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compressors

Greggles_VS

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Wondering minimum specs for an air compressor for spray painting a car. How many Lt tank minimum, what delivery p/s, direct or belt driven and how many up? Cheers
 

ari666

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varies depending on your gun really. bigger isnt always better too. i have a 50ltr el-cheaper comp thatll do more than half a car no stress.

also take into consideration the voltage requirements. the bigger dual engines are 15A which will trip fuses after a few mins of use.

what are you planning on spraying and what gun have you got?
 

WazzaVN

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Look at the litters per minute as a guide. The more you get the easier it will be to paint your car. But as ari said some of the big bastards will flip your switch. Like mine does lol.

Best to use a gravity fed gun. Sucktion fed guns besides sucking in general need more air pressure and can start spattering when your pressure goes right down.
 

Drawnnite

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also take into consideration the voltage requirements. the bigger dual engines are 15A which will trip fuses after a few mins of use.

also to note on this.
15A plugs wont fit into a 10A outlet (which is your normal powerpoint size)

unless of course you have a 15A outlet to use, or are willing to have one installed.

also ive got a smallish cheaper one, Supercheap Special basically.
works fine for smaller jobs. wouldn't be able to paint a full car with it.
but have painted a fair sized dining table and its done the job.
 

VR38

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Wondering minimum specs for an air compressor for spray painting a car. How many Lt tank minimum, what delivery p/s, direct or belt driven and how many up? Cheers

IMO if your serious about painting then buy the spray gun you intend to use and then get a compressor that will supply the minimum plus 20% of the supply needed of the gun.
Best place to shop for compressors is at tool/paint/panel supply shops.
 

Wombles

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also to note on this.
15A plugs wont fit into a 10A outlet (which is your normal powerpoint size)

unless of course you have a 15A outlet to use, or are willing to have one installed.

also ive got a smallish cheaper one, Supercheap Special basically.
works fine for smaller jobs. wouldn't be able to paint a full car with it.
but have painted a fair sized dining table and its done the job.

Or you could do what ive seen done. A filed down 15A plug to fit a 10A socket.


Dont do this. Its stupid.
 

VR38

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Shhh, I made up a 300mm extension cord, 10A one side and 15A the other end.
 

acarmody

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I just unwired the 15amp plug on my compressor and slammed a 10amp plug on. But I only use it down in the shed where the powerboard is rated to ~40amps, we just forgot to install 15amp plugs.
 

Mr Gop

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Delivery pressure depends on the gun. Usually around 28-30psi.

Always use the switch on the compressor, don't switch on/off at the wall. The pressure switch will unload the pressure in the head allowing it to start easier. Best to plug straight into a wall socket. Use a longer air hose if you need to work away from the compressor, reduces voltage drop. Empty your tank regularly. They fill up with water.

Some compressors have a constant run option rather than start/stop. These will reduce load on your system.

As the guys said, get a gravity fed gun, find out how much air you need and then get a compressor with enough capacity and allow extra so it isn't running flat-out or you will kill it.
 

hi_ryder

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ive got a 3hp with a 100L tank. its been a few years since i bought it so i cant remember the exact specs but i know its between 13-15 cubic feet a minute (cfm), or litres per minute 370-420. ive got air tools that suck up over 400 litres a minute and never had any of them die while running them at a medium speed.

ive primed plenty of full repaints too with no dropouts in the air supply. ive never painted a respray at home just for the fact that ive never desired the sandy look but im sure it would with out much fuss. if your doing paintwork at home make sure you have the proper filtration coming off the the compressor. otherwise you will be getting oil and water in your job. (just in case you didnt know, oil and water in your paint is bad, very bad)
 
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