??? regarding Target Coatings....

[Clisby Clark]

I just received my first order (great service btw) from Target and am looking forward to spraying the EM 6000. Last week they had gallons on sale and free shipping. I ordered quarts because I wanted to try out some of their different products before committing to gallons. Here are my questions:

1. Do the gallons become "spoiled" if used for multiple small projects? If so, would it be OK to buy some empty quart cans and split up the gallons upon delivery?

2. The 30% sale was great(almost saved me all shipping costs). How often has Target had great deals like this and/or free shipping in the past?

3. Any advice to a rookie for spraying this stuff. Right now I've got a Fuji 4-stage w/#4 aircap. Would the #3 be better?



Thanks as always.

[Scott Holmes]

Filling quart cans should not be a problem. MAKE SURE the cans are lined... waterborne finishes and cheap metal quart cans sounds like "a bad idea".

Jim Becker will/should chime in; he uses this stuff all the time...

[Jamie Buxton]

I use EM6000 from time to time. I was curious about the shelf life of the stuff, so I generally write the date I open it on the can. I've had a partly-filled gallon can that was still viable a year after opening.

I'm careful to close the can properly. Wipe any finish out of the gutter before you put the lid on. You must be able to close the lid flush with the can's body. If you can't, the lid is not sealed, and the finish will harden in the can.

[Conrad Fiore]

No, the gallons don't spoil or skim over like some oil varnishes. You should however not return the unused "in the gun" material back to the gallon. You won't hurt anything, but if you thinned the material you don't want to pour that back into the gallon. The average shelf life for Target coatings is 12-18 months, as specified by the mfr. I have and use older product as a first coat sealer and then use the new material.
I like the gallon package from Target because it has a plastic can and lid. You will get rusting with the quart cans that make it difficult to seal and re-open the cans.
Target has been running quite a few sales of late, so maybe you should sign up for their email news letter to be made aware of the sales.
I don't know the Fuji N/N sizes. I use a 1.4 needle to shoot 6000 in my Asturo HVLP. If you post your question on the Target forum, I'm sure Jeff Weiss will give you some advise. Or....you can experiment with both to see which works best for you.
I just checked the Fuji specs. and it looks like the #4 set is 1.4mm. I would start with that set.

[Jim Becker]

I have had zero issue with "spoiling" or skimming with Target EM6000 or it's two predecessors. It doesn't seem to have much problem with it like oil based varnishes often do. I buy in gallons normally, but have, on occasion, just picked up a quart of gloss since I don't use it very often.

I also have occasionally used the available quart cans (from the 'borg) to hold left-over product, but simply for the reason of space savings.