Spray paint guns

So your painting a car or at least some part of it?.

Okay, you have or you should at least have your designated area washed with de-greaser and wiped with a tack rag. You have also sprayed the necessary primer and you are about to spray the final coats. In other words you are ready to re-finish the automobile.

So what do we do. Pull the trigger and aimlessly spray around in every diagonal and vertical manner until its completely covered or worse the pot of paint runs empty?.

No of course not.

The best advice is to spray very lightly over the whole panel. You are not looking to cover the area. You are not looking for it to be patchy either. Instead what you are looking to do is give it a light dusting of paint.

This is called a 'GRIP' coat. Its purpose is to act as an adheisive between the primed panel and the wet refinishing coats.

This will of course flash off fairly quickly and you should be able to confidently apply a nice even wet coat without the risks of the paint running.

Following this method should also ensure that the final finish once cured has close to factory finish as possible. This in turn should save you time on de-nibbing and polishing.

I hope you enjoyed this tip. Keep reading for more tips from a professional time served spray painter.

When I started my apprenticeship in June 1990 there was only one brand used in the shop and that was Devilbiss.

Well that wasn't quite true. My older cousin who had got me my job, was a mad keen Binks user. To me having tried his Binks spray gun, it felt too rapid and that any job would end a messy run fest.

I could have used a better words to describe the gun and whilst each and every spray gun can be tweaked, it was my opinion that it was a run magnet. Worse still, to me it was a gravity feed gun.

To anyone who has used both a suction and a gravity feed gun there is a difference. I am definitely in the suction feed camp. When a gravity feed gun is full of paint it feels like your spraying with brick on top.

Obviously there probably isn't much of a weight difference between a full suction and a full gravity feed but spraying a roof with a full pot is in my opinion presents an awkward experience to those unexperienced.

They are of course more manufacturers out there than the two previously mentioned and there is a spray gun to fit every budget. My advice would be to ask fellow people on their preference. This can be done on various other forums, tradesman of course are always the best so when you are ever at a garage. Take the time to speak to them.

They dont bite. Often!,

When spraying an automobile, protective clothing and air fed masks are crucial.

Take protective clothing for example. There are very good reasons for their use. Firstly it forms a barrier between you and the automobile you are painting. This protects your clothing underneath too.

Secondly it also stops any foreign body from landing on your panel from your person. In turn it acting as a two way barrier.

Probably most importantly is the breathing apparatus. You should always wear a full visor air aid fed protective system.

Your eyes and the pores of your skin act as entrances to your body. Paint has no problem entering through these and provides a major health risk to those painting and those in its present area.

A paper suit should be adorned with the hood covering your head. Appropriate gloves too should be worn. Vinyl gloves are ideal here as they leave your hands pretty much free and unrestrictive.

When you are ready to spray. Your air fed visor should be connected to the outlet and the correct pressure adjusted. The visor should be clean and form a seal around the edge without any discomfort. It can be easily adjusted to the operator.

A quick blast of the airline is a quick an easy way to remove any foreign bodies off of your paper suit especially if it has been worn before.

Sadly through my working conditions and working for Insurance companies. These proper guidlines are often neglected due to the speed requested to have the job finished. This in turn often led to people in my work spraying with just the visor on. Worst still I have seen people spraying without any form of protection on.

If you must spray, always wear the right equipment. The paint will kill you in the end!.