A question for all the Ausmini’ers who have painted at home with acrylic with a small (2.5hp 40L tank) compressor…..what sort of gun do you use…..gravity feed or suction, and what size tip…..? I’ve seen a couple of recommendations for 2mm tips what is the benefit over 1.4……..

1.6 tip in a gravity feed for acrylic coz its thick. 1.4 for 2pac, 2.0 for spray putty.

Acrylic aint rocket science. I have a good gravity feed gun ($200) and I reakon it was a waste for acrylic paint.

I have a cheap suction feed gun that I just did some work with and it was fine. I think it cost about 15beans.

both guns will do the job....

You will have to block the hell out of the paint to get it flat anyway...

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With the size of the tip, you can get a better finish with a finer tip (1.4mm), but you have to be able to thin the paint enough. For priming and general painting (subframes/brackets etc) I just stick with the 2mm tip, however once I'm close to final coat I'll lightly rub back and use the 1.4 for a nicely thinned layer.

My compressor is about that size.
I use 2 guns, both high pressure guns but i regulate the pressure low (35-40 psi) i find it easier to set them up that way.
1 gun is a big suction feed with about a 1L pot and a 2mm tip. It's good for painting large areas quick, but it's easy to get runs if the jet opens too much. My compressor can keep up with it but on a warm day the heat cut out kicks in when doing big areas (whole car)
The other is a little gravity gun, 250ml pot and a 1.2 mm tip. Good for the fine stuff and tight areas.
I like gravity guns better cos theres much less wasted paint and i find they clean up better.

Make sure the paint goes on wet, you can sand out runs, but if you haven't put enough on, then you have to put more on later.

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Dean Hutton's first car was a Mini.

Thanks for the advice so far….by the sound of it if I have two HVLP gravity feed guns one with a 1.8 tip and one with 1.4 I should be ok…..

If you can, get a PDS from the paint supplier for the product.

I use a Spartan brand acrylic and their guide quotes a syphon feed with a tip of 2.0mm at 2-4 bar pressure or a gravity feed with 1.8mm at 2 - 4 bar pressure when mixed 100:150 paint/thinners.

I have tried a 1.4mm tip on a cheapish gravity gun - but that is more for 2 pac paints and I have found it does not flow acrylic well enough.

Compressor may be an issue if it can't keep up when the tank pressure falls.

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Dave K.
1979 Moke Californian + 1981 'Coke' Moke

I see….hmmm…..scratch the 1.4 & 1.8 combo then....given that I’m using acrylic no point in getting a 1.4 if it’s not going to do the job…

it will be fine, too much paint volume isnt good per coat in my opinion. you wont go too wrong if you dont use a massive tip.. just thin the paint a little more and go easier on the coats or you will get runs.. but as said above if your going for a home job your going to have to rub the crap out of it anyway so no need to be super fussy

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Potato

i have painted a few cars myself and i also used to work in a paint shop painting trucks for 2 and half years so i have used both acrylic and 2pack paints a 1.4m nozzel is used for 2pack as the paint is alot finner then acrylic and a 1.8 or 2mm nozzel is used for acrylic as it is thicker. if you have any other question just ask

cheers dan

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Cheers Dan

FIRST COMES THE MONEY, THEN COMES THE POWER, THEN COMES THE WOMEN.!!

Thanks again all for the advice…..I’ve had a bit of a ring round to see what guns I can find in various stockists in my area….and the result is “not much”….only found 1 with a 2mm tip at $230 (star 4000 or some such)…I'll keep looking I think as plenty of people on here seem to have got 2mm for under $100....

Can anyone explain the difference between a low pressure gravity feed gun and HVLP gravity feed gun…..are they the same thing or is there some subtle difference?

I have a good quality low pressure acrylic gun with 1.8mm. tip, it suction fed.

You are more the welcome to borrow it.

Louis

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Hey, that’s a really generous offer….I’m keen on buying my own though. What I would be interested in is info on the gun …brand, supplier etc

I bought it from Colour World, Torquey RD, Grovedale. I paid around $100 and it worked quite well with a 2.5hp compressor. You can get a VIP card that give you a discount, they give it to everybody

As before, you can borrow it, test and make sure it's right for you.

Louis

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Outstanding…I hadn’t heard of Colour World….I’ll check them out…did you paint an entire car with the gun? Also did you buy your paint from them?

Are nozzles an industry standard and interchangable or are they brand specific?

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David L


My greatest fear in life is that when I die my wife will sell my Mini and tools for the price I told her I paid for them!