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Badger 200 (Old style) Airbrush Problems


drgj
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My airbrush is usually ok but I think I may have done something to the Teflon needle bearing. I pulled the needle out and it had paint dried on it and this might have scratched the needle bearing because the airbrush is pulsing and sometimes not spraying and often blowing bubbles into  the paint jar. I looked into this and the bearing is available and can be reamed after fitting with a number 55 drill bit according to Badger themselves. My question is do I push the old bearing out the front and fit the new from the front or is it the other way round?

 

I may get a new Teflon seal for the front as well plus check the mixing tip part for any problems. I have cleaned out the tiny jet, needle, etc. Not too familiar with terminology, I'm afraid!

 

Dave

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It's hard to see how a broken seal behind the paint chamber would cause the brush to blow back into the cup. Surely it must be intermittently blocked in front of the paint chamber? I suggest that there may be some paint residue that flakes off and the flakes are causing the problems. This can happen even if the needle and nozzle are clean. I used to have this problem. Since I started cleaning the body of the brush in an ultrasound tank, the problem has not come back.

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I have an old style Badger 200  and always replace the nylon seal/bearing every 5 years.  Your problem sounds like blockage/ poor cleaning ( sadly like 90% of all airbrush problems on this and every other forum  :)  ).......... especially if you use acrylics.

 

Buy some Acetone and some Xylene thinners off Ebay... make a stash of a 50/50 mix and flush through after every session and even if you have left the  loaded airbrush for several minutes during a spraying session.  Wear gloves and a mask though.

 

Cheers

 

John

Edited by ROSSPOP
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Thanks for the answers. Yes it looks like I have two separate problems- pulsating caused by seals and the bubbling caused by a blockage. Will give it all another clean and see how I get on.

 

John- how did you fit the needle bearing?

 

Dave

Edited by drgj
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Hi Dave

I still have the original spanner for my 35 year old 200.  

 

Then just dismantle/unscrew the front end of the of the airbrush  into its three separate pieces and the white seal is just pushed on or pulled off the inner valve. 

 

DSC05261.JPG.df076eaf1ac441aa336c0475cb2f3deb.JPG

 

 

I have never needed to replace the needle bearing. I`m not sure that you can without returning it to Badger

 

Save up your pennies and get a new Badger 155 Anthem which is a whole lot easier to maintain and it`s dual action  :)

 

John

Edited by ROSSPOP
iNCORRECT INFORMATION
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Thanks, John. I will look into the 155.

 

With the 200 I normally clean after a session it by spraying thinners back and forth through it by alternately blocking and unblocking the business end as it says to do in the instruction manual. When it stops working I strip it down. Do you strip yours after every session?

 

Dave

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I've had a 155 Anthem for years, it's a lovely thing to work with !!

 

At the end of every spraying session I clean it by spraying 'Gunwash' (a particularly nasty, industrial paint cleaning material, that's quite capable of taking paint off cars !!) through it.

Maybe once a year I strip down the gun to inspect it, can't remember ever finding any paint residue. :D

If the spray-gun isn't made entirely from metal, you can't use Gunwash though.

It will dissolve most things, including any containers that aren't made from Glass or Metal !!

 

Cheers,

Phil.

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Thanks for that, Phil. I have just finished cleaning up my 200 and tried it again. I have managed to stop the bubbling into the paint jar but the spray is still pulsating. I sealed all the threads with beeswax but to no avail. It must be the rear teflon seal/ needle bearings.  I think I might just get another airbrush as I have had good use out of this one and it was second hand when I bought it. 

 

Dave

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17 hours ago, drgj said:

Thanks, John. I will look into the 155.

 

With the 200 I normally clean after a session it by spraying thinners back and forth through it by alternately blocking and unblocking the business end as it says to do in the instruction manual. When it stops working I strip it down. Do you strip yours after every session?

 

Dave

 

I`m a bit of a bully to my 200 Dave,   as I use it to airbrush Phoenix/precision two part etch primer ..so I always strip it down and leave things to soak in my `cleaning mix` as mentioned or else the primer might etch into the metal parts..... other than that I strip it down every year and give it a good clean. But if you always have a mix of cleaner at the same time as your paint mix and clean as you go along you will have minimal if any problems.

 

not forgetting , of course, you need to mix your paints to the right thinness with no bits in it....so don`t use paint that has been left with its lid off for a long time.

I made a decision in the 1970`s to only ever use enamel paint for airbrushing locos and rolling stock.... I think it`s harder wearing on etched and metal models.

 

john

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Thanks, John. My 200 is usually very good. I had a look on "Don's airbrush tips" and removed the needle bearing in a similar way to the way he did it but used some brass tube that I had. On inspection the bearing looked as though it had been half in and half out. I turned it round and pressed it back in. The fit of the needle was then quite a bit firmer feeling but still the pulsing spray on another test. Either I need the front seal or the needle bearing has worn oval so making it feel ok. I don't know if I will be throwing good money after bad if I buy the new parts in case I can't fix it.

 

Dave

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Like Rosspop I've never had to replace a needle bearing - I assume this is deep inside the airbrush - and that's in nearly 40 years. I have however replaced the white ring seen in the photo above that sits on the screw thread behind the head.

 

As it happens I changed the white ring just before my last spraying session a week ago. The difference in performance was remarkable - previously I'd been unable to spray at much under full open for the needle, now I'm back to being able to do fairly fine lines. The old ring looked fine, and I'd screwed the head on tight with the spanner, however it obviously wasn't up to scratch.

 

Whilst dual action airbrushes do have the edge for very fine work such as weathering, I'm quite attached to my 200, and if your problem is simply this white ring it's worth the price of a replacement, plus a proper clean out.

 

John.

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  • 1 month later...

I decided to buy a new airbrush and bought a brand new Badger 175 double action. I also bought an Iwata Compressor, the one with the frame/ handle that acts as an air tank.  I used to use an old car wheel for air and thought I would go straight in and get a high quality compressor after reading a few horror stories. This  together with the 175 work very well indeed.  The 175 is much chunkier than an average airbrush but this doesn't make any difference in use. 

 

Dave

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5 hours ago, drgj said:

I decided to buy a new airbrush and bought a brand new Badger 175 double action. I also bought an Iwata Compressor, the one with the frame/ handle that acts as an air tank.  I used to use an old car wheel for air and thought I would go straight in and get a high quality compressor after reading a few horror stories. This  together with the 175 work very well indeed.  The 175 is much chunkier than an average airbrush but this doesn't make any difference in use. 

 

Dave

 

just a word, IWATA re brand some Cheaper compressors with bling so you can actually get summit a bit cheaper without the badge.

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