Alright, so yesterday totally sucked. Tried cleaning this old spray gun my dad gave me, the kind he used forever ago, full of dried-up gunk. Thought I could just use some brushes and thinner, be quick about it. Yeah, right. Ended up getting thinner everywhere, smelled awful, and the gun looked worse after, totally clogged nozzles. Total mess. Needed a better way. Found this spray gun cleaner machine thing online, looked kinda intimidating honestly, but figured it had to be better than the chaos I just created.

Setting Up the Beast

Got the machine out of the box. It was bigger than I thought! Looked for the instructions, which seemed written by someone who really loves complicated words. Almost gave up. But hey, remembered yesterday's disaster, so pushed on.

• Plonked the machine down on a sturdy bit of my workbench. It's heavy, needs a solid spot.
• Looked for the big plastic bucket thing that came with it. Filled it maybe halfway with plain water. Instructions mentioned special cleaner, but I was scared to use anything fancy yet, wanted to try water first. Better safe than sticky disaster, right?
• Plugged the long hose from the machine into the lid of the bucket. Took a minute to figure out which hole it went in – felt kinda dumb twisting it around.
• Then there's this kinda rubber bung thing for the spray gun. Found one that looked vaguely like the hole on my gun's paint cup. Jammed it over the hole – needed a good shove to make sure it sealed. Hope that was right!

Let's See If This Thing Works!

Here goes nothing.

• Plonked the gun in: Just dropped the whole spray gun right into the water bucket. Lowered the bucket lid with the hose down onto the bucket rim. Tried to get a decent seal. Wasn't perfect, a bit wobbly, but seemed good enough for a first try.
• Plugged it in & pushed the button: Found the power switch. Took a breath and flipped it on. Instantly heard this deep GURGLING sound coming from the bucket. Freaked me out a bit! Like the bucket was alive! Then pressed the button on the machine itself. Heard the motor kick in with a whine.
• Just Waited: Held my breath for like 10 seconds. Peeked through the lid – cloudy water was moving around the gun like crazy. Couldn't see details because of the foggy plastic, but that nasty purple paint I’d failed to clean yesterday? Saw some clouds swirling out! Felt pretty satisfying.
• Let it run: The instructions said like 1-2 minutes. I just stood there watching the machine shake the bucket slightly. Seemed like ages, but finally let it run for the full time.
• The Big Reveal: Flipped the power off. Silence. Carefully lifted the lid, pulled the gun out. OMG! That basic test run with just water got off like 80% more gunk than I had yesterday! Especially the bits inside the cup and nozzle. Could actually see metal again, not just hardened purple crud. Amazing.

Aftermath

Pulled the rubber bung off the gun cup. Little puddle inside, obviously, just dumped that back into the murky bucket water. Quick rinse under the tap to get rid of the last bits of slurry. Blew out the air passages with some compressed air I had handy. Whole gun looked so much better already. Still needed a tiny bit of brush work on the nozzle tip, but nothing like the nightmare I’d faced. The bucket water? Looked like radioactive waste. Tip for next time – definitely wear gloves!

So yeah, this spray gun cleaner machine? Seems like a lifesaver. Way less messy than my DIY attempt, got way more crap out, and actually felt kinda satisfying. Will try the proper cleaning solution next time. Beats stinking of thinners any day. Glad I didn't chicken out!