While not close to painting my car yet, I have purchased the paint.

I know the best thing to do is take it to a professional, but I simply can't afford it. It will be a garage paint job. I will be shooting single stage acrylic enamel. My painting experience consists of using canned spray paint on a 1970 Volkswagon Karmann Ghia in a rented garage in the middle of summer 22 years ago.

A few months back, I picked up a standard Kobalt paint kit from Lowes. But I was wondering if I would be better off with an HVLP setup. What is the best paint gun setup for a complete amateur on a budget?

Thanks,

Bob

http://www.amazon.com/Devilbiss-Finishline...biss+finishline

You don't have to have it, but HVLP is far superior. You will use les paint, get in to tight areas a little better, use every bit of the paint that you mix. Plus you won't be turning everything in the garge green

Forgot to mention, I am working with a 2HP, 30 gal Husky air compressor from Hone Depot. Will this handle an HVLP gun?

Bob, you'll need to get the CFM specs on your compressor. For example, the gun suggested above requires 13 CFM at 23 PSI.

Thanks for the education on the subject gents.

Brutal...just looked up the specs on my compressor. "The Husky 30-Gallon Portable Electric Air Compressor can deliver 3 - 6 SCFM at 90 PSI for a quiet airflow."

Looks like I am stuck with an old school paint gun setup.

You can rent a compressor if you need it to prime. Then wet sand for a week or 2 and rent another one for an 18 hour paint marathon.

Bob, see what your compressor is rated for at 23psi (if that's what your gun calls for), not at 90psi. I've got the Chinese knock-off that De Vil that Scotty posted above. It's about $90 and a good gun but mine is set at 45psi at the gun, IIRC. I just switched to HVLP 2 yr's ago. I can see a lot better in my garage booth with hvlp vs regular gun. Less fog/over spray.

After some internet research, I found an HVLP paint gun with a lower CFM requirement that my compressor will handle. My one car garage is attached to the house and my washer & dryer are out there, so overspray is a big concern. Took the standard gun back to Lowes today and picked up an HVLP.

As usual, thanks for the feedback gents.

Bob-

If you don't mind, would you post a link to the sprayer you bought? Also, a review of the gun after you've used it would be helpful.

Thanks,

Jamie

Hey Bob,
From experience, I can tell you that no matter what gun you use, or how big the shop, without significant negative pressure, you will still have large issues with overspray. Make sure you cover anything you don't want to turn the color of your paint. Otherwise, you will be using a clay bar on your washer and dryer, trust me.

-George

That compressor may not be enough. Scotty can probably give you more info than me, but from my experience small compressors seem to create more moisture problems.

Make sure that you also get a stand, or make one, that will allow you to set the gun down while full, and preferably while still hooked to the hose. You will find you need your hands free right in the middle of something.

Also, the investment in a supplied air system is expensive and also worth the money. I have a beard, so even with hand cream saturating it the masks don't seal, so positive pressure is important to me. Even if that isn't a problem for you, the paints contain very very reactive substances that are toxic until they react. If you breathe them in, they will react with what makes you you.

my guns are all SATA about $700 each eastwood has a niceone for under 200 cheap ones never workvery good

the small comressor will work, but it will be running constantly. If you can bear it, put the compressor inside. That way it will be a little warmer than outside which will help with the condensation you'll get this time of year. A cheapo moisture filter would also help. You don't need anything fancy, just a toilet paper typer. ( I'm not sure what the proper term for them is )

http://www.autobodytoolmart.com/motorguard...60-p-11897.aspx

Make sure those appliances aren't gas with "pilot" lights too or boom boom
out go the lights

I say rent hookers and buy good scotch and send Scotty a roundtrip bus ticket.

Check out the Earlex HVLP spray station at www.woodcraft.com.

I will probably get blasted for this purchase, but after reading the reviews, I bought two of these guns in case one gives me problems on paint day. Picked up two paint guns, disposable paint cups, filters, strainers and a stand for under $60. The gun will be thoroughly cleaned before use...and will be tested on the engine bay before used on the exterior. Will give an honest review of the gun after use.

http://www.harborfreight.com/20-oz-high-vo...-gun-47016.html

Picked up stand for the gun that also holds the strainers for easy filling of the paint cup. Anything that will make the process less hassle is a good idea!

You can use those guns. I have seen folks use them. I use them for Primer and epoxy. LAst year we did my 914 in the garage and my buddy did the final paint. He used his Satajet guns and everything went well. I have a 60 gallon compressor and it ran more than we wanted so we had to have filters in line and all over to keep water out. That is the only thing I would say on your end. If you cna use a bigger compressor , you will be happier in the end.

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?sho...=136854&hl=


Good luck on the project.


Phillip

NOT enuf compressor - especially for a std gun

- marginal for hvlp unless you like to stand & wait for it to catch up - which means you can't get correct pattern overlap & flowout

but - if you can find a large tank to use an an aux air reservoir (like an old well tank or water heater) - you can make your compressor work -

reset the pressure switch so it never cuts off below about 70 psi cuz otherwise you'll draw down the air reservoir and have to wait for the compressor to decide to start up again -

the "best" (highest price) HF gun does an OK job - it's a SATA copy - (i use one for primer & odd projects) - but stay far away from the cheapies or any one they put on sale - the ones on sale almost always have some kind of internal goofups and they are on sale cuz of many comebacks

I have a couple pro hvlp guns (i.e. very expensive) - the difference in spray quality is significant

PRACTICE FIRST - on some expendable large panels, both vertical & horizontal

.

This is the same gun that FinishMaster suggested I get. It's in a "solvent based kit". Is it not a good gun for water based paint, what is the difference?

My Harbor Freight $12.99 HVLP paint gun experience ended abruptly...I guess I wanted to believe I could do a good paint job with it. After shooting primer & paint in the engine bay, I was feeling decent about it. Plan was to use one gun for primer and one for paint. Screwed around a while with this.

Problems I had on a test panel:

The 1.4 mm tip that comes with the gun will clog with primer and create a rough finish. Ordered the 1.7 mm and 2.0 mm tips, waited 10 days, tested the 2.0 tip and found it was the wrong size.

Pressed on with the 1.7mm tip. Was able to lay down smooth coats of primer that required minimal sanding to make the surface smooth.

I was able to lay down a nice finish with the 1.4 mm tip, but continually had problems with fish-eye.

Take both guns apart and thoroughly clean them yet again, then talked to Zach. Added two water separators to the compressor and line and bought a brand new compressor hose.

With everything set up, I try again. Running solvent through the gun, I couldn't get an even spray...the gun threw out pulses of solvent. At this point, I had enough.

Bought a nice HVLP setup from Eastwood. My compressor didn't have the SCFM to run some of the recommended guns, putting out only 6.5 @ 40 PSI.

http://www.eastwood.com/ew-concours-primer...ips-2-cups.html

With the first attempt, I was able to lay down a nice finish, with one tiny fish-eye in a 2' X 2' panel.

In summary, I would probably use one of the HF $12.99 HVLP paint gun to paint a fence or something like that, but not a car. I would consider using it for engine bays as well. I could never get rid of fish-eye even after thoroughly cleaning the guns multiple times and adding two water separators. Plus, cleaning them is a chore and I found them to be somewhat unreliable.

Maybe someone with a better compressor/dryer setup could make it work, but I gave up.

Good info, and much appreciated. Nice when people follow up on an old thread. Side note - fish eye is the result of two things: improper prep or contaminants getting in the gun, in the lines, or on the panel itself. If you have an non-oiless compressor, you are asking for trouble. Invariably that oil will make it's way into the lines and into the paint. Otherwise, it was some kind of contaminant that wasn't removed from the primed surface prior to painting.

As far as guns and how everything lays down, most of that has to do with the user, (not suggesting you didn't do everything right!) but having a high quality gun eliminates a BIG variable.

Like everything, practice makes perfect. Or you can build a racecar like me and not worry about being perfect

I thought fish-eye always had more to do with a contaminated surface (silicon) than what was going on with the laying down of paint?

fish eyes are a result of contamination ( typically silicone or oil ) ANYWHERE in the system. could be oil coming through the lines from the compressor, your hose could be leaching oil or some other contaminant. If you have sprayed any kind of cleaner recently it could be from that, if you neighbor was armor all'ing his tires that day it could be from that. etc.

Example : I had a bumper cover a few weeks ago the owner had tried to paint and it was covered, in fish eyes. I sanded it down, primed it, wet sanded that, mixed the paint and blammo, first coat it blew up on me. Covered in fish eyes again. I call him to find out where he got the paint, he informs me he " hand tinted it himself. I ask him how he tinted it and he tells me he bought a bunch of tints form the auto store, and used brand new syringes to add the tints" The syringes use silicone for the sealing plugs so what he actually did was injected silicone into his can of paint. I got paid to sand and paint the bumper twice

Bob, I believe that your new gun will not do well for you on the top coat. It has a 1.2 tip for base and a 1.8 tip for primer. You will want a 1.4 or a 1.5 tip for top coats! I run a fabrication business and we have a body shop with two booths that stay pretty busy. I spray my top coats with an Sata 1.4 non HVLP. My base goes on with an HVLP with a 1.3 tip. Primer goes on with a 1.8 tipped Sata and my sealer goes on with an 2.2 tipped Sata. Those four guns would probably take $1500 or so to replace used. Having the right gun will be the biggest difference in you succeeding or not.

My suggestion would be to purchase a good used Sata, Devilbiss, or Iwata on eBay and use it to paint your car, clean it well and sell it again on eBay.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sata-Jet-NR2000-HV...e23&vxp=mtr

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sata-3000-hvlp-dig...bad&vxp=mtr

I don't really care for the digitals, but some people like to see it...

If you could make friends with a local painter at a dealership may be helpful. I will paint a car on a weekend for someone off the books. My Dad who has been a painter all of his career also does this. We charge $400 to spray one.

Good luck and you will have a much easier time with a 1.4 tip in that gun! The 1.2 will have two much orange peel and the 1.8 will give you some nice curtains down the sides!

After dinner or on a Saturday morning take a drive to the industrial part of town and ask around for a paint booth. Chances are you'll find yourself a painter who needs to work long hours to pay the bills. Cash talks. You do all the prep work and offer to be his grunt worker on the job. Might pay off

Thanks to all for the info.

The test panel was wiped down twice (with different rags) with tar and grease remover, then wiped with a tack cloth just prior to paint. Even with this, I got severe fish-eye using the HF paint gun that I thought I cleaned very well. Problems went away with the new gun from Eastwood, so I think there was some silicone in the gun itself that I couldn't find/clean.

I took a close look at the finish with the new gun. It looks very good but there is some orange peel. Ordered the 1.4mm tip set from Eastwood yesterday. I found the 1.2mm tip to be very forgiving for top coat, but had a hard time getting the paint to flash.

I always preface my suggestions with the same thing: I'm not a professional like Scotty, Rick, etc. But I've never had orange peel fish-eye and I go over the car twice with lacquer thinner before I tack it. Seems to work for me.

Every car has orange peel, unless you are a painting pro or spend a lot of time color sanding or both.

The fact that you have it only means that you are painting.

peel happens

Doh! Brain fart. I mean't fish eye. I never get fish eye by wiping the car with thinner thoroughly first.

Everyone does indeed get orange peel. I guess that's why the autobody gods invented color sanding.