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What paint sprayer to use?

Solrus

Active member
I would like to find out what restoration community guys use to paint their cats. Im looking to buy paint sprayer and would like to ask your experience with different brands you use
 

DAVENET

Bronze Member
GOLD Site Supporter
:)
 

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Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
I had a auto body shop do some painting for my Snow Trac, but that was a fairly big job. I'd use a rattle can if it was just a small area.

If you want to paint a whole cab then take it to a body shop and have them paint it for you.

I'd also strongly suggest that you have them paint it a color that is a standard paint color available in spray cans. That way if you ever get a scratch from a tree branch or other issue you'll have the ability to do a touch up without having a different color repair. If you are going with a traditional red/orange color cab, seriously consider FarmAll red, Allis-Chalmers Orange or Kubota orange, you can get duplicate color spray cans for those colors.
 

PJL

Well-known member
Krylon farm implement transportation yellow matched mine. Kinda. Spot sprayed with bomb cans and it looks it.
 

ezroller

Active member
GOLD Site Supporter
I painted mine. If you use spray cans spin an extra couple bucks and buy artists spray tips. Look for "fat caps". they spray a very nice even spray pattern comparable to a expensive spray gun
 

MNwr786

Active member
I like devilbiss. Pressure feeds are easier for me than gravity feed guns as the paint in the siphon tube gives you a few seconds of inverted spraying. This is a good starter one IMO. Just keep it clean and it will last forever.


Don't forget a cup. Keep the air dry. 40psi is a good starting pressure. Avoid overspray and start/finish on edges not panels. THROW AWAY EVERY CAN OF SILICONE LUBRICANT YOU OWN AND NEVER ALLOW IT IN YOUR BOOTH/SHOP EVER AGAIN!!!! Enjoy the new hobby! And one more thing, if the EPA comes on account of a tip from a concerned citizen, tell them the diststillery out back is for removing the solids from waste solvent thus recycling the solvent and using the goo for undercoatings ~ but never ever tell em what you really do with your solvents :)
 
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rdynes01

Active member
Believe it or not Harbor Freight has a gun they call their Purple Gun that goes for about 20 bucks. With a coupon I've gotten one for about 15 bucks. Go on some of the hot rod websites like H.A.M.B. and those guys know all about them. I painted both my Imps with them using a farm and implement enamel with a gloss and hardness enhancer and got impressive results. With paint, supplies and gun I had about a hundred bucks in each job. With the cost and hassle of solvents and clean up I know guys that toss the gun after one or two jobs and just go get another gun for each job. DeVilbiss does make nice guns but for that price I could paint 3 full cab Sprytes including all paint and materials. Just a thought....Bob
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
Believe it or not Harbor Freight has a gun they call their Purple Gun that goes for about 20 bucks. With a coupon I've gotten one for about 15 bucks. Go on some of the hot rod websites like H.A.M.B. and those guys know all about them. I painted both my Imps with them using a farm and implement enamel with a gloss and hardness enhancer and got impressive results. With paint, supplies and gun I had about a hundred bucks in each job. With the cost and hassle of solvents and clean up I know guys that toss the gun after one or two jobs and just go get another gun for each job. DeVilbiss does make nice guns but for that price I could paint 3 full cab Sprytes including all paint and materials. Just a thought....Bob
I've done exactly that with undercoating spray guns. On my Snow Trac I used a knock off brand of "Rhinoliner" truck bed liner and sprayed the whole underside of my Snow Trac. It worked to slightly deaden the sound but also sealed and protected everything down there.

Honestly I would not trust myself to spray an entire cab and hope for good results, but that is mostly my problem!
 

rdynes01

Active member
I've done exactly that with undercoating spray guns. On my Snow Trac I used a knock off brand of "Rhinoliner" truck bed liner and sprayed the whole underside of my Snow Trac. It worked to slightly deaden the sound but also sealed and protected everything down there.

Honestly I would not trust myself to spray an entire cab and hope for good results, but that is mostly my problem!
As was I before my first paint job. Taking it to a body shop was way too expensive for me and with a little practice and learning the right spray technique and paint mix you'd be surprised what you can get. With rattle cans the paint is pre thinned to spray out of the can but you get thinner coats and I would have payed as much for them and gotten a lighter coat than using a gun and paint. Keep the rattle cans for interior work or touch ups. Also, if you use a custom color, most paint stores can load that paint into spray cans for later use....Bob
 

Blackfoot Tucker

Well-known member
GOLD Site Supporter
Solrus,

I have an "old school" DeVilbiss JGA-502, which is a suction feed gun, and a Devilbiss gravity feed HVLP gun. Personally, I don't like gravity feed guns because of the balance of the gun. I much prefer the balance of a suction feed gun...my opinion only. An HVLP gun will have a higher transfer efficiency than a non-HVLP gun (meaning more paint gets applied with less waste). The non-HVLP will require more air pressure.

I realize your question was about equipment, and not paint, but I'm going to throw this out as well. Paint comes in many forms and at different price points. Some colors are more expensive than others, with red being among the most expensive. Again...my opinion only, but painting a machine, and doing a thorough job, is a lot of work. Higher quality paints last longer...and they are more expensive. If you cheap-out on the paint it will not last as long, and you'll be doing it again sooner. What's your time worth? My recommendation is to use higher quality paints.

I had my first Tucker painted by a recommended shop. The cost was $1,500 and they used a catalyzed industrial enamel. It looked okay, but not great when I picked it up, and I sold it a few months later. I had a second Tucker painted by another shop for a little more money and they used that same catalyzed industrial enamel. This painter did a much nicer job, and the machine looked really nice when I got it. But it wasn't long at all before the paint started to fade. In my not-so-humble opinion, buying cheap paint is a false economy.

Here's the second machine after returning from the paint shop and being reassembled.

DSC01656.jpeg
 

MNwr786

Active member
Deltron makes some good paint. If you intend to use it after you paint it (rather than take it out just once a year for a parade), I'd go with a single-stage urethane.
 
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