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Building Tips and technical articles. => Paint and finishing => Topic started by: Mike Griffin on February 09, 2016, 04:25:22 PM
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I don't have a ton of money to spend on spray paint equipment but what would be a reasonably priced system to buy? I do not own a compressor or gun so I really don't know where to start with this. What would be a good entry level system?
Thank you
Mike
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Mike, I have written a bunch of responses on this topic on here, ( as have others) I do not have time to rewrite it since I am at work now, but its out there on the search function,, Have you tried that?
and what is "not much money", for me 300$ for a spray gun is cheap,, what are you wanting to spray,, dope urethane, primer, sealer?
I could literaly write 10 pages in response, but depending on what you are after,, 9 of those pages would be meaningless
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I am in the same boat about spraying. I used to own a nice spray outfit when I was building and painting my Starduster homebuilt, however I sold it figuring I no longer needed it. Got back into model airplanes now wish I still had it. I have been finishing my airplanes lately by covering wings with Ultracote and painting the fuselage with Rustoleum. Thought I would try the Preval gun from hardware stores. I'm using nitrate dope as a build up and silkspan on the wings. Fuselage is covered with tissue. So I loaded up the bottle with 50/50 butyrate dope and tried to spray on a small hatch to start. Glad I did as the dope came out with little lumpy specks. So sanded that off and thinned the dope to a more watery substance and it sprayed great. It works the same as an aerosol spray paint can. but has a jar that attaches so you can spray different colors without buying several cans. I know that this post will turn a cocked eye to the professional painter, but you were seeking the most economical way to spray paint. Mark pretty well summed it up by advising a search regarding this matter. Also allot depends on what type airplane and what you intend to do with it. For general sport flying and a clean airplane you do not need to spend much money. Hope this helps or encourages you in some way. Richard358430
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Would a airbrush work or is it to small? I will do a search on here and see what I can find.
Thank you
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Mike, what are you painting, 1/2 a? full sized stunters,, do you compete, are you trying to get a sevicable finish or s show stopper,, so so many variables,,
Richard,
as to the Preval sprayer, not a direction I would go, in fact you are the second person I have heard that made it work,, good for you,, but Not my reccomendation
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a coupel threads found with the search for "spray guns"
just to help
http://stunthanger.com/smf/paint-and-finishing/paint-spray-guns/
http://stunthanger.com/smf/open-forum/hvlp-and-compressors-i-need-some-help/
http://stunthanger.com/smf/paint-and-finishing/gravity-feed-spray-guns/
http://stunthanger.com/smf/open-forum/spray-guns/
http://stunthanger.com/smf/paint-and-finishing/
just a smattering, I did not proof any for content, just searched copied and pasted,,
Like me pappy told me,, when you know what you want to know, ask me a question I can answer,,
n~ H^^ D>K
In other words,, decide what you are trying to accomplish, then ask a question that gets the answer which applies
Hope that doesnt come across as stuffy or asshole,, but as you can see LOTS written on this topic
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I use two sizes of Finex guns. One with a 1.4 tip for color, one with a 1.8 tip for clear. I airbrush trim colors. My compressor is a Craftsman 50 gal, 1.5hp with 20 feet of hose. There is a moisture trap on the outlet of the compressor and a pressure regulator at the gun end. Total spent was probably around $400 and worth every penny.
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Mike, what are you painting, 1/2 a? full sized stunters,, do you compete, are you trying to get a sevicable finish or s show stopper,, so so many variables,,
Richard,
as to the Preval sprayer, not a direction I would go, in fact you are the second person I have heard that made it work,, good for you,, but Not my reccomendation
Hi Mark, finally got some time to sit down and give you a better idea of what I am looking for.
I do not compete anymore and am not looking for a front row finish. I don't want to spend weeks finishing a model. I want a serviceable finish that looks respectable and will be fuel proof as I still have some engines I want to use. I want a compressor that gives me adequate pressure to spray with. I want to be able to spray color and topcoats. I do not use color dope but do use clear butyrate and nitrate which I have always brushed on. Mark I guess I am looking for something easy to use that will produce a decent finish and I really don't want to spend over $250.00 total. Thank you for the links . I appreciate it.
PS. I don't build small models. About the smallest thing I build is a Ringmaster.
Does this help?
Mike
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It is not air pressure you are looking for, but CFM. If CFM is too low the compressor will run a lot. I bought a used Sears Craftsman 30 gallon, 8 CFM on Craig's list for $100.00. I've been using it for 5 years with no problems. An inexpensive
HVLP gun from $30.00 (Harbor Freight) to a more expensive one for around $130.00 (Warwick) will be plenty adequate. Air brushes don't work well over a large area. An inexpensive Paasche air brush however, is nice to have. I've just told you pretty much everything that I use.
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It is not air pressure you are looking for, but CFM. If CFM is too low the compressor will run a lot. I bought a used Sears Craftsman 30 gallon, 8 CFM on Craig's list for $100.00. I've been using it for 5 years with no problems. An inexpensive
HVLP gun from $30.00 (Harbor Freight) to a more expensive one for around $130.00 (Warwick) will be plenty adequate. Air brushes don't work well over a large area. An inexpensive Paasche air brush however, is nice to have. I've just told you pretty much everything that I use.
Thank you Mike
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I havent heard of warwick guns, I will have to check them out
I heard that Finex guns have been discontinued which is a major dissapointment, they were a fantastic mid price option (made by Sharpe)
but I see that TCP Global still has them
http://www.tcpglobal.com/SHA289222_2.html?sc=120&category=2669214#.Vrte3eaaJ-c