first paint gun

[usmcchevy]

what kind of paint gun do you recomend for my first gun. i have sprayed a few times with a hvlp at vocational school but thats it. i want a good quality finish. and since i will be painting my truck in my barn what do you recomend i do to keep the finish free of dust and other crap than can get on it.

[Lt.Del]

I wouldn't paint anywhere near dust and dirt.  If you have a dirt floor, forget it, no matter how you try to keep it off, you'll always get some dirt/dust on it.  

if you must, Spray water all around to settle the dust.  

I used to use acrylic enamel years ago on my Mustangs.  I had to use an additive to keep the fisheyes off the vehicles.

Remember prep work makes the finished product.  Don't skimp on the preparations and tape off everything.

Just my 2cents

SgtDel


 

[Blazin]

As far as guns go pretty much anything under $100 to $125 is not worth a crap. I use both siphon feed and gravity guns. I learned years back on siphon guns so I am stiil partial to them, but a nice gravity gun has its pros. I think siphon feeds are easier to keep clean. Next point when you are done go over board cleaning it. There is more to a good finish than a gun. Pre paint prep is a large part of it, Spray skill is 95 percent of the fiinished product. I have painted stuff outside and had prety good results, although I would not recomend it. I do use a touch of fisheye additive but just for good measure, if it is preped and washed right it is not common to get them. Do not spray any type of interior protectant, WD40, silicone, etc. around where you plan to paint for a good while before hand. Dirt floor is not a great idea. My last shop had a wood floor, it made life painting difficult.  wet the floor down, walls too if you can, one of the tricks I use to keep dust down is hang a chain over the frame or bumper bracket this grounds the metal, less static electicity. Hope this helps.

[usmcchevy]

i thnk ill buy me a hvlp gun. and in my barn you think it will work if i spray down my floor and lay plastic over it and spary my walls and cover them and cover the ceiling with plastic. my buddy did that and it turned out pretty good, but he had a concrete floors.

Edited by: usmcchevy at: 11/24/05 9:46 am

[kursed]

i will have to disagree with the "anything under $100 is crap" comment. my first gun was a $75 paint store cheapy and it worked great, it's a gravity feed, non hvlp and i find myself still using it all the time. it just takes a beating and keeps coming back for more. once you get better and decide you want to keep painting i would suggest investing in a sata gun, i love them and have had nothing but wonderful luck with them. airbrushes, i swear by iwata and wouldnt have any other. also prep work is the key, take plenty of time to prep the body for paint and dust is tricky. ive done jobs in really clean booths and had more dust than jobs that ive sprayed outdoors under a tree, its part skill, part prep, and part luck..

[Blazin]

I have two gravity guns, I paid $115 for one $85 for the other. They don't give the same results as the one I paid $200 for its a no name built by Devilbis. As far as siphon feeds go the cheapies are better that cheap gravity guns, but still not up to par as far as I am concerned. I have a few cheap siphon feed guns but they are for primer. I have two Speedair HVLP siphon guns that I really like and they are not bad in price. I think I paid about $170 each for them. HVLP guns are great as they don't make as much of a mess and use less material. The only problem I can see with plastic over dirts is you are going to have puddles and might slpash up when draging the hose, walking around etc. as far as concrete floor I don't see the need to lay down plastic. Plastic invites static electricity. As far as booths go I too have had better luck in a large open garage over most of the spray booths I have used.