to clean them properly. You may want to poke around for a few how-tos for your specific airbrush.

As long as the seals on the airbrush are good, and the needle is not bent, it should work just fine.

When I took the AB apart, I did notice a slight bend in the needle. When I tried to slide it back in there was some friction. I could tell it was slightly bent

Hmm, there are ways to straighten it, depending upon how badly bent it is. And rather than try to describe the techniques --and do a bad job of it-- I'd advise you to check out YouTube or somewhere, for a tutorial on it. I know from personal experience that it is possible to straighten one, and also possible to snap off a tip. :(

Worse case is that you need to get a new needle, if one is available for you model. Needles are not cheap, but they are much cheaper than a new airbrush.

I found that the little needle protection cap at the very end of mine was causing spluttering, paint was catching in the bottom then when there was enough spraying out as splutter

Check for wear on the O-rings in the brush as well. If those seals are worn you will have to replace them. Like others said could be the needle / nozzle. You would have to break it down and clean it. Process of elimination.

 Sammoth wrote:
Check for wear on the O-rings in the brush as well. If those seals are worn you will have to replace them. Like others said could be the needle / nozzle. You would have to break it down and clean it. Process of elimination.

Being over 20 years old, any O rings it may have are most likely deteriorated?

Touch base with badger. Have heard they have awesome customer support and a lot of people send their brushes in for service all the time. Probably cheaper than getting a new brush as well.