Cabinet Paint for Spraying

[james glenn]

I am finishing up some Laundry Room cabinets that are plywood boxes with mdf face frames and panel doors. I am thinking of leaving the insides natural and painted the doors & frames.

My questions for the brain trust are:

1. What paint do you recommend for face frames and doors in this application? I would prefer to use the HVLP, as it's easiest to setup and clean. I do have a large, commercial airless but it's a PIA unless I use 5 gallon pails which I do not need.
I have a 30% discount at Sherwin Williams, but am open to whatever is available during these times.

2. What is recommended for the birch ply to keep the insides natural? Possibly something that is rolled or brushed as I prefer to do this finishing before assembly.

I searched the older posts for some info, but most are a while back and not dealing with the state of the world today.

I appreciate everyone's input.

Jimmy

[Jim Becker]

Best choice is likely a tinted product from General Finishes ("milk paint" acrylic) or Target Coatings (EM6500 tinted in any color you want) or similar. Off the shelf SW ProClassic or BM Advance can also be used. ALL of these products require a proper gun setup to spray successfully as they are not "thin" finishes. The SW ProClassic is very nice but not generally available in "dark" colors. BM Advance, which is an emulsified alkid finish that's waterborne is also worthy, but has a much longer cure time than the ProClassic or the GF or TC products. Again, your gun is key...you need to be able to dial it in for these thicker, non-clear finishes, as even lightly reduced, they are still pretty viscous.

For your cabinet interiors, if you didn't use prefinished material, use a waterborne clear or shellac. NEVER use an oil based product on the inside of cabinets or furniture...the odor lasts literally forever.

[Prashun Patel]

You can spray Zinsser BIN and top with any top coat you wish. If you are doing white, this may be the easiest.

I have heard of people tinting Zinsser BIN as well but cannot attest.

[John TenEyck]

I've had great results with Lenmar's Duralaq waterborne acrylic which you can buy at Benjamin Moore. Their primer, called Undercoater, is the most amazing stuff. Very heavy bodied, but the viscosity is lower than BIN pigmented shellac based primer, which is really hard to imagine but true; something like 25 seconds #4 Ford cup. It sprays great through an HVLP gun w/o thinning assuming you have a 1.4 mm or larger N/N set. I've used it on both MDF, HDF, and maple with excellent results, with minimal grain raising. I really like BIN pigmented shellac primer, too, but Undercoater costs less, has minimal grain raising, and you can't beat soap and water cleanup. Duralaq is available in white and the clear, odd as that sounds, can be tinted (at no extra cost) to any of BM's 3000+ colors. The clear itself has a viscosity of around 45 sec #4 Ford cup and sprays w/o issue. The white and tinted versions have a viscosity around 100 seconds, so you would need a 2.0 mm N/N to spray it well with a gravity feed HVLP rig. I use an air assisted HVLP gun and the results are factory good. The Duralaq product line is a true bargain IMO.

For the interiors I would use GF's Enduro Clear Poly or Lenmar's Megavar as they have higher chemical durability than Duralaq.

John

[Prashun Patel]

Bookmarked. thx.

[james glenn]

Thank you all for the input. I'll look into all of it and see what's available near me. In NY, most everything is closed and shipping is pretty slow but I will find one of the suggestions I am sure.

I truly appreciate the help on this forum!

[John TenEyck]

James, I just noticed you are in Amsterdam. I grew up in St. Johnsville, about 30 miles to your West. Small world.

AFAIK, the paint stores are still open in the Buffalo area where I live now. Lenmar says BM stores are open and will deliver or provide curbside pickup. And you definitely can order directly or from the distributors of TC and GF.

John

[Jim Becker]

SW stores are open here in SE PA for curbside pickup with pre-order and pre-pay. Target Costings is shipping product no problem (discount code until the end of the month is MA25) and most sources for GF products ship, too.

[james glenn]

James, I just noticed you are in Amsterdam. I grew up in St. Johnsville, about 30 miles to your West. Small world.

AFAIK, the paint stores are still open in the Buffalo area where I live now. Lenmar says BM stores are open and will deliver or provide curbside pickup. And you definitely can order directly or from the distributors of TC and GF.

John

Small world! I actually live in Galway and am familiar with St. Johnsville since it's a small farming town like mine.
I appreciate the information and plan to contact the local stores tomorrow morning.

[Jared Sankovich]

I've had great results with Lenmar's Duralaq waterborne acrylic which you can buy at Benjamin Moore. Their primer, called Undercoater, is the most amazing stuff. Very heavy bodied, but the viscosity is lower than BIN pigmented shellac based primer, which is really hard to imagine but true; something like 25 seconds #4 Ford cup. It sprays great through an HVLP gun w/o thinning assuming you have a 1.4 mm or larger N/N set. I've used it on both MDF, HDF, and maple with excellent results, with minimal grain raising. I really like BIN pigmented shellac primer, too, but Undercoater costs less, has minimal grain raising, and you can't beat soap and water cleanup. Duralaq is available in white and the clear, odd as that sounds, can be tinted (at no extra cost) to any of BM's 3000+ colors. The clear itself has a viscosity of around 45 sec #4 Ford cup and sprays w/o issue. The white and tinted versions have a viscosity around 100 seconds, so you would need a 2.0 mm N/N to spray it well with a gravity feed HVLP rig. I use an air assisted HVLP gun and the results are factory good. The Duralaq product line is a true bargain IMO.

For the interiors I would use GF's Enduro Clear Poly or Lenmar's Megavar as they have higher chemical durability than Duralaq.

John

I've been using lenmar duralaq and ultralaq (solvent) for a few years, and have been very happy with the product.

I keep meaning to try the waterborne.

[Patrick McCarthy]

Bookmarked. thx.

I admit my ignorance; how do i bookmark a post or a thread??

Old as dirt, or so it seems to my brain . . . .