Ford Forums banner

What size compressor to buy?

18K views 7 replies 5 participants last post by  akira 
#1 ·
Hi all i want to buy a compressor to paint my car with. Now i've lots of people who say the biggest is the best but on my budget the biggest isnt viable. I wanna take my time so do a good job and so them compresor can keep up. There are quite a few compressors around the $200 mark at the moment. Most with say 2.5hp and about 40 lt tanks. However its the other stuff i dont understand the like the free air and cfc or something...

What do i need to look for size wise to for a compressor to get awawy with painting my car?
 
#2 ·
That actually depends on what material you are going to paint your car in.
Also if you are using standard suction/gravity fed guns, or HVLP.

At the end of the day you must meet the minimum air requirements of your spray gun. That is measured in CFM (cubic foot per minute). For a standard gravity feed you are looking around the 12cfm (MINIMUM) compressor requirement.

The size of the tank only dictates how long you can spray for before the compressor kicks in...The bigger the tank, and the faster the compressor can refill it (versus how fast you are emptying it) will dictate your compressor run time and how much workload you are going to get from it.

I cannot see a $200 compressor meeting the basic requirement...even for Acryllic. For standard guns, if you compressor cannot supply you with 60psi at the gun constant, then you will get a shit job!

I was running a 12cfm compressor with an 80 litre tank. That permitted me to do 3 average panels before i had to pause and let the compressor catch up. downside it meant that the compressor ran all the time...shortening its life.

If you are going to try this with a $200 compressor, then i'd say once your done, it won't be fit for blowing up kids floaties when your done.

Jas
 
#5 ·
Chartoo said:
Thanks thats really helpful. I have a suction gun and i will be using acrylic so maybe its just best hire a big one for the weekend and get it done properly.

Cheers

the guys are right....i had a 12 cfm....and have just updated to a 17 as i was working it too hard

my advice...if youve got 250 or so bucks ....buy a second hand one...they are around
 
#6 ·
Chartoo,
your indication of renting one is probably best.
If you are only looking at painting one car, then the outlay on a decent compressor will not be worthwhile.

If you are planning to paint say 4 cars, then you need to do some sums as to whether it will be cheaper to rent or buy.
Also factor in upkeep!.

I still have my 12 CFM in the shop as an emergency, (although i am about to loan it long term to a friend for his aircraft hangar), but now run a 32cfm 3 phase unit....it works hard enough with just me drawing air (most of my tools are air operated)

When i moved into my shop, the 12 cfm was taken from my garage, so i bought an $85 special from supercheap. For tyres etc at home...its PERFECT!

Jas
 
#8 ·
When I didn't have a big compressor I would take multiple small compressors and made a small manifold with a hose to connect 2 or more compressors together, to balance them takes an extra minute but it works. Just hit a pawn shop for some cheapies but if you use an oil filled compressor ALWAYS use an oil and water filter (cheap one under $30) oilless are louder but do the job. I have painted cars with a 3.5hp 20 Gal tank and a 2 hp 10 gal tank with decent results using an HVLP gravity feed gun, you just have to wait for them to fill all the time but it will get you by. Put a small pressure gauge on the heel of the gun (-$10) and use the largest I.D hose you can find and keep it as short as possible to reduce pressure drop. Using a good gun will do a much better job and use WAY less paint and have less overspray. I just bought a Devilbiss on sale for $200 (regular $400) and it is AWESOME compared to my other guns but I have use SATA with great success in shops. Make sure you use the proper size fluid tip on your gun as well, you need different sized tips for your primers-sealers-and topcoats. Use a quality paint brand as well there are some good ones that are the same price as no name hardware store brands. Use RM (basf) or DuPont (PPG is usually too expensive) and don't mix and match brands. I hope this helps
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top