Paint sprayer

[Ernie Martinez]

I'm looking to purchase a paint system capable of spraying latex paint. I'm going to use it to paint small signs. I'm thinking along the lines of compact electric turbine units. I would prefer something that would work will small amounts of paint, e.g. < 1 qt. I'll be spraying 12" signs a solid background color, and some mask work.

would appreciate any recommendations.

thanks

[Scott Shepherd]

Ernie, my advice is to skip the latex trails and consider a sign paint like SprayLat Series 20. It shoots through a gun very well, when thinned, and it dries very hard and is made for signs. It deals with masks very well too. I've spend my time trying to make latex paint work and once I stopped trying and went the professional route, almost all of my problems disappeared.

Or even spray automotive paint, but latex, while it can be done, you have to thin it a great deal to get it to spray, the paint stays soft(er), and in general, masks are a royal pain because the latex peels up with the mask. Do yourself a favor and step to some sign paints and give them a try. Even Ronan's Aquacote is fantastic and sprays very well. Ronan has a great product line, a lot of it made just for sign painting.

[Ernie Martinez]

How well does it work on acrylic, which a what my current batch of signs are made of?

[Scott Shepherd]

How well does it work on acrylic, which a what my current batch of signs are made of?

Works fantastic on acrylics. I wouldn't recommend just jumping in with both feet, but I would recommend trying either one of those. Like anything, you'll have to figure some of it out, figure out what primers to use, etc, but in the end, I think you'll be far far happier and end up with a superior looking product. Trust me, I have a cabinet full of my paint gun experiment equipment and paints. I use exactly zero of it now. If I need to paint something I'll go with a professional paint.

In fact, for SprayLat series 20, it's thin enough out of the can to spray. You can even use it in those $5 disposable sprayers from Lowes. That's exactly what I use. It goes on nice and wet and dries out flat, very fast.

It's not cheap, but it's a heck of a low cheaper than fiddling with the latex through a sprayer.

[Mike Null]

Ernie

I have been disappointed with latex and now do not use it for anything having to do with engraving products for the reasons Steve mentioned.

Before laying out money I would suggest researching air brushes and air brush paint. You may get a better product since these are small signs you're dealing with.

[Ernie Martinez]

Ill give it a shot, thanks.

[Joe Pelonio]

The best for laying smooth and durability is 1-Shot, but it's not cheap. I have done many signs with acrylic latex, that have lasted a long time outdoors on acrylic. I use a rattle can plastic primer from Krylon, then use the air compressor and a small
HVLP gun. For very small signs I use an airbrush and Auto Air colors, then topcoat with 1-Shot Chromatic clear.

[Scott Shepherd]

I think spraying acrylic is fine for larger signs, outdoor related, especially, but for interior, ADA signs, I wouldn't even consider it an option after what I know now.

[AL Ursich]

I have a small HVLP unit and love it... Shoot primary latex. A tip I use is put all my Quart Latex in Ketchup Bottles to save on the Skin Problem. For White Letters in V Carved Signs I use big Syringes to apply the paint with no needle. Push the paint around then touch up with a brush. The type syringe for giving Cough Syrup to kids have all plastic plungers and work well.

AL

[Ernie Martinez]

I've looked into one shot and spraylat, and the problem I keeping coming back to is availability and color selection. I haven't been able to find a dealer near Fl, and my customer is very specific on the color they need, so I need to be able to color match. My customer has finally given me the go ahead on this project. I need to do 30 of them, so it's not a giant production.

[Scott Shepherd]

I've looked into one shot and spraylat, and the problem I keeping coming back to is availability and color selection. I haven't been able to find a dealer near Fl, and my customer is very specific on the color they need, so I need to be able to color match. My customer has finally given me the go ahead on this project. I need to do 30 of them, so it's not a giant production.

Dixie Neon in Charlotte, NC. They ship anywhere. Ask for Larry (he's the paint guru). They also sell Akzo Nobel, which is the top of the line paint for signs (like Matthews). It's a 2 part polyurethane paint so it's a little more complex to deal with, but if you tell them colors, they can hit them pretty darn good. Spraylat has a lab in New York. If you tell Larry the color, and it's not in their database, the lab will calculate it out and send him the formula. None of it's cheap, but it's all very, very good paint.

[Joe Pelonio]

Any city with sign shops would have a sign supply that sells 1-shot off the shelf. We have about 5 places here in the Seattle area. The colors are limited but with practice you can mix them to get what you want. I usually start with the pantone color book for ideas and just go easy with the darks, very little at a time, and use a hair dryer to dry the test blotch. Pantone is meant for ink but it's often very close.

[lee chitwood]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.....I use Sherwin-Williams industrial acrylic enamel in low sheen. I use a "critter" spray gun which is nothing more than
a large airbrush. Paint is contained in ordinary pint mason jars...great for small jobs. Clean-up has never been easier. Like the others I tried all the fancy guns...
more work to clean up than to spray the paint. Google critter spray gun or K-grip spray gun​, about $40-$50.

[Ernie Martinez]

I ended up buying the graco true coat sprayer. Works great, throws a lot of paint, but I can paint a sign in one pass. Clean up is easy since you use a plastic liner in the paint cup. Just fill and pour left over paint back into can. No need for an external compressor and no need to thin acrylic latex paint.

this ended up as the best solution for me, since I can just goto my local Sherwin Williams store, bring Ina sample and have the color matched perfectly. I am painting onto acrylic, which I first route on my cnc machines, then I prime the acrylic, then I paint the background color. Once fully cured then I mask and laser engrave the detail. It works perfectly. My breakthrough was priming first and then letting the paint dry thoroughly (one week) before masking.