my friend has a Cambell 20 gal 5HP air compressor and it has a list of things that it should not be used with and one of those things is PAINTING CARS! why is this? whats the difference?

for myself, what kind of air compressor is good for painting cars as i plan to buy one for my own paint job?

 

Another rating is CFM, or how much airflow the compressor can sustain. Running a high flow paint gun, some types of air tools, grinders, etc uses a LOT of airflow over a period of time.

If you are painting and your air compressor can't keep up, the paint gun starts to dribble and spit paint. You will NOT like the results.

Troy
So Cal

 

alright this is the gun i am buying its a devilbliss and these are the specs
30 psi inlet pressure delivers 10 psi air cap pressure and 15.5 cfm air volume

what kind of air compressor will i need?

 

also my friend would like to know what CFM rating his tank would be or how he can find out, the tank can handle up to 150PSI its a Cambell

 

I was preparing to buy an air compressor about 2 years ago and I was talking to Home Depot (their compressors are made by Campbell....)

This idiot guy that worked there said I have a "pancake" compressor and it'll do anything I want... I opted for a 25 gal 5 HP rolling model and he said a cutoff wheel would work fine... Needless to say, it didnt. It would run ALL THE TIME and would never give me decent performance.

I returned it and bought a big dog 60 gallon 7hp!

 

so the inlet 30PSI can be adjusted from the compressor? i need to understand how this all works so i dont do anything wrong or buy the wrong tank...

 

spend the money and get a 2stage ,i have a 5hp 50 gal,single,it'll run any tool,but to paint it does cycle,keep regulator pressure high and have another small one for the gun to keep from dripping or surging

 

if your getting a gun that needs 15.5 cfm find a comprersor that is at least 16 cfm the psi rating does not matter as most can deliver any psi what matters is for how long and how fast recovery is that is cfm in a nut shell. Also look for oiled compressor stay away from the oil less versions, oiless is all air cooled and tend to be slower and lower cfm.

most compressors run at 80- 120 psi outlet for most tools this works great tanks hold around 120- 150 psi. for your gun you would adjust at a regulator close to the gun you will also need a oil water seperator and an inline filter at the gun to keep the air super clean.

Jeff