I sometimes use rubbing alcohol to thin Tamiya paints, when I run out of Tamiya thinner. Can alcohol be use to clean my airbrush? It would be a great alternative to expensive cleaners but, on the other hand, I don't want to damage my airbrush. Thanks and sorry if this is a dumb question.

Dan

Hi

if it was going to do any damage to the airbrush then so would Tamiya paints that also contain alcohol.

I always use alcohol to clean my airbrush after using acrylics

Paul

Thanks Paul. I guess that was a dumb question. lol! What about Windex for cleaning acrylics?

Dan

I use Windex all the time to clean the a/b and is the best, by far, for this sort of thing. I load up a few cups (3 or 4) of Windex and shoot while also back-flowing to get everything out of there. Once I'm done, I load up 3 or 4 cups of distilled water and also back-flow to get the Windex and any remaining things out of the a/b. This take just a couple of minutes to do and I never have problems when I need to use to brushes again for another session.

Rob

On another note; Dan, thank you for your military service, for putting your life on the line so we can live ours.

- ralph

Hey Dan,

I've been doing the same as Rob for about 2 years now and have never been happier.Not once have I had to dismantle my AB and clean it,which is a big change to what I used to go through,constant clogging,taking it apart and cleaning each part.

Tom

Thin Tamiya acrylics with $1 a gallon blue windshield washer fluid.
Clean your airbrush by shooting Windex through it. Then shoot distilled water to clear it. You don't have to take it apart.
Never use tap water in your paint or airbrush. It contains lime, rust, chlorine, flouride, calcium, and minerals that will crud up inside and destroy your airbrush.

Hi Guys

On the subject of Windex

As Windex is sold as a glass cleaner does it also contain detergents, or is it just watered down IPA.

I tried Astonish Windscreen cleaner and got very good results using it as a cleaner but I didn’t try it as a thinner as at the time I was using Vallejo Acrylics and they are very hit and miss when it comes to thinning with Alcohol based products, with some colours they thin fine and with others they turn to jelly.

Paul

What Ralph said as well, Dan. Thank you!

Rob

Rob and Paul,

You are very welcome. I enjoyed my time in the service and sometimes regret leaving but, I did so for the right reasons. If you guys are ever interested in pics from Iraq, send me a PM. I was there early in the war, 2003-2004 and have lots of destroyed and captured Iraqi vehicle pics.

Thanks for the all of your help with my question. I tried Windex last night and it worked great! Hopefully, I will never have to spend $8 on a botle of thinner or cleaner again.

Dan

That goes ditto for me. For years , I wore the uniform for you, and now you are wearing it for me. I can't thank all our servicemen and women enough. ................

In Scotland the water is pure and fresh! Its soft water, so no lime, chalk or any other porous rock material! Been using it for a while to clean my airbrush after pushing alcohol through it and had no problems whatsoever.

I did buy a large bottle of IPA, as a previous caller mentioned, just to re-itterate, IPA is ok to use an acrylic thinner for airbrushes? I dont want to keep buying Tamiya acrylic thinner as it is a tad expensive!

Yes, you can use isopropyl alcohol to thin alcohol based acrylics - Tamiya, MM Acryl, Pollyscale, and Gunze Aqueous.
However, the automotive windshield washer works better to thin these paints since it contains isopropyl and glycol alcohols and water, This lets the paint dry slower, which is better. It also contains detergent, which acts as a wetting agent.
I don't use Windex as a thinner, since it actually destroys the acrylic paint and pigment. I use it for cleaning and stripping paint only.
For non-alcohol acrylics such as Vallejo and Lifecolor, you must use their thinner or distilled water. Use Vallejo or Medea airbrush cleaner with these paints. Using any alcohol based products with these paints will congeal the paint and make a huge mess.

Matt,

As always, your advice worked. I tried car windseild washer fluid and it worked great! Thanks so much.

What units did you serve with?

Dan