Fuel Saving Tips

Once you have mastered the basics of your spray guns, you must become adept at adjusting the spray pattern through the fluid flow. Many of the guns have built in air micrometers, which allow variation in the pressure settings. If your particular gun does not have this then you can use a separate air micrometer. The width of the spray pattern is controlled by the fan. The majority of painters like to use a wide fan but it must be remembered that the wider the fan the less material is being distributed.

Many novice painters will complain about large droplets. This is rectified by either adjusting the fluid needle so it lets less liquid through or use more air pressure.

You will not find this applicable with HVLP guns. They only contain 10psi to atomize. Most of them use integrated air converter. The manufacturer will provide you with the proper inlet pressure to set the air pressure cap. This is done after you have set the fluid control and chosen the appropriate nozzle.

To get the very best performance from your HVLP gun at the air inlet slowly increase the pressure and vary the control of the fan. You can do this easily with an accessory air cap. It has dual gauges, which allows you to check the center as well as the horn air cap pressures.

The reason that high performance from the spray gun is so critical is because many of the new paints on the market contain low VOC and high solids material. Atomization becomes increasingly difficult as the volume of paint increases.

Technique Priorities Now that you have your gun ready to do the perfect, job its all up to you. If you are not precise with your painting, you are going to get runs, pitting and mottling.

You must be in control of your spray gun at all times in the following areas?

a) Judging the correct distance from the gun to the object b) Proper trigger action c) Control of the speed at which you are working d) The angle at which you hold the gun. This requires techniques such as heeling toeing and fanning. e) Constantly watch what you are doing so you apply evenly. Do a perpendicular pass at a constant even speed. If you go slowly, you will apply more paint whereas if you go fast you will decrease the amount. f) Make sure you are wetting the surface g) Each pass must overlap the previous application by about 50% h) Make sure you don?t double pass the same area

If you observe a problem let the paint flash and fix the problem on the second pass. There will be some flow after application but this will depend on the amount of reducer and hardener you have used. Once the paint catalyzes though whatever is showing is what will remain until you correct it.

Remember to take your time follow all the steps and you will master any weaknesses you have with your spray painting in no time with practice.

Auto body Repairs Using Sand Blasting Equipment: A restoration requires you to make a choice as to which method you are going to use. In order to do this you really need to categorize the levels of restoration.

Category One - Light to Medium fix ups Mechanical repairs and repainting The basic mechanical work is done first to ensure safety of the vehicle components. This followed by minor body works and refinishing touch ups.

Mechanical repairs with replacements and refinishing Some mechanical parts are replaced as needed. Little more detail is required in the bodywork.

Category Two - In Depth Restoration Similar to the mechanical repairs with replacements with the refinishing more in depth. Some taking apart of the vehicle is required to attend to rust and corrosion of key parts. Items have to cleaned, refurbished or replaced such as drive train parts, suspension and underbody parts. Close color match of body is required and trim may need replacing. Cars restored under this category are often pampered and not used on a daily basis.

Category Three - Just off the Assembly Line Restoration here entails making the car look like it?s just been manufactured. Showroom quality. No body fill can be used in these restorations as well as fiberglass body panels except for some Corvettes.

Category Four - Show Piece This is the museum category and is really not applicable because they are those that are only found in the Museums.

Getting Down to Sandblasting Sandblasters work off of compressed air and are either pressure feed or suction feed which are the cheaper of the two. The only drawback is that part of their energy goes into drawing up the material however; they don?t require an expensive pressure tank. Pressure feeds do require a pressurized tank, but they work extremely well.

Sandblasting is effective cost saving and messy. Should only be done outdoors. With the right grade of sand the results taking it right down to the metal and removing the rust pits. It works effectively on other parts as well. Make sure you apply a flash rust treatment to prevent rust till you get the primer on.

The one thing to remember about sandblasting is do not over do it. As soon as you hit the bare metal stop.

You can use silica sand for various other grades just be sure to be careful with what you use. For light touches, you can use the ground or English walnut shells.

The siphon blasters are a lot less expensive than the pressure blasters. Remember to remove the hardware and trim before blasting and make sure you wear the proper body protection as well ensuring you have a proper hood and gloves. Preferably, a supplied air hood would be ideal.

Sandblasting can be extremely effective provided the right techniques, tools and materials are used in a safe environment. Many individuals are against sand blasting because of the damage it can cause. They are right it can work against you but only if you go beyond what is required. The whole key to success is stopping when you hit the bare metal.

When you are spray painting, don’t be timid. You can bet you are going to get some runs if you don’t wet the panel adequately. This will result to a dry look with a lot of pitting pattern. If the run happens to be during the clear coat application, you can usually repair that once it cures. You will be able to sand out the run and re-coat the panel. Don’t fall into the trap of cover-up. Cover-up means that you are loading on more material to try to cover up the mistake. Don’t do it. It just does not work.

If you follow the instructions, your application problems won’t be as a result of not enough flash time. As the application is curing the solvents in the material evaporate. If you add another coat before this has fully taken place, the material is going to flow. Do yourself a favor and always add for a little extra curing time. You can save yourself a lot of work and headaches by doing this.

Finally, you get the perfect application and then a fly comes along and lands in your material. Don’t panic. Use a pair of tweezers carefully to remove it. Hopefully there will just be a slight imperfection that you will able to sand then polish. Worst comes to worst you will end up respraying the panel.

Some common questions when it comes to spray painting techniques are as follows.

Is the wide pattern technique the best? If you are using the clear materials, you can use the wide patter, but pay attention to what you are doing. You could end up with some really obvious bad patterns. The perfect spray pattern has to be perfectly even from top to bottom. The other thing you need to consider and will have to contend with is the over spray that occurs when the gun is wide open.

I have a HVLP spray gun Can I use any technique I want? You cannot use a regular technique with this spray gun because its give out 10 psi at the cap as opposed to the 50psi in the conventional guns. This means the distance will not be as great with the HVLP gun that means you must be closer to the paint surface. For the convention guns, the standard distance is 8inches whereas with the HVLP it should be between two to four inches.

Will I be able to get as much speed with the HVLP? Standard guns efficiency for transfer is about 25-30% whereas with the HVLP it’s about 65%. So needless to say, the gun excels in this department. You have to remember though that the closer you are spraying to the target surface the faster your stroke. As you extend your distance, you can reduce your stroke. With the HVLP, your target distance is 2-4 inches.

There are terms like convex, concave and waffle. These are terms used in the business of polishing and buffing in the auto repair shop. To most people, polishing and buffing the car is something that they do on the weekend, but in the professional world, this function takes on a much different meaning because there are so many factors to consider in creating ?the perfect finish?, and they require a great deal of training, more than you?d think.

The polishing shop technician has a very important job. For instance, in order to get a good finish that really shines, it is necessary to deceive the eye. This is why a good technician will never use a concentric polisher, because they move in perfect circles. An eccentric polisher is one that moves off center. It has two functions, one is to distribute the compound evenly, by pushing it into the center ? this allows the compound even distribution, and it also prevents splattering of the compound and two, it confuses the eye so that the eye doesn?t see any light reflected in the lines left by a conventional concentric polisher.

As far as the tools used to get that perfect finish, there is some disagreement among technicians as to what to use, the standard wool or the newer foam buffing pads. Most quality paint manufacturers have good tips on the right way to buff and polish, and you can find them on the net.

The technicians who prefer wool say that it gives the best finish, whereas the technicians who prefer the foam pads claim that they like them because they don?t leave bits behind after they go. Although foam pads are new, they are evolving like anything that is new. A recent test was done with technicians who preferred wool, and several of those technicians said they preferred the newer foam to their old wool pads. Sometimes, a technician can be attached to their way of doing things and they will say that they like their way but they have never tried anything new in years.

They will say things like the pads they tried won?t remove wet or dry sand scratches from the panel, and they had to go back to wool to finish the job, but, as I mentioned earlier, old ways die-hard. So they don?t like to try new products, like the newer pads that are specially designed to be more like the wool pads, but without the drawbacks.

The three main types of newer foam polish pads are convex, concave and waffle and these types of pads are designed to create a compound pocket that guides the compound toward the center of the pad and not to the outside so it won?t splatter. Each of the convex, concave, or waffle pads have their own highly specialized function, but the main goal in all of this is the brilliant finish achieved by the illusion that the eye sees

In the fine art of paintless dent removal, it is much more tricky and complicated that you would think it is. It not only requires good training skills, it also requires the special touch.

The tools used for this procedure are long and delicate, to allow access to difficult to reach places. One wrong move can cause a wrinkle in the surface, making a highpoint that is visible when looking at the smoothness of the surface.

Wrinkled metal is one of the most difficult, if not, almost impossible repairs to do, it all depends on the force of the slip.Most often you get one chance only in paintless dent removal, it is a finesse job that requires great skill, combined with a lot of knowledge and a gentle touch.

Gaining Access When doing paintless dent removal, the first thing that has to be done is to gain access, whether it is the hood, roof, door, trunk, or quarter panel. Once access is gained, you have to select the right tool, not forgetting the length, tip size and diameter when you are selecting that tool.

Starting the Repair Once you have started the repair, delicate, and precise movements are required, many times over, it?s the repetition that works the area. The metal can?t be pushed, it has to be “coaxed” back into its original position, and ?coaxed” is the right word being you can only remove small amounts of metal at a time. There are four major types of damage, and different ways to repair each of them. The standard dent is reversed by a massaging action at the center. For a crease, you use work from left to right, while gently applying. If you start with the smallest dent you can repair double rings can be repaired by starting.

The best way to start with is the smaller area then move to the larger one. Once you have repaired about 90 % of the damage, then you need to work on the distortion evident in the larger dent.

The trick of doing the actual repair is to get the light right on the painted side of the surface. You have already got your tool in place from the other side and now you are ready to get into the finer work.

You need to find the precision point of the tip of the tool. To do this shining the light in the same direction stand perpendicular to the crease. Don’t work at an angle as the surface will look distorted. Looking for the tool tip is like stretching a piece of foil and running your fingernail across it from the other side. When you are repairing the surface, you can see the tool tip you gently move it back and forth, much like the fingernail example. Start at the center, and apply pressure steadily, in finite strokes. The larger the dent, the less pressure you need.

Completing The Job. If you did have to make a hole to gain entry, apply sealant as a paint protector and continue to mend the hole.

Anyone who owns a collision shop can tell you that the most costly item to the shop is the comeback repair. Re-do?s can be the difference between being successful and losing, and they reflect poorly on the quality standards, not to mention the inconvenience to the customer.

All it takes is one dissatisfied customer and that can translate into bad word of mouth, which means bad reputation. Collision shop managers have to be very alert when it comes to quality assurance so that they have happy customers and as few negative comebacks as possible. Negative comebacks happen when there are such things as shoddy repair work, poor paint finish, (dull topcoat), grind marks showing, paint cracks or runs or paint over spray on any part of the car, but the worst problem of all is the mismatching of color.

Technicians and management usually share the responsibility, and, in some shops, the liability, so that it?s a combination of the actual repair work and maintaining proper quality assurance levels. When a mistake happens, it is also a proper analysis of what went wrong, rather than who went wrong, and taking the appropriate steps to keep the problem from re-occurring.

The Characteristics of A Painter Paint technicians can be a tricky type of personality, if they aren?t treated right, the works suffers, and that is why some shops are now making them share the responsibilities for their work.

Technicians, on the other hand, are the wind beneath the wings, so that it?s a partnership between technicians and paint technicians, so that there is no one more important than the other. It is also true that while the painter is worth their weight in gold, they can?t work their magic if there isn?t a good quality of prep work.

Improper paint preparation is a disaster if it isn?t done properly, and if the paint technician isn?t as good as required, they won?t spot the problem until it?s too late. The proper quality standards must be put in place and properly adhered to, or those costly mistakes and comebacks will look like money disappearing out the door.

Anyone who owns a collision shop that has a good reputation knows that while the paint preparation and the topcoat are the end result, it is also the surface preparation that has equal importance. Like when you paint a house, the prep work, sanding, filling, and proper masking all have to be done properly; in fact, many paint companies suggest collision shops must stress proper training with attention to strict guidelines.

The time and attention to quality work that is invested in the beginning will result in less money driving out the door in costly comebacks later. If a shop is to be competitive, it must stress quality. “It is a poor worker who blames his tools”, is the old adage, so if collision shop owners keep hearing those types of excuses, then they should really need to do some proper damage control before it?s too late

For those that have an interest in cars, it is their first priority to keep the car in top running condition. At the first whisper of a banging or knocking, up goes the hood to see what is amiss. Then if the problem is found, out come the tools and the repairs are made. If all, else fails and the cause can’t be found, then off to the mechanics shop it goes. Aside from this, the car gets regular cleaning and scheduled cleaning.

If you own a spray gun then in deserves the same care as you give your car. Obviously, you are using your spray gun to paint and coat cars with so if you want the best for your car then give the best to your gun.

You spray gun has three aspects aside from the proper use. There is cleaning, maintenance and repair. You need to know when and how these three operations have to be carried out.

Cleaning: The first time you put your gun away dirty you most likely have caused some form of irreparable damage. Many facilities now are being forced to use enclosed gun washers. Even if you are only using your spray gun as a hobbyist, it is still best to follow whatever the basic industry regulations are as they are normally put into place for your safety and the safety of others.

If you are using one of these enclosed washers then make sure you follow all the instructions that came with it. You will probably read that your gun should never be left it the cleaning unit for more than 60 seconds at time.

Don?t just put your gun in there and come back hours later. The effects would be the same as soaking your gun in thinner and that?s not something you want to be doing. Just as you have to clean your gun, you have to clean your washer as well. Be sure to clean the solvent regularly.

If you overuse it condensation begins to build up and this causes acids. These can be just as bad for your gun as dried paint is. In addition, the debris in the dirty solvent will damage your gun as well. Don?t let the solvents get into the airways of the gun either and be sure to dry the gun when you take it out of the solvent.

Maintenance: By properly checking your gun prior to each use you are going to get the best performance from it. If you don?t and you get a big spatter on that panel you are painting then you have just made a whole lot of new work for yourself. To keep you gun in top shape lubricate it. If you use it daily then oil it daily. Pay special attention to the packing because this is the area that dries out.

Repairs: Don?t try to fix it yourself. Let the professionals do the job but you can certainly help by telling them exactly what the problem is so they can identify the areas that need their attention quickly.

For most car owners, the thought of restoring a car after a collison is daunting. It can be very pricey if the car has been severely damaged. However, these can be easily fixed without the expensive paint jobs and bodywork repair involved

Most minor bodywork issues can be repaired in a matter of minutes, when done by a well-trained, skilled professional. Understanding the process will help you to know what to look for in these unfortunate circumstances.

Usually, collision shops don’t do these smaller repairs themselves they outsource them to a smaller mobile service or they will offer paintless dent removal as an additional service. Dents from the size of a dime to 2 to 3 inches in diameter and larger can be handled by a qualified professional in anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes.

In many cases the dent is so completely gone it will look like nothing was ever there, and in some other instances, all you would see to know that work had been done is a small black plug in the door end. Paintless dent removal is often the best way to retain the integrity of a custom paint job. In the hands of a qualified professional, 10 to 15 vehicles a day can be done with amazing results.

Not Always the Answer The main concern in paintless dent removal is how much the metal was stressed (stretched) by the accident. The reason for this concern is that if the metal is stretched too much, then pushing it as it?s done in paintless dent removal can distort the metal and ruin the paint. The other consideration in paintless dent removal is the nature of the coating. Its age can make the coating brittle, or simply its condition as it left the factory. The reason that this is a concern for paintless dent removal is that a heat gun needs to be applied, and the above conditions can be very susceptible to heat ruining the coating.

Light is also used to determine all of the intricacies of the dented surface, so that there are no flaws showing when the job is complete.

Training, Techniques, and Tools It takes more time than you might think to train as a paintless dent removal technician, it takes about 12 months to train to be a good one, and that?s because you need to know all about access to the dent. Paintless dent removal technicians need to spend around $3,000 on tools because specialized tools are needed to access difficult areas in different makes and models.

So the next time you have a dent, ding, or crease, think about the paintless dent removal system, and ask if it can be done, if it can your pocketbook will thank you.

There are two passageways or channels within the gun. One is for airflow the other for material flow. The fluid needle takes the required paint from the reservoir. As you use the trigger to control the tapered needle, it will pull it from the tip allowing more material through. Simultaneously the trigger regulates the air to allow siphoning of the material from the cup, and atomizes the paint. It is through the fast moving area that a low-pressure area materializes and uses the ambient air pressure as its catalyst to push the material from the cup. Now you can see what it is so important to keep the vent tubes clear and clean.

Some interesting and very important questions are such as these?

Qns 1: There are holes on both side of the air cap - what are they for? These are like an air anvil and are called air horns. This is what allows you paint to flatten out so it makes a pattern. When the air meets the material it is in the impingement zone. As the air comes out of the horn the air hits directly in front of the air cap.

Qns 2: It is now becoming a regulation in many places to clean you gun in an enclosed gun washer. What?s the best way to use these?

If you have never used one before make sure you read and follow all instructions. They are designed to work in cycles of 60 seconds, so don?t leave you gun in there beyond that time period. The cleaning action is like putting your gun fully immersed into lacquer thinner. Can you imagine the shape of your gun if you leave it in too long or too often?

Condensation will form in your gun if you do not change the solvent on a regular basis. This means acids start to form and this is certainly not good for your gun. If you are cleaning, a gravity gun is sure to plug up the air inlet before putting it into the washer. You don?t want the solvent getting in here. Once done remove the gun and dry immediately with a cloth. If the packing starts to leak, you can change it.

Qns 3: My Spray gun produces a bad pattern:

Most likely, a rebuild kit won?t correct the problem. Balance the air with the material.

Some other things to remember is you have to use more that one gun for refinish materials if you are in a compliant area. Temperature ranges are important for HVLP guns if it?s the larger ones; it?s not for the smaller ones. Lubricate you gun with a 4 oz. Mineral oil. Remember to match the fluid nozzles with the type of material you using. Using multiple guns means you don?t have to keep changing tips. Keep your gun in top-notch shape by not dropping it or immersing it in thinned. Avoid harsh chemicals.

If you have decided to do some repairs on your car perhaps in preparation for painting then you will need to know how to remove the old paint.

To begin with, you will most likely want to use a paint stripper rather than hours of sanding. There are many commercial paint strippers on the market. One thing you must bear in mind is these are chemicals, and most certainly must be treated with respect.

You must put all of the safety precautions in place before you begin to work. First of all, you will want to work in a well ventilated area. The fumes of some of these paint strippers can be pretty strong, and dangerous to breathe for any period of time. Perhaps you may want to consider wearing a mask that is applicable for fumes. In addition don?t bypass the safety goggles, If any of the solution were to splash in your eyes it could cause blindness.

Although there are many commercial strippers on the market, they all will have their own individual instructions on how to use it. Be sure and read the directions carefully before starting.

Ok so now you are ready to start. If possible, remove the body panel so it will be easier to work with. Put it on a stand if you have one and make sure the floor area is protected in case of drips. Now apply the stripper liberally with a brush unless it came with an applicator.

Once you have applied the stripper cover the piece with plastic. This will help to contain the fumes. In addition, it will help the stripper to work faster. Leave it this way for about 20 minutes.

Now remove the plastic and discard carefully. With a putty knife or a scrape start to remove the paint. Once you have scraped off all of the paint you can, rinse the piece with cool water. Be sure to wear you gloves. The cool water helps to neutralize the paint remover.

Once you have reached this point you need to assess the piece. If there isn?t too much paint still there you may want to sand the remainder off. On the other hand, if there is a fair amount still to be removed you may want to re strip it again. Either way you want to be sure, all of the paint has been removed. It wouldn?t hurt to give it a light sanding once you are finished with the stripper.

We have given you the basic steps here on how to work with strippers. One thing you must remember though is to follow the instructions exactly as they are outlined on the product. If you are not sure what you should use, then check with the store where you are buying the product. There may be various types that are used for specific jobs. You want to be sure and get the one that is best for you. Once you have completed the job, make sure everything is disposed of properly.