u/CheckFast156

I have no idea how I’m having the problem I’m having

I’m having a problem that I don’t know how to fix and at this point it’s too long to type into Google. I have a cheap electric airbrush. The problem I’m having is the air will flow through the system and I can feel it at the tip, however nothing will flow through. No paint, water, or cleaner. When I pull the needle back all the way it still has nothing flowing through. Not even back to the paint holder.
However when I remove this piece pictured above the water can flow through.
Also if I plug the tip with my finger the air would usually go back into the paint holder however it doesn’t do that. That said if I crack the seal of that piece pictured above the air will flow through the holder rapidly.
It doesn’t may any physical sense to me.
And if I’m lucky I’ll get a puff of the cleaner out the tip as if it works normally and then it doesn’t work again.
I don’t know what to do, please help