Compressor for paint? Help

[sulery1]

I am considering buying a Craftman air compressor ( 150 psi, 1.6 HP, 33 gal.). I will use it for air tools but would also like to use it to spray paint on various parts ( not for full body paint).

My concerns are if I buy a DeVilbiss gravity feed paint gun that requires 13cfm @ 30 psi and the compressor is only 6.4 @ 40 psi can I still use it with fairly good results?
I would buy a regulator & filter to keep water out.

Does anyone have any advise for painting with this compressor or what type of results you have had?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Rob]

That's not much compressor for painting but I would imagine you can get by if you really are only painting small parts like a motorcycle tank. If you start painting bigger parts it won't be able to keep up and will run continuously producing more moisture in your lines. Keep in mind a cheap sort of water trap is only so effective and needs to be at least 25 feet from your compressor to do any good. The other thing to consider is the type of gun you buy, HVLP needs the most CFM so have a look at other options and find something that needs less CFM

 

[Twisted72]

I have the same compressor in my front garage i use for inflating tires,you could paint small projects with it but i sure wouldn't attempt anything big,not alot of reserve air,and it does make alot of moisture.Good luck

 

[blue missile]

I'm not really aquainted with that compressor. But here is what I'm using and I spray laquers and conversion varnish. Furniture mostly. I will try my hand at some automotive parts. I have a small 2Hp twin tank portable compressor I got from harbor freight about five years ago. In order to increase my holding capacity I have two freon recycling tanks the size of large oxygen cylinders mounted above my work bench at ceiling level. They are hooked in parallel to the output of the compressor. Down stream from that I have a wall mounted dryer/regulator affair that I plug the hose into. It is only rarely that I have a problem with moisture in the finish. I think the responses that say to look for another type of gun to consider are well founded. The other concern is that most air tools eat up volume at an alarming rate, check their requirements as well. I remember using air sanders at a friends board shop with one of those huge 220 volt monster compressors that we had to wait on to catch up if we sanded for too long.
Hope this helps
Andrew

 

[sulery1]

Thanks for the advice. I was also looking at a "paint without a compressor" system in the Eastwood catalog. The Earlex Spray Station 3000 to be specific. Has anyone had any experience with this product?
I figure for the smaller auto parts it could work well. At $189.00 it would be cheaper then buying a compressor.

 

[RedFish]

You can add freon bottles or propane bottles to incrrease the cfm available.
You would still need to work in intervals. The important thing is to add regulaters and safetys on top of regulaters and safetys. Those bottles could explode.

 

[1967DartGT]

Thanks for the advice. I was also looking at a "paint without a compressor" system in the Eastwood catalog. The Earlex Spray Station 3000 to be specific. Has anyone had any experience with this product?
I figure for the smaller auto parts it could work well. At $189.00 it would be cheaper then buying a compressor.

I have wondered about the Earlex myself. FIY, it is $40 cheaper at woodcraft.com

http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?FamilyID=20415

 

[GTGrinly]

I have a 25 gal. 1 1/4hp Craftsman....when sanding or painting it will run constantly and pressure will vary...I have painted a few cars with it, dirt track cars, so it didn't much matter if it spit a little or slowed/sped up....but I wouldn't use it on my Dart.
Thanks for the tip on the water trap away from the compressor..mine is mounted right on the output and doesn't do a very good job at stopping the water. I'll move it and see if that helps.

 

[Rob]

I have a 25 gal. 1 1/4hp Craftsman....when sanding or painting it will run constantly and pressure will vary...I have painted a few cars with it, dirt track cars, so it didn't much matter if it spit a little or slowed/sped up....but I wouldn't use it on my Dart.
Thanks for the tip on the water trap away from the compressor..mine is mounted right on the output and doesn't do a very good job at stopping the water. I'll move it and see if that helps.

A lot of people make that mistake, the thing is, the heat from your compressor heats the air coming out, as it travels it cools and becomes water so there isn't really much to trap at the source. The further you can put the trap the better.

 

[Tarr]

You must be honest in what you expect from the tool. Sounds like the compressor will be fine for small jobs and maybe even primer but not for the larger jobs.
I bought a helmet for racing once. Eddie told me if I had a $10 head, buy a $10 helmet. Yes he wanted to sell the higher priced one but he got the point across.
First you have to ask yourself, will you really be happy with the cheaper part? Will it do what you want. If so! Go for it.
I have never been disappointed when I bought something that cost a little more. Can't say that about buying bargain tools.

Just thinking out loud.

 

[2 Darts]

The major source of water in compressors, is not the air pushed through. That's not to say that there is no water in the air pushed through a compressor, it isn't the biggest source.

When the reservoir tanks are empty, air in them heats and cools over the course of the day. This produces condensation that accumulates in the tanks. It's just like a cold beverage can on a warm day, only it's the inner surface rather than the outer.

To reduce the accumulation, drain the air tanks daily. Suggest leaving the drain open between projects. This allows vapor to escape the tanks, reducing what's available to condense. Similarly, I recommend leaving the valves open for a couple of minutes after turning on the compressor to blow out any vapor that may not have made it past the drain valve.

Pressurized cannisters typically have an expiration or last refill date stamped on them. I'd feel comfortable using an empty LP gas cannister as an air reservoir as long as the refill date was in the future. Dive cylinders and those used in aircraft are hydrostatically tested and internally examined.

If there is any question about a tank used as an air reservoir, have it tested. I have seen what knocking the top off a six foot air cylinder at 120 psi can do. Made me jump from the floor and cling to a ceiling rafter while the cylinder ran around like a deranged torpedo in the shop. Eventually, it went through the closed garage door and wound up burried in mud 75 feet away. It was over in seconds, but not real entertaining at the time.

 

[C39]

Spend the money and get the compressor that will handle your tasks with ease. If you are to have a good paint job, you need the paint itself to dictate the pace of your work, not the availability of air to feed the gun. Compared to the time and money you have invested in paint and materials, the cost of your compressor is small change, and it is a tool you will use for the rest of your life.