Finishing Spray Equipment

[Keith Gwin]

I am interested in buying a piece of equipment to spray finishes such as stains and top coats. I would like to know what the advantages of a turbine is over using my air compressor (with dryer) and a DeVBLISS gun? I had made my mind up on the cheapest Earlex sprayer but I think a gravity feed system would be better because of now having to mix a lot of finish to ensure the pickup is flooded in a suction system. Please Help!!!!

[Jeff Nolan]

I'm not a big fan of turbine systems because the air is warm or even hot and that is one more variable to deal with. Plus there is more "stuff" to have to deal with and that adds complexity in general.

There are some really good HVLP gravity feed guns that require very little air, the Asturo Eco/S is one good example and a favorite for me. It's easy to clean and maintain, performs great, and is quite compact.

A gravity fed gun is good for the reason you suggest, not wasting a lot of material.

Lastly, I don't have a dryer on my compressor (6hp twin piston oil bath) but I don't live in a humid climate either. If you are shooting waterborne finishes I suspect the slight amount of moisture in your air system would not be an issue at all.

[Tony Bilello]

I'm not a big fan of turbine systems because the air is warm or even hot and that is one more variable to deal with. Plus there is more "stuff" to have to deal with and that adds complexity in general......

In the hot summer season, will the hot air from the turbine mess up lacquer by drying too fast? Conversely, will this be an asset during the colder days in the shop? Also, what other problems can the turbine create?

Thanks in advance.

[Jeff Nolan]

I don't have the experience with turbine systems necessary to answer that question.

In general you want to achieve an equilibrium between atmospheric and finish material conditions. Lot's of people shoot successfully with turbine systems so it is most evident that they work fine, my principle objection is that systems that have more components introduce more points of failure.

[Tony Bilello]

I have the Earlex Spray Station Pro and have sprayed over 50 or 60 pieces of furniture with it over the last 5 or 6 weeks. It sprays pretty good once you get used to HVLP. The reason I asked if the hot air from the turbine will make lacquer dry too quickly in the summer months is because now during the cooler, wetter weather, I have been spraying in marginal conditions and the humidity dont seem to be much of a problem. So far I have sprayed at 85* humidity with no blush in black lacquer. I will continue to push the envelope and see how far I can go humidity wise.
The portability of the turbine is a definite plus. It more than paid for itself the first time I sprayed cabinet doors and drawer fronts in someone elses garage. They had everything already prepped, all I did was spray.

[Jeff Nolan]

yeah the portability is hard to overlook as an advantage. Some of the better HVLP guns draw less than 10 cfm at 20 psi so you can use a portable compressor but it's still not as portable as the turbine systems.