Art Mulder
11-18-2009, 10:09 PM
Hey Folks,
I've got an Earlex 5000 and I've shot some varathane with it, but I've not yet used it with paint.
Tonight I thought I'd give it a try. I wanted to prime a large basic wooden box. I know that viscosity is an issue, so I pulled out the viscosity cup and the instruction manual, and it told me that for water based latex paints it should be 25-60 seconds.
So I opened my can of Primer (Zinsser BullsEye 1-2-3, Primer-Sealer Stain Killer, All Purpose Waterbase, Apply over or under any oil or latex) and started stirring. Once I had it mixed I filled up the viscosity cup and let it drip...
TWO minutes later I was not even down 1/4 of the way and I gave up.
I read the can of primer about thinning and it told me that I should thin NO-MORE than 30ml of clean water per 3.7 Liters of paint. I thought you could thin water-based paint up to 10%. 30 ml per 3.7liters is more like ONE percent. That seems pointless.
Okay, I know you can shoot latex through an Earlex unit. That's what I see them doing at every demonstration at ever woodshow! So how do you do it? Am I using the wrong kind of primer? Is this Zinsser primer (which I think is great when priming walls!) just too thick for an Earlex sprayer?
Am I supposed to ignore the manufacture's guidelines on the label of the paint? The Earlex manual seems contradictory. On the one hand it tells me to follow the manufacturer. Then one paragraph later it tells me to thin by 10%, and by another 5% if that isn't enough, AND repeat if necessary!
Anyone got some wisdom to share?
I've got an Earlex 5000 and I've shot some varathane with it, but I've not yet used it with paint.
Tonight I thought I'd give it a try. I wanted to prime a large basic wooden box. I know that viscosity is an issue, so I pulled out the viscosity cup and the instruction manual, and it told me that for water based latex paints it should be 25-60 seconds.
So I opened my can of Primer (Zinsser BullsEye 1-2-3, Primer-Sealer Stain Killer, All Purpose Waterbase, Apply over or under any oil or latex) and started stirring. Once I had it mixed I filled up the viscosity cup and let it drip...
TWO minutes later I was not even down 1/4 of the way and I gave up.
I read the can of primer about thinning and it told me that I should thin NO-MORE than 30ml of clean water per 3.7 Liters of paint. I thought you could thin water-based paint up to 10%. 30 ml per 3.7liters is more like ONE percent. That seems pointless.
Okay, I know you can shoot latex through an Earlex unit. That's what I see them doing at every demonstration at ever woodshow! So how do you do it? Am I using the wrong kind of primer? Is this Zinsser primer (which I think is great when priming walls!) just too thick for an Earlex sprayer?
Am I supposed to ignore the manufacture's guidelines on the label of the paint? The Earlex manual seems contradictory. On the one hand it tells me to follow the manufacturer. Then one paragraph later it tells me to thin by 10%, and by another 5% if that isn't enough, AND repeat if necessary!
Anyone got some wisdom to share?