Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums General Petroliana Discussion Paint gun info and question.

Went to the "Auto Industrial Paint Supply" store yesterday for primer that Premo and Morg tols me about but they didn't carry it, but was told where to get it, also asked about the spray gun "HVLP." he carried them but said for me to go to Harbor-Freight, that they had the exact same gun for 68.00 instead of 148.00, whats the thought on this???

They probably do carry the same gun with a different name on it. I prefer to buy guns from my local paint shop. That way if you have a problem they will stand by it. For example, one night at around 11.00pm I dropped my gun off the bench. I called the owner at home and he met me there and took the broken part off a new gun and gave it to me. Harbor freight probably wouldnt have that kind of service. But cash talks! Harbor freight sounds like half price, pretty hard to beat.

Ryan

The absolute best buy out there for the amatuer hobbiest is the DeVillbiss hvlp finishline III. You can by it for around $125. Its an all metal gun with both 1.5 1.8 tips which means you can shoot both primer and bc/cc using the two. The tips alone for my satas cost more than that.
Quality, parts, and good price.
Larry

[This message has been edited by PremoPetrol (edited 11-02-2003).]

I got the gun Larry is talking about on ebay. I have not used it yet, still trying to buy a new air compressor. Soon...
The gun seems very high quality. I have taken it apart and everything is much nicer than I though, quality. Much better then the canister gun I bought at Pomona Swap a few years back.
I hope it shoots well, that is the good part of ignorance. If it does not shoot well, how would I know? I wouldn't!

THEY HAD A PACKAGE DEAL AT SAM'S CLUB. IT WAS DEVILLBISS,2 HVLP GUNS AND SOME CLEANING PARTS FOR LESS THAN $100. I JUST USE A REGULAR $30 GUN FOR PAINTING. NOW FOR PRIMER SEALING I LIKE THE HVLP. BUT IF YOU CAN LEARN AND GET GOOD WITH THE HVLP YOUR BETTER OFF. LESS FUMES AND THE PAINT GOES A LOT FURTHER.

I consider the Devilbiss Plus gun the best value right now, but if you can get that Devilbiss gun that Larry mentioned for that price, that's a great deal. You can buy a cheap off-brand knock-off copy of many name brand paint guns. These may work OK or not, but they usually have poor service and parts availability. A Sata or Devilbiss gun should last a lifetime with reasonable care.

------------------
Jim "Oldgas" Potts
Your host and moderator

A little more info on HVLP.
HVLP stands for High Volume Low Pressure. It's all about transfer efficiency to help with the environment pollution. Another good benefit is that more of the paint you pay for gets on the thing you are painting rather than off in the air somewhere. HVLP guns need a greater volume of air than conventional guns in order to work right. So check on an HVLP gun's air requirements before you buy. This is rated in CFM Cubic Feet per Minute at a certain pressure. Your compressor, plumbing, hose and fittings may not be able to deliver the required volume of air. If so, the gun will starve and not spray well at all.
Being HVLP does not automatically mean that the gun will spray out smoothly. Some of the early and cheap models spray about as smooth as a house paint roller. A non-HVLP gravity feed paint gun may spray better than those, but may not be legal in your area. Southern California and a bunch of other areas require paint guns to be HVLP or HVLP compliant. The chance of the EPA checking out your home garage is not very great, but if you have a disgruntled neighbor who knows who to call, there could be trouble.
If you can deliver the right CFM to your gun, I do recommend a quality gravity-feed HVLP or HVLP compliant paint gun. Environmental restrictions will only get tighter and paint will only get more expensive. If HVLP is not required in your area you can use a non-HVLP gun with conventional lower volume equipment that you may already have.

------------------
Jim "Oldgas" Potts
Your host and moderator

If you are new to using automotive paint and equipment then you should check out the forum at this link:
http://www.autobodystore.com/cgi-bin/config.pl?index

I have learned a lot from that site, and they sell supplies and equipment too!

DS