Hi Everyone,

I'm hoping someone with a bit more experience might be able to help me out.

I have my old Badger 200 and changed the needle to a 0.2 needle. I also changed the crown for the needle size. Unfortunately its not working and when I load up the jar and press the trigger all I end up with is bubbles in the paint in the jar. She just wont spary.

I've stripped her down, checked everything, all the seals are present and in good nick so she should be working. I've tried spraying with 10 PSI upto 25 PSI but still just bubbles.

Is there anything I have missed?

TIA, John

Did you have this problem before you changed the needle and crown?

John,

With no paint in the bottle or cup (I have a 1/4 oz removable paint cup that I use with my 200), does air come out of the airbrush tip whrn the trigger is pressed?

If the answer is yes, then the seal between where the paint passes through the airbrush and the air valve under the trigger is bad. This is the teflon o-ring that the needle passes through before it enters the paint "channel."

If the answer is no, then the airbrush is clogged with dried paint between the tip and the paint siphon.

It sounds to me like the tip is clogged with dried paint, though, the second problem above. This is preventing air from exiting the tip and forcing it back through the paint channel from the tip.

There's also a second small teflon o-ring that goes over the fine threaded tube on the removable tip and the air brush body. Sometimes these fall off as you're switching paint tips. This will also allow air to enter the paint "channel" and bubble back through the siphone tube. Check the tip that you removed to see if you left this o-ring on it when you changed tips. If you did, then just take it off and put it on the new tip.

HTH

I have had this problem myself with this exact brush and in my case it was the small brass part that the needle goes through before showing at the crown opening. The brass part had been damaged during cleaning and the only cure for it was replacement of the part. In my case I was able to locate the problem as when I ran my finger over this part it felt sharp/rough with the needle removed. It would let air flow through but no liquid of any kind. The good news is that if this is what is wrong a replacement was very cheap (about 80p from memory) that was a few years ago now though.

Thanks all,

Jeremy: She was working the last time I used her which was a couple of years ago now so that could be part of the problem.

Mike: She does pass air (no fart jokes please) with the bottle on. The teflon o-ring you mentioned, is that the needle bearing? Just looking at a schematic and thats the only o-ring I can't get eyes on. I have the teflon head washer as I replaced it with a new one when I changed the needle over.

Darren: I had a look at the head and tip and it looks like the tip might be slightly damaged so I'll see if I can get a new tip or just a complete new head. I don't think it is the main problem but she is very old so new parts won't be a bad thing.

Thanks for your help. I'll let you know if I can get the old girl going again.

Cheers,

John

John,

When you installed the .2 mm needle, did you also install a .2mm nozzle? They need to be switched as a matched pair.

John,

Check out Badger's on-line instruction book:

Model 200 Instruction Book

There's a trouble shooting section on page 9, and the bubbling and pulsating issues are no. 8 and 10 along with the italicized comment at the end.

Yes, you are correct about the name of the part I was trying to describe. It's called the "PTFE Needle Bearing." Badger says they will replace that for free under a lifetime warrenty.

These get bunged up over time when you pull the needle out to clean it. Dried paint around the needle wears the "PTFE Needle Bearing" as the needle is pulled through the washer. It takes a long time, but it will wear out.

One thing you might check is the thickness of the replacement "head washer" that you used. I have bought a package of them that were thinner than the one that came with the air brush (a QC issue with the replacement parts) and no matter how tightly I screwed the tip down, air still leaked past the washer and into the paint flow.

Good luck. I've been using a Badger Model 200 since about 1972 (it was the first air brush I ever bought) and still use one today. It's good kit.

Thanks Mike and Matthew,

Matthew: I don't think I did so that could definately be the problem. I'm going to order one as soon as I can but they're pretty expensive over here. Probably order it from the CONUS as they're about half the price.

Mike: Thanks for the link. If it is the needle bearing I'm a bit reluctant to send it back to Badger cause of the new charges the USPS has for incoming mail. Same as all the busted Zippos I have. But if the new head and tip don't fix it I'll enquire with them and send it back if need be. She's my first airbrush that I bought with my hard saved pocket money when I was a kid so she'll be worth the costs.

Thanks again everyone.

Cheers, John

John if you didn't change the needle at the same time as you changed the head assembly that will be the problem as they are matched.

Good news. The old girl lives again.
Received the new tip and seals from the US today. Just checked it out and she is working fine. Now I have an airbrush for the finer details.

Thanks everyone for all your help and advice.

Cheers, John