I have an ultrasonic cleaner and in the past I have filled it with windex, dropped the disassembled airbrush into it and ran it through a couple of cycles. I then rinsed it off with distilled water, put some Iwata lube on the needle and reassembled it for the next use. Am I wrong? I read where you were not supposed to put all the parts in the ultrasonic cleaner. Which parts if true are to be left out? I recently bought a new Iwata and don't want create any problems with it.

Thanks.

Well the main body usually shouldn't go into the cleaner as it has seals inside it that can be damaged if immersed in a solvent. To be honest I doubt doing it once or twice would do much damage and you are only using Windex. I would say that when you dis-assemble the brush, keep the main body out of the ultrasonic cleaner and do it by hand. I can't offer you an exact experience as I use a Badger airbrush and their seals are solvent resistant- I still just clean the main body part by hand though- I also have a cheaper airbrush used for dirty jobs and I don't put the main body of it in an ultrasonic cleaner either.

You do not need a solvent with an ultrasonic cleaner so just use water and it does not matter what parts of the airbrush you put into that. the head can of course be cleaned in something stronger.

Go with water. Although, I have a Badger and an Iwata. I bathe them in acetone or paint thinner once every six uses. I let them soak for 15 minutes and clean with brushes made for it and old rags. The only damage that has ever happened, was when I soaked my el cheapo backup brush in acetone. After 50 baths, the seals in the body disintegrated.

I use an ultrasonic cleaner and use water and nothing else. It works just fine. The only thing I don't put in there is the needle itself, you can damage the end as it vibrates against a corner or edge.

Matt

In my UltraSonic cleaner I use a little bit of a product called Simple Green mixed with water, usually just a cap full, and it get it real clean.

I usually only put in the nozzle, usually into an old 35mm film canister, and the other end cap type parts. I have once or twice stripped down the main body, removed the o rings and cleaned that in the sonic cleaner and never had an issue, just make sure you put all of the seals back where they belong or you will encounter some problems. Trust me. Cheers.