Paint Sprayer for DIY use

[AES]

Peter Millard says, QUOTE: ..... compact, self-contained airless sprayers that have sprayed everything (primer, emulsion, eggshell, gloss) without a murmur, straight from the can with no thinning. Cleanup to switch between paints/finishes (eg primer to eggshell) is around the 5-minute mark, and a more considered ‘deep clean’ at the end of the day around 10 minutes max. UNQUOTE:

If that's true (and I stress I'm NOT doubting you for a minute, 'onest Sir!) then these Graco people must have found the equivalent of the holy grail, at least as far as painting is concerned!

What a pity I found out about this too late (like Kreg pocket hole jigs as another example) from this Forum. Having invested in compressor, a SATA touch up gun, other cheaper guns, mixing stuff, cleaning tools, not to mention a viscosity cup, plus airbrushes etc (for small stuff), AND spent a long time practising to a point where I can now usually be confident in achieving the desired result (NOT on furniture I stress), it seems that my investment (in time and money), if not totally wasted, has at least been completely overtaken by new technology!

Ah well, such is life! Thinking about it though, I THINK the basic idea of paint spraying (DeVilbiss??) has been around for something around about 100 years or so (??) so I guess it's hardly surprising that something new and apparently better has come along at last.

Thanks for the info Peter. Could you post such revelations at least 10 years earlier please?

 

[petermillard]

Just to be clear, I’m talking about Graco’s Ultra series handheld sprayers (confusingly they have a big industrial sprayer called the Ultramax). They’re relatively recent, and I’ve only had mine since late Jan / early Feb.

I’ve had a professional painter & decorator pal call them a ‘game-changer’ and I don’t disagree. In the vids I prime a 4-panel door onsite in 28 seconds (I show it in real-time) with a finish far, far better than anything I could achieve with a brush/roller - and having been brushing & rollering for ~17 years I like to think of myself as no slouch in that area!

Not surprisingly, there are some compromises, and they won’t be for everyone, but once you come to terms with the cost (3 models ~£400/500/600 roughly) they are pretty amazing bits of kit.

So knowing what I know now after 4 - 5 months of actual use, if I were buying afresh would I buy it again? Well, you’ll have to wait for Part 8 of the series for the answer to that...

Cheers, Peter

Peter Millard says, QUOTE: ..... compact, self-contained airless sprayers that have sprayed everything (primer, emulsion, eggshell, gloss) without a murmur, straight from the can with no thinning. Cleanup to switch between paints/finishes (eg primer to eggshell) is around the 5-minute mark, and a more considered ‘deep clean’ at the end of the day around 10 minutes max. UNQUOTE:

If that's true (and I stress I'm NOT doubting you for a minute, 'onest Sir!) then these Graco people must have found the equivalent of the holy grail, at least as far as painting is concerned!

Thanks for the info Peter. Could you post such revelations at least 10 years earlier please?

 

[ColeyS1]

Peter I thought it ended at part 5. Is there a part 6 & 7 floating about somewhere ? I paid probably about the same for a huge compressor thinking it'd be needed for when I did decide to spray- I'd have bought the graco in a heartbeat after seeing your video.
I really felt I could relate to you in one of your videos. I'd had my first attempt at spraying and just absolutely could not believe how the overspray traveled so far. It went from one length of the workshop to the other, everything was completely covered. When I watched you prodding all the dust in amazement I did find myself having a chuckle. Could you maybe rig up a collapsible filter somehow ?

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

 

[custard]

early on I have some issues with overspray from the Graco, and not to give the game away, this has now been resolved, and I don’t expect any ongoing issues.

Now that I'm really waiting for! Seriously, if overspray can be effectively managed then I'll be very interested.

What I've seen in a few workshops is this. Someone sets up a spray arrangement in a corner of the workshop. The vast majority of the overspray comes to rest in that immediate vicinity, but a small percentage travels to the farthest corners of the workshop. A first these few isolated drops aren't noticed, but overtime they build up and become obvious. Then it's realised that everything in the room needs dust sheeting every time a spray job is attempted. At which point it all becomes too much of a faff and the conclusion is that spraying requires a dedicated space, completely separated from all other workshop activity.

As I said in my previous comments, I'm sure that you're conducting a fair and accurate assessment. So if you say the Graco cracks the overspray problem in your workshop then I'll be taking a much closer look.

 

[petermillard]

Thanks! The ‘Playing at Spraying’ series is 8 parts in total (only 4 have been posted so far) and come out on Tuesdays at noon. I have another series ‘Big Job...’ running concurrently, that comes out on Fridays, Part 5 Just posted recently.

There’s more to come with the spraying story overall, but the series covers my initial 4, almost 5 months with the Graco, from total novice to mildly competent. It’s been a long time in the making - hope everyone finds it useful/enjoyable!

P

Peter I thought it ended at part 5. Is there a part 6 & 7 floating about somewhere ? I paid probably about the same for a huge compressor thinking it'd be needed for when I did decide to spray- I'd have bought the graco in a heartbeat after seeing your video.
I really felt I could relate to you in one of your videos. I'd had my first attempt at spraying and just absolutely could not believe how the overspray traveled so far. It went from one length of the workshop to the other, everything was completely covered. When I watched you prodding all the dust in amazement I did find myself having a chuckle. Could you maybe rig up a collapsible filter somehow ?

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

 

[petermillard]

Now that I'm really waiting for! Seriously, if overspray can be effectively managed then I'll be very interested.

As I said in my previous comments, I'm sure that you're conducting a fair and accurate assessment. So if you say the Graco cracks the overspray problem in your workshop then I'll be taking a much closer look.

Thanks Custard. To clarify, the reason for the initial, extreme overspray has been identified and (I think - it was only only quite recent) dealt with, but there is still the general issue of overspray, though it appears to be less than when I tried hvlp.

As I say, more to come on the story overall, but this initial series is all about me and the Graco coming to terms, initially.

Cheers P

 

[MikeJhn]

The majority of overspray is caused by bounce back, this is through excess pressure or inexperience, true HVLP equipment (not compressors with conversion guns) minimise this considerably, its surprising how many old guard compressor sprayers hang onto the old ways and will not give the newer HVLP units a fair try out.

Mike

 

[Eric The Viking]

My airless kit should arrive this morning - it got from Holland to Birmingham in <12h then sat there for three days (thanks DPD).

One reason for not going HVLP is overspray, and the reason for not buying Graco is simply insufficient pressure for smooth masonry paint - it was marginal. Previous attempts to spray the walls didn't end well, but the Dulux datasheet and the Wagner's (the sprayer) both say it can be done. So we'll see.

And assuming it goes OK, I'll then have an airless system for woodworking, albeit not quite as convenient as the Graco one, which, frankly, looks superb for the task and is every bit as cleverly engineered as Peter M. suggests.

Ho hum - hoping the weather doesn't break, for just a bit longer...

 

[MikeJhn]

As I have said already, overspray is caused by bounce back, the more pressure the more bounce back, HVLP uses the least pressure, so the least bounce back, nearly all decent HVLP guns will spray masonry paint with the right needle and viscosity.

Mike

 

[user22161]

But it's not 29 quid, it never is. There's the cost of the paint and thinners/cleaners, any measuring cups and related accessories,

Agreed. I've lost count of the number of cars I (cellulose) sprayed many years ago but, after all this time and paints I've never sprayed before, would certainly want to practice beforehand with different mixes, pressures, techniques etc. Anyone who thinks they can just buy a paint gun, load it up and get a first rate job straight off is kidding themselves. I hung 5 doors not too long ago and brushed them, certainly wouldn't consider learning to spray from scratch just for a one off job.

 

[AES]

Agree 100%.

 

[petermillard]

... Anyone who thinks they can just buy a paint gun, load it up and get a first rate job straight off is kidding themselves. I hung 5 doors not too long ago and brushed them, certainly wouldn't consider learning to spray from scratch just for a one off job.

I don’t disagree. But in fairness, I don’t think anyone is suggesting it’s as easy as buying a sprayer and slapping in some paint, either. As for ‘learning to spray from scratch for a one-off job’ well, that depends on the size of the job, really. Five doors? Yes, I’d absolutely say that was worth learning to spray for, especially if spraying is something you want to get into...

...but, after all this time and paints I've never sprayed before, would certainly want to practice beforehand with different mixes, pressures, techniques etc.

Again, agreed - it’s the sensible thing to do. But it’s exactly this ‘mystery dance’ of settings/viscosity/needle size/pressure etc... that airless simplifies; the paint is unthinned, the tip is fixed (interchangeable, of course) all you can do is vary the pressure and practise your technique.
Cheers, Peter