Wow. I just took all the screws out of my Accuspray HVLP gun for the first time to see how dirty it might be inside and boy was that fun!
I've had the gun for a couple of years but was always intimidated to take it apart. Now, after having done that, I understand how it works and how best to clean it in the future. Surprisingly it was very clean inside - I had anticipated scraping old latex or softening old lacquer, but, other than a bit of oily mess in some spots from lubing, it was very clean. I've shot nitrocellulose lacquer, latex, acrylic enamel, shellac and polyurethane through it over the past couple of years and I guess I've done a good job of keeping it clean.
I don't know if ALL guns come apart the way this one does, and I won't do it very often, but it's nice to know what's inside! Hope this encourages someone else to not be afraid of the inside of their spray gun.
Ken