down draft clear coating table/booth

[Marty]

Hey just tossing it around .....the path to getting clearcoat laid nicely down is strewn with scrapped parts and frustration.....maybe a tear or two.......harbor freight is not a friend in critical spray applications........when you see a beautiful paint job and deep gloss clearcoat on a high end 6 figure automobile, I Guarantee you the autobody crowd does not use hf spray guns........unless you are intent on creating a line of Future Yard Sale Art, why sabotage your hard work and effort......thanks tho for trying to alert everyone to hvlp technology but.......................

[Cracker Red]

Cutting concrete tomorrow (hole in wall) for the exhaust. Fan is supposed to show up Wed. Acryic will be done monday. Today I'm running the air over to it using copper tube. I'm going to leave space for another filter, although I'm not sure if I really need it.

Should be up and running next weekend! Stoked about not being outside worry about the weather anymore (FL...it rains here).

[Marty]

"Stoked about not being outside worry about the weather anymore (FL...it rains here)."

"The Booth" will change your life....before I built my booth there were clouds of over spray floating in the shop, and I had to leave all the doors open to vent, which also allowed dust into the shop if it was breezy outside

NOW...it is much different....all doors stay closed (warmer in winter, cooler in summer), no dust blows in the shop, and the I can shoot clearcoat all day long, and NO OVERSPRAY CLOUDS yipee.....it gets filtered and sent outdoors....same with piant overspray...

You will be glad you did it

[Cracker Red]

I'm so close! Used 80/20 aluminum tube to build a frame for the plexi. Now that its together I'll have the plexi cut in Monday. Installing that and getting the hole punched through the wall are the final 2 things.

[Marty]

I am excited for you Red.....I know that feeling of anticipatory excitement of nearing the end of a major build and the beginning of a major change for the better for a PITA shop process....spray....have fun, try to get some sleep in spite of the excitement, he he
Marty

[Capstone]

Hey just tossing it around .....the path to getting clearcoat laid nicely down is strewn with scrapped parts and frustration.....maybe a tear or two.......harbor freight is not a friend in critical spray applications........when you see a beautiful paint job and deep gloss clearcoat on a high end 6 figure automobile, I Guarantee you the autobody crowd does not use hf spray guns........unless you are intent on creating a line of Future Yard Sale Art, why sabotage your hard work and effort......thanks tho for trying to alert everyone to hvlp technology but.......................

In the spirit of finding life-hacks to share with the PS community, I went looking for an inexpensive way to step into HVLP. I've run headlong into airbrushing, powdercoating, welding, (MIG and TIG) on top of the whole CNC Plasma stuff, all with the goal of elevating my work. But, with all of the tools I'm already invested in, along with the learning curve on all of the new skills that I need to learn almost daily, I still have to operate on a budget. So, now that I'm looking at HVLP, The Harbor Freight "purple" HVLP gun for $16 is pretty unbeatable and I agree it's an easy guess that your assessment of the quality is accurate, at least out of the box. Fortunately, someone took the time to make a video on how to improve the HF gun on the cheap here, So I thought I'd share. It's worth the time if you're considering going the HVLP route and want to step in cheap at first.

[Marty]

Anybody actually selling metal art on a regular basis that has been clear coated using a Harbor Freight spray Gun?
Just curious is all

Also, has anybody actually done the mod to the HF gun suggested in a previous post? Just curious for response
Thanks
Marty

[Capstone]

Anybody actually selling metal art on a regular basis that has been clear coated using a Harbor Freight spray Gun?
Just curious is all

Also, has anybody actually done the mod to the HF gun suggested in a previous post? Just curious for response
Thanks
Marty

I'm currently building my downdraft paint booth. Once that's done, I'll be buying the HF HVLP gun along with the upgrade/modifications and "fixing" the gun. I'm already putting items up for sale that were clear-coated with rattle cans, so I seriously can't think it will get worse, but I will gladly report and post my results as soon as I have them. Keep in mind, I'm not a trained auto-body painter either, so operator headspace will affect quality at first.

[Marty]

thanks for the reply

I am actually curious as to results

selling on a weekly basis vs putting up for sale...different scenarios? yes/no? (difference is cash is in your bank account, instead of the customers) ha ha just kidding sort of

curious to see how your actual cash paying buyers react to the HF clearcoat application

my thing is you get what you pay for

but maybe HF can keep up with Aiwata? (my clear coat gun is an Aiwata 400 LPH )

I am always open to "best results' ideas VS using what the pros use on auto finishing

Many say "technique" overcomes cheap equipment, maybe you can prove that correct, I honestly hope you can and sustain quality products in the long run

My experience is that EVERY time I try to "cheap out" whether it is tires for my truck, shoes, computer gear, tools, shop equipment or anything else, I always regret "going cheap"......I like to do shop tasks once, not twice

If you wanna talk details on your downdraft booth build PM me I am glad to offer up my experience...I built a downdraft booth from scratch after hours of research

Stay tuned!! Keep in touch
Marty