Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums General Petroliana Discussion Difference painting w/ spray cans or spray gun??

Good story Bruzer. I can relate to what your saying with rattle cans and the final outcome when the dust settles. I remember five years back when I shot out my Harley in pearl white. It was a four stage process, primer, base coat, pearl, clearcoat. I was a little nervous about the painting of it at the cost of nearly $400 enough for a tank and fenders. The point Im about to make is the overal finish was super nice so was the little Gasboy 290 I sprayed with cherry red Krylon rattle paint. The secret is the clearcoat I sprayed over it. It looked as nice as the Harley. I have shot out items before with rattle cans and topped it off with a good hvlp gun and clearcoat with results like a body shop did it.

You will rarely get a decent finish on a large flat part with a rattle can. It is ok for brackets and odd shape parts, but you need the finer atomization of a spray gun to get a smooth finish.
Also, spray guns allow you to select the correct thinner for the temp conditions to ensure proper flow of the paint.

However, even using a spray gun requires wet sanding and buffing to get a show finish.

I have painted 2 cars and it was probably the most difficult/labor intensive thing I have ever done.

A rattle can can get very good results on a small area. Its really too hard to get a good, wet, even coverage on large areas with a rattle can. I like to use a rattle can in a flat finish and then clear coat with Rustoleum clear. The Rustoleum clear really does a nice job. You can also use a satin clear. Hides the imperfections more than a gloss and has a little more patina look to it. If you want smooth and shiny you have to use a gun. I prefer to use a catalyzed paint. Within minutes the surface gets hard enough so any debris that lands on it doesnt get into the paint and when you paint outside like I do thats important.