Finally got a paint gun!! It's by Devilbiss, it's the Finishline II HVLP gravity-feed gun. Can't wait to use it... although looks like I'll be painting my car next spring. (Dammit) School's starting up, right after labor day, sept 3rd. If you want to see the gun, here's how... go to this page, http://www.devilbiss.com/autF.html , click on "spray equipment", click on "finishline spray guns", and then click on "gravity feed". You could also go to that page and click on "what is HVLP".

HVLP is the only gun legal now in california, but that's not the only reason to get one; another reason is that more paint goes on the car then "into the air", another reason is that you can use a smaller compressor- usually. The Sharpe Cobalt HVLP gravity feed, a bit cheaper than the one I bought, has a higher air requirement! The Sharpe Cobalt gun wants 13.9 CFM @ 50 PSI! The Devilbiss Finishline wants 11.4 @ 23 PSI, which is great for my 5 HP 20 gal compressor. Even a gun on the body/interior board says the Sharpe gun really puts a strain on his compressor.

Plus, that Sharpe gun has a plastic cup! I was told by a painter to avoid plastic cups. (He might've been used to older style, older plastic technology cups, but...) He said that no matter how well you clean a plastic cup, some of the paint chemical will stay in the cup, and can contaminate future jobs. He said a metal cup is the only way to go. The Devilbiss can use either the metal cup on it's own, or the disposable liners (which allow upside down spraying!! Good for tipping the gun backward to do a lower door, or down to do a roof!), so I'm good to go.

At http://www.eastwoodcompany.com , the Sharpe gun is part number 34140 . The Devilbiss is number 34124 .

 

:lala:

 

:rockon: Congrats TomP too bad you'll have to wait until spring to start painting though.

 

Congrats on the new gun.

 

That's the same gun I used on my Bird. It works great. The pattern controls are a bit touchy but other than that, it sprays beautifully.

The liners for the gun are almost more trouble than they're worth. They still tend to leak a bit and kinda get in the way. When they work tho, it is a great idea!

As far as the compressor goes, Ive also got a 5hp/20gal unit (Craftsman) and it works well as long as you stop every panel or two and let it catch up for a few seconds. I had to have about 100psi at the inlet of the gun to get 23psi while spraying.

My Bird is almost done!!! All I have left to do is machine buff it with 3M machine rubbing compound and then follow up with Meguirs machine glaze. Only problem I got is than my !@#$ing high speed buffer died and the new Makita I bought is still not here yet. School starts Monday and I wanted to take the Bird mainly because: 1) Corvettes do not carry much luggage and 2)now I'll have to drive my slow-as-hell Ranger Oh Well.

 

Thanks guys! And yeah, next spring is so.. far. Hm. Well, we'll see... school comes first.

'86, really? That's cool, glad to hear you like the gun. Did you wind up using the liners all the time, or did you just say screw it, and used the cup on its own? 100 PSI at the gun inlet? Damn! What size hose did you use? And did you use the regulator that came with the gun? I was thinking of putting a diaphragm type regulator on the gun. I assume you turned the regulator at your compressor to 100 PSI, and the Devilbiss regulator to 23?

Glad to hear your car's coming out good... what kind of paint did you use (lacquer, enamel, poly, etc)? Did you like it?

 

Tom, the regulator that was on the gun (supplied) read 100+/-psi "off" to get 23psi while "on". I used the liners for the first couple of coats and decided that I really did not need them. I would definately use them if I had more horizontal surfaces but it worked fine without.

For paint I used PPG all the way. I tried to use the lacquer but since the EPA got ahold of it it doesn't work. I switched to 2 part epoxy primers and the appropriate basecoat and clear. I can get the exact info tonight if you want.

The car has some minor imperfections but it still looks great. It was mainly a rehearsal before painting my Dad's 86 Vette.

I'll try to post pics of the when it is done. I took a few interestinf shots during the operation.

Dale

 

Yeah man if you could, I'd appreciate it. Did you buy it online or through a local store? I have to go through the yellow pages to find a store around here... but if it was somewhere online, that'd be easier. Was the PPG expensive? Those 2 part primers, they work like Bondo, right? A regular primer and a catalyst, so it's a chemical drying, and not an evaporating-solvent drying? I thought about spraying my car with enamel, but I hear that it takes forever to dry, and the overspray doesn't dry in mid air (like laquer), that it "settles" while sticky- yuck. I couldn't deal with that.

The EPA screwed with lacquer?? Damn them!

 

Cool , its always fun to get new toys in the mail !!! Do you wear a mask when you paint ? I hope so !

 

I have used that 2 part primer. Man I hated that $hit. Took FOREVER to dry. I am starting to like using laq. primer, drys fast, sand fast. Then use poly paint ontop of it. With the thick poly clear coat. I still like my suction gun, but have tended to use my hvlp more. So I can paint w/o mask and family dont bitch about fumes in the house. And PPG all the WAY!!!! Good luck with the gun tom. I would play around with it on the weekends. They take some getting use to!!

 

Wayne, I do now! I've gotta get an actual dual-filter respirator, though. I've always painted outside, never inside... but it was always with spray cans. A guy on the body and interior board told me how he made his garage into a spray booth with fans and big air conditioning filters and plastic... I'll be doing that. But now, I always use a particle mask when I'm sanding, whether it be sanding paint or sanding bondo. Something I didn't know; once fiberglass (not bondo) gets into your lungs, it can't be coughed out- called "silicosis"- scary. I knew about silicosis but didn't know what it was (stuff can't be coughed out and stays forever).

Dale, the fumes are less? Cool! My dad hates anything that smells in the garage. He even complains when I start my car just to pull it out! Never mind that his cars smell worse! I guess he's just being a dad, so that's alright- but less fumes means he'll be happy which means I'll be happy.

How are the fumes with the suction gun and primer? I got a tool package when I bought my air compressor (campbell hausfeld), I looked up the spray gun, and it's not a $20 cheapie like I thought. It's a $40 cheapie. But I was thinking of spraying primer with it, and saving the "good" gun for paint. I'm hoping I don't need much primer, though... but I will need to shoot a sealer.

Poly paint's compatible with lacquer primer? Good deal! Can anything go over lacquer? I know lacquer can't go Over everything (like enamel)...

 

Here is a brakdown of what I used as well as a commentary. Grab a mug - its a bit long

Stage 0: Prepare surface.

Stage 1: K200 high build epoxy primer. They don't sell this stuff anymore but my paint shop said the replacement is NCP270 Corrosion resistant primer. I have a can or two of NCP but have never used it. The K200 was a good under coat and sticks to damn near anything - including skin, it took two weeks for my hands to return to normal color (hint: wear gloves ) Dries quickly and sands easily. This stage is not really necessary unless you have some serious problems to cover.

Stage 2: DP90LF Epoxy primer (90 = black). Used over the above stage or as a first stage. Must be used with a catalyst (fast or slow). Able to be topcoated in <60minutes. Sands and covers well. Many colors available. can be used on flexible parts and fiberglass. Pretty good at hiding imperfections.

Stage 3: Deltron DBU Color basecoat. Must be used with specific reactive reducer. Dries to a low gloss so color matching is pretty tuff. I only have experience with the black which is not a special mixed color (ie. comes right off the shelf as black). This stuff covers pretty well and can be sanded. Does an OK job of filling minor scratches in surface but I would not expect a deep scratch to be fixed. Must be topcoated w/in 24 hrs or else you have to sand and spray another color coat.

Stage 4a: PPG Omni AU high solids urethane clear coat. Must be used with specific reactive reducer. Less expensive brand. Has a VERY VERY slight yellow tint to it. Barely noticeable until you have a gallon of it in front of you but still there. When the stuff is only a few mils thick on the car it will be clear. Great leveling and filling properties. Seems to go on very thick but will smooth out after a few seconds. I used this stuff on my first try with the Bird and it turned out pretty good. I really like this stuff.

Stage 4b: DCU 2042 Low VOC speed clear. I used this stuff the second time because we ran out of the Omni. Its more expensive and SLIGHTLY clearer (still has a yellow tint when in a bucket) but it is barely noticeable. This one has a reducer and a separate hardener. Maximum time between coats is 3 days. As far as application and final look - I can't tell this from the Omni on my black car. It might be noticeable on a white car but I seriously doubt it. I really don't think it was worth the extra money.

Stage 5a: Sanding. If there were a moderate or worse over spray problem I would sand with 1500 grit then 2000 at this point. for major problems you can try 600-1000 but be careful.

Stage 5b: 3M machine rubbing compound. This is the first time I ever did this part and I have to say that this stuff is miraculous. It will remove minor over spray and is very simple to use.

Stage 6: Meguirs Machine Glaze. I have not gotten to this point yet but if it improves the shine then I will be impressed.

Wax (Zaino) and Enjoy!

I bought all this stuff from a paint store in Milwaukee. The price seemed pretty high but they assured me we were getting the contractor rate. Expect to pay $200 - $500 for all the stuff to do one car. In the grand scheme, it is still cheaper than getting someone else to do it but it can get expensive. You should be able to go to PPG's website and get datasheets for these chemicals. These will tell about suitable top/under coatings.

I also built a paint booth out of PVC, plastic sheeting (3mil) and 4 fans with filters. It helps keep dust and bugs off the car as well as keeping over spray off of everything else in the garage. Most of the stuff has a light over spray but the clear (either of them) is pretty bad.

If you're good at spraying lacquer, this stuff acts the same. Also, the more time spent sanding, the smoother the car will be. Same old stuff.

If you don't wear a respirator - expect to be dead before you finish painting the car. There is enough overspray/fumes to seriously mess you up.

Whew! I hope this was helpful.

As always: Your mileage may vary.

Dale

 

I forgot to mention that you should always remember to use a water filter at the inlet of the gun. I have two in series at the tank end and I still get water at the gun. Any paint shop should have 'em.

I would not use a cheapie gun for anything unless you want to do it over. i learned my lesson with this paint job - Do it right or don't do it at all!

Dale

 

Sweet gun.. to test it i'll go out on a limb here tom and let you paint my car... sigh yea the things I let some people do.. of course i'll cover paint and so on.. but if you reply about it soon i'll even let you do the prep work... yeah yeah I know what your thinking "can this deal get any better?" well of course.. i'll supervise you from a comfy lawn chair while you prep/paint my car.. and hey if you do a good job i'll help supervise you when you paint your car...

Who can refuse such an offer?

 

A paint gun.
So that means your car will be done up again.
How soon do you plan on painting it?
And when you do I expect to see the "Real" website your always wanting to put up. Lets see your 86 in action!

 

Yea, I have even thinned my poly paint down with ppg laq 105 thinner It works better with the real thinner. But I have sprayed it over nothing but laq primer. So I guess it is Give it a try on a small spot and see how you think it works.

 

Great info tips on painting Dale!

Thanks!