Paint or gelcoat??

[Towndrunk]

I'm having a problem with my air compressor keeping up with the da sander. How big a compressor do I need any way? I am thinking of buying a Milwaukee
random orbital to finish taking the clear off. Any opinions? The one I am thinking of is this one. It's 5.5 amps at 10,000 with a 5" pad. ?????

[Tom Brown]

I don't have an opinion on that tool but I picked up an Ingersol DA that is light as a feather and takes very little air. It wasn't a lot of money. I think less than $200. With air tools, the better quality, the less air they seem to take.
Also, I have two shops. One has a great compressor that puts out plenty of air that can keep up with the DA without working full duty. My other shop just had a little portable contractor style compressor that couldn't keep up so I picked up a second cheapo compressor and connected them together. It works pretty well but not as well as a good quality two stage industrial compressor.
When you paint, you're going to need a lot of air anyway. I found a single contractor style compressor wasn't up to the task of painting. It's too much a pain in the ass to watch the pressure gauge and wait for it to recover while you're trying to worry about painting. With two compressors, I can just paint and not worry about it.

[Towndrunk]

Here is a link to the damn tool with info. How damn big a compressor do I need? Mine is 30 gallons.
http://www.mytoolstore.com/milwauke/6125.html

[Tom Brown]

My two compressors are 5 gallons and 1.5 hp each. You might be fine with the compressor you have.
That looks like a good tool to me. I think 5/32" is a pretty normal orbit for a ROS. The fine orbit ROS seem to run at 3/32".
Do they make a 6" model? The 6" pads are more popular around here. You could also put a 6" pad on that one.

[Towndrunk]

Yea, they have a 6" pad for it. I wonder if it will do the job. I have been sanding off and on for 3 days and haven't put a dent in it yet. Well you can see what I have done. I do't want to just feather the clear I want it all down to the gel. I don't know why I just do.
My compressor is a Coleman Power mate, 5.5 hp, 30 gal tank, yada yada. What kind of gun would I need and can I get by with a 99 dollar cheapie?

[Tom Brown]

I probably shouldn't give you any advice on this but here's what I do:
I don't own a gun that a real painter thought was worth a shit. Hell, I've got guns I paid way less than $100 for.
I don't know how valid this is but I look for the clones. The first gun I bought is a Chinese made Binks knock-off. It paints great.
There are some guns these days with a single hole in the air cap and other design omissions that you don't see on expensive guns. I stay away from those.
One of the things to keep in mind is that you're going to need a bunch of guns. If you clear coat anything, it would be best done with a gun that you use for clear coat only. I try to keep my guns as clean as I can but there is the occasional flake of dried paint that pukes out of the gun and gets in the clear. It pissed me off so I bought another gun. You'll also want a smaller gun or two for shooting small patterns and patching clear coat. It's tough to do a good job of a small job when you're painting with a firehose and you can't do a good job of a large area when you have more material than you can shoot in the specified pot time so you need both big and small guns.
The other aspect is that I've found it cheaper to buy a new gun than buy a new tip. When I needed a 1.4mm tip for gel, I just looked for a gun with a 1.4mm tip.
.... so I went with cheap guns but I was somewhat selective in the guns I chose. Then, when I need a new gun for something it doesn't cost me a bunch of cash.

[Jbb]

http://www.smartshoppersinc.com/clos...closeouts.html

[Tom Brown]

Hey Brian. While you're here, any idea where I can find a stainless pot or two for my guns?
That damned plastic expands if you leave it in laquer thinner for too long.

[Jbb]

http://www.autobodytoolmart.net/sear...paint+gun+cups

[Towndrunk]

Jbb, does one need different size tips for primers and paint? Should I get a book on how too? I painted some in the past but we never used anything different from primer to paints. Didn't know there was a difference back then. (30 yrs) ago.