I am in the process of learning to paint. I have a few vehicles of my own that need painted and figured now would be a good time to try it myself before I give out the big bucks to have them painted by a pro.

I have a 30 gallon Craftsman air compressor (8.6 SCFM At 40 psi, 6.4 SCFM At 90 psi) but have no paint gun or air/water separator, etc.

I've been told that the HVLP guns are the best but I don't know if they're harder/easier to use, etc. Since this is just a hobby, I don't want to buy the very best there is, but I want something that will give me a good paint job.

Please recommend a few decent "entry-level" guns and if I should be looking for siphon feed, gravity feed, HVLP, etc.

Thanks!

 

look on ebay and check ar sears and auto places, especailly ones that sell paint. when you get one you deffinetly want to go HVLP. they are the best. i also am doing this for a hobby and soem side work. i found a gun for $40 that usually goes for 80. some of the better paint gun makers are sharpe, sata, devilbliss, snap on.

 

Are there any specific ones I should stay away from? At Lowes I saw a kit for under $100 that had a regular gun, a touch up gun, and cleaning tools. I don't think they were HVLP. (http://www.lowes.com/lkn?action=prod...49-1126-IFK005)

Would something like that be worth buying? I also saw that lowes has an IR HVLP gun for about $100 but that's all you get is the one gun.

Do I need a different gun for primer, paint, or clear or can the same one be used for all finishes? Do you have to buy different nozzles or anything for them?

 

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The thick 2K filler/primer paint requires a large tip (1.8 or so). I spray all my basecoats and clearcoats with a 1.3 tip.

Different paint companies have recommendations on tip size. The Sharpe web site has some charts that shows the recommended sizes.

 

check out the sharpe site, i would highly recomend a gravity fed HVLP gun though.