I'm not...when the paint tech sheets say 8-10 psi at the cap, does that mean the regulator reading with the trigger pulled? It's at 21 psi static but does drop some when the trigger is pulled.

That's pretty much exactly what I'm planning on. Bought some .7 mil plastic drop cloth today along with some furnace filters. Going to do the same, staple or tape to the ceiling and floor, cut a hole to tape/seal the filter to for an air inlet, and use a window box fan to suck air out.

 

I'm no pro by any means, but I had the best luck spraying SS at ~20psi at the regulator on the gun with the trigger pulled. If pressure was any lower than that it didn't seem to atomize very well and didn't lay smooth.

 

Dont forget to mop the floor prior to shooting

 

If you have questions I can give you a few pointers .you can call me at the shop tomorrow west coast time ill pm my number

 

I would recommend practicing on the tailgate - easier to sand and repaint it if you don't get the results you want. You are definitely going on too dry - it takes practice to find the sweet spot between too dry (orange peel) and too wet (runs). Single stage metallics and mattes are hardest because they have to be smooth and even with no ability to sand them...

 

Reconsidering my color choice yet again. If I do a gloss black rather than a matte black, what's going to give a deeper, wetter look....a 2 stage or single stage?

 

Started on the cab.



Got a nice dent in the fender to fill.

 

The psi at the inlet of the gun depends on it being a HVLP or RP. HVLP being high volume low pressure and usually run 15-20 psi at the inlet with the trigger half depressed. Usually paint guns have a 2 stage trigger, one is just enough or aboult 1/2 way for straight air to come out and fully depressed for paint. RP is for reduced pressure, a fancy way of saying whatever comes in at the inlet comes out at the cap minus a couple of psi. When a gun says 10 psi at the cap they usually recomend a psi rating at the inlet and then you fine tune from there to your style/preference. The fan spray pattern that I use is usually 6-8 inches wide at 6 inches away from the panel. This works for me and the primer usully comes out good amd slick. Sorry for the long rant but the setup/speed of the gun and person using the gun has alot to do with the outcome of a paint job. Practice, practice, practice theres a reason body and paint work cost $$$$$ so it helps to learn to do it oneself. Hope this helps.

Oh on another note, trucks looking good. When its done all that hard work will be worth it.

 

Thanks. I keep getting frustrated, then realizing it's turning out ok, over and over again, lol...

The dent in the fender pictured above got into the edge of the wheel well so I couldn't fill it. Found a good condition fender on CL for $50, went down and picked that up yesterday.

Shot the DS door and cab with epoxy primer tonight. Will try to do primer/surfacer tomorrow, block and maybe spray sealer Wed, then try to finish setting up a homemade paint booth and give base/clear a shot later this week.

 

been a while since i checked into this thread. i think i will hire someone lol. im sure you will have much more pride in the end result though.