Which air gun for painting?

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AtomicStorm

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I want to get a air gun to paint my rockets and other small projects. Should i get the larger automotive spray gun or the smaller one?
 

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Do you have a compressor to drive a HVLP? I have 2 compressors, a 20gal 2hp and an 80gal 7hp. The 20 gal can't keep up with a standard HVLP and most people without a shop have less than the 20gal I have. I spray for 10 minutes, wait 5 minutes to refill the tank fully, another 5 minutes for the motor to cool down and then get 10 minutes of spraying. The 80gal can do it but the compressor alone is nearly a $1k investment.

Before buying air paint system, check what specs it needs to run and if you can supply them. And know that compressor specs lie. If it says it can give 12cfm at 80psi, that really means 8cfm at 80psi.

Look at scale. If you're painting a 5.5", 15' long rocket, the small air brush will take you months to do. If you're painting Estes rockets, the HVLP will put down more paint that the entire rocket needs in 1 second.
 
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Do you have a compressor to drive a HVLP? I have 2 compressors, a 20gal 1/2hp and an 80gal 2hp. The 20 gal can't keep up with a standard HVLP and most people without a shop have less than the 20gal I have. I spray for 10 minutes, wait 5 minutes to refill the tank fully, another 5 minutes for the motor to cool down and then get 10 minutes of spraying. The 80gal can do it but the compressor alone is nearly a $1k investment.

Before buying air paint system, check what specs it needs to run and if you can supply them. And know that compressor specs lie. If it says it can give 12cfm at 80psi, that really means 8cfm at 80psi.

Look at scale. If you're painting a 5.5", 15' long rocket, the small air brush will take you months to do. If you're painting Estes rockets, the HVLP will put down more paint that the entire rocket needs in 1 second.
Most of my projects are alot smaller. I have a 60lb compressor but i need to restore it. As of now i just have a little 6lb. Compressor i found in my grandpas hoarding azz backyard. Probably been sitting there 10 years. Went and got a $20 hose/nozzle kit for it to restore it and it runs like its brand new now. So yeh im guessing the smaller hobby one would work much better seeing that i only work on smaller rockets like a max length of 5 or 6ft. My biggest rocket now is the mean machine. Now i just need to source some good cheap primer, base and clear to put in it.
 
I have both a small and a larger sprayer just like the one pictured. My small Pasch with a #5 tip will spray a Estes Big Daddy very easily. Any job much larger, I would get the hvlp. The hvlp pictured can be adjusted way down to spray less paint also. I just always use the smaller Pasch for most smaller hobby jobs.
 
I got both, because i really do alot of different projects and i got both for under 30 bucks. Now i need to find the right paint. I like the look of lacquer and enamel but i like the how easy latex and acrylic are to clean and dry. What do i do????
 
I decanted some Testors spray can enamal because it is cheaper and much easier to control from air brush than from spray can. One small can was enough paint for my Big Daddy and Mini Fat Boy rocket. I then dried paint in warm oven (under 120 degrees). Lots of videos on youtube about how to decant paint.

Tamiya spray cans are a laguer type paint and dries a little quicker. Decanting is cheaper and easier to control from small airbrush.
 
For priming I used Rust-oleum White primer from walmart. You can spray this on strait from the can and it goes on smooth, but take a long time to dry. Again I speed process up by heating in oven (under 120 degrees)
 
Great info, i think i have some enamel and lacquer clear. Can i use both?
 
I hear you can, but I would test on plastic spoon. Spray paint onto rounded section.

You can also spray the small Testors bottles, but you will need to thin 50/50 with Testors thinner or lacquer thinner.
 
White paper plates work good to mix paint on and to check spray pattern and paint volume from gun. I use a pancake style compressor and disposable air/water separator purchased at harbor freight.
 
Unless you know exactly what you're doing, mixing paint types is not a good idea. You'll end up with crazing and have to sand everything down to primer and start over
 
Can i use one of these as my clear/protectant coat over a airbrush applied acrylic base? Notice the rust-oleum acrylic enamel says (paint+primer)? Can i really use it as a primer?
IMG_20210503_114142.jpg
 
I am a big fan of duplicolor both spray cans and 1 quart cans. Use the Paashe HVLP gun for primer and clear coat. The selection of colors is limited in the quart cans but covers most of my needs. They have a huge selection of colors in the spray cans so will use one of those if I cant get the right color by the quart. Both are lacquers so no issues with recoat times or crazing.
 
Walmart sells affordable acrylic craft paint, buy some and tell us if those clears work. Acrylics must be sprayed over primer for best bond.

LOTS OF PAINT OPTIONS. I understand your confusion.
 
Are you familiar with the Duplicolor "Paint Shop" lacquers that they sell at Autozone? Great colors, automotive quality, easy to buy, NO mixing required, ready to spray.
https://www.autozone.com/paint-and-...pli-color-clear-coat-lacquer-paint/898489_0_0https://www.autozone.com/paint-and-body/lacquer-paint/dupli-color-jet-black-lacquer-paint/898490_0_0
PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

Dupli-Color® Paint Shop® Automotive Lacquer Finish System gives you everything you need to create a high-quality DIY finish - primer, color and clear. Paint Shop® is a high-quality lacquer system designed for automotive and motorcycle applications that is easy to apply, dries quickly and can be buffed to a brilliant smooth finish. Paint Shop is a ready-to-spray system that requires no mixing or reducing, and with no re-coat window, additional coats can be applied at anytime. Dupli-Color Paint Shop Candy Coat gives the traditional appearance of a candy-coat finish at a fraction of the cost. Paint Shop Candy Coat colors are a unique, translucent formula that allow the bright, metallic surface of the Candy Base Coat to shine through with eye-catching brilliance and depth. The simple four-step process includes Paint Shop primer, Paint Shop Candy Base, Paint Shop Candy Coat and Paint Shop Clear.
  • checkmark

    Pre-reduced ready-to-spray lacquer
  • checkmark

    Easy to apply and dries quickly
  • checkmark

    No recoat window, reapply at any time
  • checkmark

    No mixing or reducing required
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    Wet sands easily
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    Ideal for automotive exterior body projects
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    Must be clear coated
 
So i already bought a few airbrush sets and im just looking for a cheap auto sprayer for the primer and clear coat. Should i go with the .5mm or the .8mm?

.5mmScreenshot_2021-05-03-20-39-55-565.jpg

.8mmScreenshot_2021-05-03-20-39-19-064.jpg
 
The 5 mm looks a little bit more hobby like and may put on a finer more even coat but thats just a guess
 
I will check out duplicolor for shure, i like using the same line and brand when painting, you dont have to worry about the paints reacting in a crappy way
 
You can decant Tamiya or Testors laquers...lots of color options. I sprayed these two rockets with one small can of decanted Testors enamel (graphite gray metalflake) paint cost me about $7.00. Rustoleum Primer cast about $4.00 a can.
DSCF0526.JPG
 
You can decant Tamiya or Testors laquers...lots of color options. I sprayed these two rockets with one small can of decanted Testors enamel (graphite gray metalflake) paint cost me about $7.00. Rustoleum Primer cast about $4.00 a can.

I watched a few videos on decanting and it looks easy enough, will definitely be saving money there. Idk if my wife wants me to put rockets in the oven though lol the big daddy looks good. How many coats of base and clear did you use?
 
No clear, strait enamel. It takes about a week for enamal to cure hard enough to handle...so I place in warm oven to speed thanks up.

When decanting, I tape a bendable straw to nozzle and tape top of jar almost shut. .
 
Haha my wife would beat me and chain me up if i even thought about it lol seriously though what spray gun should i get? I see .5m up to 1.8. i only have a 6gal air compressor tank so if i get the 1.8 then i will only be able to use it a few seconds before it runs out of air right?
 
But i also want one thats going to have enough coverage. The .5mm isnt too far from my little airbrush kit
 
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