Looking for first hand experience / advice.
Thanks for your help!
http://www.turbinaire.com/HVLP07.htm
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These turbine units are an advantage if you spray solvent-based paints in a humid environment. The air from the turbine is very warm and dry so you get less blooming and condensation than with a traditional compressed air setup. Of course you could run the compressed air feed through a refrigerated dryer, but that's a big piece of equipment to lug around.
The downside is the need for expensive spray guns, and IMO they really aren't much better than the $50 conversion guns. I spray polyurethane and epoxy paints, and after going through several $250 HVLP spray guns and hundreds of dollars of cleaning solvents, I converted my setup to "disposable" HVLP.
I have a regular 16 CFM compressor that feeds a prefilter followed by a dessicant dryer, followed by an ultra-fine micron filter. At the business end I use cheap, $50 conversion HVLP guns that last three or four uses, and then I toss them. The dessicant dryer holds about a half pound of silica gel and if I wanted to, I could bake it and reuse it many times. But since I bought the dessicant cheap in bulk, I toss that too.
People might say that I'm not being very "green" with all the disposal, but compare the burden of recycling the aluminum gun body and tossing a few pounds of silica gel in the landfill with dumping several gallons of solvents containing benzene, toluene, etc.
Accuspray's #10 gun is all Delrin and exceptionally easy to keep clean. The gun body disassembles into two halves for thorough internal cleaning but I've found that is only required every 50 or so hours of use. It usually runs around $300 but I recently bought a second unused gun on ebay for about $150. It included the regulator to convert from turbine driven to compressor driven, a part that normally runs about $75.Like all of Accuspray's products, it is a fine gun.
"Accuspray's #10 gun is all Delrin and exceptionally easy to keep clean. The gun body disassembles into two halves for thorough internal cleaning but I've found that is only required every 50 or so hours of use."Sounds like it's easy to clean, but for me that takes solvent and right now it's running about $15/gal for acetone, or $30/gal for the epoxy thinner. If I use a half hour of my time and a quart of solvent to clean the gun thoroughly, that's pushing $50 to $100 in non-productive expenses.
About 8 ounces of lacquer thinner and a couple of minutes of my time is the going rate for me though I'm spraying just catalyzed lacquers and varnishes and not epoxies. Full take down of the gun runs under 15 minutes and requires the same amount of solvent.
"Full take down of the gun runs under 15 minutes and requires the same amount of solvent."So you completely take the needle valve apart and wash out the chamber, the orifices, dry & lube, and reassemble, all in 15 minutes?I'm impressed. You've only spent about $40 to keep the $300 gun working. After ten uses, I've spent maybe $150 on guns, and you've spent $700. Your approach is obviously better.
Edited 8/27/2008 4:28 pm ET by TJK
About a dozen screws and the gun splits open allowing easy removal of all parts and easy access to all passages. It cleans up easily with a flux brush, a small bottle brush, a little pot of thinner and a rag.I do disagree with your numbers though. I'd say the cost is a buck or so on thinner and at a dollar a minute, $15 for the full takedown, $5 for the usual. I bought the gun for $150 and will get not just ten but hundreds of uses from it since I keep it in good shape and it is high quality gear. At $50 for three or four uses plus the costs of the cleaning you have to do to keep the gun functional for the three or four uses you get, I don't see the advantage. On the other hand, your situation is different than mine and you do what works for you.
Edited 8/27/2008 7:09 pm by observer
Make and model, please, for those 3- or 4-use cheap guns?
Thanks.
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"A stripe is just as real as a dadgummed flower."
Gene Davis 1920-1985
I bought the last four HVLP guns at Big Lots for $29.95 each. There is no branding on the gun handle other than "HVLP". I've also used the Husky and Kobalt branded HVLP conversion guns from the big box stores. As far as I can tell, the needle valve and outer nozzle on these guns are identical and probably come from the same factory in China. There are minor differences in the shape of the bodies and placement of controls.Compared to the Fuji turbine HVLP I used previously, they produce the same finish quality. I'm sure a Devilbis or a Graco gun is better made and offers more options, but the paints I use destroy these expensive guns just as quickly as the cheap-o models.
I'm like 20 questions, today. What are those paints that you're using, that would make hash of a good gun.
Ours is an Accuspray 19c, used with a whip, fed with a 2.5g rollaround pressure pot, driven by a too-small 5HP compressor.
Your points about cleaning and drying the air supply are well-taken.
View Image
"A stripe is just as real as a dadgummed flower."
Gene Davis 1920-1985
"What are those paints that you're using, that would make hash of a good gun."The polyurethane is a one-part CARC paint (MIL-C-53039) and once it hardens, it's there forever. The epoxy is a two-part system (MIL-C-22750) that sets slower but once it's set, it's set. What happens is that small remnants of paint left in the gun build up over time and eventually the pattern goes bad or the valve assembly stops working.Now if I completely disassembled the gun and washed every part squeaky clean, then I probably could use the same gun forever. That level of attention takes time and money, and I'd rather spend that time and money on other activities.