Painting Using HVLP

Hey Guys,

Starting to get it all together and I have a question about painting, sand blasting, and air tools in general. I need to purchase a compressor and would rather not spend $1000 or more on it. Is anyone using HVLP spray guns to paint? Does this mean I can get by with a smaller compressor? I will also be doing a lot of sand blasting.

I no that there is NOTHING cheap about restoring an old vehicle, but I would like to keep the costs as low as I can... yeah, right!

Advice is welcome.

Thanks,
J.

Bigger IS Better! HVLP uses less air but do not buy you compressor off of one tools consumption. Sandblasting is going to really eat up the air. Grinders, long boards are really able to chew up air as well, you do not want that compressor running non stop. Dont cut corners when it comes to the compressor.

kgdb

Think about a 2 stage compressor-?? Yes higher costs - yet -the pressure recovery time is better than a single stage. I will also add from experience - i bought a nice compressor from Lowes years back- single stage- takes a long time to get to high pressure shutoff- (recovery time) and i have had to replace 2 of the 3 cylinder reed valves & plates. This was due to valve breakages (thin metal plates) . I have discovered the causes for this was the type of oil used in the compressor. I now only use synthetic oil. Has never broken any again. The previous oil was for standard auto use -not for a air cooled motor -yes -there is a difference!! The std. motor oil seems to create a Varnish on the reeds & causes them to stick & crack. The synthetic doesnt. When I was in the Marine Repair buisness - i did many repairs due to a cheaper air cooled oil mix being used in outboard motors. There is a difference!!

HVLP stands for High Volume, Low Pressure.
It doesn't need 60 PSI but they do need lots of Cubic Feet per Minute (CFM). each tool will have a pressure and CFM requirement in the specs. You can research this but here are some general tips.
The smaller air tank compressors that are for construction that you can pick up and walk around with are too small. These have tanks longer and narrower than scuba tanks.
The tanks that are 3 foot uprights with 110 single stage is the bare minimum for air tools. You will wait a lot for it to refill.
The big 60 gallon uprights 110 or 220 will work air tools and will spray, IF you have good sized hose. They will be undersized for pressure blasting. It will be just adequate for a cabinet siphon feed blaster.
Body blasting is going to require more CFM. It's also a big messy, dirty job that requires a fine touch if using sand. It is often better to hand this off to a pro. The cost if you don't have any tools is going to be less to have someone do this one job.
You will find that a blast cabinet is a great tool for all the smaller parts. Problem is, they are going to eat your budget up unless you can find a good used one cheap.

I am a cabinet maker and have been using an HLVP gun for over 20 years..
They work on volume not pressure so a smaller compressor is not the answer..
You are better off buying the whole unit with the turbine..
Mine is 20 years old but still works great but parts are getting hard to find might be time to upgrade..

I use a Titan system http://www.titantool.com/portal/loader.php