Minimum Air Compressor Size

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OK sorry I skipped ahead.
Rule of thumb, in car life you will never have a big enough shop/garage or air compressor.
If you will run air tools LIKE DA sander, long file, you need lots of air.

You can get by with anything sorta shooting primers.
Top coat especially metallic needs a consistant air pressure, supply. Especially if single stage. Great work can be done with anything IF you have the skill.
How to keep dust out with out a pro booth, still trying to learn that one!!
Good luck!!
 
Have painted cars, one panel at a time with a 3/4 hp unit but with a 30 gallon tank. One panel at a time is no real problem if you are doing non metallic. Had a neighbor that sprayed cars using a half hp comp. and a 50 or 60 gallon tank. Big enough tank, don't need a high hp comp.
 
Back in the early 70s when I was just getting out on my own. I bought a used two horse inline trailer. My dad, Pa as I called him, sanded it, primed it with red oxide primer, all there was ??.... and top coated it with single stage '69 F9 Dark Green Metallic He did it with a 5 hp Sear compressor with a tank that was what 10 gal. maybe?? It turned our perfect. I do know the primer was too thick, but it was flawless. He was a perfectionist. Drove me nuts!!!!!
 
CFM is the king of compressor stats and trumps everything else, but surprisingly few people use it in conversations like these.

If you have adequate CFM, you theoretically don't even need a tank.

If you'll be doing any sandblasting 12-15 CFM @90 is borderline.
 
YY1 said:
CFM is the king of compressor stats and trumps everything else, but surprisingly few people use it in conversations like these.

If you have adequate CFM, you theoretically don't even need a tank.

If you'll be doing any sandblasting 12-15 CFM @90 is borderline.
Click to expand...
THE ABSOLUTE TRUTH and while on this, view CFM ratings with a jaundiced eye. Old school ratings were at 90psi, but sometime ?? in the mid sixties--early 70's people like Wards and Sears started rating them at 40 psi (to make them seem larger) and then some genius started rating them at INTAKE/ atmospheric air. The numbers get larger, but the true 90psi output stays the same

ALSO IF YOU are going to use an old tank, consider doing a redneck hydro test (water pressure) I was recently given an "oil less" one that the tank had rusted and started leaking

 
I bought a Quincy 5hp/60 gal/4 cyl./2-stage two years ago. Total with tax was about $1,400. Made in USA, too.

15.7CFM at 90psi.

I also use my old tank (60 gal) as an auxiliary tank. I never run out of air these days.

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watch
Summit have the Sprayit 33000 under their name now ($69.99)
Astro Pneumatic have excellent LVLP guns as well. Get one, practice and learn how
to use it and you will be fine
 
Constant air supply good filters for water /oil tome are just as big as cleaning (prep) the metal and technique. Good light is a must.
 
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