Orange Peel: Paint Tips Needed

[awdfury]

Well maybe you have or maybe you havent seen my recent build thread. Last night i was able to paint the backside of my doors and my trunk. When i went to inspect them today i noticed that i still have a good amount of orange peel. Most of this went away when i painted my engine compartment but not so this time. I am a amatuer and this is the first time i have ever painted so any tips would be greatly appreciated. I am using a Devilbiss HVLP paint gun and dupont paint. What could i posibly be doing wrong?? I have also noticed that the gun surges (sprays a significant amount of air at first and then slows down unless i let off the trigger and let the pressure build again). What could this be a result of?? I am spraying at about 60psi at the compressor. Well again any tips would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

[Dousan_PG]

get a nice guy
get a regulator for it
might help a lot

[s13drob]

get a nice guy
get a regulator for it
might help a lot

im not a pro yet alone own a sprayer. but i know a regulator will keep the pressure consistent and alow even flows.

[awdfury]

yea i have a regulator and an air dryer and a 60 gallon compressor

[Dousan_PG]

from wathcing my friend paint
could be the pressure you are putting it onto the car at
how close you are shooting
the waether conditions
the quality of paint
your shooting ability

um...thats all i can think of.

he's no expert
practice makes perfect though
or at least abit better each time
its really ALL IN THE PREP
the better the prep the better the quality. always.
too bad im lazy
my prep sucks
its a 10 footer..if not more often haha

haha
first time:
(its all dirty but there was a lot of orange peel)
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c252/dousan/new%20s13/aaronweb.jpg
second time:
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c252/dousan/new%20s13/track1215016.jpg

most recent:
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c252/dousan/new%20s13/track1215004.jpg

[Kiro1968]

Well maybe you have or maybe you havent seen my recent build thread. Last night i was able to paint the backside of my doors and my trunk. When i went to inspect them today i noticed that i still have a good amount of orange peel. Most of this went away when i painted my engine compartment but not so this time. I am a amatuer and this is the first time i have ever painted so any tips would be greatly appreciated. I am using a Devilbiss HVLP paint gun and dupont paint. What could i posibly be doing wrong?? I have also noticed that the gun surges (sprays a significant amount of air at first and then slows down unless i let off the trigger and let the pressure build again). What could this be a result of?? I am spraying at about 60psi at the compressor. Well again any tips would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

You need a good compressor. Air must be regulated prior to entering the gun ~27 psi and at the tip of the gun. Next important thing is the technique, how steady you are with the gun and how consistant you are at keeping the gun at the same distance from the panel being sprayed. Then when your done don't forget to color sand and buff the panels. Thats the appreviated version. :rofl:

[farazshah]

The orange peel could easily be caused by too much pressure at the nozzle, or you could be spraying too close to the surface. Also, the varying pressure can be solved by getting the regulator. This is secondary to your compressor's regulator, and they can be had through mcmaster carr.

[leveloneae86]

nobody has mentioned cleaning the surface thoroughly before painting to get rid of all of the oils from your hands taht cause chemical reactions afterwards. make sure you wetsand it right before sealer and or primer. good luck

[FRpilot]

i'm not an expert.. but from how you are describing the pressure issue problem.. you stated you are running a 60gal compressor, a dryer for water filtration?, and a regulator at the gun.. it sounds like this has more to deal with your compressor and the cfm output it provides (the real number you want to look at when buying a compressor).

those sears and other brands (mainly sears though) compressors advertised at 6hp 30gal 150psi compressor are a bit misleading to consumers.. unfortunately, i bought one as well for about $300.. what you want is a a good 220v 2stage 80gal minimum compressor that can produce about 18+ cfm for your hvlp gun.. but they cost a lot like $1200+ (for a good reliable compressor from ingersoll rand). maybe one day i'll buy one of those and have to get the house rewired for more 220v outlets. generally.. the more cfms the better but 25cfm 100+ gal compressors will run about 3000 so im looking for more of a 80gal 17-20cfm compressor.

i'm assuming that your compressor is at "6hp" a hvlp gun like the devillbiss you have consumes a lot of air.. most hvlp guns need like 15+ cfms to operate properly.. i'm surprised you dont have to stop after painting every 2 panels for your compressor to recharge.. but maybe this is why your gun a sputtering. you should try to keep an eye at how much air you are using by looking at your regulator. i'm using a lvlp gun because im using my "cheap" sears compressor.. the gun is adaquate for my compressor limitations and the lvlp gun is not as much of an air hog as hvlp guns. eventually i want to get a good hvlp gun when i can afford a $1000+ compressor like a sata 2000 or iwata lph400 gun, but those good guns cost about $400 as well. paint tools can get expensive.

Unfortunately you cant go by what the manufactures say as far as HP is concerned.. The rule of thumb is 3 CFM for every HP, but it varies a good bit depending by manufacturer. a sears motor is not rated the same as a ingersoll rand motor which is not the same as campbell hausfeld, etc.

Look at the amps it uses.. This tells the real story.. for every 3-4 amps is roughly 1 HP, so a 17.5 amp motor will net you 5hp.. then you can figure your CFM from there..

I dont understand how companys like Sears who say there little 5 amp motor 25 gallon compressors are 5hp, are not getting their pants sued off.. Its a bold face lie.. ie.. false advertisement

[Dousan_PG]

we use the 6hp 30 gal on my car it is fine
it works just not the best ever. i do have orange peal though
but the better lindsay gets at shooting the better the outcome too
workwith what you have
garage paint jobs..oh yeah thats me haha
im poor

[dorkjoey240]

we use the 6hp 30 gal on my car it is fine
it works just not the best ever. i do have orange peal though
but the better lindsay gets at shooting the better the outcome too
workwith what you have
garage paint jobs..oh yeah thats me haha
im poor
sick orange 240sx :bowdown:

[Addicted2Kouki]

pressure is too high.
why are you shooting it at 60psi?

when i spray with a sata... its at about....25-29 depending on what im spraying.
sometimes lower.

with some guns, you can get as low as 10psi. [LVLP]



also... the angle and overspray could be affecting how the paint is layed down.
you want the tip of the spray gun to always be perpendicular to the surface you are spraying.

also, about 6 inches away, or as i was taught,
the length from your pinky to your thumb when you spread your hand out, at all times.

spray pattern should be about.. 5-6 inches up and down


reducing the paint/clear always helps with reducing orange peel,
but the more you put in...
the easier it is to run and it can affect the color sometimes.

you can get rid of orange peel by colorsanding and buffing.

another way, if you figured out how to spray clear on flat...
is to sand the whole car down, enough to get rid of the orange peel.
then spray a flow coat.
which is another layer of clear, but without the orange peel.


if you were in socal, id help you out.
i paint, so if you have any questions. lemme know.

[95KA-Turbo]

For one you need to adjust the gun until it is spray the least amount of orange peel as possible onto a piece of cardboard or an extra body panel or something. When you start spraying you should be shooting away from the car a little, then angle toward it and before you let off the trigger be angled away again (think of your hand motion like a C with the middle of the C being the surface you want to spray).

I'm no pro but here is the first thing I've painted:

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c51/95KA-Turbo/Bumper-1-1.jpg

[Addicted2Kouki]

..When you start spraying you should be shooting away from the car a little, then angle toward it and before you let off the trigger be angled away again (think of your hand motion like a C with the middle of the C being the surface you want to spray).

picture removed.
[but that was pretty not bad.]



thats not necessary. especially for a beginner.
but if you have sprayed a lot there are times you would do that.

you should follow the shape if its a bumper.
and like i said, stay the same distance away, at all times.
when you start shooting, you should be off the car a lil.
then when you get to the other end of it, you should keep spraying a lil off it.

this is for coverage.

get off the paint trigger, but stay on the air to keep air flow consistant.
make sure your trigger is adjusted so that when you pull it all the way,
its flowing the paint out WOT. lol.

[tanks13]

also make sure you use a tak rag clean the whole car then do the hose after that touch some type of metal to dicharge the static you build up when ur cleaning the car worked for me

[ByeByeSti]

alright well.. everyone else has seem to of covered it all for ya, but this is what i did when i painted my audi(first paint job ever). first sanded it, prepped it obviously, sprayed 2 coats of primer, sanded with 320+ on each coat. then wiped clean with tack cloth inbetween to remove all loose particles on surface. after that mixed up the paint, test sprayed on a cabinet to check psi and how the gun was spraying, then turned the psi down to around 30 on mine(80 gal). began spraying in jams and then onto the outside, keep a nice and steady hand, keeping the gun 6-12 inches away from the car. remember to keep it perpendicular to the surface your spraying though as addicted2kouki said. try and stay at the same pace throughout the entire time while spraying to. sand intween always with a high grit paper.. oh and get a regulator sir!

goodluck and let us know how it comes out!

[95KA-Turbo]

thats not necessary. especially for a beginner.
but if you have sprayed a lot there are times you would do that.

you should follow the shape if its a bumper.
and like i said, stay the same distance away, at all times.
when you start shooting, you should be off the car a lil.
then when you get to the other end of it, you should keep spraying a lil off it.

this is for coverage.

get off the paint trigger, but stay on the air to keep air flow consistant.
make sure your trigger is adjusted so that when you pull it all the way,
its flowing the paint out WOT. lol.

That is what I meant by C shape, I just didn't explain myself very well. I figured it would be obvious you'd go down the length of the whole thing. Thank you for clarifying though I was going to come in here and do it myself (since I realized how vague I was) but now I don't have to!

[forgottenpromize]

it sounds like you need a bigger compressor and like everyone else said its all in the prep work... and orange peel isnt that big of a problem just wet sand and buff.. if you want to make any paint job look good you should wet sand and buff... thats just my imput.... oh and make sure that your mixing your paint right and using the right reducer for the tempature your working with... and make sure that your gun is super clean a clogged nozzle can make it spray uneven... hope some of this helps

[punxva]

also when shooting, if your getting orange peel, you need to adjust your distance, usually i start farther away then get closer as needed. if it's really bad sanding wont do too much but a respray would, it takes practice, but once you get it down, it's really not too hard

[awdfury]

Yea i think my issu is that m compressor is rated at 10.8 cfm @ 90psi and 12.8 @ 40psi and the gun requires 13cfm. That sucks. I have done everything else that you guys have suggested so this has to be the issue. Looks like it is time for a new compressor. Well I guess this just means a lot of color sanding for me :(

[ByeByeSti]

goodluck with it man! look for a new compressor on craigslist or something im sure someone around you has one for a fair price.

[MeSs]

most recent:
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c252/dousan/new%20s13/track1215004.jpg
Very ot, but how did you fit your rear fenders? :) Very nice.. Awesome car!

[Dousan_PG]

fit my rears? what u mean???

[Naughty240]

You gotta watch out for speed or hardener and reducer. Overall paint job you need a slow hardener. Painting shows no mercy for beginners. It takes time and someone to teach you the right way.

[babowc]

probably asking because he sees no rivets?

[Dousan_PG]

there are rivits there.

[babowc]

Question anssswered.

[Mugenglare]

Aight well......you got a couple problems lol. Ok so if you u were spaying 60psi at the gun thats bad keep it at 29psi to 33psi at the most with an HVLP. Oh and what is the cubic feet per minute? And how big is the tank? It needs a lot more of a volume of air. Oh and a tip on the spray pattern.... ninja turtle it up thumb and pinky extended how long ithe pattern it is and how far it should be away from the panel.....that would be the top srew im assuming its like that on mine...its should look almost like a long oval...next turn the air cap so the horns are parallel to the ground get a cardboard box or paper something to spray on that is flat and hanging up. The paint and or clear should run evenly along the the length of the pattern. The bottom one adjusts the fluid amount. turn the air cap back and good luck

Well maybe you have or maybe you havent seen my recent build thread. Last night i was able to paint the backside of my doors and my trunk. When i went to inspect them today i noticed that i still have a good amount of orange peel. Most of this went away when i painted my engine compartment but not so this time. I am a amatuer and this is the first time i have ever painted so any tips would be greatly appreciated. I am using a Devilbiss HVLP paint gun and dupont paint. What could i posibly be doing wrong?? I have also noticed that the gun surges (sprays a significant amount of air at first and then slows down unless i let off the trigger and let the pressure build again). What could this be a result of?? I am spraying at about 60psi at the compressor. Well again any tips would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

[LloydXmas]

not going to read all of this, I paint and there are several factors.

1. air pressure, and how clean the air is.

2. How warm or cold, along with humidity.

3. How you are spraying.

also the gun surging means it is either A. not cleaned well, or B. not assembled correctly. Don't use a regulator, the true way to regulate your gun is from the wall a.k.a. the compressor not the gun, starving the gun of air will only make things worse. Look at dupont paint instructions it will say that!

[MeSs]

fit my rears? what u mean???
Fit you rear overfenders, glued them? :)

[Dousan_PG]

no rivited.
glued? wtf

[MeSs]

no rivited.
glued? wtf

Sorry, cant see the rivits.. Clean tho :)

[kognition]

Are you spraying in a vented booth or just free balling it?

[GabeS14]

sorry toi jump in on the thread like this, but if you already sprayed and hae orange peel, should i just keep wetsanding it till it smoothes out?
will it totally smoth out or do i run the risk of sanding away all the clear and some of the paint?
first time painting..

[Nikeboy355]

You will always end up with some orange peel... Ofcourse you can minimize it through adjusting air pressure, how much the paint was thinned out, and painting style...

Just get a soft block with 1500 grit sandpaper and wetsand it until it's even (sand it, let it dry, and you'll be able to see the "orange peel" bumps)...
Rent a professional buffer and buy some rubbing compound...
Polish the paint until it glosses beautifully...

If you haven't done this process before (called color sand and buff) I suggest you take it really slow because you can damage the paint if you sand or buff too much...

http://nitinj.com/Images/240SX2/240SX2%20in%20the%20booth%20-%20rear.JPG

You could do a better job with several different grit sandpapers and different polishing wheels/compounds but using 1500 and regular rubbing compound will get you 90% of the way to perfect...