Thommo Posted January 30, 2005 Share Posted January 30, 2005 (edited) Rule 1 broken: I forced the trigger on my Aztek (instead of freeing it with thinner as per ARC pinned post) and heard that infamous 'snap' as mechanism broke & trigger went floppy. Rule 2 broken:Since I have a spare one, decided to open up the airbrush body to see why this happens & if it could be fixed. Now I know I've been positive about my Aztek in these forums but frankly what I saw inside ain't going to win any design awards. The amount of clogged paint inside was unbelieveable - really, for an airbrush where you can't take apart to clean without voiding the warranty, they need to ensure no paint blows back inside. Second, the little plastic trigger link that broke is terribly flimsy. I disassembled all & gave a good clean in neat acetone. Could not believe how much gunk came out, esp around the spring in front of trigger. Good news is that I fixed it First I tried a large brass wire brace (see pic below), but that made the trigger too sticky, so I just replaced the small broken plastic lug with a small brass wire lug & oiled mechansim - it works quite well now, though not quite the same as it did before it broke. But I'm getting used to the new mode of operation. The main difference is when the adjustment wheel is turned fully to the left, a small amount of paint still comes out as where before you would only get air. BTW, the following site was a God-send when all the bits fell out & I had to figure how they went back: http://www.master194.com/maquettes/autres/aztec.htm Edited September 19, 2010 by Thommo Quote Link to post Share on other sites
David Walker Posted January 30, 2005 Share Posted January 30, 2005 Very interesting posting. I've never taken one of mine apart before but have had the trigger snap on me. Thanks for helping me understand what's going on in there. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
madmike Posted January 31, 2005 Share Posted January 31, 2005 OUCH!! Have not struck that problem as yet... Good work Thommo, now I know who can repair mine when it breaks in the same manner Johno Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Thommo Posted January 31, 2005 Author Share Posted January 31, 2005 (edited) OUCH!!Have not struck that problem as yet... Good work Thommo, now I know who can repair mine when it breaks in the same manner  Johno Johno - you won't be stupid enough to give the trigger a big reef backwards, (despite feeling resitance) like I did :P I knew it might break, but just wanted to see what would happen. My other theory now about Azteks is you can minimise the amount of paint blowing back into the body by ensuring the tips don't clog. Everytime I tried to spray with a clogged tip, I noticed heaps of paint getting back onto the plunger. This does not happen when it is spraying freely. So diligent tip maintence is a must. I now make sure my tips are clear by first spraying water before I fill up with paint. Here's another pic of the whole thing & what I did. Edited January 31, 2005 by Thommo Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Karl Sander Posted January 31, 2005 Share Posted January 31, 2005 OUCH!!Have not struck that problem as yet... Good work Thommo, now I know who can repair mine when it breaks in the same manner :P Johno Johno - you won't be stupid enough to give the trigger a big reef backwards, (despite feeling resitance) like I did :P I knew it might break, but just wanted to see what would happen. My other theory now about Azteks is you can minimise the amount of paint blowing back into the body by ensuring the tips don't clog. Everytime I tried to spray with a clogged tip, I noticed heaps of paint getting back onto the plunger. This does not happen when it is spraying freely. So diligent tip maintence is a must. I now make sure my tips are clear by first spraying water before I fill up with paint. but if the problem was all the gunked up paint inside, weren't you pretty much at a place where either you reef backwards on the trigger or have a trigger that won't move at all? Kind of sounds like a damned if you're do, damned if you don't Always amazes me how much globbed up paint comes out when i clean it. Now I don't know how to tell if it's ever completely clean!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Thommo Posted January 31, 2005 Author Share Posted January 31, 2005 (edited) but if the problem was all the gunked up paint inside, weren't you pretty much at a place where either you reef backwards on the trigger or have a trigger that won't move at all? Kind of sounds like a damned if you're do, damned if you don'tAlways amazes me how much globbed up paint comes out when i clean it. Now I don't know how to tell if it's ever completely clean!! Karl - no... and yes, because if you follow the ARC pinned post, you hang the body vertical and fill end with lacquer thinner which frees up trigger mechanism. But - that does not remove all the paint so eventually the trigger gets clogged again. There is probably a limit to how many times the ARC method will fix it - seems to me eventually you have to pull it apart & clean properly. I dunked the whole lot in neat acetone in a jar, shook jar around & used a paint brush to brush out all loose paint - that really got the bugger clean let me tell you! Edited January 31, 2005 by Thommo Quote Link to post Share on other sites
madmike Posted January 31, 2005 Share Posted January 31, 2005 Thommo Have to agree with you there mate, the back pressure spraying through a clogged nozzle would cause a bigger paint build up than normal. I spend a good deal of time ensuring the nozzles are clean, even to soaking them in Tamiya X-20 thinner for a day or so to completely clear the paint away. It is all that technical pen training I got when I was a board drafter Johno Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MikeV Posted January 31, 2005 Share Posted January 31, 2005 (edited) I think it's time you got a Badger. ;) Plastic belongs in model kits not airbrushes. Mike Edited January 31, 2005 by MikeV Quote Link to post Share on other sites
madmike Posted January 31, 2005 Share Posted January 31, 2005 strewth here we go again..... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MickeyThickey Posted January 31, 2005 Share Posted January 31, 2005 You'd think it'd be a heck of a lot cheaper in the long run for Testors to start casting the two connectors in metal, rather than plastic. Materials cost would go up a bit, but it'd pretty much end all the warranty replacements. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
madmike Posted January 31, 2005 Share Posted January 31, 2005 MF Good point and certainly one that Testors ought to think about. Are their new metal bodied offerings metal inside I wonder? MikeJ Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MickeyThickey Posted January 31, 2005 Share Posted January 31, 2005 Nope, just a metal casing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
madmike Posted January 31, 2005 Share Posted January 31, 2005 Well that was useful Habu Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mikeew Posted January 31, 2005 Share Posted January 31, 2005 Yeah you sure did break the #1 Aztek rule.....you bought one Not that I can help you much with your problem, but you've illustrated well why I have such a disdain for them. YAWN!!! Boring! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Thommo Posted January 31, 2005 Author Share Posted January 31, 2005 (edited) I figured my initial post would ignite the Aztek war again, but I really wanted to show other Aztek owners out there what happens when you force a jammed trigger & how to avoid it/fix it. I agree Johnno & Mickey - if they made that trigger linkage stronger and found a way to stop paint blowing back into the body, or made the airbrush dismantable (I just invented a new word ) so it could be cleaned inside, I reckon Azteks would be as good as anything else. I especially like the shape/feel of the airbrush body. ;) PS Mickey - does that girl in your Avatar need a shave - looks like she's got a 3 day growth on her face! Edited January 31, 2005 by Thommo Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Steve Filak Posted January 31, 2005 Share Posted January 31, 2005 Mine still works like a charm........five years and counting. ;) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Thommo Posted January 31, 2005 Author Share Posted January 31, 2005 Mine still works like a charm........five years and counting. ;) I've actually broken 2 triggers in 3 years now, but mainly due to my own lack of tip maintenance I suspect, which forces paint back into the trigger mechansism. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
madmike Posted February 1, 2005 Share Posted February 1, 2005 Thommo This is very true, the "feel" of the Aztek is comfortable indeed and they really are easy to maintain if you put the small amount of effort in. I have been using my A470 for 6 years now, works very well indeed ;) Habu, really mate, don't post in the thread if you do not have something positive to contribute to the thread, that comment was like a red flag and really gets the "I hate Aztek" war going again... I reckon we all want to avoid that again! :o MikeJ Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Turin Turambar Posted February 1, 2005 Share Posted February 1, 2005 (edited) Uh, instead of using all of this wood for the fancy casing, they should have made metal parts inside. :o .... and thus, save a lot of trees. ;) Edited February 1, 2005 by Turin Turambar Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Karl Sander Posted February 1, 2005 Share Posted February 1, 2005 Hey come to think of it, mine's been kicking for 5 years now too - well, 5 years since I got it - 4 years (actually a bit less than that) of use, considering a few 6 month deployments and other "trips" in between. I have had to replace some tips though, that was before I found out you could take THOSE apart for a real thorough cleaning. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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