Cleaning Createx paints

[Dave G.]

So are you guys who use Createx cleaning up your airbrushes after using Createx with anything but their own rather expensive cleaner ? My usual treatment with every other acrylic paint still leaves quite a bit of paint to deep clean it seems. I can usually flush acrylics to the point where deep cleaning isn't needed after every use, same for solvents. Not so much with this stuff. It's very easy to use though otherwise.

Acetone did fairly well. I'm out of Windex so didn't try that. Fantastik just made it sudsy lol. Alcohol wasn't sufficient without a tear down. Maybe it's just that airbrush, it can be fussy to clean but usually once I wipe the needle it's pretty good.

Edited August 31, 2022 by Dave G.

[Jon Haigwood]

Following this>

I normally use lacquer thinner but deep clean tear downs are often. 

[Dave G.]

Ok thanks Jon.

[TransAmMike]

8 hours ago, Dave G. said:

So are you guys who use Createx cleaning up your airbrushes after using Createx with anything but their own rather expensive cleaner ? My usual treatment with every other acrylic paint still leaves quite a bit of paint to deep clean it seems. I can usually flush acrylics to the point where deep cleaning isn't needed after every use, same for solvents. Not so much with this stuff. It's very easy to use though otherwise.

Acetone did fairly well. I'm out of Windex so didn't try that. Fantastik just made it sudsy lol. Alcohol wasn't sufficient without a tear down. Maybe it's just that airbrush, it can be fussy to clean but usually once I wipe the needle it's pretty good.

I usually clean it very soon after spraying the paint.  I teardown my Proton trigger airbrush after every use.  Usually just run hot water before with back-wash, teardown, then re-assemble, put laquer thinner in the cup and run some through it. The tip I just clean with q-tip and thinner.   I 

[CabDriver]

I rinse well with water, then dunk the airbrush in a bowl with water and Dawn.  If I’m using it again soon, it sits in there until I’m ready - and if not, I’ll use a q-tip to clean the bowl and tip, rinse again and call it good.

I don’t find that Createx paint needs much more clean-up than that, assuming it doesn’t get chance to dry…

[Dave G.]

1 hour ago, TransAmMike said:

I usually clean it very soon after spraying the paint.  I teardown my Proton trigger airbrush after every use.  Usually just run hot water before with back-wash, teardown, then re-assemble, put laquer thinner in the cup and run some through it. The tip I just clean with q-tip and thinner.   I 

I have a feeling I need to pull the tip assembly on this airbrush with this paint, the pigments seem never ending just trying to flush and back flush. That gun has always been a bit fussy to clean but it's my only double action. I don't normally use double action and won't on models but I wasn't painting models today but lettering. I like this paint though, I might mess with it some more.

[Dave G.]

7 hours ago, CabDriver said:

I rinse well with water, then dunk the airbrush in a bowl with water and Dawn.  If I’m using it again soon, it sits in there until I’m ready - and if not, I’ll use a q-tip to clean the bowl and tip, rinse again and call it good.

I don’t find that Createx paint needs much more clean-up than that, assuming it doesn’t get chance to dry…

I'm thinking it's more the airbrush and dense pigment load of the Createx opaque paints. If I used my Paasche H I probably wouldn't have an issue.

[Skip]

My typical acrylic cleanup, including Createx is isopropyl alcohol with a drop of dishwashing detergent.  I use an Iwata cleaning scrubber brush, (a round hog bristle brush is a good substitute) then scrub out the gravity feed reservoir with the isopropyl mix, scrub down the tip and exposed needle.  Finally flush with clean isopropyl alcohol.  I don’t break the airbrush down but about every five or six uses (maybe once a week with daily use), finding little if any residue.  If there is residue just scrub it away with a stiff bristle paint brush and Bob’s yer uncle.  (Never, ever under any circumstances use any wire brushes of any type on an airbrush.  It will scratch the finishes and certainly wear away the plating.)
 

I use about the same process for cleaning up enamel and lacquer using cheap no name lacquer thinner to flush and scrub.  As long as you are scrubbing the pot, tip and back flushing the airbrush, it should come clean no matter what material you are shooting through it.  I’ve been using this procedure for over 35 years, it’s worked on all kinds of D/A airbrushes from cheap Harbor Freight to Paasche, Harder & Steenbeck, Iwata, Badger and a few other offbrand cheap Chinese copies and never had a problem.  
 

Keep the tip clean and you’ll have no problems. This is the way I was taught in production Sign Shops, where you take care of your tools (brushes, airbrushes, etc.) but don’t wast time doing so.  From experience, the more the airbrush is broken down, the more chances you have of bending or scratching a needle, scratching a seal, gouging a tip or even losing a part in a moment of distraction.  So I try to keep that to a minimum, then do the disassembly, inspection, cleaning and reassembly in a metal butchers pan lined with a blue shop towel or two to keep things slightly padded and wick away any remaining moisture.  Most of the time breakdown is pretty much an inspection and lube with the manufacturer’s recommended lube.  Keep your tools clean in the first place and you shouldn’t need deep cleaning.
 

Incidentaly, I have a couple of ancient Paasche D/A brushes one from the thirties and the other from the forties that have been treated this way probably their whole lives, they belonged to sign painters before me.  They both shoot like a new Paasche!

Edited September 4, 2022 by Skip
Autocorrect

[Dave G.]

Thanks Skip. Ya I been airbrushing since the mid 1970's and painted in 1/1 professionally for 35 years. I think it's just this brush, if I pull the nose off and flush it that way all is well. For whatever reason back flushing with this one doesn't want to get it all. As it turns out a good stream of hot water in there with the nose off and needle out pretty well does it with Createx if it hasn't dried. And on the pedal needle protector some had dried and acetone took it right off. Additionally I usually use single action on models but was doing graphics so grabbed my only double action with .3. It shot the stuff fine was taking forever to back flush, it's nothing to unscrew the whole nose assembly so will do that going forward.

Thanks for your detailed reply, normally I do pretty much the same as you.