Big Bass Man Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 What is the best airbrush to use for automotive clear coat? I have been using a Harbor Freight .5 siphon feed but not really pleased with the way it sprays the clear. I thought about going to a full size sprayer, but I would waste a ton of clear. Patrick 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 (edited) What is it you don't like about the Harbor Freight airbrush Pat? I was thinking of getting one to use just for spraying auto clear. Can you purchase different size nozzles and needles for the HF brush? I've only sprayed a few baits and have used 2 different brushes. One was a Paasche VL with their #3 tip in it and it seemed to do OK. (have no idea how Paasche sizes their nozzles or what their #3 is comparable to---seems fairly large though) Also sprayed it in an Air Pro Tools airbrush (cheap Iwata knock-off) with a .2mm tip in it. The auto clear seemed like it was trying to set up in the smaller tip before I was finished. It actually quit spraying once, but by backing the needle out I was able to clear the nozzle and it started spraying again. The fact that it tried to clog worried me as I was only clearing 2 baits. The .2mm nozzle might be a tad small to spray the auto clear. Glad you posted this as I'm anxious to see what some of the more knowledgeable guys have to say. Ben Edited July 15, 2011 by RayburnGuy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Bass Man Posted July 15, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 Thanks for the reply BEN!! The siphon feed just shoots out a small fine line of the clear with the air pressure turned up to 45 psi. I was hoping to know of an airbrush that will spray it out in a wider pattern. I thought about trying one of my iwatas, but thought I would ask for some advice on here first. Patrick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Bass Man Posted July 15, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 Can you purchase different size nozzles and needles for the HF brush? The HF brush I got has three different needle sizes with it, .2 , .3, and a .5 all came with the brush. It was two years ago when I purchased the airbrush, dont really know what all types of airbrushes they have in stock now. My neighbor got me started on the auto clear. He restores old muscle cars and asked me to customize a few tags for him and he showed me everything I needed to know about spraying the clear, but knows nothing about airbrushes. I use a full size sprayer on the tags and it goes on great. A full size sprayer is a bit too much for baits though. I am just thinking that a gravity feed will spray the clear on better than the siphon feed. Patrick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodieb8 Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 hi. we use paasche h brush. 50lbs pressure. works well for baits. if you need a larger spray pattern. go to a binks touch up gun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 I've only been using around 20 psi to spray the auto clear since the viscosity is so low. So far the baits that have been sprayed using the lower pressure have turned out great. Should I be using more pressure? Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kris Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 Glad to see this topic raised. Been thinking of trying auto clear myself and was wondering about the best AB to use. For those who have already sprayed auto clear ... what is best to spray through the AB to clean it? Lacquer Thinner ? Also, are you using a 2-part clear or one that is ready to shoot out the can? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 Glad to see this topic raised. Been thinking of trying auto clear myself and was wondering about the best AB to use. For those who have already sprayed auto clear ... what is best to spray through the AB to clean it? Lacquer Thinner ? Also, are you using a 2-part clear or one that is ready to shoot out the can? I've just recently started using auto clear so there may be better ways than what I'm doing. The auto clear I have is a 2 part clear that is mixed at a ratio of 4 to 1. Been cleaning my brushes with acetone and it seems to be working fine so far. Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coley Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 A detail gun would be a much better choice for auto clear than an airbrush. Check Harbor Freight, $12.99 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anglinarcher Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 The airbrush is fine, but a medium sized tip might be best. The key is to use a gravity feed brush so you are not spraying so much air, which dries the material in the tip. Are you spraying this stuff in an open area, with lots of fresh air, and wearing a chemical mask? That stuff is pretty dangerous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
68KingFisher Posted July 16, 2011 Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 You can shoot auto clear thru a large tipped airbrush, but its not really the optimal way to it.....I've cleared lots of stuff over the years and while I have shot clear on several items with an airbrush (including crankbaits) I find its much easier, quicker and I seem to get a better finish when I use a bigger gun like a touchup gun or my preference, a gravity feed mini hvlp gun.....I've got one from Astro that is a Sata minijet knockoff and it works great for shooting clear on small items. Those smaller guns are perfect for work like this....Lures are just too small to ever need a full sized spraygun when clearing and sometimes an airbrush isn't quite big enough....Mini guns fit the bill. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Bass Man Posted July 16, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 Thanks guys for all of the replies!! You can shoot auto clear thru a large tipped airbrush, but its not really the optimal way to it.....I've cleared lots of stuff over the years and while I have shot clear on several items with an airbrush (including crankbaits) I find its much easier, quicker and I seem to get a better finish when I use a bigger gun like a touchup gun or my preference, a gravity feed mini hvlp gun.....I've got one from Astro that is a Sata minijet knockoff and it works great for shooting clear on small items. Those smaller guns are perfect for work like this....Lures are just too small to ever need a full sized spraygun when clearing and sometimes an airbrush isn't quite big enough....Mini guns fit the bill. Thanks 68kingfisher!!! Do you have a link with gravity feed hlvp gun that you are refering to? I just want to make sure that I purchase the right one, so that I dont have to go purchase another. I sure appreciate all you guys that know what type of airbrushes to use with the auto clear!! Patrick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted July 16, 2011 Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 @ Anglinarcher Yep, spraying outside with an organic vapor respirator. Been using right at 20 psi to spray with. Could probably turn that down even more as thin as the auto clear is. @ 68KingFisher Will have to check out the Astro mini gun. thanks guys, Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Bass Man Posted July 16, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 Are you spraying this stuff in an open area, with lots of fresh air, and wearing a chemical mask? That stuff is pretty dangerous. I spray it in a well ventilated area with fans blowing it out the door as I am spraying it. I wear a 3m chemical mask while spraying also. Its a must to use the auto clear on the tags, because the epoxy will yellow pretty quick on tags, that goes on the front of cars. I have read a ton of good things about using it on baits for a clear. Since I already have the clear for the custom tags, I want to be able to use it on baits also. Thanks again guys!! Patrick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Bass Man Posted July 16, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 (edited) What is the best nozzle size on the mini guns for the clear? Edited July 16, 2011 by Big Bass Man Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
68KingFisher Posted July 16, 2011 Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 As is typical with anything I purchase, my Astro mini gun is no longer produced....but I found what appears to be an equally nice little hvlp mini gun for a decent price from Harbor Freight.....theres even a nice little video showing the gun in action so you can see the spray pattern before ya buy....check it out. http://www.harborfreight.com/air-tools/paint/hvlp-detail-spray-gun-46719.html My Astro has a 1.2 nozzle size and I find it works well for anything smaller then a motorcycle tank....Once I paint something bigger then a bike tank, I'll switch to a full size gun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brent R Posted July 16, 2011 Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 I just read some reviews on the HF HVLP brushes......what i read was not good...... the reviews were not on the HF site.....just thought i would pass this a long.... Brent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MuskyGary Posted July 16, 2011 Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 What type of clear are you guys using? I take it there must be a one part that air cures? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rds Posted July 16, 2011 Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 What type of clear are you guys using? I take it there must be a one part that air cures? For what is worth. My norm has been 14" wood baits. I have been spraying Excel or Wham Bam, both automotive 2part clears. When doing 40 to 50 at a time I spray with an auto touch up gun,HVLP. if it's a few, I use my Badger anthem. They have a tapered needle no size.For my application it comes down to the right amount of reducer being used. The 4 second drip test is a good rule for any mix, clear coats can be over reduced with excellent results. Coverage is best obtained with a wider spray pattern , 75 percent overlap and a wet look to the clear. Depending on the need , pressure goes from 15 to 35 psi. Just started making smaller baits this year and had to get the anthem fine needle setup, works well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted July 16, 2011 Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 I only spray a few baits at a time so I think I'm going to stick with using my Paasche VL with their mid-size #3 tip. It's been doing a good job as far as I can tell. No clogging issues, pretty simple to tear apart for cleaning and has a good spray pattern. Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brent R Posted July 16, 2011 Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 @ Ben What kind of auto clear do you use and what is the mix ratio.?????? Does it make a difference if your airbrush has teflon packing...seems to me that teflon would be better.....You said you use a size 3 tip......have you ever used a number 5.......I'm just wondering if the larger tip would be better......Thanks for your help.....take care Brent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayburnGuy Posted July 16, 2011 Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 @ Ben What kind of auto clear do you use and what is the mix ratio.?????? Does it make a difference if your airbrush has teflon packing...seems to me that teflon would be better.....You said you use a size 3 tip......have you ever used a number 5.......I'm just wondering if the larger tip would be better......Thanks for your help.....take care Brent I'm using Dupont Select Clear 2K 498-00 and the mid-temp activator. They make different activators to be used at different temperature ranges. It is mixed at a 4 to 1 ratio. (4 parts resin to 1 part activator) I think that most quality airbrushes that are manufactured these days have teflon packing so you probably don't need to worry about that. But to answer your question, yes, teflon is better than a rubber o-ring as it's more resistant to harsh chemicals. As far as nozzle size don't get a Paasche #3 nozzle confused with a .3 millimeter nozzle. Paasche has their own way of sizing nozzles and I'm not exactly sure how they size them, but a #3 nozzle is fairly large in comparison to a .3mm nozzle. I'm usually only clearing a couple baits at a time and a #3 nozzle in the Paasche VL is quite adequate in my opinion. Using a #5 nozzle would create quite a bit more overspray and you would just be wasting product and I don't see that you would save much, if any, time when spraying a few baits. Again that's just my opinion. If I were building baits for sale and spraying hundreds of them at a time I would probably go with one of the HVLP mini-guns that have been discussed earlier in this thread. hope this answers your questions, Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Bass Man Posted July 17, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 17, 2011 Thanks Guys!! I picked up a mini hvlp touch-up gun Today. I will give it a try in the next few days and let yall know how it works out. Do you think the lacqer thinner will affect the plastic paint holder? I use the Dupont Chromaclear 4:1 mix ratio. Patrick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kris Posted July 17, 2011 Report Share Posted July 17, 2011 (edited) What about the clear coat product from Duplicolor Paint Shop line? Requires no mixing or reducing. http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_Paint-Shop%C2%99-Finish-System-Clear-Top-Coat,-Gloss-Clear,-32-oz--Quart-Duplicolor_7141551-P_N3276_T|GRP2050_____ Edited July 17, 2011 by Kris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdL Posted July 17, 2011 Report Share Posted July 17, 2011 What about the clear coat product from Duplicolor Paint Shop line? Requires no mixing or reducing. http://shop.advancea..._T|GRP2050_____ The link page says this product is a laquer. The other products mentioned as 2 part are likely urethane products. So results( finish and durability) will vary with application and use. Its up to the user to decide. Everyone will have opinions and likely will be all over the place. Some will have cost and availability concerns and others won't. If you just build a few baits for yourself and friends one might make the most sense to you. If you are in more of a production mode then another finish. In other words its really up to you and what you're willing to try. Kind of like buying a pickup truck. All kinds and all sizes. Pick the one thats best for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
