is here! Shop now, pay later in 4 easy installments
How To Clean Your Airbrush Nozzle
Purchasing a quality airbrush is often an expensive investment and the best way to protect it is to do a quick cleaning to take good care of the airbrush. Here you will learn the basics on how to deep clean your airbrush nozzle so you can get your money’s worth!
Summary
-
Types of Airbrush Nozzles
-
A step by step guide on how to clean an Airbrush Nozzle
-
Watch and learn from following our video
What is an Airbrush Nozzle?
The nozzle, also known as the tip or needle of the airbrush determines how fine your paint will spray—the smaller the needle, the finer your spray will be. Airbrush sets, on the other hand, come with a selection of nozzle sizes and needles.
The various sizes include:
- Small - 0.2mm
- Mid-range - 0.35mm
- Large - 0.5mm
A Step by Step Guide to Clean An Airbrush Nozzle
To have a great airbrush experience every time, it is important to clean your airbrush at the end of each spray session. Here, we will show you step-by-step how to deep clean one of the most important parts of your airbrush—the nozzle. Follow this cleaning routine and your airbrush will be ready to use the next time you pick it up to paint.
Materials you will need:
-
Lacquer thinner or airbrush cleaner (Shop here for $13.29)
-
Cotton swab
-
Bamboo skewer
-
Nozzle sealant(Shop here for $36.09 AUD), lip balm, or Vaseline
-
Paper towel
-
Mag Head Visor (Shop here for $59.99 AUD)
Best Way To Clean Airbrush Nozzle
Step One: Unblock Airbrush Nozzle
Get rid of all the paint in your airbrush by spraying or pouring it all out in a container. Once the paint is cleared out, rinse the colour cup with water and then put a few drops of lacquer thinner or airbrush cleaner into it.
Trick: Use a paintbrush as a guide to avoid spilling! Point the paintbrush towards the hole of the colour cup, and then put it against the side of the bottle and start pouring. Once the liquid touches the paintbrush, the thinner will easily flow down the brush and straight into the colour cup without any drips.
Now, brush the thinner around the colour cup to clean off all the residue and then pour everything out into a container. Go back to spraying until it is clear!
Step Two: Disassemble The Airbrush
First, undo the back of your handle and loosen the locking nut to remove
the needle. Then, twist off the nozzle cap and nozzle cover to pull all the parts apart.
Step Three: Clean Every Part of The Airbrush
Here is how you properly clean each part of the airbrush:
- Needle - Clean the surface of it with a cotton swab soaked with lacquer thinner. Move in the direction of the needle to avoid any damage. And then, gently rub and drag the needle down on the paper towel to polish the tip.
- Nozzle Cap - Take your cutter to sharpen the tip of the skewer to replicate the needle’s angle. Then, dip or soak the tip of the skewer with lacquer thinner and gently push it into the nozzle cap until it reaches the other end to unclog and remove dried paint. For full blockages, a handy tool would be the reamers.
- Nozzle Cover - Rub the soaked cotton swab around the cover to wipe off the remaining paint.
-
Nozzle - After you unscrew the nozzle off the airbrush, just like a pencil, sharpen a wooden skewer to make it all the way through the nozzle. Coat the end of the skewer with thinner, spin it around, and poke each end of the nozzle to remove blockages. Once thoroughly cleaned, take a nozzle sealant or lip balm and lightly coat the edge and carefully screw it back. This will spread all around the edge and stop any leakage. If you are using the spanner that is included with your airbrush, take extra care not to over-tighten as this can cause this delicate part to break.
To make this step easier, a Mag Head Visor is an invaluable tool of crystal-clear magnifying visors with multiple lenses that provide a distortion-free view. With this, you will have no problem seeing and cleaning all the spots on your airbrush.
Step Four: Re-assemble and Start Spraying!
Once every part is clean, re-assemble the airbrush according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Remember, cleaning your airbrush properly after each use is crucial to maintaining an efficient, operating airbrush.
Watch and Learn!
Still having trouble? Follow BJ’s demonstration to keep your nozzle clean for optimum performance of your airbrush.
There you have it! Maintain an awesome airbrush experience by cleaning your airbrush on a regular basis.
Have any tips up your sleeve? Feel free to share it with us in our social media channels!