[fontgeek]

The Teflon packing is not something you can or would casually remove, nor is it something you can normally view or touch during normal cleaning or breakdown for cleaning. You will know if it is gone, you will have the trigger well full of paint.

Your description sounds like one of three things.

1 You didn't tighten down the needle chuck nut, this clamps the split end of the neeedle chuck down onto the needle, and makes it all act as one big piece. By not tightening the nut down, you are moving the trigger but not the needle, which would remain stuck in it's current position, probably at the front of the airbrush, blocking the opening of the nozzle, and not letting paint come out to be sprayed.

2 You have paint or debris blocking the opening in the nozzle, that keeps the paint from coming out, and won't let you spray. That doesn't explain the trigger being loose, but there is no rule or law that says that all the current problems are caused by one thing alone. It may be a combination of dirty nozzle, and a loose needle chucking nut.

3 You didn't put the spring back in after you cleaned your airbrush, and your nozzle is clogged with paint or debris. Silly as this may sound, it happens all the time.

When you do your cleanout on your brush(es), don't just spray cleaner or solvent through and then walk away, that still leaves a lot of gunk in your brush(es). Always do your cleaning over a bowl or pan, this keeps all your parts (and mess) contained to a small area.
The following is what I do and teach, do the steps in this order, it does make a difference. Spraying out first just pushes more gunk and problems into the nozzle, the hardest area to clean out, the more you can eliminate before you get to that step, the faster and easier your cleaning will be. This whole process takes about 5 - 10 minutes total.

Dump out the waste or excess paint

Wipe out all you can with a paper towel or rag.

Rinse out all you can with solvent.

Fill the cup or reservoir half way with clean solvent, then backflush. Your clean solvent will cloud up with paint, dump it, fill it again and repeat the process until it stays clean.

With the handle off of the brush, loosen the needle chucking nut, now fill the cup or reservoir with clean solvent, next, pump the needle in and out of the brush, it only takes a movement of about 3/4" or an inch, watch the solvent in the cup while you are doing this, again, it will cloud up with paint, this was paint packed in around the rear opening of the reservoir, or around the packing itself. Dump the contaminated solvent, refill the cup with clean solvent and repeat the process until the solvent stays clean. Push the needle in, and tighten the needle chucking nut back up.

Spray solvent out of the brush like you would paint, spray until the solvent comes out clean and consistent, move the trigger back and forth to help eliminate any remnants of paint. I use an empty peanut butter jar to spray into, I put the nose of the airbrush down into the jar, then hold a paper towel over the top of the jar and airbrush, this keeps me from getting overspray or fumes going everywhere. Spray like you would paint, watch the other side of the jar, it becomes easy to see when you are spraying just clean solvent through. Again, repeat the process until it all stays clear.

Now you can loosen the needle chucking nut, and pull the needle out, be careful to pull it out straight, you don't want to bend or distress any parts if you can avoid it. Wipe the needle down and do a good close inspection of it, look for any marks, bends, kinks, etc.

Use a clean Q-tip swab and scour the inside of the cup or reservoir, make sure you do a thorough cleaning on the trough at the bottom of the cup, you don't want any paint or debris left behind. If you are working with a BC (Bottom Cup) model, use a squirt bottle and a Q-tip or two to get all the paint you can out of the female receptacle or reciever for the bottle or cup. Make sure you also clean off the interior and exterior of the male end from the bottle or cup, and any and every place you can get to.

Give the needle cap and nozzle cap a good cleaning and inspection, there should be no paint or debri of any kind on the interior or exterior of either part

Use a loupe or a good strong magnifying glass to do an inspection of the nozzle, make sure it is clean and in good shape, there should be no bends, splits, cracks, or distortions.

Once all of it is clean, put the brush back together, fill it with water and try spraying it out, it should work just fine.

Once the inside is clean and your brush is back together and working, give the outside/exterior of your brush a good scrubbing, it should be as clean as the inside. Buildup of paint and debris is hard on the brush, and it tends to make people take worse and worse care of their brushes. Always clean the outside last, that way you will always know what shape the inside is in. If the outside is clean, the inside is clean, if the outside is dirty, the inside is dirty.

Wipe down your brushes and store them carefully, avoid scratching and banging them around. The airbrushes are primarily made of brass, which is soft, and it is a thin layer of chrome on them which can easily be scratched or gouged away.

Try all this stuff, then let us know how it goes, if you still have a problem, these steps will help eliminate some possibilities.
Good luck!