Craftsman Compressor for Small Painting Jobs

[deandec]

I have the common 150 psi 6 gallon pancake compressor sold by Sears/Porter Cable used for airing my front 22.5 tires to 115 psi.

Porter Cable C2002R 150 PSI, 6 Gal. Oil-Free Compressor

Has anyone had success doing touch up painting with automotive paint with this compressor?

If so, what kind of spray gun did you use?

The compressor only moves 3.7 cubic feet of air at 40 Psi which is low for the specs of a automotive paint spray gun.

But I do not know what kind of cushion is built into the spray gun and compressor specs.

At $5 per oz for the MH paint, I hope for insights from you before spraying some paint.

[UFO Pilot]

Have you checked out spray guns by SATA? High Volume Low Pressure.

SATAjet® 4000 B HVLP

The Experience in Form and Function
The "Super Saver" SATAjet 4000 B HVLP achieves particularly high transfer efficiency rates, due to its low pressure technology.

[Techie]

I would always assume that the compressor will put out less than spec especially once you take into account any leakage due to quick disconnect fittings.

Likewise, if your are looking at a box store or Harbor Freight type of gun you should assume that it will need more pressure + air volume than advertised...just my 2 cents from my own experiences.

If you think you will get enough pressure then you need to also see your recharge rate on the comrpessor as it uses air the pressure will probably fluctuate which will affect your painting unless you have VERY small sections to paint.

You can compensate somewhat for this if you introduce some air storage in the way of some additional air tanks between the compressor and the gun.

Personally, if this was a one-time event, I would buy the gun and rent a larger portable compressor.

[Paul R. Haller]

Originally Posted by deandec

I have the common 150 psi 6 gallon pancake compressor sold by Sears/Porter Cable used for airing my front 22.5 tires to 115 psi.

Has anyone had success doing touch up painting with automotive paint with this compressor?

If so, what kind of spray gun did you use?

The compressor only moves 3.7 cubic feet of air at 40 Psi which is low for the specs of a automotive paint spray gun.

But I do not know what kind of cushion is built into the spray gun and compressor specs.

At $5 per oz for the MH paint, I hope for insights from you before spraying some paint.

For any car spray work in California all the new guns are HVLP. That said, I gave up trying to spray with my 3 horse and moved to a 7 horse. You do not water in your compressed air and small compressors work hard to produce the air you need even with a small gun. They tend to produce a lot of water because they are running all the time to keep up. I use a DeVilbiss Millenium GTI gun for top coats and a Finishline 3 for my primer. I like the Finishline series guns. They are inexpensive and will handle primer base and color with a very good finish for about 175$ as long as you have good tecnique. They come with 3 different tip sizes. You certaily can't beat that price. They both call for 5-6 cubic feet per minute. No way your compressor will handle that. Even the smaller spot Satas will take 4 cfm at 3 times the finishline price.

Sadly, even for spot refinishing you will need at least a 2-3 horse compressor. You can shoot with less but you can't go on for more then about 2 minutes and then, you will have to wait for your compresor to catch up and you will have way too much water build up.
-Paul R. Haller-

[deandec]

Ok, thanks to all that responded. I may try to do some small airbrush touch up stuff with this unit.

But if I need to rent a rig to do more extensive painting, I am probably better off just getting a pro to do it since I am a rookie.