I have two Lifecolor acrylic modulation sets. My airbrush is an Iwata HP-CH. I've mixed the paints well and they perform well for a short time. Then the airbrush starts clogging. I use laquer thinner to clean my airbrush and I'm thinking its making things worse. So, first, do I need to thin the paint more? I really don't want to. Second, is it possible retarder is the answer? Third, what is the preferred medium to clean the brush and needle during and after use? I have two projects waiting for this paint, so any advice would be greatly appreciated. I love the results from this paint, and hence I really need to figure it out and make it work for me.

Hey Bill. In my experience with airbrushing Lifecolor paints, use only their brand of thinner and/or water. If you do that, there should be no problem and they spray really well, just about as good as Tamiya paints. Try that. Hope it helps. (I have an Iwata, too, and again, with that medium, no problems)

-Felix

Hi Bill,

It is quite common for acrylics to dry and start clogging at the AB tip especially when using a fine needle.

It is a good idea, in my opinion, to add a drop of retarder to
your paint/thinner....paint/water mix....it will certainly help.

Also keep a thinner soaked Q-tip nearby and periodically gently clean the AB tip during the painting session.

Works well for me...

Cheers,
Joe

I have found that when working with acrylics in an airbrush, I always move the trigger forward (stopping paint flow) before releasing the trigger to stop air flow. This helps prevent paint from building up on the tip in the first place.

I haven't used the LC thinner, but they do seem to work well with Vallejo Airbrush Thinner and Golden Airbrush Medium. I also sometimes mix a little Future in my paints when airbrushing just to give them extra strength, and this seems to work with LC paints as well.

Might also want to drop your air pressure....Lifecolor actually sprays better at lower PSIs like 10-15

Not to put a fly in anyone's ointment, but IT IS PRECISELY THE CLOGGING PROBLEM WITH ACRYLICS that makes me prefer using my own custom-mixes of TESTORS MODEL MASTER II ENAMELS for all of my airbrushing needs. I like to use either TESTORS SPRAY-CAN GLOSS, DULLCOAT, LUSTERLESS FLAT, or the TAMIYA equivalents, along with the "For Airbrushing Only" bottled MODEL MASTER GLOSS, SEMI-FLAT, and FLAT Lacquers, shot through my "use-specific" PAASCHE H-1 Single-Action... I use only single-action airbrushes: 3 PAASCHE H-1s: 1 for Clears, 1 for Metallics, and 1 for Metalizers; 2 BADGERS: 1 200 for Solid Colors, and 1 200G Gravity-Feed strictly for touch-up work and light "fogging"...

Dennis, I do appreciate that, but I can tell you I can airbrush with Tamiya acrylics all day long and never have a problem with clogging. And when it comes to paints that drove me crazy, Humbrol enamels were one of the worst. I think the problem is we're dealing with chemistry, and there are so many variables like temp and the amount of moisture in the atomosphere....I do think painting becomes very much individualized. I'm going to try ALL of the tips mentioned above, and I'm hoping that one or more will work for me....

Bill; I found LifeColor paints a much nicer paint to work with when the LifeColor thinner was used. I know that some will swear by by some other thinning agent, but I found I can trust the stuff designed for the task.

It sounds to me like remnants of the lacquer thinner in recesses in the airbrush (some droplets can hang around!) are interfering with the proper spraying of the acrylic. It's probably shooting out at the wrong times. To clean the airbrush, I would switch to acrylic airbrush cleaner (Testors makes one, there are others available in art supply stores) and use that when shooting acrylics through your airbrush.

My 2 cents, if you don't mind. Airbrush clogging usually happens due to one of the following reasons:

1. Paint is not thinned enough.

Rule of thumb for almost any popular paint on the market today - the thinner to paint ratio in the mix should be at least 1:1.

Sometimes more - e.g. for Tamiya's acrylics the ratio is 4:1 for base coats and up to 6:1 for fine details.

This 1+:1 ratio is a must even for the Vallejo Model Air (or their twins AK Interactive and Ammo of Mig) - which sometimes are positioned as already thinned for the airbrush.

Controlling the exact mathematical ratio is not that important (= there's no need to worry if you added an extra drop of thinner, etc.).

What IS important is that the paint & thinner mix is absolutely "watery" - without any visible "viscosity" - but it should not yet become a "slightly colored thinner".

Also, even the correctly thinned acrylic paints will significantly benefit from adding a few drops of paint retarder (up to 10-20%) into the mix. It will not increase drying time too much, but will significantly reduce clogging the needle tip.

2. Not enough air pressure

The ideal range for controlled application of smooth transparent layers of paint is 1.1 - 1.3 bar (which, as far as I remember is 15-20 psi).

Lower pressures will not be able to pull paint out of the airbrush good enough - resulting in erratic paint flow.

Higher pressures will also cause lose of control due to too much paint flowing our at a time - it's like trying to drink from a fire hose .

3. Incorrect mixing of paints

If you mix the paint right in the cup of your airbrush add thinner first, then add paint. If you put paint first, then un-thinned paint that gets to the edge of the nozzle first might cause issues in the very beginning of painting.

4. Airbrush not being cleaned as often as it should

Again the general rule of thumb is to spray thru the airbrush at least ½ cup of thinner combined with cleaning the needle (by taking it out and wiping by the napkin / paper towel dampened with thinner) when changing colors.

At the end of each day it is best to disassemble the airbrush and thoroughly clean it again.

Hope this helps.

P.S. Also - acrylic paints WILL sooner or later clog the airbrush - this is the price we pay for using those odorless paints

It is best to clean the needle every other minute with a Q-tip dampened with thinner / airbrush cleaner or with a small round cotton disk - the one that ladies use to remove makeup. Such disks are also very useful for cleaning the airbrush - especially to clean the cup, to wipe the needle, etc.

Hi, Bill! I guess my using MODEL MASTER II Enamels are a personal preference- I'm not KNOCKING anyone's choice of paint media. Whatever a modeller's choice may be regarding which paint media or airbrush/compressor are concerned, that's STRICTLY their domain. More power to you in your, and anyone else' MO's (Modus Operandi)... I stick to my own methods because I've perfected them to my own satisfaction... Thanks to everyone for their insightful contributions in this thread!!!

Hi, Darren! I really like some of the LIFECOLOR paints on my figures, the operative word being SOME... What I find issue with in the LIFECOLOR range is that their tendency to go a bit "light" in their colors. I'd much prefer that they stick to the original colors. Examples would be in their various US uniform colors, especially the "SHADE 51 OD" (CHOCOLATE ELASTIQUE) and in their German range, the FELDGRAU colors...

I use LIFECOLOR Thinners with LIFECOLOR Paints, myself... Another formula that I use to prevent mishaps: I ALWAYS use the paint thinners that are suggested by the manufacturer, i.e.: TESTORS MODELMASTER II Paints with TESTORS/MODELMASTER Thinners, TAMIYA Paints with AMIYA Thinners, etc... Works EVERY TIME!!!

Couldn't agree more. Even the slightest risk of ruining the weeks and months of precious work on a model is not acceptable. So why not use the experience of the manufacturers? They already did the experimentation for us and suggested what they think is best for their paints.

For SURE, Phil! I especially enjoyed your input in the recent "RUST" forum...

Bill,
I’ve been shooting Lifecolor paints through my airbrush for last several days without problem. I use windshield-washer fluid to thin the paint and use Windex to clean the airbrush. I had only to clean the tip twice I think while shooting the underside of my 1/200 B-52D. Plus the paint doesn’t stick to the paint cup or inside the airbrush when I use the windshield washer as thinner and follow that with a Windex cleaning. I too have an Iwata, an Eclipse HP-SBS.

Man, I feel like a moron. I bought Lifecolor thinner. I didn't feel like I used too much thinner, but first, the paint was so thin it just beaded up on the model. Then, it clogged the airbrush again. Then, it seemed to separate the paint; i had some blu-ish deposits in the paint. I am using the 3 color modulation sets. Any idea what I'm doing wrong????

And the story has a happy ending. I was at a show Sunday and bought some Vallejo modulation sets. last night I tried them with the Lifecolor thinner and they worked perfectly. Chemistry. its a funny thing.