I know there are a lot of anti HF people on here… BUT…
just looking for something to lay down some BASE color on the foam. would be using thinned water based acrylics from Michael’s…
wondering if anyone has tried this spray kit?
i believe it has 1.8mm nozzle
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=44677
OR – do I need to throw down and get a compressor and gun separately to really get it to work right?
Thanks for any help!
try it let us know. looks like it would work to me for base colors i mean you arn’t going to be doing work like the yoda here: http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.surfline.com/surfaz/images/airbrush/merkel_airbrushhearts_h.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.surfline.com/surfaz/airbrush.cfm&h=176&w=185&sz=10&hl=en&start=24&um=1&tbnid=8Vx6wk2oSveNwM:&tbnh=97&tbnw=102&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dpsychedelic%2Bsurfboard%2Bairbrush%26start%3D18%26ndsp%3D18%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dsafari%26rls%3Den%26sa%3DN
Howzit smedman, I have seen those and looked into them. I believe they have a 2 or 3 stage turbo compressor that allows for HV mist spraying but uses little paint( so less overspray). The one I checked was not from HF but looked the same, thought about buying one but the sprayer I was using worked just fine so I didn't buy. The one thing that bothered me was the length of the hose, kind of hard to do a longboard since I think the hose is only about 6 ft long.Aloha,Kokua
I use an upgrade brand to shoot two-part clear automotive “paint” on my boards…
Imron, etc…
Works great…
Having a high volume air supply is nice for blowing dust around…
A leaf blower, even better…
How about spraying paint with a leaf blower…???..
Hmmm, might be just the thing for a SUP…???..
Paul,
Do you have a booth and air supply? I thought that stuff was mega toxic, but the best finish out there…
JSS
You saw my booth…A two car garage…
Air supply = opening the door…
Imron is toxic…A vapor mask is an absolute must…
Somehow I survive…
What I was talking about is using the HVLP motor and hose to blow things off…
I use that more than my compressor, but less than my leaf blower…
It’s all about the volume…
hey guys – so i got one today and tried it out. actually did pretty good, but goes through paint pretty quick.
i did a mix of 1 / 1 / 1 (paint, distilled water, future) per maxmercy.
hey - Kokua – the good thing about this one – it has a 15ft hose.
i’ll post up some pics later.
It does kind of feel like a shopvac though — won’t be doing any yoda graphics for sure 
LOL
Howzit smedman, You should see if you can buy different size spray nozzles for it. if so buy some smaller ones then you won't use so much paint, 1.8 is a big nozzle hole.Aloha,Kokua
Smeddy,
You need to be careful with HVLP sprayers…You get what you pay for,a 3 stage is a must to get real good atmoizing. If your going to paint a tractor, then single stage is ok.
They all throw paint, but the question is do they throw it in clumps, or a fine mist?? I use a Cambell Hausfield 3 stage, it’s been working for 13 years.
What other work are you going to do besides painting surfboards. I ask because a HVLP might not be the best application. But the HVLP is great for other things like painting cabinets, tractors, detailed grafitti etc.
Also you need at least a 15 ft hose, the longer the better.
thanks for being the guinea pig and for the report.
PIC?
here’s a few pics of the spray with glass over it - not hotcoated yet – some of you may laugh – but this guy wanted a Univ Tex Longhorn board…
did you remember to tape off the stringer? you are in texas completly understandable. UNCW is raffleing off a potato chip with the school logo on it.
I forgot to tape it – oh well – i don’t think he’ll mind on this one – but i’ll definitely remember next time…
I use a Fuji 3 stage turbine HVLP system for everything but gloss paint (2 pac polyurethanes), as it doesn’t seem to atomize the paint well enough. I have down to 1mm fluid tip. Great for water based stuff and primers though.
I use a Croix HVLP turbine (nowcalled American Turbine).Atomization is not too much of a problem.You have to up the air pressure and retard the fluid.I spray probably 5 gallons of finish per week.Over the years I figure it saved me close to 50% on my material cost.If you set it up right there is very little overspray with the right tip and needle…A good HVLP turbine is expensive though.American Turbine has one for around $500 that is OK .There are some knockoffs on Ebay that look pretty good. rb