No air comes out of my Evolution

[VolkerR.]

My fully assembled Evolution has no airflow. Partially assembled, the airbrush without parts A and B , there is a normal airflow coming out of the front of part R. When I slowly screw in part A, the airflow suddenly nearly stops. So the problem is definitely not in the air-valve (M).

All parts are clean, the sealings look ok.

 

Any ideas?

 

Volker

[dnl42]

There is a very small passage in the B part, Dental Paper Points are useful for cleaning it out, otherwise perhaps very carefully with a brass rod.

 

What types of paint do you use? I normally use lacquers, enamels, and occasionally Tamiya, so I'd give the A and B parts a good overnight soak in hardware store cellulose (lacquer) thinner. Alternately, especially for water-based paints, some time in an ultrasonic cleaner could help.

[uncletommy]

I'd suspect the nozzle "B" is clogged.  Can you hold it up and see light when you look through it?  That's one thing I do when I clean my Evolution. Also, I have the nozzle cleaner that H&S makes. I use it frequently when cleaning my airbrushes.

[VolkerR.]

I have the 0.2 and the 0.4 nozzles. No difference. Parts A and B are definitely clean. Without them, there is airflow. When I screw Part A with or without the nozzle into the body R, the airflow stops (nearly).

This effect happens with both nozzle sets in the same way. Somehow part A stops the airflow when inserted. The hole is open, I can see through it.

[Pin]

- when fully assembled do you see the top of the needle coming out of the nozzle?

- if you remove the needle and push the trigger (I assume the compressor is connected) is there any air coming out of the nozzle? 

- how do you "measure" the airflow without nozzle/cup? Basically if the air is coming out of the body it has nowhere to go except the nozzle so I don't see any other explanation than clogged nozzle. How do you know that it is clean? See point 1 - if you insert the needle into the nozzle do you see its tip? 

[VolkerR.]

I removed the needle and the cap with the nozzle to see if the problem was the airvalve M. When I press D, there is a normal airflow coming out of the front of part R (no needle nozzle and cap!) Somehow this airflow is stopped when I insert A into R. I did this with compressor running and D pressed down. Somehow the insertion of A into R stops the airflow. I know it sounds crazy, but thats why I am looking for new ideas.

Of course I started with a fully cleaned and complete Airbrush. But there was hardly any arflow. So I decided to track the problem down by eliminating possible courses. First I used the 0.4 nozzleset. Same problem. So the nozzles are not the problem. Then I operated the airbrush with removed nozzle, cap and needle to see if the problem was the airvalve. The air was flowing, so airvalve OK. The airflow is stopped by part A, with or without nozzle inside.

Maybe the airbrush is internally clogged between the airvalve and the air outlet in front of R. I am still soaking the body R in airbrush cleaner. But I still doubt that thats the problem because the air is flowing through the body as long as part A is removed.

 

I hope I could make myself clear. Thanks a lot for your help and ideas!

[denstore]

There must be something blocking the air in the part A. Air isnt passing through the nozzle, part B, so that one can be eliminated.

[Pin]

10 minutes ago, denstore said:

There must be something blocking the air in the part A. Air isnt passing through the nozzle, part B, so that one can be eliminated.

 

That is the thing, there is nothing in the nozzle cup that could block the airflow. I am a happy Evolution user myself, completely flabbergasted - it does not make any sense. 

[cmatthewbacon]

Is the white PTFE seal at the back of nozzle B OK? It might be being squished outwards blocking the air as you tighten A up.

Does air come out anywhere else as you tighten A and air stops coming out the front?

best,

M.

[VolkerR.]

Problem solved.

 

I had disasembled the airbrush completely and left the body in Tamiya airbrush cleaner overnight. The next day I connected the body without any parts attached to the air  hose and blew air at highest possible pressure through the boby. That was it.

Obviously there was paint or dirt in the air channel inside the body. There are only two tiny openings to it, so all you can do is flood it with a solvent. 

 

Thanks for all your ideas

Volker

[Mark Harmsworth]

An alternative method to thoroughly clean the airbrush is an ultrasonic cleaner. Like this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B076Q8VFQ1/?tag=anhudiku-21&linkCode=osi&th=1&psc=1

 

Disassemble the airbrush, place the large parts in the basket provided and the small parts in a bag, fill with water and turn it on.  

 

And it cleans other mucky stuff as well 😀

 

Mark

[VolkerR.]

On 17/05/2021 at 08:08, VolkerR. said:

Problem solved.

 

I had disasembled the airbrush completely and left the body in Tamiya airbrush cleaner overnight. The next day I connected the body without any parts attached to the air  hose and blew air at highest possible pressure through the boby. That was it.

Obviously there was paint or dirt in the air channel inside the body. There are only two tiny openings to it, so all you can do is flood it with a solvent. 

 

Thanks for all your ideas

Volker

 

Problem was not solved. It occured again after use of the airbrush.

 

So I did what I should have done before: I called the guys at Harder und Steenbeck, near Hamburg. A friendly guy answered my call, did not have a solution at hand, called a technician in the house and I got my problem finally solved:

I had used the gun with the 0.2 and the 0.4 nozzles intermittently. I had assumed that the airheads (part A) were interchangeable for the two nozzles. Well, they are not. S when I had reassembled the airbrush after cleaning, I had put the 0.4 nozzle in th airhead for the 02. nozzle. It fits perfectly, but it doesnt work.

 

So all you guys who use the evolution 2 in 1: Do not interchange the airheads. That s all!

 

Volker

[malpaso]

Volker,

I can assure you that you are not the only one who has discovered this the hard way!  🤔

I hope you learn to enjoy using the airbrush now...

Cheers

Will

[Pappy35]

For all the "blocked nozzle" responses: I was under the impression that only paint flowed through the nozzle and all the air came from around it? Is this the case or am I missing something?

[VolkerR.]

On 25/05/2021 at 19:31, Pappy35 said:

For all the "blocked nozzle" responses: I was under the impression that only paint flowed through the nozzle and all the air came from around it? Is this the case or am I missing something?

You are absolutely right. The air flows around the nozzle, not through it.

[nheather]

I had a similar issue with a badger airbrush a few years ago, though mine was a significant drop in air rather than a total loss.  I too was very puzzled, I naturally assumed it was the air valve that is operated by the switch so bought a replacement but it made no difference.

 

After scratching my head it turned out that a tiny washer had been lost during a cleaning session.

 

As others have said, only paint goes through the nozzle, the air goes through vents that surround the nozzle and these should not become blocked because paint doesn’t go anywhere near them.

 

But as I found, my airbrush has a minuscule PTFE washer which when fitted ensures there is an airflow to those vents.  But without that washer the nozzle cap tightens up just a tiny bit more, but enough block the vents and obstruct the airflow.

 

On my badger the washer should stay in position when you disassemble to clean but it is possible to accidentally dislodge it when removing/refitting the needle and believe me, this thing is so small you would never notice it if it dropped out.  Equally when you assemble without the washer the airbrush looks perfectly normal.

 

I fitted a replacement washer and all airflow was restored to normal instantly.

 

Cheers,

 

Nigel