HL-10 Posted July 10, 2021 Share Posted July 10, 2021 My Iwata Eclipse has stopped working It has had a thorough strip down and clean, it will pass air ok, but it will not draw fluids, it just blows bubbles in the paint cup. There is no damage to the nozzle or needle, all visible seals are intact, it just won't paint. Any suggestions or advice greatly received. Thanks, Angelo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenko Posted July 10, 2021 Share Posted July 10, 2021 Sounds like a seal problem. Try a little PTFE tape around the screw threads and do a process of elimination . Have had this problem on one of my H&S brushes. It was the nozzle sealing ring. HTH as a starting point. Dick 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmwh548 Posted July 10, 2021 Share Posted July 10, 2021 The Eclipse doesn't have a nozzle seal. My guess is - there's something coming between the nozzle and the airbrush body and it can't make it's "seal" - the nozzle just isn't seated properly and it's obstructing (even partially) the airflow that would normally go between it and the nozzle cap I would double check the air holes in the nozzle cap and airbrush body (maybe some dried paint got jammed in there) and check the airbrush body itself for any possible damage in the area where the nozzle sits. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Ian- Posted July 10, 2021 Share Posted July 10, 2021 41 minutes ago, bmwh548 said: The Eclipse doesn't have a nozzle seal. My guess is - there's something coming between the nozzle and the airbrush body and it can't make it's "seal" - the nozzle just isn't seated properly and it's obstructing (even partially) the airflow that would normally go between it and the nozzle cap I would double check the air holes in the nozzle cap and airbrush body (maybe some dried paint got jammed in there) and check the airbrush body itself for any possible damage in the area where the nozzle sits. I've had exactly the same happen on my Iwata HP-CS a few times, as you say the nozzle cap was the issue. To fix I remove the nozzle cap, run a cotton bud with IPA around the threads of both the cap and the airbrush body then reassemble. Even though the threads look clean to the naked eye, the cotton buds still pick up some gunk. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HL-10 Posted July 11, 2021 Author Share Posted July 11, 2021 Thank you for the advice and suggestions. I have given most of them a go, but still no joy I used to have a Badger and that had a small Teflon bush/ seal that the needle went through. Does anyone know if Iwatas have the same? Thanks everyone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dnl42 Posted July 11, 2021 Share Posted July 11, 2021 Bubbles in the cup usually mean an air leak. I use a little beeswax on the body threads for the head cap to seal those threads. Iwata's parts diagram shows there should be an o-ring between the body and the head cap. Do you have that? Will it atomize water? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roginoz Posted July 11, 2021 Share Posted July 11, 2021 Like @bmwh548 above, sounds to me like a clogged passage [ Matron !! The SCREENS !! ] between cup and nozzle. I've found that interdental cleaning brushes sometimes sold as "Piksters", available from your dentist or most supermarkets are small enough to clean out the passage. Thought I was pretty good at airbrush cleaning until I used one of these tiny brushes. Talk about gobsmacked at the amount of gunge that it removed. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmwh548 Posted July 11, 2021 Share Posted July 11, 2021 4 hours ago, HL-10 said: I used to have a Badger and that had a small Teflon bush/ seal that the needle went through. Does anyone know if Iwatas have the same? All modern airbrushes have the PTFE seal for the needle, but that's behind the paint cup so paint doesn't reach the trigger assembly. Bubbles in the paint cup mean an air leak between the nozzle and the airbrush body or blocked air passages at the front which would cause air to choose the path of minimal resistance (traveling backwards to the cup). If you were to have a leak between the nozzle cap and the airbrush body you would still have a somewhat functioning airbrush (you'd just have less air coming out through the front causing a "bad" behaviour. Examine the nozzle for some rings/grooves on it's base. Maybe it's become worn where it sits against the airbrush's body and it can't do an air tight seal. If you happen to have a new nozzle put them side by side and compare the tips. Perhaps it's flared up too much, causing an obstruction against the nozzle cap. It shouldn't happen with the Eclipse because of the nozzle design, but you can never know. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted July 12, 2021 Share Posted July 12, 2021 Let's talk specifically about the Eclipse. Really very little to go wrong. Bubbles in the paint usually indicates loose air cap or air cap not in the correct position. I can make bubbles in the paint cup by loosening the air cap and remove them by tightening it back up. However, let's first try to understand about what is going on. Here I have just screwed off the air cap to show the nozzle supporting the needle. Note that the brass nozzle also acts to seal the air chamber through two tapers. One going into the body of the air brush sealing the paint chamber and the other into air cap. These male tapers and their matching female tapers should be clean and undamaged to ensure no air goes directly in to the paint cup. Check they are in position, not forced out. In particular the rear one into the airbrush body. Note the positioning of these are important to ensure a good seal and correct annulus position at the needle/nozzle. More about this later. You will also see an O-ring seal on the Eclipse. This seals the air chamber formed around the brass nozzle once the air cap is in place. A different design is used on other airbrushes. The important thing is the air cap needs to screw up on the brass nozzle to seal on the tapers and correctly position the nozzle annulus, hence there needs to be an O-ring for some give and yet seal the air chamber. Here I have removed the O-ring and screwed up the air cap to close on the nozzle pulling up on the tapers as necessary. You can see the gap remaining as shown by the arrow. If the O-ring that fills this gap fails then an air leak can result not allowing sufficient air pressure and subsequent velocity at the needle to draw paint. Usual outcome spattering or failing to draw paint. Unlikely this O-ring is your problem. In fact, you can duplicate the air bubbles yourself with this set-up as an experiment. Remove the O ring carefully. Ensure air cap screwed up on tapers. Try your airbrush with some water. No bubbles. Then loosen the air cap till you get bubbles in the paint cup. O-ring has had no effect although the air leakage will effect its ability to draw paint. IMPORTANT: None of this needs to tightened up with tools. Hand tight is good enough. You do not want to damage the tapers or squeeze out the O-ring. While we are about it let's check some other things like the needle and nozzle for damage. No splits and correctly screwed in place. Hopefully no problem, Iwata parts are deadly expensive. Check the nozzle cap ... again. Are the three bypass holes clear? They actually feed the air to the nozzle after the brass taper seals the centre. Note the groove you can see inside the body of the air cap. Is this also clear? I know you have said this is clear and yet this is where I have had a problems before. Seemed like small corrosion particles got caught in there from the compressor tank that somehow got past the filter. It affected overall air pressure requirements rather than blow back in the paint cup. If the annulus is clear at the nozzle end it should not put bubbles in the paint cup. Blockage, less air, will affect its ability to draw paint. Back to the business end. Assemble the airbrush and check there is a clear annulus around the needle and nozzle. I expect no blockage, but is it positioned properly. Not too far forward or, importantly, not too far back. This would be my first close up inspection for an airbrush giving me problems. Darn, don't you hate close ups. Seems mine is not centred. Well, at least it does not seem to affect performance. Well this is what I would be looking at for starters. Hope it helps. Ray 7 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Posted July 12, 2021 Share Posted July 12, 2021 Really helpful post there @Ray_W, but I couldn't help having a schoolboy chuckle at "check annulus" 1 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray_W Posted July 12, 2021 Share Posted July 12, 2021 Just now, Mike said: check annulus Sounded better than orifice. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P_Budzik Posted July 17, 2021 Share Posted July 17, 2021 You should also check the seat for the nozzle (the surface in the airbrush body into which the nozzle fits). Any ding or scratch here will cause an air leak. If this gets mucked up, the airbrush is pretty much done. According to my friend at Iwata, it's more common than you think. Paul 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HL-10 Posted July 18, 2021 Author Share Posted July 18, 2021 Thanks for all the advice and suggestions, greatly appreciated 😃 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 On 7/18/2021 at 8:55 AM, HL-10 said: Thanks for all the advice and suggestions, greatly appreciated 😃 Did you solve the problem? Duncan B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HL-10 Posted August 10, 2021 Author Share Posted August 10, 2021 Unfortunately not. I have sent it off for repair & service as I didn’t want my amateur attempts to make things worse. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan B Posted August 11, 2021 Share Posted August 11, 2021 On 8/10/2021 at 9:31 AM, HL-10 said: Unfortunately not. I have sent it off for repair & service as I didn’t want my amateur attempts to make things worse. Hopefully it'll come back working like a new one. I have an Eclipse that I use mostly for priming and clear coats (but have used it for top colours too) and really like it's simplicity and ease of cleaning compared with my more expensive airbrushes. I invested in the 0.5mm needle and nozzle set for it but rarely use that to be honest. Duncan B 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HL-10 Posted September 10, 2021 Author Share Posted September 10, 2021 I sent my airbrush off to Airbrushes.com The bad news is my airbrush is beyond repair It has a body leak somewhere internally which cannot be fixed. The company has refunded all my money, despite them spending a week and a half working on it and ordering spares, so impressed with their customer care. Off to buy a new airbrush now 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Ian- Posted September 11, 2021 Share Posted September 11, 2021 On 9/10/2021 at 8:39 AM, HL-10 said: I sent my airbrush off to Airbrushes.com The bad news is my airbrush is beyond repair It has a body leak somewhere internally which cannot be fixed. The company has refunded all my money, despite them spending a week and a half working on it and ordering spares, so impressed with their customer care. Off to buy a new airbrush now Never heard of that before, did they suggest what the possible causes could be? Also a metaphorical gold star to Airbrushes.com for their customer service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HL-10 Posted September 11, 2021 Author Share Posted September 11, 2021 28 minutes ago, -Ian- said: did they suggest what the possible causes could be? They didn't have any clue at all. Just that there was a leak somewhere but they don't know where. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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