[TR] Pneumatic paint gun

[David Griffiths]

> On 11 Nov 2019, at 1:58, TERRY SMITH <terryrs at comcast.net> wrote:
> 
> I may be tackling my first paint job not using aerosol cans.  (The guinea pig I'll be practicing on is a 1954 Ford Jubilee tractor I'm restoring.)
> 
> I have an 80 gallon Husky air compressor that should handle a paint gun readily enough.  But I have no idea how that kind of painting happens.  I suspect a gun with a resevoir to hod a pint of paint, something like that.
> 
> Any recommendations for a paint gun that won't dribble more that I do at my age????
> 
> Terry Smith, '59 TR3A

Are you painting from bare metal and up, or just a respray?
It depends on the quality of the job you want to do. It’s not just the gun. There is also (1) removal of oil droplets and water in your compressed air, (2) pressure control and (3) consistent and correct viscosity. 
Viscosity
For a beginner, I would definitely buy a Ford 4 cup (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Paint-Viscosity-Cup-Ford-4/332113021733?hash=item4d537a8b25:g:uZ0AAOSwax5YwmeM <https://www.ebay.com/itm/Paint-Viscosity-Cup-Ford-4/332113021733?hash=item4d537a8b25:g:uZ0AAOSwax5YwmeM>). They cost almost nothing. You dilute the paint, fill up the cup and let it empty and count the seconds. For surfacer, primer, etc I would use a gun with a 1.8mm nozzle and then your paint should take like 35 - 45 seconds to empty. For topcoat you would use a gun with 1.2 - 1.3mm, and then you woiuld dilute more so it takes about 17 seconds to empty. So I would say buy two guns or one gun iwth two caps/nozzles (1.8 and 1.3mm). I would definitely buy HVLP and set it at 27 - 29psi. the overspray is just so much less. It’s very personal, which gun. I have no experience with harbour freight, but when starting out I used the TCP-Global guns (https://tcpglobal.com/collections/spray-guns-gravity-feed <https://tcpglobal.com/collections/spray-guns-gravity-feed>). On that page you will see for example a 1.3 gun and a 1.8 cap/nozzle, so you don’t need to buy two separate guns. Also filters for the paint (e.g. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01H7PEHEK?ref=em_1p_5_ti&ref_=pe_12416790_393974040 <https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01H7PEHEK?ref=em_1p_5_ti&ref_=pe_12416790_393974040>). Now I use a Sharpe Finex FX3000 which I love - it´s middle of the range in price. Regardless definitely get a gravity-feed gun with the cup at the top. If you really want the best finish and decide to spray layers of putty that you then sand off again, you will also also need a cheapie gun with a 2.5mm nozzle. Since you are sanding it down you don’t need to spend a lot of money on this gun. 
Pressure control and filter
All car supplies places have these fairly cheap. You should set a long length of hose from your compressor and then put the pressure control in the line, nailed to a post or something. Then a further line to your gun. A long line from the compressor allows water in the air to condense before it gets to the pressure control, which usually also has a water trap, and for the more expensive ones, an oil trap. The pressure control allows you to dial the 27-29psi. Ideally you have a pressure gauge at the gun, but if not and you use the gauge on the pressure control, there is usally a 3 - 4 psi drop between the two. You dial in the pressure you want while holding the gun trigger half open so air only comes out of hte gun. 
So the trick is consistency and to alter as little as possible between attempts, such as paint flow nozzle or spray width nozzle on the gun. If viscosity and pressure is always identical you will have a better chance. 

I didn’t mean to write so much, but the thing is the gun is only the tiny bit of a paint job you can be happy with even as a beginner. Actually I would recommend the excellent series of How to paint your car videos from Eastwood on You Tube, about 15 or so, with Kevin Tetz. You can start here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_9WQmicyJU <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_9WQmicyJU>. 
Have fun - Dave

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